Please help me with my 77 KZ1000

650ed wrote:

Are you using fresh gas?

That bears repeating. if the gas was old, you'll need to flush the system from the tank down through the bowls.

great news everyone!!!! the bike started and ran today with some fresh gas and a little bit of starting fluid, i rode it in my yard for about 5 minutes then it just died, but there is hope now, i got it running

any suggestions as far as the whole suddenly dying thing? im at a standstill now but morale is up because it actually ran and i rode it for the first time in 2 years


thanks to everyone

also, i took out the carbs today and fiddled around with a screw, i think the pilot screw (on the bottom of the carbs, comes thru the float bowl, the only screw on the bottom other than the drain screw for the bowls

i have it seated 2 and 1/2 turns out from the fully tight positon

just thought i would add that in there as well maybe that will lead to some helpful hints that you guys are so well with giving, thank you again

77kz1000rider wrote:

great news everyone!!!! the bike started and ran today with some fresh gas and a little bit of starting fluid, i rode it in my yard for about 5 minutes then it just died, but there is hope now, i got it running

any suggestions as far as the whole suddenly dying thing? im at a standstill now but morale is up because it actually ran and i rode it for the first time in 2 years


thanks to everyone

make sure the air vent on the gas cap is clear or it will vapor lock and die every few minutes. Guess how I know that......

is the air vent on the cap iteslf? or somewhere near the carbs

the vent is in the cap....

i might also look into a motorcycle safety course

pull the plugs and squirt gas into the cylinders then replace the plugs and crank it it should try to run for just few seconds.if not then its likely not a fuel problem.also look at the plugs see if they are damp or smell like gas.were you using the choke when trying to start it?.if not try it with choke fully closed.

ok so the bike ran pretty good when it ran last week, it just died suddenly, any ideas? i ran it with the choke on, its the only way it would stay running. i dont know if it had anything to do with the screw on the bottom of the carbs themselves (pilot screw?) i turned these screws 2 1/2 turns out from fully seated and thats when the bike ran im not sure if thats too many or too little turns, any help you can give would be greatly appreciated you guys have been extremely helpful

thanks

If you click the "KZ Information" tab on the top you will get to a place where "articles" are. Under "articles" there is another tab for "tech tips". Under there there are 2 writeups that are excellent called carb 101 and carb 102. Kind of off the beaten path but worth seeking out. Some good info. I think 2.5 turns is 1 turn too many for most applications. But be sure to go find and read these two articles.

how did it run when it ran? it sounds like a fuel issue? try to take off the fuel line and let it drain into a pail for 10 min. this may tell u if u are getting a good suply and if the tank caps vent is clear.
if that is good i would check the float seals next.remove the bowl drain and make sure u have a good fuel suply coming out of each drain. if u push up VERY lightly on the floats the fuel should stop flowing.