kz440 jetting

hello everyone,
Im new to the site and somewhat new to motorcycles in general. I have a quick question and i hope someone has an answer for me. I bought a 1981 kz440 about 3 months ago. When i got it, it didnt run at all. I took the carbs all apart cleaned them up and got it running pretty well but now i put the individual air pods on it and i was wondering if someone could give me an idea as to what size jets i should use for the increased air coming in. Now i do not know what is in there right now and i have heard to go 25%bigger of a jet but to me that means nothing. lol, I can do the work myself but when it comes to the sizes i have no knowledge. I hope someone can help!

have you done a compression test,adjust the valves,tune up?
look in the filebase for the specs
try 4% larger than stock to start with
so if the stock main jet is 100 try a 105
most jets for the carbs used on KZs are sized in 2.5 increments
then you'll have the jet needle and pilot jet to play around with

qualitylawns05 wrote:

now i put the individual air pods on it

Yes... and now your @#$%ed! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

SERIOUSLY though... put the origional airbox back on until you have the thing running in excellent condition.

Set proper valve clearances.
Check cylinder compression.
Check carburetor fuel/float levels.
Make absolutely sure there are no air leaks anywhere.
Set timing dead on.
Use a proper manometer to perform (VERY NECESSARY) vacuum syncronization of the carburetors.
Tune the mixture screws correctly.

GET THE MANUAL, it saves its weight in gold!

GL! man...

Do it.

To reiterate the previous reply...

According to a number of knowledgeable folks including some Kaw mechanics, the KZ440 w stock carburetors is virtually impossible to tune with pod filters. So, reinstall the airbox & treat it with kid gloves - 440 airboxes seem kinda rare & the cap is even rarer still. Or do whatever you want.

thanks everyone. I think I might just take it to someone who will take care of it for me. Thats getting in a little deeper than i wanted. lol. The stock airbox is not gonna happen anymore. Its now ridgid frame and stretched 8 inches. Im going to finish the frame and body work and take it to a shop around here to get it running in top shape. When it comes to motors im not the smartest person. ill post some pictures when i can for everyone to see it.