81 kz440 ltd- carb leaking gas

KzHeadach wrote: i used to have a leak on the carb boots... previous owner used some sort of clear epoxy that ended up cracking and chipping off. so i cleaned the rest of it off and JB welded the piss out of it and it works like a charm.
i dont have pod filters. they are the standard filters but upon further investigation, i realize that the air cleaner element(thin foam piece between the filter element and the filter housing) is missing... damn... not sure if the lack of air resistance that would normally be there if that cleaner where in place is my issue or not...

Get New Intake Manifolds/ Carb holders. You'll never get rid of the vacuum leaks by gluing over with JB or anything else. Just get new ones.
When you Cleaned your carbs. Did you remove the Jets, and the pilot mixture Screws?

Motor Head wrote:

KzHeadach wrote: i used to have a leak on the carb boots... previous owner used some sort of clear epoxy that ended up cracking and chipping off. so i cleaned the rest of it off and JB welded the piss out of it and it works like a charm.
i dont have pod filters. they are the standard filters but upon further investigation, i realize that the air cleaner element(thin foam piece between the filter element and the filter housing) is missing... damn... not sure if the lack of air resistance that would normally be there if that cleaner where in place is my issue or not...

Get New Intake Manifolds/ Carb holders. You'll never get rid of the vacuum leaks by gluing over with JB or anything else. Just get new ones....

+1 ! Excellent advice! You are lucky in that Kawasaki.com lists them as "Active" parts so any dealer can get them for you. Partzilla lists them at $23.70 each; you will not regret replacing them. Ed

find.partzilla.com/?r=t&q=16065-1027&x=6&y=10

Ive been flirting with the idea of getting new manifolds but right now the cash flow is pretty strict... I have them sealed pretty well although i agree... Ill never get them sealed completely... Ive been kinda leery about touching the jets and pilot screws for fear of screwing them up... to be honest with you guys, this is my first time messing with carbs... the whole process makes me a little nervous...

Considering you have the stock air cleaner I would not advise fiddling with the jetting or adjustment screws. Assuming the previous owner didn't change the jetting the stock jetting should work well with the stock air cleaner. Keep in mind, until you have an opportunity to replace leaking carb holders and the missing filter element, you have no way of knowing how well the engine will run with the current jetting and screw settings. Rather than trying in vain to adjust the screws to compensate for known problems (filter & carb holders) I would wait until I corrected the known problems. Since you already have identified some carb related problems you should focus on correcting them rather than creating new problems while trying to mask the known problems. Ed

Good point... I think I'm gonna first test my plugs first and then ill try spraying some starter fluid around the boots and see what it does. I guess I never tested the boots after I patched them.
U think a sock will work for the filter element?

NO, I would not advise using a sock as an air filter element.

Sorry to do this, but I believe you need a bit of a lecture from an old timer:

You need to face the fact that there are costs associated with owning a motorcycle just as there are with any vehicle. Gasoline, oil, filters, etc. cost money. Not a lot of money, but they should be purchased when needed rather than trying to substitute something that is going to just cause you more trouble. Using a sock as a filter rather than spending $5.49 for a real filter is a mistake that may end up costing you more money than if you just bought the real filter. Using JB Weld, concrete, or duct tape on carb holders is not a permanent repair and may not even temporarily help solve the leak. If you plan to ride the bike you should consider the consequences of taking shortcuts on repairs. At best, they could leave you stranded someplace in the middle of the night; at worst, they could get you hurt or killed if something bad happens when you're riding along at speed or in traffic. End of lecture; will one of you younger folks please help me down off of this soapbox. :laugh:

find.partzilla.com/?r=t&q=11013-1027&x=4&y=6




Regarding testing the carb holders for leaks. Carb holders will eventually develop tiny cracks in the mating surfaces between the holders and the cylinder head that can cause them to leak at idle. These cracks cannot be seen with the carb holders in place. I suggest you try the following. Get the engine warmed up and temporarily set the idle as low as possible without killing the engine (lower than 900 rpm if possible). The lower the better because with the idle very low the slides are nearly shut and the vacuum inside the carb holders is at its highest. Then spray carb cleaner around the carb holders, especially where they mate with the cylinder head and where the carbs attach to them. Carb cleaner works best for this test as it doesn't leave an oily mess with WD40 or evaporate so quickly that it is not drawn into the leaks as can happen with propane or starting fluid (ether). If the engine dies or reacts to the carb cleaner, you need to replace the carb holders. Carb holder leak related problems are noticeable at idle but generally don't have much impact when riding because the throttle is open. If you find you need to replace the carb holders soak the screws with Kroil for a couple days before attempting to remove them, and use JIS standard, NOT Phillips, screwdriver bits, and this will greatly improve the odds that you will not break or strip a carb holder fastener as so many have done. Let me know if you you need info on JIS bits, I have a good link for making your own at no cost. Ed

As I hang my head in my redneck shame, u are right... I've been rigging far too much stuff on this bike and it needs to stop.


I checked my spark plugs and it turns out I have 0 spark... They are still brand new so that has me thinking it may be my wires... Not sure, ill be digging into it deeper tomorrow as i do not have to work for the next 3 days. so for now, LETS GET DRUNK!!!

So I decided that tomorrow was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too far away so I started drinkin n tinkerin. I pulled the tank and spark plug wires off and cleaned up the connections and wuddaya know?
IT LIVES!!!!!!!!!
Very well actually! I took it around the block, with only 1 beer in me at this point, and got up to 65 mph... Like NOW!!
The only thing I noticed wrong with it was when it was warming up, the exhaust got Cherri red hot right at the bend where it comes out of the engine b4 I could ride it...
What's that all about?????

So I take it you are still running the engine with no air filter element? If so, that can cause the engine to run lean and overheat, and that will cause a premature engine failure. I recommend not running it until all the pieces are in place. At that point you will be able to determine if carb settings, ignition timing, etc. need to be changed to properly tune the engine. Running with no filter element is not a good idea. Ed

KzHeadach wrote: So I decided that tomorrow was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too far away so I started drinkin n tinkerin. I pulled the tank and spark plug wires off and cleaned up the connections and wuddaya know?
IT LIVES!!!!!!!!!
Very well actually! I took it around the block, with only 1 beer in me at this point, and got up to 65 mph... Like NOW!!
The only thing I noticed wrong with it was when it was warming up, the exhaust got Cherri red hot right at the bend where it comes out of the engine b4 I could ride it...
What's that all about?????

Perhaps timing advancer is sticking.

Not supposed to look anything like this:


Lube weight arm pivots:



Good Fortune!