KZ 550 Pilot jets

I've been having problems with my bike at slow speeds. The engine loads up and starts to run like crap and dies. Runs great on the highway. So I pulled the pilot jets to check them, found they were not 32's like they were supposed to be, they have been drilled out to 38's or so. So I'm getting a lot more fuel then I'm wanting. Making the engine run really rich. Since these pilot jets are about impossible to get, would It work to open the mixture screws more to allow more air into the system. I am running pods and a a 4-1 exhaust.

Try Jets R Us: www.jetsrus.com/a_jet_kit_street/kawasak..._KZ550_1980-1983.htm

Motor Head wrote: Try Jets R Us: www.jetsrus.com/a_jet_kit_street/kawasak..._KZ550_1980-1983.htm

Those pilot jets are considerably shorter, but maybe they're worth a try anyway.


If you have pods with a 4-into-1, 32 would probably be too lean. I usually 34 or 37 pilots with pods, depending on the exhaust.

The air screws will mostly affect idle, and not much above that. But the needle position will make a big difference. I would try that first.

I got some new pilot jets in the tk22 carb rebuild kit. They weren't a Kawasaki genuine part but they work

Thanks nick, forgot to mention, most, if not all, of the rebuild kits have the stock 32 pilot and 92 mains, along with adjustable needles.

I got rebuild kits but they didn't come with pilot jets. They did come with adjustable needles, so I moved the clip to the third notch. Maybe I can move it back to the second and use a shim.

The bike runs great on the highway. Then when I get off the highway and slow down to 30-40 with long slow roads to get home the bike just gets worse and worse. Sometimes just lucky to get home. When I get home I pull the plugs and they are just wet amid black.

Of course you need to verify Wet Fuel Levels in the carbs using the clear tube test before jetting. But it sounds like if they have been drilled, I assume for Pod's,then if you have a stock airbox you would need smaller jets again.
If those listed at Jets R Us are wrong, maybe shoot them a email or phone call to see if they can supply what you need.
Turning out the air screws will give some relief, but you could also drop the fuel level 2mm and see what that does.

You can try the air screws, and even the fuel level, as Motorhead said, will make minor differences, but it sounds like you need bigger changes than that.

Lowering the needle will make the most difference. Shimming it is a little more complex. With a shim, the needle will bind. To prevent that, you can put a shim wire in the slide to give clearance so the needle still has some play.
home.comcast.net/~loudgpz/GPZweb/TK22mai...shimmingNeedles.html

This alters the final height of the slide, so you may have adjust theupper throttle stop screw, and idle knob.
home.comcast.net/~loudgpz/GPZweb/TK22mai...stmentsAndMaint.html

Finally got to go for a ride and the bike ran great. Lowered the needles back to the second notch with a shim. Loudhvx I understand your shim wire, but didn't do it yet, maybe in the future if I start having any problems.

The only place the engine is lacking it at very low throttle, in traffic where you are barely moving. Trying to give it just a very little amount of throttle it kind of bogs down easy. If you just twist the throttle a little more it picks right up and goes. Maybe just mixture screw settings??

Could be, but you might be able to get slightly thinner shims. I've seen quite a range of thicknesses in washers available.

If it is bogging as you very gradually open the throttle, or hold the throttle at a fixed, small opening, then it may be lean. So then you'd need a slightly thicker shim. These minute changes in shims are to compensate for not changing the pilots. So a different set of pilots may make it easier to tune.

I actually just realized that my rebuild kits came with pilots, but I've been using them as restrictors on my homemade carb sync. Maybe I'll use them, start stock and drill them out from there.

Flyndrive wrote: I actually just realized that my rebuild kits came with pilots, but I've been using them as restrictors on my homemade carb sync. Maybe I'll use them, start stock and drill them out from there.

Heh, yeah, old jets are good for restrictors on carb syncs. You can always use the ones you take out for that.