fixing vacuum leak

I have a vac leak on the right side of my KZ305. It is in front of the carb. I think they are called the carb holder. If I spray carb cleaner in that area the idle goes up.

I was planning on taking it apart and looking at the general condition of everything. If it all looks soft and pliable then I would put some high temp sealant on the holder before I put them back on the head.

Does this sound like a good idea? Is high temp sealant OK on a cylinder head?

Thanks,
HH

If you have a leak, obviously the best fix is replacement of the carburetor boots. According to partzilla, the boots you need are still available and carry part number 16065-1013

See below

At best that will only help temporarily. Carb holders that leak should be replaced. They may be somewhat difficult to find for the KZ305 because according to Kawasaki.com it appears they have been discontinued for a while, but they can be found if you look hard enough. They are part number 16065-1013. Ed

Gasoline-proof sealants aren't also heat-proof.
Heat-proof sealants aren't also gasoline-proof.
Which results in sealing the carb holders being a temporary fix.

Am vaguely recalling that some folks have reported better but not perfect results when using one of the Three-Bond products:
www.z1enterprises.com/ItemDetails.aspx?i...+1194&item=TU53-0395
www.z1enterprises.com/ItemDetails.aspx?i...+1211&item=TU53-0403

As already suggested in this thread, the best solution is brand new carb holders.

Good Fortune!

OK OK OK OK. I figured that is what I would hear. Guess I just needed to hear it.

I will order new ones. Might as well fix it right...... especially if they stopped making them. Get a set now and be set for probably as long as it lasts.

Thanks,
HH

I replaced the carb holders this past weekend. OH WOW I have a new bike!!!

It starts much easier, it IDLES!!!

I figured I would fix the leak and then begin into trying to fix all the problems I was having. That leak caused most of my problems. I still have some issues to solve to get it running right. But wow it is much nicer now.

One thing I noticed: the screws that hold the carb holders to the cylinder head were really long. I ran one screw back into the head until it bottomed out in the tapped hole. The was so much gap between the cylinder head and the head of the screw that I wonder how much it really compressed the carb holder to seal it. I bought new screws that were a bit shorter and snugged them but they did not bottom in the tapped hole.

Thanks,
HH

happyhunter wrote: ...One thing I noticed: the screws that hold the carb holders to the cylinder head were really long. I ran one screw back into the head until it bottomed out in the tapped hole. The was so much gap between the cylinder head and the head of the screw that I wonder how much it really compressed the carb holder to seal it. I bought new screws that were a bit shorter and snugged them but they did not bottom in the tapped hole...

For comparison, kawasaki.com shows the original carb holder screws as size 6x18. And also shows washers, which if missing, could be the reason for the screws seeming slightly too long.

Good Fortune!

Good Fortune!