Kawasaki part # 16036015 (Pilot Jet Rubber Cap)

Question for the guru's....

Is this part truly needed for the Keihin 32/36 carbs to function properly? Seems all 3 sets of my KZ400 carbs are missing these (except one I pulled out that was half rotten away at the bottom of the float bowl). First pic I tried putting it back in, but it wont stay cause its half rotten. Bastids online know that this is a rare part and are trying to charge 30$ a piece?! I need 6 of em. My buddy says if not installed, the bikes will run hella rich. Any input/feedback is greatly appreciated.

maybe a machinist can do it for far less money.

I was thinking someone with a 3D printer could. Its literally a rubber cap that sits in the pilot jet hole. They wear out cause of the constant exposure to gas, and with more and more ethanol in gas these days, these things just rot away with the quickness.

In regards to 3D printing. one solution would be to have nylon plugs made having a groove for an o-ring. Some of the 440s & 750s have polyester caps. see pic. Nylon is supposed to be more durable than polyester, but I don't know what material is better suited for this application.

3D printing would be a nice option if you can find someone to do it. The o ring should be available from Z1 Enterprises.

A few years back DoctorRoboto made / machined some from auminum rod .
See kzrider.com/forum/3-carburetor/379440-11...able?start=20#686026
I remembrr thst they looked really good in the photo which unfortunately seems to have gone.
You could check his profile snd see ehen he was last here. and try getting in touch with him.

My 750 wont run st all without these. Wont even run like crsp

Those plugs are readily available. Z1 sells them among other places. Suzuki GS bikes use them.

I cant find them on the z1 site...man that would be awesome, hopefully they are not 30$ a piece. Ill give them a hollar, thanks!

www.z1enterprises.com/carb-rubber-passage-plug-5.html

Measure the hole size and compare to be sure these will fit.

Those plugs are readily available. Z1 sells them among other places. Suzuki GS bikes use them.

I bought some of those a few years ago but unfortunately they fell out after about 2 weeks and the bike died. I think (dont quote me) that theKeihin CV carbs might have a piece in the bowl which holds the nylon/polyester caps in place

For $2 each they might be worth trying again though.

I stand corrected. I was thinking those carbs were Mikuni's. Completely missed the part about them being Keihin's.

With the BS Mikuni's the float bowl holds the plug in place, but not so with the Keihin's. You may be able to modify that bracket over the plug to hold in in place though.

BTW, I can see you are replacing jets on the carbs which is not generally recommended unless you are modifying the bike by running pods and exhaust. You haven't remove the pilot jet either which is the one that gets plugged up all the time. You need to find a good screwdriver that will fit the pilot jet slot snugly and then get those things out of there. Some PB Blaster and heat may help. Just don't bugger up the slot in the pilot jet. Also be sure to remove the pilot screw and soak the carb body in carb dip and then shoot carb spray and compressed air through all the internal passages to be sure they are open. When done install the OEM jets back into the carbs and be sure to replace all the various O-rings.

Good luck

Yeah there is a metal piece that goes across to hold it in, but allow it to move a bit, if that makes sense? Z1 listed a few part #s with the measurements, now I have to do some research and figure out what mine are, since the one I have is pretty much shot

I bought rebuild kits for the carbs, they are the same as what was in there, just clean and shiny. We had the carbs all apart and cleaned everything. The kit didnt include the pilot jet. So we took it out and cleaned it real good.

Maybe Im thinking about another carb, I cant remember if it holds it or not..maybe that was another one.