nightmoves
New Member
I picked up an '82 Kawasaki KZ440 LTD A/D as my first motorcycle a few months ago and have been obsessively learning as much as I can along the way from the forum here while tinkering around on this bike. Because I'm practically brand new to bikes and mechanical work in general, I've relied heavily on the knowledge and various threads of DTT to familiarize myself with basic maintenance and general repairs. All that to say, I don't know much but I've already learned a lot because of you guys and I appreciate it. Also, a forewarning. This thread won't be technically on par, hence all the photos. Here she is as of now. Got some tracker bars on the way and already cut down the seat.
So, first things first, I changed the oil, drained the tank and put in fresh gas, and I've got it running. But not as well as I'd like. I pulled the carbs a couple weeks ago and soaked all the jets. I noticed both of the rubber gaskets in the carb tops are too big to fit in the groove. So that could be causing some issues. But the bike idles ok and then sputters every few seconds and then, after about 5-10 minutes, eventually dies. Also, it has really slow throttle response. I pull the throttle wide open and it takes a few beats for the engine to rev. Not really sure what that means yet, but I'm assuming it's an air leak somewhere? I took a closer look and, sure enough, there seems to be a crack in one of the carb boots. So, I've added that to the parts-to-source list.
While I was poking around I also noticed that the air box looked a little... diy-ed up more than should be. But, again, this is my first bike, so I could be wrong. Any thoughts? Another possible air related source of the problem?
Also, I figured I'd go ahead and post a photo of each side of the bike for you guys to take a look at, just in case there's something obvious I'm not noticing.
Again, thanks for the help everyone. Now that I've pulled the trigger on a bike, I can finally join in the discussions here.
So, first things first, I changed the oil, drained the tank and put in fresh gas, and I've got it running. But not as well as I'd like. I pulled the carbs a couple weeks ago and soaked all the jets. I noticed both of the rubber gaskets in the carb tops are too big to fit in the groove. So that could be causing some issues. But the bike idles ok and then sputters every few seconds and then, after about 5-10 minutes, eventually dies. Also, it has really slow throttle response. I pull the throttle wide open and it takes a few beats for the engine to rev. Not really sure what that means yet, but I'm assuming it's an air leak somewhere? I took a closer look and, sure enough, there seems to be a crack in one of the carb boots. So, I've added that to the parts-to-source list.
While I was poking around I also noticed that the air box looked a little... diy-ed up more than should be. But, again, this is my first bike, so I could be wrong. Any thoughts? Another possible air related source of the problem?
Also, I figured I'd go ahead and post a photo of each side of the bike for you guys to take a look at, just in case there's something obvious I'm not noticing.
Again, thanks for the help everyone. Now that I've pulled the trigger on a bike, I can finally join in the discussions here.