Hard Starts When Cold

[Anonymous]

carbs.

turn mixture screw OUT to richen. the air and idle jets and screws do have an affect on choke /starting performance as your slides are closed when starting - so cleaning the carbs ,pulling out the jets (one the float bowls arre removed) is a good idea.
I run small clear inline gas filters on my bikes for last few years.
crud accumulates in the gas tanks and guess where it goes??!!!
on ebay youcan buy a mikuni tuning book for $20. explains alot about idle circuits etc, exploded views--- might help. all mikuni VM style carbs are the same.
good luck.

[Hoomgar]

Hey that sounds good. Do those books have a name that you know off hand to aid in my search? I hate looking through 1500 items to find one that I want. If you know an exact name I can really narrow my search.


I have read all the entries here and am considering it all. It really sounds like from what a lot of you have said that this is definitely a carb problem. So that is where I am going to start for sure. I guess there really isn't much else it could be. The plugs look like new and it fires fine so I doubt it is anything in there.

[Hoomgar]

Well I shot home over lunch to pick her up since the forecast changed and they are not calling for rain until late tonight. I get home and my new K&N factory replacement air filter element has come

So I install it and ride back into work. Now it is really stagey. The rpm's are erratic and unless you hammer it it seems to want to cut out. Never did this before? Is that because now that it is breathing better it is running lean now? I think I am getting the hang of it.

Anyway it isn't really ridable this way so looks like the week end will be spent cleaning and adjusting carbs. Also I don't know how it could be related but my cam shaft covers are leaking oil a bit. Mostly at the little half moon end plugs. Could this be from running bad?

[Anonymous]

carbs. oHHHHH grasshopper.

K&N's flow MORE AIR. lean out your starting-which is lean to begin with. making things worse.

remember-i said to close OFF partially your intake and try starting?????
after you take filter out??!!!


search ebay m/c parts - then further search mikuni= this should bring up the booklet I'm talking about. let me know.

[Anonymous]

hey mark;

The carbs on kz550's were mostly tk series units. 22mm i think. anyway they use honest to gosh choke plates instead of enrichining circuits. So check that the choke plates are closing all the way when you pull up on the choke lever as sometimes they stick and don't close properly. If they don't close the 550's are recluctant to start as they are pretty lean anyway which is some of the reason why it runs different with the k&n drop in. If you have a manual for the kz check the carb section as to how to adjust the choke plate. If any questions holler and I'll try to help if i can
later duuude.

[Hoomgar]

Right now I am trying to find the threads that I have seen before on here where there was tips given on how to get these dang blabbit things out!!!!!

I cannot get the carbs out the way the manual says. Just pull back and remove them from the bike after loosening everything they say. Well they are free to move and everything is loose but there is not enough physical room for them to move back enough to pull out of the intake boots!!! Arg!!!

It is so frustrating. I would have had this done last night if it wasn't for this. And I have been searching to no avail for past threads with these golden nuggets of wisdom in them.

[Anonymous]

yea' easier said than done huh? If you pull the air box back as far as you can and up making sure the springs are off the boots that would tip the boots down enough to force the carbs off and give enough room to pull off from the cylinder boots. putting them back on is even harder

[Hoomgar]

There is no way these carbs are coming out of here unless I pull the engine. This is crazy.

[Hoomgar]

OK I got those blasted carbs out. And I have cleaned them extensively. But I do not see anything fancy in them. And there is only one adjustment screw on them and that is the idle air/fuel adjustment screw. Is this the animal you guys are talking about? Because the factory has it plugged off! How on earth do I remove that plug without damaging the screw behind it?

[Hoomgar]

Well Thanks to all again. I tore those carbs apart and cleaned every part and orifice there was then put it all back together. Dom suggested that to get the plugs out that the factory put in there to block the idle air/fuel screws I should carefully drill a small hole in them, put a screw in it and pull them out. Well that all went to easy and worked great!

I followed the directions from multiple threads here on this subject as I spent all day looking them up and reading them and I believe that as of 1:30 AM 8O I have these suckers dialed in pretty close to perfect. The bike never ran this good. It actually has some low end pull now and it is running so smooth I couldn't believe it.

I just got back from a gas run to test my final settings out and I think they are final, I am not going to play with it anymore. It is purring like a kitten and really screams! Not more lean cutting out and best of all... IT STARTS WITHOUT SPRAY!!!

WooHoo

Rock on...

[Anonymous]

congratulations Mark! woo hoo- happy riding! i know how frustrating carb problems are.... good job.

[Anonymous]

congratulations Mark! woo hoo- happy riding! i know how frustrating carb problems are.... good job.

WE DONT HAVE COLD STARTS IN FLORIDA DO WE SUE???

[Anonymous]

hey mark...

i was just reading about your carb cleaning exploits and i wanted to ask...did you just use a can of carb cleaner spray or did you get the whole dipping contraption...for cleaning the pieces up....

seems like an obvoius question but i wanted to ask

[Joe Nardy]

Mark,

Great job! You are now a carb expert!

Joe

[Hoomgar]

hey mark...

i was just reading about your carb cleaning exploits and i wanted to ask...did you just use a can of carb cleaner spray or did you get the whole dipping contraption...for cleaning the pieces up....

seems like an obvoius question but i wanted to ask

No I am an old muscle car head Phil so I am quite proficient with a can of Berkible Gum Cutter 2+2 and a toothbrush

I cleaned those babies up inside and out so clean you could eat off um

It worked out so well in the end. The bike runs 3 times better, no exaggeration!