I started working on that Kaw this week. When we picked it up it had been sitting for almost 2 years. It would run but start-up and idle were kinda rough. I rode it home, took it on the freeway up to 70 and it ran pretty good but it did need some tuning. So let the tear-down begin!
I decided to remove the carbs first. It sounded and felt like a fuel delivery issue and I figured after sitting so long that the gas had evaporated and left an oily residue that thickened and might be causing issues. Pulling the carbs was pretty easy once I got everything that was attached to them loose.
Air Filters
I would really like to get rid of the air intake and change the single filter and housing out for some dynomans. Have to wait a while since their right at a hundred bucks but it would be nice and they look kewl too. Maybe after we clean the bike up and perform the necessary repairs well consider it.
Carburetor Cleanout
I started cleaning and BEHOLD! YUCK! I removed the float bowls, jets, fuel chambers, needle jet, and everything, and cleaned it all. All that dark stuff came out of just the float bowls. If you look close you can see oily buildup inside the chambers and even some corrosion. Fortunately, the diaphragms were still intact and in very good shape. The needle plates in 2 of the carbs were frozen solid inside and would not move. I had quite a time trying to get them out. The carburetor shaft choke would not move freely so upon reassembly I lightly lubricated it. After 2 cans of carb cleaner, they were shining and beautiful, ready to be installed.
Fuel Lines
The fuel lines were brittle so I went to Autozone and for $2 was able to replace those as well. The Cap Ends were brittle too and I thought they may be allowing air to be sucked into the carbs so I replaced those with the new fuel lines as well.
Other Maintenance
I pulled the spark plugs and they were pretty bad as well. One of them had so much carbon buildup I don't know that it was even firing. I also performed an oil change and when pulling the filter out discovered that the oil filter plate was upside down.
Test Ride
Now came the test! The bike used to have to be choked to death to start so I decided to see what would happen without choking it. And Wow! That thing came to life! It fired right up and sounded like a freaking modern sports bike. The idle was perfect and the throttle response was instant and without hesitation. I took it out for a bit and it runs like a completely different bike. It's fast for sure! It's got a LOT of top-end power and speed. I couldn't be happier with the results from a few hours of work.
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