TOPIC:

Be sure to check the fuel height in the float bowls via the "clear tube method", best explained by Patton.

Use the oem plug recommendation, and make sure the jets are the oem sizes, if you have the airbox in place. Most likely, pilot jet is either way too large, or the mixture scres have been very poorly adjusted - verify in your service manual.

MFolks wrote: Fully charge the battery and then check the input voltage to the ignition coils. If it's down more than 2 volts, you have a corrosion/wiring problem.

Cleaning Motorcycle Electrics

Get some of the De-Oxit electrical contact cleaner and figure on spending a good day going from the front of the bike to the back. It’s a plastic safe cleaner/preservative. www.deoxit.com is their website.

On the older Kawasaki's, a majority of electrical connectors are inside the headlight housing requiring removal of the headlight, then the fun begins.

Do one set of electrical connectors at a time to avoid mixing up what connects to where. Usually disconnecting, spraying with De-Oxit and reconnecting is about all you'll need.

However, when encountering the green crud of corrosion, a brass wire brush may be needed on the pins you can reach.
Some 400-600 grit wet and dry sandpaper strips rolled into a tube should reach the male and female pins in the more difficult to clean connectors.

Smoker’s pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and wooden toothpicks work as cleaning aids.

Really small electrical connectors may require the use of a welders tip cleaning tool assortment.

Most pins in the connectors are coated with a thin plating of tin, and others may be nothing more than copper or brass.

If moisture is added, the resulting corrosion lowers the voltage/current being carried causing dim lights, slow engine cranking, slow turn signal responce and lower input voltage to the ignition coils resulting in weak spark.

The left and right handlebar switch pods will need attention too as they have circuit functions like turn, horn, run/stop, and start.

Usually a spritz or two with actuation of the switch is about all needed for these switches unless corrosion is detected and then careful disassembly is required.

The ignition switch may or may be not sealed to allow spraying the internal contacts. I urge caution if attempting to open this up as springs, and ball bearings may fly out never to be seen again!

If your bike has the older style glass tubed fuses, I suggest replacing them as vibration can cause internal failure. AGX is the type used, and most auto parts stores can get them for you.

Clean the fuse holder clips, looking for signs of overheating(discolored insulation, signs of melting).
I use metal polish on a cotton swab, followed by spraying another clean swab with the De-Oxit and then rubbing the inside of the fuse clip.

Each "Bullet Connector" will have to be sprayed to ensure good connectivity, especially the ones going to the energizing coil of the starter solenoid.

The alternator output “Bullet Connectors” are usually behind the engine sprocket cover and will need inspecting and cleaning too.

The turn signal light sockets will benefit from a spritz from the contact cleaner along with the tail light/brake light socket.

Some brake light switches can be sprayed on the actuating rod, with the spray running down inside to the electrical contacts, others may be sealed requiring replacement if the switch is intermittent in operation.

Some people put the Di-Electric Grease on cleaned terminations/connectors, I don’t, as I’ve read/heard it can cause problems when it gets hot, actually insulating the connections, so the choice is yours to use or not.

I think I've covered about all of the electrical systems on the bike.........

That whole deal there is just far out man farrr out mannn the universal systemic oxidationl equivelent of sands and dust and someone who reallly is lonely ..

After the first two sentences I get the urge to get a baseball bat.

MAA! nother ones needs shuttin up!

Come here u oughta hear this .

But we have to strap you in your chair.

you get squirmy all over as it starts to thicken
and you get deeper and deeper into that psyhcogical state that says

If I hear this one more time I"m gonna puke

Evry man to a bat!

For the record, the 750 twins use the hottest plug of the series (B6ES) and the 750 fours use the colder plugs (B8ES). The twins need the hot plugs to keep the plugs hot enough to burn the carbon off.

I have changed plugs in a hot engine many times. Should be no problem if you use anti seize on the threads and torque correctly.

Message from Patton:
Oh Crap! Am truly sorry, wireman. I screwed up when replying to your post, and unintentionally deleted your post instead of simply replying with the following:

With hot engine, attempting to replace a spark plug risks burning fingers, so haste and jittery coordination may lead to initial cross-threading, then [you know].

For example, when pulled off the road for a plug reading after a high speed throttle chop, removing and replacing the plugs can be a tricky proposition without burning fingers ---

UNLESS using a short length of rubber hose, such as fuel hose or whatever, that fits snugly over the plug and allows removal and replacement without the finger-dance drama.
And affords necessary "feel" and ability to slowly and surely get the plug started in the hole without cross-threading.

Suggest keeping such hose on board in the bike's tool kit or document tray. Along with the psi pencil style tire gauge.

Good Fortune!

---

The Award Winning wireman post is gone forever, as I don't know how to retrieve it.
Patton

DoubleDub wrote: I've been told only to swap plugs when the head is cold? Isn't it easier to cross thread the spark plugs on a warm head?

True. Patience is a virtue. I've changed plugs in a hot engine with minimal knuckle burning. Use a thin pair of gloves if you're uncomfortable.

You want to make sure your engine is throughly hot (not even just "warm") if you'll be doing any high revs.

A good quality spark plug socket has the rubber hose inside already. Use a short extension to keep from burning your fingers.

wireman wrote: Message from Patton:
Oh Crap! Am truly sorry, wireman. I screwed up when replying to your post, and unintentionally deleted your post instead of simply replying with the following:

With hot engine, attempting to replace a spark plug risks burning fingers, so haste and jittery coordination may lead to initial cross-threading, then [you know].

For example, when pulled off the road for a plug reading after a high speed throttle chop, removing and replacing the plugs can be a tricky proposition without burning fingers ---

UNLESS using a short length of rubber hose, such as fuel hose or whatever, that fits snugly over the plug and allows removal and replacement without the finger-dance drama.
And affords necessary "feel" and ability to slowly and surely get the plug started in the hole without cross-threading.

Suggest keeping such hose on board in the bike's tool kit or document tray. Along with the psi pencil style tire gauge.

Good Fortune!

---

The Award Winning wireman post is gone forever, as I don't know how to retrieve it.
Patton

there goes my pullitzer!