TOPIC:

Hi, a friend of mine needs a fuel petcock (vacuum type) for his 1977 KZ650. It´s impossible to find one here in Argentina, maybe somebody has a used one forgotten in the garage and can send it to me...

Many thanks guys!

I don't have one, but just wanted to mention 1977 used a manual petcock and the 1978-up used the vacuum. The vacuum type will not bolt up to a 1977 tank because the hole for the fuel pickup in the tank is too small. So you need a dremmel tool or at the least a file to open up the hole. Be careful doing this needless to say.

OK, maybe I´m confused about the model-year of the bike... One thing I´m sure about is that the bike has the vacuum type petcock installed, but it´s leaking as a shower... Maybe a petcock rebuild kit will do the job?

Thanks a lot!

I'd recommend in NOT rebuilding the original petcock, as it rearely ever fixes the problem.
It's not always just the rubber parts that wear and cause the leaking, since the debris/gunk that wears them also usually wears a pattern into the petcock metal body itself.

The original part number for the '78~ KZ650 petcock supersedes 5 times IIRC, but unfortunately every single one of those 5 numbers are listed as being no longer available.

There is hope though!
When I needed to replace the petcock on my '78 KZ650, I simply took the mounting o-ring part number (51039-010) and found out what other models/years of KZ's also used the same o-ring.
I lucked out and found a dealership that actually had one of the many matching NOS petcocks in stock, albeit at a hefty $80 + tax.
All I needed to do was remove the back cover and rotate it (not the diaphram and plastic insulator plate though) so that the vacuumm fitting faces the front of the bike instead of the rear where it nearly touched the frame.
The direction the fuel fitting faces is even better than on the original petcock, since it faces inward towards the carbs rather than down, allowing plenty of room to add in an in-line fuel filter.

In short, there are still options out there.

I used this:
Petcock - Custom Chrome - Single Outlet 3/8 NPT
with this:
Petcock Adapter Plate 44mm 3/8 NPT
Just have to open up the tank to fit (file or dremel), and mount it on an angle as the outlet is close to the frame. Worked like a charm! Good luck.

Hey, thanks for your advice! I´ve already advised my friend to buy the petcock and adapter from Z1 enterprises, our search down here in Argentina was a total failure...

Thanks again, folks.

You could also purchase the Suzuki vacuum-style petcock from Z-1. It will hook up similar to the original.
I had the same problem with mine, I found the least costly way to deal with my petcock was simply to add an in-line gas shutoff valve. It was about $7 US.
Good luck