TOPIC:

1986 zx600a 22k miles
gifted to me from a military buddy
running pods with ths jetting it came with... looks like dynojet kit
carbs are clean, tank is clean, valves adjusted
starts easy on choke and runs great... issue i have is a wandering idle... carbs are synched.
another weird issue is when coming to a stop idle will drop then comes back.
float levels are dead nuts at 17mm. Is it running pods causing the idle issues?

If they are cheap filters, they may be blocking the air intake passages in the mouth of the carburetors, which will mess up the mixture. If they are from APE, K&N or Uni, they should be fine.
Wandering idle is usually a sign of a really lean mixture, caused by leaks around the carb holders or improper pilot mixture.
The idle drop when stopping is often a sign of a very rich mixture, or the idle speed is set much too low.

Are the carb boots original?  If so it's common for micro cracks to form which can lead to an erratic idle.  And spraying junk on them in search for air leaks doesn't always find them.

 

Mew boots
carb synch is dead nuts
maybe I need to give mix screw half a turn out

K&N filters
 

your float height is 17mm.
What is your fuel level coming in at?