Howdy- just got my FMF jet kit- With no pilot screw- i thought that came with it- wanted to go to 40,, and DO NOT want to take the carb out again-- is it ok to just do the main and needle without upping the pilot??? Iplan onrunning KLX300 headpipe and muffler and no airbox lid...

Also BRIAN-- I can't fully unscrew my fork cap-- and nothing below is turning to hold- I am trying to follow your pic's to a tee.. you said there may be soem resistance and to hold the bottom- but nothing is turning other than the end cap with just clicks one every revolution.. want to get this done for riding this weekend- HELP!!!

 

alot of guys still have the stock pilot jet in...

They guys down in FL put all new springs in marty's bike with out taking the forks off.... so im not sure i havent done it... but it cant be that hard? Have the service manuals?

 

The end cap should screw right off - the big 30 mm nut on top. It is threaded into the upper top tube. I be you have it out, but the weight of the bottom tube below is pulling it down so when you turn it it feels like it is just spinning there. Push up firmly on the very bottom and turn again counter clockwise and it should lift up.

Regarding the pilot, I never did go any higher than the stock #35 pilot in the CVK carb and that seemed pretty good for me. The test is to try it and see. If it is very lean and popping excessively on decel with the throttle closed, then you might consider bumping the pilot up.

 

you dont have to take the carb all the wayoff. the stock carb can be tilted so that you can take off the float bowl and get to the jets.

 

MikeM,

I added some info to Brian's original post that may help. I wanted to keep all the info together to make it easier to find.

Good luck.

https://www.kawasakiforums.com/m_123479/tm.htm

 

thanks all for the input-- Brian - you were right- JohhnyZ- good info.. the caps were unscrewed, but I didn't have enough pressure to push the springs up.. up till 2am- working on ALL THE MODS- not done yet- but I'm happy to say with the help of yoiu guys- it is going pretty good- lots of time though.. will report some little tips I picked up along the way also- like how to compress that moster shock spring..[:@]

 

I replaced two sets of springs on these bikes without taking the forks out.
For future DIYs if you don't plan on replacing fork oil also
1. Support bike under frame with a floor jack and 2X4 with the front tire off the ground. If your rear tire wants to come off the ground instead, place a weight on the rear tire. I put my bike in gear and used a tie down strap and dumbell to weight the rear tire.
2. Remove handle bar mounting bolts and hold bars forward with a bungee cord.
3. Loosen fork caps. When it is clicking on every turn, that means it is loose.
4. Lower bike down slowly until the top forks are about a 1/2" from bottoming out.
5. Use a 17mm wrench and unscrew the fork cap from the rod (I don't know what it's really called).
6. Pull the fork spring out slowly so you don't looseany fork spring oil.
7. Pull the rod up as high as you can and slide the new spring down as far as you can without letting go of the rod. Then place the 17mm wrench on theskinnypart of the rod at the bottom. The wrench should be inbetween the coils of the spring.The wrench should be holding the rod up now and not letting it drop back down in the tube.
8. Screw the spring down until ittouches thebottom of the fork.Only screw it down until it touches. There should be no tension on the spring. By doing this, the threads on your rod should be high enough to screw the fork cap back on. Do the same on the other fork. There are also some preload measurements that need to be taken during these steps to make sure your spring compresses about 1/2" when the fork cap is tightened to the rod. This is where the preload spacers come in handy if yours is off.
9. Lift the bike back up and torque the fork caps back on.
10. Install handle bars
11. Bounce the bikea few times to make sure there is no obvious problems andgo ride to see if anything does not feel right.

It also helps to build a measuring gauge to make sure your fork oil is even on both sides. Especially if you've leaked a little oil from dirt in your seals. I used a small round rod with a zip tie on it to measure the oil.

I did one bike without anyone to helpsupport the bike, but if you have a buddy to hold the bike upright, I highly recommend it.