TOPIC:

Doesn't the headlight turn off when starting anyway? (It's been a long time since I had my naked 1300 so I can't remember). In any case, if the headlight stays on when starting or if you're worried about the headlight drain when the key is on (motor not running), you can file a little bit of the plastic off the hi/lo beam switch ring (you have to take the switch apart) to create an 'Off' position. I did that mod many, many years ago on my 79 and it worked well. Remember to turn it back on though before riding!

Ok I've followed page 50 referring to choke set up as Scotch suggested and the bike started, then I realised that I cannot achieve the .54-.55 gap as diagram E21 shows., I can only get 2mm? As it is now it idles great, the choke has good range and lift on the cam, if I do adjust the Philips adjusting screw to get the .54 , the choke cam only lifts the roller slightly and probably only starting with choke lever nearly half way up. Hard to explain! I,m gonna try starting it again tomorrow as I think my neighbours are trying to sleep !!!! Any advice would be appreciated. I am gonna get the bike running before looking at the light switch idea , sounds very interesting!

So glad to see someone actually open the service manual and follow the instructions. So Glad.

As i sit in my livingroom reading your post I can give you a hint to your adjustment problem based on my experience when I removed my carbs, stripped down and completely rebuilt. I do remember running into a set up problem with the choke and at that time thought that the previous owner monkeyed around and possibly installed the fast idle cam on backwards because no matter what I did, I couldn't achieve what I thought would be a reasonable lift on the throttle plates to provide a fast idle (rpm). I studied the linkages in the carbs for hours to try and understand just what the problem was. I did determine that the fast idle cam was installed correctly and yet I couldn't achieve the desired lift when the fast idle cam was engaged. Then I had a AHA moment. The secret lies in the rods to be adjusted when syncronizing the carbs. Typically, when syncronizing the carbs one tends to raise the rods of the carbs reading low to bring the low ones up to higher ones and what happens is it has an adverse effect on the rest of the linkage relationship between the idle circuit and the fast idle circuit. The service manual fails miserably in this area and at one point I seriously considered writing up a more thorough instruction to address this issue.
This set up problem is much easier to see with the carbs off the bike and sitting mounted in a fixture at a bench. If you try to figure it out while trying to look around all the rest of the equioment while the carbs are on the bike, you'll never figure it out.
The easiest way i can suggest to help you understand what i'm talking about would be to tell you to back off the lock nuts on the carb syncronizing rods and then rotate the adjusting screws 2 to 3 turns clockwise on all 3 rods and then go back and try to see how that change has affected the fast idle cam position (relationship) and then go and change the adjustment in the oposite direction on the carb syncro rods and see how that affected the relationship of the fast idle cam position. I promise, you too will have that "AHA" moment. Once you understand how fussy the linkage is, you'll gain the respect (or lack there of) for the adjusting of the carbs. Scotch and I discussed this problem a few years ago. We've both come to the conclusion that most of the drivability issues with the mighty KZ are related to set up issues wit the carbs and the lack of understanding on how to correctly set up multiple carb set ups. Carbs are not hard to work on yet so many who do work on them struggle to get them set up properly.

Noting that you've followed the service manual tells me you're the type of person that wants to "get it right" and for that I give you an ADA BOY. The manual sets the "standard" and by following the manual and coming up with problems helps identify "other" issues. People who don't follow the manual and then post problems leaves the rest of us scratching our heads trying to figure out what the member has done and what the possible problem is. In this case, I'll have to state for the record the service manual sucks in providing sufficient information to cover properly setting up the carbs and anyone who trys to follow the service manual in this case might get lucky or not. Nothing is worse than doing a rebuild expecting to get things back to 100% only to find things just as bad in other areas. And nothing puts a smile on your face than figuring out a problem like this and getting it sorted out and having the bike start like a charm and run like a Saint.
So go play with the linkage as I suggested and see what I'm talking about. once you get it sorted out, post a pic of your Selfy. I can't wait to see the smile.
KB

He he thanks for that! Yep the rods are a pain to get right will check it out my friend.

Carb linkages and adjustments: With the age and wear-n-tear on these bikes after all these years and the unknown "tinkering" that has undoubtedly taken place by multiple owners (usually), tolerances can be expected to be "slightly" out of norm. From the initial Manual set-up, the need for some "tweaking" can be expected. For example: The lifting arms for the choke plungers and the fast-idle cam should register in a specific position - every time - when the screws are tightened. The tightening screws have a Point - no pun intended. This point is intended to engage the groove on the choke actuating shaft. Over many years, usually several owners and countless "adjustments it's probable that the contact area on the choke actuating rod has become damaged/deformed. In this case the plunger arms will look like they're all positioned identically but if they are out by several degrees (relatively), several things are now established. The choke plungers will now start to lift at slightly different times (relative to each other) and the same can apply to the fast idle cam. This alone can make setting-up the carbs correctly for cold-starting, a challenge. This has no affect on the sync of the carbs., which is a separate entity.
Another issue which can compound the problem is the fast-idle cam set-up. The small Philips screw used to adjust the differential between the choke plungers "start-to-lift position" and the throttle-plate position can be a problem. If the screw holder (bracket) has been bent and is no longer 90 degrees, the efforts to get the required "Gap" will be compromised, if it can be achieved at all. If the screw-bracket has been bent toward the rear of the bike then No adjustment can be achieved. If the screw-bracket has been bent towards the front of the bike, then adjustment can be accomplished - just more of the screw end will protrude. Any "slop" between the parts due to wear-n-tear will have an adverse effect on the set-up. We've got to remember - The manual dictates these adjustments for a NEW bike. We're left to do the "tweaking.
The yellow line points out the 90 degree bend in the fast-idle adjustment screw bracket. The following 3 photos show the position of the fast-idle cam as set-up on my '80. The first is with the choke lever applied slightly - the cam-roller on the cam with only the throttle-plates cracked - NO choke lift. The 2nd shows the roller/cam with plunger-lift initiated and a "bit more" throttle plate opening, with a bit more of the choke lever applied. The 3rd shows the roller in the indent at the end of the cam. This is max. lift of the choke plungers and the throttle plates are closed , with the choke-lever fully applied.
I prefer to remove the Philips screw and use a modified version. The advantage should be obvious. Hope this helps.

Wow thanks for the great pics, will check the bracket first then. Really appreciate everyones valuable time helping me out.