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What do I need to know about taking out my airbox/filter setup and putting individual filters on each of my 4 carburetors? I have a kawasaki 550cc zephyr. What about rain? Would the jetting be off?

That will LEAN the crap outta your bike, and probably wreck the bottom end. But she'll go a lot harder at the top end.

It will run leaner if you go to pod filters. If you don't rejet, you will not like it.

Heavy rain is a problem with pods. You will suck some water into the engine, resulting in hesitation and possibly stalling.

The last, and one of the most pervasive problems with pod filters on the Kawasaki four is airflow. The airbox provides a non-turbulent, relatively cool flow of air to all four carbs. With pod filters tucked behind the engine, you'll be sucking in hot air, which can lead to detonation and will throw off your fuel air mixture (hot air is less dense). Also, the pods will be pulling in turbulent air from behind the bank of cylinders, with different levels of turbulence, depending on each carb's position.


If you're willing to put up with all that, then pod filters are the way to go.

I've actually been running the thing without a filter for a while now, seems fine but it still has the airbox and middleman between that and the carburetors. I'd also put on a small aluminum cover so the rain won't fall directly on the filters. It doesn't sounds like it's running lean right now. But maybe it is.

Running.... without... a filter?

Please tell me you're joking.

Funny you should say that. Believe or not my boss has been running his Mitsubishi Galant without an air filter for almost 6 months now. Don't ask me how it's still running.

Reference rejetting, is there a general rule as to how much of a jump up in jet size one should go for simply going from a stock air box to pod filters? I ask because I just "finished" putting together an old (1983) 650 Maxim for a buddy at work and the guy that had it before took the stock air box off and tossed it. I just put on the pod filters after removing, disassembling and thoroughly cleaning the carbs and it, of course, it runs like crud. I can't even get it to idle. Sooo, I need to upjet it. The local dealer has an assortment of jets to choose from but I really don't know where to start. I would love to, in a perfect world, just grab the right ones and be done with it. I don't relish removing the carbs numerous times until I get it right. Any ideas?

Tricycle squid? Man!

Schlepstream wrote:I would love to, in a perfect world, just grab the right ones and be done with it. I don't relish removing the carbs numerous times until I get it right. Any ideas?

Tricycle squid? Man!

This perfect world you're on about..... if you find it, let me know, eh?

Unfortunately, in the world we are stuck in now, unless you find someone who has taken the time to make a jetting chart for your bike with your set-up, the best bet is for you strip your jets out, find what size they are now and pick up a handful of the next few sizes larger. And then try them until you get it running acceptably.

The pods will probably never give as good performance as the airbox did. If your lucky, it will run great at one rpm range and acceptably at all the others. Airboxes are as heavily researched and designed as they are for good reason. There is a shitload of physics involved in a stock airbox, the manufacturers wouldn't bother with all that if they could slap a set of pods on and get vaguely similar results. And the starting grids of every race tack would be full of pod equipped bikes.

Your best results would come from finding an old stock airbox at a bike salvage yard or something, if possible. Or a mitt fulla jets may be in your future.....

Tricycle squid is just a rating tied to the number of posts you have. It don't take many before that changes, so get yappin' and it should change pretty soon.

Well, I was afraid of that. When I was doin hot rods I finally had to go out and buy a jet kit for the Edelbrock carbs I was using. Spent over $100 for the kit and extra jets. My buddy doesn't want to spend much money on this bike. Was hoping someone had an idea to get it "acceptable" as you put it. Oh well! Should I swim backwards and squirt ink?

If you absolutely must squirt something, ink is one of the better options I can think of.