just bought a 1981 kawa z400j havin probs

[kawasaki z400j]

hi ppl i need some major help lol i bought the bike yesterday its a kawasaki z400j in good condition the only thing is it wont run there is petrol gettin to the cylinders and it has good sparks from all 4 cylinders but doesnt seem to want to start before i go and spend hundreds on some mechanic at my local village is there anything i can try that will explain y she wont fire up all help is greatly wanted thankz ppl
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Nothing like a good blast up mattlock

[craigT19]

how do you no theres a good spark and petrol if its not running????

when was the bike last on the road??

my dad had a similar prob after leaving his gixer1000 in the garage over winter.
he was starting the engine regularly but wasnt warming it up properly so his plugs became coated in lead from the petrol as it wasnt being burned off, he changed his 2 outer plugs because 1 of them is usualy the first to fire, after 10 minuts of running on 2cylinders the middle 2 both came back to life.
(im not absolutely sertain if the outer cylinders fire first but on the gixer1000 they are the only 1s u can get 2 without removing the airbox)
hope that helps:)
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Bikes owned :- 2001 nsr125, 1999 zx6r, 2006 yzf-r1, 2009 xmax 250, 2012 yzf-r1, 2015 MT-07
Current bike : - 2016 MT-10
BCF member pops. sadly missed 1945-2003

[kawasaki z400j]

i removed the spark plugs all of them then cleaned them and tryd them on metal they all spark well as for the fuel ive had second thoughts i tried it again and they dont seem to gettin wet only slightly when i clean them drop them back in and try to start it up and theres a strong smell of fuel from the carbs am i right in saying it may be the needles sticking or the carbs flooding or am i missing something as im reasably new to this im use to smaller engines my last bike was the suzuki x7 twin 250 that was a simple bike but very fast
____________________
Nothing like a good blast up mattlock

[craigT19]

hmmm if the cylinder is getting wet it means that atleast some fuel is getting in, take your carb apart and clean it it sounds like there may be no air getting in to the fuel mix, then it should should start, then try raising the revs slowely if it splutters then that would suggest a problem with your needles.

all the best
____________________
Bikes owned :- 2001 nsr125, 1999 zx6r, 2006 yzf-r1, 2009 xmax 250, 2012 yzf-r1, 2015 MT-07
Current bike : - 2016 MT-10
BCF member pops. sadly missed 1945-2003

[kawasaki z400j]

ive had a look and havent the first idea on how to get the carbs off theres loads more tubes and stuff to what im used to how much would expact to pay to have it fixed at a garage so i dont get skanked and how much would i expact to pay for a set of new carbs or second hand for it incase there fucked
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Nothing like a good blast up mattlock

[craigT19]

no idea i wouldnt evan atemp to take my nsr's or my cbr's carbs apart i have taken the nsr's off though when i de-ristricted it (it may be the same but it may not) the hoses should come straight off at the carb end there only nomally held on with a sort of clip but be shore to remember what each hose does and where it goes (i stuck coloured stickers on mine) as for the carb mine was only held 2 the cylinder with 2 bolts (again it may not be the same). i cant really tell you how much labour will cost cos it is different every where "but" i would go to a kwaka dealer or approved garage to get it done as there trained for your bike and there work is garanteed.

carbs them selves will probably cost atleast £60 pounds each depending on the make you go 4 its usualy best to keep the originals (im guesing here but is your bike an in-line 4??)
____________________
Bikes owned :- 2001 nsr125, 1999 zx6r, 2006 yzf-r1, 2009 xmax 250, 2012 yzf-r1, 2015 MT-07
Current bike : - 2016 MT-10
BCF member pops. sadly missed 1945-2003

[kawasaki z400j]

if by inline u mean the carbs are all in a line then yes and as for a kawa dealer i dont no if theres one in or near heanor were i live
____________________
Nothing like a good blast up mattlock

[craigT19]

inline means the set up of the cylinders i was just checking how many cylinders you had.

some terms for ya

in line 4 ---- 4 cylinders in line
paralell twin --2 cylinders next to each other firing at the same time
v twin ------- obvious to cylinders in a v shape

its done on cylinders not carbs because carbs are different i.e i think its honda that put the carbs between the v and yamaha put them out side.
remember most wepons of tarmac destruction like the r1,gixer100 ect,ect are fuel injected, so dont have carbs at all.

back to your earlier problem its a shame keith walkers not on-line as hes like the local knowledge guru hes usually the person peeps goto with technical probs. (hes not often wrong too)
____________________
Bikes owned :- 2001 nsr125, 1999 zx6r, 2006 yzf-r1, 2009 xmax 250, 2012 yzf-r1, 2015 MT-07
Current bike : - 2016 MT-10
BCF member pops. sadly missed 1945-2003

[Ryan]

put a little bit of fuel in each cyclinder and then screw the plugs back on this will check if ur fueling is the prob. because if it starts it means the sparks are ok, if it doesn't the fueling has gone to pot.

[kawasaki z400j]

i can do that the 4 cylinders are in a square shape and the 4 carbs are at the back ill try puttin fuel into cylinders and seein if she fires up and thankz for all help keep it commin lol
____________________
Nothing like a good blast up mattlock

[craigT19]

if that dont work threaten it with a lump hammer, or kick it a few times
____________________
Bikes owned :- 2001 nsr125, 1999 zx6r, 2006 yzf-r1, 2009 xmax 250, 2012 yzf-r1, 2015 MT-07
Current bike : - 2016 MT-10
BCF member pops. sadly missed 1945-2003

[Scooby]

Yeah either that or scrap it
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A big enough hammer fixes anything!

[kawasaki z400j]

i bought it too rebuild it and it looks like im goin to be doin just that ive checked the cylinders and the first cylinder has a peice of piston ring stuck to the top of the piston lol so i guess theres no sucksion for the fuel and thats y it ainto starting
____________________
Nothing like a good blast up mattlock

[Kickstart]

Hi

With a bit of ring floating round you could have no compression. Also, old fuel is lousy at burning. With a 4 I would expect it to fire even if one cylinder was way down on compression. Blag a compression tester and check out the cylinders, mainly looking for a difference between each one rather than an absolute figure.

Nasty, stuff, but you could try some Cold Start. However, first off drain the carbs and put some fresh petrol in. Also try tapping the float bowls with the handle of a screw driver (this way if the floats are stuck they will probably unstick)

All the best

Keith

[kawasaki z400]

hi can anyone tell me the firein order of the kawa z400j 4 cylinder there are no timmin marks on the points shes tryin to start up but wont and im not to sure about what it is ive completely stripped the carbs i think the cam timming is fine i havent lost my temper with it yet lol but gettin there

[Kickstart]

Hi

Probably easiest to get the firing or from the sequence the cams open the valves

All the best

Keith