fuel (petcock) question

[TNConnieRider]

Riding with my son a few days ago and we switched biked for a few miles and while he was riding (straight highway at 65 mph) if sputtered as if running out of fuel. Gauge says 1/2 full and he flipped to reserve out of instinct yet still had to pull to side of road. I hopped on and it fired right back up and had no more issues and ran as always.
Here are the questions. #1-what caused the "what felt like lack of fuel" and #2, I was prompted to inspect the petcock and noticed something I had not seen before. My PRIME position actually says OFF. Manual images and everything else in know shows this as PRIME. My guess is that the previous owner changed out petcock so now, I have to test flow to see if OFF is actually still PRIME or not.

 

[Nosmo]

Riding with my son a few days ago and we switched biked for a few miles and while he was riding (straight highway at 65 mph) if sputtered as if running out of fuel. Gauge says 1/2 full and he flipped to reserve out of instinct yet still had to pull to side of road. I hopped on and it fired right back up and had no more issues and ran as always.
Here are the questions. #1-what caused the "what felt like lack of fuel" and #2, I was prompted to inspect the petcock and noticed something I had not seen before. My PRIME position actually says OFF. Manual images and everything else in know shows this as PRIME. My guess is that the previous owner changed out petcock so now, I have to test flow to see if OFF is actually still PRIME or not.

 

Sounds like you have a petcock with a "manual conversion kit" installed.  Dan Bergmen designed one several years ago and Murph sold them.  I had one for several years before I got tired of the whole Kawasaki thing and replaced it with a Pingel.  Murph sells a kit now, but I don't know who makes it.  It has a different control lever than the one Bergmen designed, which used the original lever, just rotated 180* to give you ON, RESERVE and OFF.  It got rid of the vacuum actuation feature.  Here's Murph's website, www.murphslits.com, you can find a picture there.  Yours may be something else.

https://www.murphskits.com/product_info.php?cPath=1_94&products_id=483

[klr4evr]

@Nosmo - Is the Pingel valve “plug & play”? Have any part numbers?

[DC Concours]

pingel # 4211-CG ?

I think you need an adapter. someone will chime in.

stick with OEM. they work well. get overflow tubes and you are well covered.

[Locomotiveman]

Yes. Adapter needed. AND a reaming out of a larger Diameter hole in the tank itself. Easy but necessary.

[JPD]

My vulcan 750 doesn't have a prime position. It has off. You could have one of them. Looks the same and uses all the same seals and o-ring as every other Kawasaki.

[Nosmo]

Yes. Adapter needed. AND a reaming out of a larger Diameter hole in the tank itself. Easy but necessary.

Yes, that's correct. It doesn't take long and you end up with a CHROME PLATED fuel valve, that has a very good, very fine stainless steel mesh screen.

You can find the valve and the adapter plate on their website, call them if you have questions, they are very helpful.  SPENDY, but then.....IT'S CHROME PLATED.  I beieve they also have vacuum operated valves that work, on our bikes, but I won't swear to it.

http://www.pingelonline.com/prodcat/fuel-valves.asp

[TNConnieRider]

Riding with my son a few days ago and we switched biked for a few miles and while he was riding (straight highway at 65 mph) if sputtered as if running out of fuel. Gauge says 1/2 full and he flipped to reserve out of instinct yet still had to pull to side of road. I hopped on and it fired right back up and had no more issues and ran as always.
Here are the questions. #1-what caused the "what felt like lack of fuel" and #2, I was prompted to inspect the petcock and noticed something I had not seen before. My PRIME position actually says OFF. Manual images and everything else in know shows this as PRIME. My guess is that the previous owner changed out petcock so now, I have to test flow to see if OFF is actually still PRIME or not.

 

Nosmo,
That's it!  Thanks. Bike was owned at one point by a COG member and finding lots of little mods here and there.

Sounds like you have a petcock with a "manual conversion kit" installed.  Dan Bergmen designed one several years ago and Murph sold them.  I had one for several years before I got tired of the whole Kawasaki thing and replaced it with a Pingel.  Murph sells a kit now, but I don't know who makes it.  It has a different control lever than the one Bergmen designed, which used the original lever, just rotated 180* to give you ON, RESERVE and OFF.  It got rid of the vacuum actuation feature.  Here's Murph's website, www.murphslits.com, you can find a picture there.  Yours may be something else.

https://www.murphskits.com/product_info.php?cPath=1_94&products_id=483

[kkja13]

If you are running a fuel valve without vacuum then it is entirely up to you to prevent hydro lock if your carb float valves go bad.  Just a thought...

[Nosmo]

If you are running a fuel valve without vacuum then it is entirely up to you to prevent hydro lock if your carb float valves go bad.  Just a thought...

True, that's why you absolutely MUST have the float bowl drain tubes.