Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Everything in-between the gas cap and the carbs. Also how the engine inhales.
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Dino
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Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Fri Oct 26, 2012 5:15 pm

The other day I started up my bike and while I was putting on my gear I noticed that gas was leaking from the petcock.
Even after I turned off my bike, it still kept on leaking. From what I observed, it was leaking from the plastic spacer.
I took off my tank and unscrewed the petcock and I noticed one of the thin films that cover the spacer on both sides was ripped.
Does anyone know if that is the main cause of my leak? If so, I think a repair kit wouldnt really help me that much.
Should I just buy a new oem petcock? any help will be appreciated

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Triangles
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Triangles » Sat Oct 27, 2012 10:36 pm

below is an exploded diagram of the fuel petcock assembly. I have no idea what "plastic spacer" you are referring to. There is an o-ring between the tank and petcock. You should be able to take it apart and figure out what is broken. Buy just that part and put it back together. That way you don't have to buy a whole new petcock.
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petcock.JPG
petcock.JPG (24.5 KiB) Viewed 20015 times
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Dino
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I ride: '96 Vulcan 500 LTD
Location: Southern California

Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Sun Oct 28, 2012 11:27 am

I removed the back plate of the petcock and everything seems to be fine except for the spacer or I guess you could call it a gasket.
it gets held on with the back plate.
The diagram doesn't seem to list the part I'm referring to.
I marked the diagram to show where this spacer/gasket goes.
I'll take a picture of exactly what Im talking about once I disassemble the petcock again.
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petcock.JPG
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Triangles
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Triangles » Mon Oct 29, 2012 12:44 pm

I have a better understanding now. I thought you were saying there was a spacer between the petcock and the gas tank or something. The gas valve is vacuum operated when in the on/reserve positions. I've never had one of these apart so I don't know exactly how they work internally. I'm completely speculating here... That spacer/gasket may be apart of the diaphragm that the vacuum acts against to open the valve. If that's the case it doesn't look like it's an OEM replaceable part. You might want to consider buying a used petcock from fleabay and canabalizing it for the bad parts in your petcock or simply swapping it in for your petcock.
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Dino
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I ride: '96 Vulcan 500 LTD
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Mon Oct 29, 2012 4:22 pm

Yesterday I had everything assemble because I had fixed a damaged hose and everything appear to be fine. I warmed up my bike and noticed the leaking had stopped, so I took her out for a ride. When I got home and turned it off, it started dripping gas from the same spot it leaked before.
I just finished taking it apart again and included some pictures.
I could buy a used one but then I might have the risk of running into the same problem.
I was also considering buying a manual petcock but I dont know yet.
Attachments
Photo on 2012-10-29 at 13.56.jpg
the two thin black films on both sides appear a bit worn out and loose
Photo on 2012-10-29 at 13.56.jpg (34.46 KiB) Viewed 20003 times
Photo on 2012-10-29 at 13.55 #2.jpg
Photo on 2012-10-29 at 13.55 #2.jpg (42.24 KiB) Viewed 20003 times
Photo on 2012-10-29 at 13.55.jpg
the o-ring appears to be fine on this side
Photo on 2012-10-29 at 13.55.jpg (39.67 KiB) Viewed 20003 times

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Dino
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I ride: '96 Vulcan 500 LTD
Location: Southern California

Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Mon Oct 29, 2012 11:09 pm

Im really considering buying a manual petcock instead to avoid any future problems.
I've read that the ethanol in gasoline tends to mess up certain parts(like the petcock) on carbureted vehicles.
I'm not sure if thats true or not but since I live in California and dont have access to gas without ethanol, a manual petcock sounds hassle free.
Its also less expensive than buying a new oem petcock.

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Dino
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Tue Oct 30, 2012 11:41 am

On the contrary to my last post, Im going to get the oem petcock instead.
I couldnt really find a manual one and I wouldnt want hassle with one from a different bike.
I do realize my bike is a bit old and a brand new petcock should hold up for a good while.

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Triangles
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Triangles » Tue Oct 30, 2012 11:59 am

Looks like the gasket/diaphram or whatever that is, is bad. I'd assume this has what you need since the pictures from the other kits looks similar to your problem part. scroll down to Kawasaki - 2763 $27 bucks I would think is cheaper than a new petcock. Also available on amazon.com You can find others by googling "K&L 18-2763"
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Dino
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I ride: '96 Vulcan 500 LTD
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Tue Oct 30, 2012 1:56 pm

Thanks for your insight.
I'm going to buy the repair kit instead since my budget is a bit low to begin with, hopefully this will solve my problem.

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Dino
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I ride: '96 Vulcan 500 LTD
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Sun Dec 02, 2012 3:59 pm

I rebuilt the petcock about a month ago already and a few weeks after I noticed that it still dripped a little bit of gasoline, not as much as before though.
What else would cause it to leak?
I feel I should mention that the previous owner put a set of harley pipes on the bike, but I think he didnt rejet the carbs becuase I get some backfire if I let go of the throttle quickly. I dont know if any of this would contribute to the problem....

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Triangles
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Triangles » Sun Dec 02, 2012 11:31 pm

I don't know what else the problem could be. I can tell you the bike "backfires" (technically it's an afterfire) when you let off the throttle sort of by design. Thanks to the eco-nazis, Kawasaki has a system that dumps air into the exhaust to burn up any unburned gas that makes it to the exhaust pipes. Google Kawasaki Clean Air System. Also changing the mufflers won't throw off the carbs enuff to require rejetting and the Harley mufflers would have no effect on your problem.
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Dino
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I ride: '96 Vulcan 500 LTD
Location: Southern California

Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Dino » Mon Dec 03, 2012 12:31 am

I took my bike out for a ride early today, it had been about a week since i rode it.
I rode it a little faster than usual to see if the petcock would interfere at all but it didn't.
Now surprisingly it hasn't dripped anymore fuel, even after checking it a few hours later.
Hopefully the problem has gone away.

mr.clean
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby mr.clean » Tue Sep 10, 2013 12:53 pm

Are the barbs on the petcocks removable?
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Triangles
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby Triangles » Tue Sep 10, 2013 6:36 pm

they are not supposed to be removable. I don't remember which bike it was but I had one come out that wasn't supposed to. JB Weld fixed that :)
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mr.clean
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Joined: Tue Sep 10, 2013 12:13 pm
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Re: Petcock leaking on my 96' 500 LTD

Postby mr.clean » Tue Sep 10, 2013 8:02 pm

How long did that hold up for you?and would you do it again?
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