The Zephyr Zone

anyone got any handy tips on how to get the carb rubbers to air box connected up properly ….. doing my head in I've used a heat gun and they are all nice and supple but I just cant get them all lined up and connected at the same time ...

done it .. in desperation I glued the rubbers to the air box first as they kept popping inside it every time I tried to wiggle them all onto to carbs .. I remember it was a pain in the arse with my old Z1r... just need to get the dent out of my knuckles now where I punched the air box

It may not be relevant to an 1100, but on a 750 there are two rubber blocks (one each side) glued to the sides of the airbox to position it in the frame. By removing these rubber blocks you can retract the airbox back in the frame another good 1/2" or more. They can be re glued in place once its all reassembled.

Might not sound much but it makes a world of difference in allowing the airbox to carby rubbers to retain their proper shape and so simply slip on. I always coat the insides of the rubbers with a thin film of red rubber grease to ensure they slip on easily.

Horrible job.. yes,you can gain a tiny amount of wiggle room by loosening the airbox,it helps but not much. one thing I've tried is to push the rubbers back into the airbox first, fit the carbs,and then wiggle the rubbers back through and onto the carbs,with one hand inside the airbox. Another method is to put steel rules across both sets of rubbers and slide the carbs in between them. The all time, absolute favourite method is to buy new rubbers and marvel at the difference....!