That's the nicest KZ650 I have ever seen. I've been building choppers for almost 20 years now, specializing in shovelheads, and that is a Kawasaki I would be proud to call mine
Thank you for the kind message. I had a few Harleys back in the day. I remember one in particular taught me a few things. It was a shoverhead hardtail chopper with a coffin tank. Simplistic and cool at the same time. Thanks again.
Beautiful looking/sounding bike. Never seen a dual mono shock before, which would be an oxymoron. Corrugated header was cool too. Not too hot on the turn-of-the-century single seat look.
Thank you for the comment. Hypercoil makes springs up to 2000 lbs. if you would want to run a single, but that depends on the weight of the bike. Depending on your shock position, I have seen bigger bikes slam to the ground with an improper setup.
How did you do the exhaust? Looks like some sort of flex pipe? Beautiful bike, I love the yellow paint and the blacked out motor. The tires also really do it for me. Even though it's not really a bike that I would buy as a commuter bike I can definitely appreciate the work that went into it! As a second or third bike just for fun, definitely awesome! I have a mostly stock 1981 KZ650. Upgrades on mine are the mag wheels from a KZ750 4 cylinder, along with the rear swingarm and read disk brake off of a KZ750 as well.
How about some more info on rear suspension? Looks like a KZ swing arm with a couple of mono-shock assemblies moved forward? How did you get shocks spring rate, damping/rebound and throw to work out without a linkage? swingarm flex?
Good observation, I added a rubber grommet that kept it away. I like to tinker with them until they leave.I used to go thru town yelling I TINK ,I TINK , but I didn't get a lot of business that way. Thanks for your comment.
Im curious about that aswell. Looks like m.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fuel-Tank-Cafe-Racer-VT3-for-Kawasaki-Zephyr-1100-750-550-black/283541837992?ul_ref=rover.ebay.com/rover/1/710-53481-19255-0/1?ff3=2&pub=5575376664&toolid=10001&campid=5338268676&customid=CjwKCAiAuqHwBRAQEiwAD-zr3Wz-sd80W6alyUHeJBaLGwU6MlGL7oy34sG6IuehRili-LlxRuFNwRoCvEUQAvD_BwE&lgeo=1&item=283541837992&srcrot=710-53481-19255-0&rvr_id=2239136827659&rvr_ts=53310f8416f0ad31bdf3a5bbffb86f37&_mwBanner=1&_rdt=1&ul_noapp=true&pageci=e57551cd-def7-4fbe-a753-19a2a18b7026
Thank you for the inquiry. You can buy those seats off of evilbay for about $40 to $45. I beat the hell out of the back of it, because I didn't like the lip. Wanted something flat.
Honestly, I'd rather just redo an older bike back to specs, with maybe a few little additions that the original bean counters didn't want to spend money on, but doing a bike like this will be 3 to 4 more times the money on certain models than trying to sell a stock bike.
Can I use a KZ650 kickstarter on my Kz750b twin. I have been trying to make sense out of the statistics and people want so much for kz750 kickers. Thank you. I love your vids!!
Does your KZ twin have the splined kick starter shaft coming out of the side case? If not, you're probably looking at an expensive trial and error to get something to work. If it does have the shaft, I would imagine a kick start for the twin wouldn't be too expensive. One good thing about the kick start, it allows you to run a very small battery if you forego the electric start.
@@coolmonkeymc8268 Thank you I guess I am looking at 50 bucks or so then. It does come out the side of the case and it is splined. I am going to use a capacitor.
@@jimmypopp2695 Yeah, I guess you could. If it's CDI, and being an older unit, you might run the risk of shorting it out. But if it's points, you would just be reliving the old Triumph chopper days. Good luck. Sounds like a cool project you have started.
@@coolmonkeymc8268 Thank you. This is going to be my daily driver. I am starting a custom motorcycle shop out here near Philadelphia. You know the old school type where the old timers hang out all the time and usually help build stuff cuz they are bored at home. There will be a keg on tap and the strippers show up after work because they know we are always working. Iron Horse Customs hopefully. So far I built a diesel bobber that I sold three days after finishing it to pay bills. The next one was a honda cb350 and that money went for tools. I was in an industrial accident ( I am a chemist by education) and I was in and out of the hospital for six months. It really made me think about what I want to do. The next one is going to be akin to the Ridley auto-glide with an automatic transmission that hopefully will pay for the next couple projects and a lathe. If you know where there is a KZ750 frame arund or even a roller with wheels a stock frame and maybe rear brakes and forks I would be interested because I have not been able to find any. lets stay in touch. Doctorhelixxx@gmail.com
@@jimmypopp2695 Thank you for the reply. Very interesting reading. You definitely own the stock market as far as enthusiasm. I remember a day when I used to have different plans like that. I just sold a KZ750 frame earlier this year. At my age, I would rather just be known as the invisible man. We used to have a lot of fun parties with burnout pits and shenanigans, but the kids grew up and moved. Everybody moves on, flowers grow, people get married. Hit us up if you're looking for something particular. We don't keep a lot of stuff around, but you never know. Case in point, I just sold a cool Tracy body kit for the old CB750 SOHC. Thanks.
