I've had my '77 B1 since 1980. Still love it! Since then I have added: -SR (crossed: 180 degree) pipes -electronic ignition (a must) -dual front brakes (easy!) -Barnett clutch springs -solid state regulator and rectifier -roller bearings for swingarm -LED headlight (MUCH brighte ) I am thinking about fuel injection to combat this Ethanol gas crap....a fun project! Oh, be sure and clean out the fuel petcock! I got rust and gunk in there and it would stall sporadically.
Second comment don't turn it into a cafe racer. I was thinking of that when I first got mine. But honestly it's best as what it is a universal Japanese motorcycle and a very comfortable standard position. It does look good with a Cafe style quarter fairing but that's as much as you should go. Every other change you would do to it is realistically a downgrade.
Awesome! I have a 79, my advice is spend your time and money doing stuff like cleaning and balancing carbs, Dyna S ignition, and wheel bearings/steering head bearings and swing arm bearings. Those improvements will make you fall in love with your bike and don't cost much (except the Dyna ignition. So worth it though.) Best of luck!
I had a 1978 KZ 650sr, it had 2 exhaust pipes crossed over in front, 3 disc brakes, a 16 inch rear wheel, it was like a 650 LTD, I had my 650 torn apart to the frame, I removed all the races for the bearings , had the frame glass beaded then painted Dupont Imron black with clear by a body shop, I had the motor out and painted it black and shaved the fins edges, the parts that came of the engine were chromed including the carb bowls and tops, I drilled the docs, put a new wire harness cause the old one looked weird on the new frame, then every fastener was not good enough so I replaced most with stainless or polished each one by hand, I chromed the kick stand and rear caliper brace too, I had the tank and body painted candy apple red by the same body shop.I put s Scientific 4 into 1 exhaust header and 4 K & N filters , re jetted them and dropped the front sprocket 1 tooth. I put new everything on the bike I had about $2,000 into it and I could not sell it for $1,500 then so I kept it, it had 64,000 miles on it when I traded it for and Audi, it went another 20,000 before it locked up on the freeway and sent him into the center divider.
Do it up mate. I had one of these when I was your age. (I'm 59 now). They were a good bike in the day. Cafe racer sounds good. The frame is the right strength for the engine unlike the 900 which used to get death wobbles on fast corners. I had pirrelli/metzler tyres which made it handle really well. The timing chain is always noisy on these, it doesn't matter.
I love my kz 650, which is a 1980 F1. I've also owned a '77 C1 which a friend now owns, and worked on and ridden several others. each one is a little different but those old regulators and those old coils generally need replaced or they will cause you phantom Gremlins. I really like the Dyna s kit, and you absolutely should get an eastern beaver headlight relay kit and a Bosch glass h4 conversion lens. those are really all the bike needs other than to just be in good general maintenance. If your fork seals are worn it's not a big job to replace them or much money. The bike will handle much better for having it suspension and good order. Sort out that basic stuff and it's an awesome motorcycle. If you're curious you can see some video of mine on my channel from a few years ago.
Good luck with it. These are good reliable bikes. I happened upon a 77 kz650 b1 and I got it with extra parts and I enjoy this bike - great backroads wkend bike definitely a keeper- vintage bikes rule can’t beat choice of push button or kick - I prefer kick always . It’s how bikes should be designed ! Don’t cafe that bike. - sorry to cafe lovers but very few look good imo. Original is best and personally more valuable to keep em that way. Peace!
I remember my first bike, a KZ 650 I bought in parts, loaded in the back of my uncles pick up and drug it home. Worked on it all winter, painted it green with a white stripe and had it running by spring. I had similar problems with the wiring but in the early 90s there was no Internet to rely on so digging through the manuals was the best I could do. After cobbling together my own wiring harness it was working well and I clocked many miles on that green machine. After watching you light that rear tire off I wondered why you didn’t walk it around in a circle? Haven’t you ever seen mad max? My favorite thing in the world was to leave a nice circle for someone, I used to do it in the parking lot of my friends work places just to let them know I’d been there!
Haha my parents already weren't impressed with a burnout in the driveway. I don't think leaving a circle would've helped my case very much. I can't imagine trying to figure the wiring without the help of the internet. I didn't have much knowledge of bikes when I began this project though. I've learned everything as I've gone along.
Keep in mind the regulator plus rectifier-vs- reg rec unit could be different in a big way. Your alternator out put to the charging components need to match. A good example would be alternator output equals 123 then the charging components have an out put of 234. So the alternator will never reach the usable low end voltage to circulate the charge.
These used Staters. 2 phase or 3 phase. These are not like alternators. And you can use a 3-phase rectifier on a two-phase stator, as long as it's wired correctly, with no issues. 2 or 3 yellow (phase) wires, one wire goes to the light circuit, another wire goes to the positive on the battery with a fuse in between. Very old and simple. Three phase will have a better low RPM charge then the two phase.
I have a 650 3 750 and a kz 1000. Election ignition full kit is only around 150 bucks. Never struggle anymore. Takes all the old parts and updates them. Better throttle response better charging and jo more break downs. I'm from ohio if u have any questions feel free to ask.
I have a similar bike I have a 1981 Kawasaki CSR 650 it's having power problems not sure if it's the clutch or possibly an electrical problem but I could use some tips and pointers pulling things off the bike
I coulda told you it’s been messed with. A 1980 bike wouldn’t have a kickstart, the engine also has classic kawasaki logos and that bike would have updated 79+ logos. Good job persevering on it, i’ve had similar problems with my 79 which is also swapped.
Overall these, imo, are better bikes than the KZ1000. I've owned both. These guys don't have quite the power, but they handle and brake so much better than their big brothers. The engines are bullet proof. Adjusting the valves is a bit of a pain though - shims are under a bucket ( to prevent maladjusted, high rev shim spit) so the cams have to be pulled. I agree with keeping these bikes stock with the exception of the exhaust system & handlebars possibly. One can always keep the original parts.
I had one of these, and I remember the different versions. Mine was in that '78 to '80 time frame. It was super fast on the low end with the 4 carbs. I let it sit for a few years in a wet area and that messed it up. Great memories though. Interested to see what happens with yours.
Hi, half that bike seems to be a '77 B1. The electrics are from a B1 (reg and rec separate units). The F1 had mag wheels so the ones on your bike are probably from the B1. The front fork could be from the F1 (probably came along with the frame. So in the end, your bike seems to have been assembled from a B1 and an F1. There are a couple of (K)Z650 specific forums where you could get all the assistance required. Let me know if you want to register there. Cheers!
After 1978 the heads had a smog thing added, it was a little plate on top of the cam cover, the 1979 and later bikes had them. Your motor is a 1978 or older. My 1978 had 3 disc brakes , the 1979 KZ 650 sr had a rear drum brake and a single front disc.
I think you worded that incorrectly. All the SR models had dual front discs and a single rear disc. The non-SR models had single front disc and rear drum brakes.
Colton get used to these kind of Headaches when working on Old bikes, But when you finally get it all straitened out, Your goinna have a Really Cool bike Bro!...EVERYBODIE is "CAFEing" bikes, Why don't you be that Cool kid with a Original Classic bike?...I liked & suscribed, waiting for part 2. lol
I dont think you have a motor swap, you have a 1980kz 650f1 frame on a a old c1. F1 custom has fairing pieces, mag wheels and a rectangle master cyclinder
Nice video man, I have a 1998 kz1000p. I got it in bad shape. When I picked it up it broke down like four times. It took me 3 hours to commute a 15 minute ride lol. But I did some research and after six months and lots of reasonably cheap parts, it rides great. Some old bikes just need a little TLC. I am in love with old bikes, I feel good when I get them going again, never had a hobby till now. Look forward to seeing more videos from you, good luck 🍀.
Haha 3 hours to make a 15 minute commute is the truth. Last time I rode it, it broke down right near my friends shop, so it's been sitting there. Picking it back up tomorrow, so some new videos will be out very shortly.
My first bike was a 1978 KZ650 C (Custom) that I bought new. Awesome bike. I regret selling in 1980 to this day. The only thing I would have changed out was the cast wheels it came with. Good looking but Dead Heavy.
@@ColtonsGarage Do you still own it ? You might be interested in checking out " Johnnysvintagemotorcycle " RU-vid channel. The shop is in Ohio. They restore almost exclusively 1970's to '80's Kawasaki Z, and KZ bikes. The most recent video is the start of a KZ 650 restore.
@@boxwoodgreen I do. I actually just put out part 9 of the build series and part 10 will be out next week sometime. Johnny does some great work. I enjoy his videos.
Colton get on Johnnys vintage motorcycles page this guy Is a GURU on Kawasaki Z1s and bikes just like your's he has every nut and bolt in stock for that bike I personally guarantee it check him out.
It's not "sputtering and popping", it's running on only 3 cylinders, one of the plugs is not firing at all. It needs new plugs, new plug leads, and the points clearance checked. It should never sound like this. Those engines purr smoothly when all 4 cylinders are firing.
In the future videos I will be for sure. I'm going to get is back together with the existing harness for right now to get it running again. But, the original harness is a spliced up mess as you can see in this video. My plan is to try my hand at making my own harness using Motogadget's M-Unit and few of Motogadget's other cool toys.
Colton, if you want to see just how lovely these bikes can be, look up "Johnnysvintagemotorcycle" channel. Some of the bikes he restores are works of art. The most beautiful 4 cylinder bikes I have ever seen come out of Johnny's work shop.
So what can one expect to pay for one that’s not running but has lots of goodie’s on it Kerker pipe and has been customized has rear air shocks and dyna pack electronic ignition guys asking two grand for it and it’s not running he said the carburetor s have just been rebuilt and not even on the bike yet but it’s got a starter issue and it’s got wiring issues as well but less than 25 thousand miles on it should I buy it or look for something else that is running but needs some love thanks for your opinion on what I should Do I can’t find what they should cost for a cherry one and I intend to keep it if I buy and cherry it out thanks 🙏
The guy wants two grand and it’s not running but should be easy to get it going been parked and it’s should I get it and is it a deal or too much money thanks
It’s a project that he just never finished and he wants to sell the bike but expects to get his two grand back he has spent on the bike. I’m wanting to buy it but trying to get some information about price first don’t need a boat anchor for two grand plus plus? Thanks for listening and giving me an opinion
It's tough to say. I haven't really kept an eye on the market lately. I paid $500 for mine and it was running a few years ago. When I got mine a really nice bike was $2k . A mint condition one was $3-5k. But, with everything else prices have gone up. I'm not sure where the fair price lands at now. I will say I've noticed how much harder it is to find them and parts in the last couple of years after getting ready to start this project again.
Great job man...please don't sell that old lady of yours....it is a great motorcycle...take your time and don't rush and especially don't cut anything....lol...make a nice old school mean machine.
I agree. I've been wanting one of these for a long time, and now that I almost have the money for one it's difficult for me to find one in good shape. All of them are cut up or just stripped to the frame only. They're getting really hard to find stock, just because they have a reputation for being fairly cheap.
@@agentnuget not here in Portugal and they are doing the same making very hard to find a good old stock machine. Here, almost all the old motorcycles from the 70' and 80' are very expensive
Naru fluffyfluff hopefully within the next week or two I'll be able to get an update video out. The cold weather has finally broken and now it's been raining..... :/
I'd get a copy of the wiring diagram and get a real good understanding of wiring, and I'd also develop a real good understanding of carbs and how they work. Just develop a good understanding of the theory behind both wiring and carb tuning in general. Doesn't have to be specific to the KZ.. but, learning those was the biggest thing for me making leaps and bounds in my abilities. Not just for the KZ, but cars, motorcycles, small engines, etc. The same concepts apply to everything.
those KZ engines, Prerunner to the KH were great units, with Dynamically balanced cranks, and lovely mid-range power, when all four carbs are balanced (you need 4 lollipop sticks to balance them the old way) Fit a modern Japanese-made or German-made CDI system, they're cheap, they work and you will notice a huge difference to the power with the retard & advance characteristics they have, stating will be instant, power delivery much smoother, slightly higher top end and perfect idling,. . . next video forget the music, most men like motorcycles but not all men like that sound you edited on to the video. .
That whole bike is not a 1980 model. It's more like 1978, there should be a model year on the ID plate. I have the same bike. Your engine sounds bad. The year model is also stamped on the muffler. I could be wrong, but in Australia, that was a 1977 or 78 model.
It sure does. It'll get there though. The next issue to tackle is the clutch slipping. Just ordered a new clutch kit last night for it. Then onto the next problem.
Colton Peterson it's probably just the springs that are worn out. Happened to my kz too. But should replace the friction plates too. Soak them in oil for an he before installing. And I'd get an airbox if I were u. Pods don't really do anything plus u can easily suck water in
Fire dude! This beat bangs🔥 that melody is on point and those drums are bouncy af💯 I also make beats so check the channel if you got some time... loving your work❤❤