TOPIC:

Hello! I am a new KZR user from Clear Lake, Texas. I have a 1977 Kawasaki KZ1000. She used to belong to my dad. I am in the process of bringing her up to a high "standard" through a mechanic in League City; Some of you probably know Elson at Texas Cycle Center. Once he is done with his once-over, I will be enjoying her and maintaining her myself. I will be contributing as well as asking for help.



Cheers!

NASA

Hello, NASA, and WELCOME to KZr!

Handsome bike appears to be an unmolested A1 model with a B1 (LTD) seat and welcomed aftermarket accessories including sissy bar, oil cooler, 4>1, and cruise pegs.

Would guess that the yellow spark plug wires replaced the original black wires; and may possibly find Accel (or other brand) ignition coils under the fuel tank that replaced the original items. All good maintenance practice.

Stock bike had points ignition. Wonder if there's a aftermarket Dyna-S or other electronic ignition under the points cover?

The pod air filters were popular accessories, but have since fallen out of favor. The stock Mikuni 26mm carbs handle the pods as well as or better than other carbs. But the stock air box is better (for several reasons), and if still available, would keep it around for possible re-installation.

Am uncertain about the spoke rear wheel, which may not be the stock 18" rim. If it's a 16" wheel, it might have been laced to the stock hub or possibly swapped from a different model.

Looking forward to your participation on the forum.

Good Fortune!

Welcome NASA from just down the road (Alvin)...I have the same motorcycle as yours...there is also a 1977 KZ1000-B1 in Angleton and we occasionally get together. Welcome to KZR.

Good eye on the modifications. 16" wheel laced to the OE hub, with tire to match. Makes using the centerstand real man's work. Authentic 1st generation Corbin seat. Sissy bar. V&H 4-into-1 exhaust (I have a wide-open 4-into-2 megaphone system that is way too loud for public use). Upgraded ignition (points were just removed) and plugs, coils, wires. New grips. Lockhart oil cooler. I also have a full second body for the bike, stock stuff in burnt orange.

I just ordered the D.I.D. rim and stainless spokes to restore the rear. I ordered an airbox too. And the suspension and tires are being handled by the mechanic.

My other bikes are little dirtbikes (CRF110F Honda and TTR125LE Yamaha), but I have been riding since I bought a brand new 1987 Yamaha SRX250 back in the day. Looking forward with chatting with others on here and enjoying my dad's big Kawasaki.

Thanks for the warm welcome!

NASA

welcome.
nice heirloom you have there sir !

thanks for posting,

leon

Nice period piece! Yes Old School. What we all did back in the 70's Put a Hog wheel on it!
And a quality Corbin Gentry seat. They were the top dog and $$ back then. I had one recently, let it go with this roller when I sold a city house 2 years ago. This is the grand daughter wrenchin!

Mcdroid wrote: Welcome NASA from just down the road (Alvin)...I have the same motorcycle as yours...there is also a 1977 KZ1000-B1 in Angleton and we occasionally get together. Welcome to KZR.

Welcome NASA. That would be my '77 LTD....



But, been riding this way more than the KZ since I got it......



Where did you order an airbox from? I have a few extra airboxes, though not a complete set...but if you need a piece to complete your setup I might have it. Go ahead and order new carb holders and airbox-carb boots from Z1E now.....don't even bother trying to use the old dried out ones. It's well worth the $160 for the new pieces!

Do you have the battery hold down bracket? Mine is missing, I have the equipment to make a copy, I just need one to take measurements from to copy. Maybe someday we can all meet up at Mcdroids house.

Speaking of.....Mcdroid.....recognize the gas tank in my pic? Looks good on it huh.

NASA_Tuner wrote: Hello! I am a new KZR user from Clear Lake, Texas. I have a 1977 Kawasaki KZ1000. She used to belong to my dad. I am in the process of bringing her up to a high "standard" through a mechanic in League City; Some of you probably know Elson at Texas Cycle Center. Once he is done with his once-over, I will be enjoying her and maintaining her myself. I will be contributing as well as asking for help.

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Cheers!

NASA

I was planning on leaving Bossie to my son. That has changed. He would only sell it. It and everything else will go to my daughter and grandchildren. A thief gets an empty sack.
I love when one of these bikes gets handed down to someone that will apreciate it. There are a couple here. The memories and adventure of the days could fill a book. Good luck with yours.
Steve

74ullc wrote:

Mcdroid wrote:

Where did you order an airbox from? I have a few extra airboxes, though not a complete set...but if you need a piece to complete your setup I might have it. Go ahead and order new carb holders and airbox-carb boots from Z1E now.....don't even bother trying to use the old dried out ones. It's well worth the $160 for the new pieces!

Do you have the battery hold down bracket? Mine is missing, I have the equipment to make a copy, I just need one to take measurements from to copy. Maybe someday we can all meet up at Mcdroids house.

Speaking of.....Mcdroid.....recognize the gas tank in my pic? Looks good on it huh.

I do have the hold-down bracket. Let's get yours measured and fabricated. The 'box I bought came from Z1Parts. We'll see if it fits. The 1000 has the 2-piece air box the one with the silencer. The one I bought is probably for the 900 but that's what I ended up with. I got it and the matching filter. I may have to build snorkel adapters. I'll keep you posted. I saw Sudco makes a replica exhaust but the price was a no- go. Maybe later. I know the low rider rim was straight-up gangsta back in the 70's but I need my centerstand and I am simply not man enough to lift the bike, even with help! Back to the Kawasaki standard.

swest wrote:
I was planning on leaving Bossie to my son. That has changed. He would only sell it. It and everything else will go to my daughter and grandchildren. A thief gets an empty sack.
I love when one of these bikes gets handed down to someone that will apreciate it. There are a couple here. The memories and adventure of the days could fill a book. Good luck with yours.
Steve

Thanks Steve. I would like you to know that I understand your frustration. I have 3 kids, and kids will definitely be kids. I will clarify he story about the bike in a later post, but let's just say it wasn't handed down to anybody!

Love the bikes. Both are just about my "speed".

531blackbanshee wrote: welcome.
nice heirloom you have there sir !

thanks for posting,

leon

Thanks Leon!
The heirloom part is where the story of this bike gets good, so I will share. When I got my first bike, a 1987 Yamaha SRX250, brand new with savings from years of working in high school, I loved nothing more than going out on summer weekend rides with my old man. I would take my 100mpg Yamaha and follow him around the South Side of Chicago. He had this GLORIOUS and fast (!) green 1000cc superbike you see in the pictures. I was always in awe of it. It had straight open megaphone pipes and is still the loudest thing I have ever heard with two wheels. We would cruise the Chicago Forest Preserves and when we would find an open road with no traffic, he would open the throttle and just evaporate into the distance with this thunderously loud, and exotic exhaust rip from the KZ. I remember it so fondly that it could have happened yesterday.

My dad sold the bike in 2002 (or so) to a friend of a friend of his. I had long since moved out on my own, many modern motorcycles followed, but when he mentioned selling the KZ in passing, I was shocked. I guess I thought he knew what that bike meant to me. Once I let him know, he tried to make it up to me, handing down some other cool stuff, but it wasn't the same as that bike.

Dad passed away suddenly three years ago. At his funeral, my younger brother and I were talking, and I told him that the only thing dad ever had that meant anything to me was the Kawasaki. He really took it to heart. I came back to Houston and went on with normal life. My brother was now on a quest. He had the unenviable task of managing the work of distributing my dad's estate, but meanwhile he put finding my dad's KZ at the very top of his list. Completely unknown to me, he found the bike, convinced the guy to sell it back (I'm sure the story had everything to do with it!), and got it back to his house on the South Side of Chicago.

Three weeks after my dad passed, my brother and his family scheduled a video conference with me and my family on my birthday. They brought the camera into his garage, and revealed to me "live" - my birthday gift. Behind a big sheet, after singing happy birthday, my little nephew and niece pulled away the sheet, presenting a gift I could never have imagined possible. I knew immediately it was our dad's bike. I am extremely thankful.

That, friends, is a brother worth celebrating. And a big Kawasaki KZ1000 worth keeping, loving, and maintaining as long as I can.

Now that's a family. When my mother passed, my sister grabbed everything she could. She was even sleeping in Mom's bed while she was dying in the Hospital. She and the lawyer milked the Estate for everything they could. More often than not, that's what happens.
You're lucky to have people like that around you. Love them and stay close.
Steve