TOPIC:

(K)Z1300 A1
1979
Starlight Luminous Blue

Cheers
Holger

1975 Z1-B Candy Super Blue.


This complete, faded tankset below is a good example of what the '75 Candy Super Blue faded to.  The clearcoat on this faded tank is in excellent condition, a real rarity for paint this faded. This original tankset came to us on one of our '75 Z1-B's as is when we bought it from a broker in PA around 1997.


We don't know the donor bike's prior history, but it was mechanically near perfect & otherwise complete & unmolested except for an obnoxiously loud 4-1 pipe that was replaced with a good set of OEM 4-4 pipes we'd had on the shelf for years.

The un-faded portions of the tank's rear, top & bottom of the sidecovers, and the top, front, couple of inches of the tailpiece were shaded by the seat or orientation.


Curiously, the blue fades to a near match of the OEM '75 Z1-B Candy Red.

There's minor differences in color saturation between the original & NOS colors. Difficult to see in these pics, but more apparent in person.  An open question is, differences are due to age, or examples of batch-to-batch differences in paint?

We're considering doing a 'survivor' bike with this faded set if we can find the right bike.

The tank on the right with the good, solid Candy Suiper Blue is from a NOS Kawasaki tankset circa late '70's ~ early '80's offered by Mama Kaw as replacements for the then-still-young Z1-B.


  We had bought that NOS tankset many years before we found the '75 Z1-B mentioned above, and just put the set on the shelf while looking for the right bike to put it on.  The NOS tank differs from the OEM '73 - '75 tanks mainly in that it has the 'outside seam' on the bottom (not visible here), first introduced on the '76 KZ900's. The outside seam was likely produced as a much simpler means of joining the tank bottom to the sides, as opposed to the complex serpentine 'inside seam' welds of the OEM '73 - '75 Z1 tanks.

Example of the un-faded top of the original '75 Super Candy Blue sidecover.


Closeup of the original faded tailpiece butted next to the NOS tailpiece on the '75 Z1-B above.  Inside lighting not as good as the direct sunlight pics above.


Good Ridin'
slmjim & Z1BEBE

Does This One Count?  
Came across this buying some aluminum stock online.
The guy was a metal Sculptor? Just so happened this work was on his site.
Pretty Cool!!

Marty in Buffalo

 74 Z1A years ago 2002-3. I paid $200 From a friend. They were trying to change cam chain, did not know about the 4 inside crank bolts (they were probably stoned, we all were then)but they cracked engine cases on both sides. I had the infamous "PUPPET" chassis builder weld up the 2 cracks.That weird looking disc was 2 aluminum discs I cut out to cover up an old rusty 16" Hog wheel.I painted it all Daytona Dodge Blue. Glass beaded some aluminum.And it sold for a whole, whopping $1000 with title.

1981 KZ650-CSR (H1) in Sundance Blue (not mine).
This example sold last year for $3500. The sundance blue is a purple-ish color.
I have a NOS fuel tank and a side cover in the original stock color. unfortunately, the tank has a small crease dent
but that's why it was cheap ($60 or so total shipped a few years ago). 
warning:  sundance blue is not recommended. ha ha



ZR1100. also not mine. I don't know if that's a stock color. 

Headed to strip tomorrow.  Just curious. 

My 650 is blue but it is not a stock paint. There were several different blue versions of the (K)Z650 that you can view here. jarlef.no/Kawasaki/Series/Z/650/z650.htm
I did not want to add more pics on site and use up storage space and at some point require deleting to make room. Just click on each model link to see examples of the blue color.

Hi Tom! Looks Bad AS F!  Nice seeing it complete! Go after them Busa's!
Be careful at the track! Don't launch this thing hard! Feel your way into it!
No lock up or slider clutch lunch. Just slip clutch to get going 1st!
Good luck! Hope it pulls like crazy all the way through the lights!

Post an update!

Marty in Buffalo

Here's a couple of mine in original blue from 1978.

Hi Marty. Its been several years since ive been at the track. Ive got about 1000 miles on it now. DFIGPZ did the motor assembly for me. The dude knows his shhtuff. Larry C. did the headwork. At Ocean City bike week 2023, it was very popular even with the Harley guys. It wasnt store bought. Made me feel pretty good with many fist bumps with those guys.

Here's a picture of my '73 Z1-900 in one of its early stages in 1978-1979.   

Here is another one of my DIY spray bomb jobs in Dupli-Color #CBFM0378 Sonic Blue Pearl (Ford color match)