New member from WA state - new cruddy original/unmolested 1981 KZ1000 Ltd

Hi everybody, 

my name is Marc (aka Marcel or Celmar), my family and I moved to Kitsap peninsula (opposite Seattle, in the wild west towards the Olympic Mountains) in March 2020.
We are quietly sailing through the pandemic turbulences, on a hobby farm, and I stay out of trouble by focusing on fun projects.

The latest is the acquisition of a very cruddy but very original/unmolested 1981 KZ1000 Ltd which I brought back 3 weeks ago. Somehow I decided it deserved a stripped-down full spa treatment, something I have never dared do with any vehicle.I plan to stop short of removing the engine, but it's likely that every other fastener and component or assembly will be pulled out and scrubbed.

I will install new battery, spark plugs, coils, filters, do a carb cleanup/rebuild and maybe investigate the valve clearances.
Engine will be scrubbed and painted except all covers which will get a 1-degree-less-bright-than-chrome polishing treatment.Brakes will need rebuild, rear one is locked (wheel turns, but the pedal does not move). I'm avoiding this for now, watching YT videos to familiarize myself with the challenge.Again, never done this in-depth work, but dissassembly has been smooth so far, nothing is seized, everything is clean-ish inside.

The great-grandfather gentleman I bought it from shed a tear, that was his darling bike he bought new in 1981. Only tweaks were braided-leather-with-dangling-bits grips and a barbed-wired license plate frame thingie, both promptly disposed of by me. The bike started but I did not get to drive it. I really feel it's a good karma unit, treated with love albeit too intermittently to avoid the fading appearance.I plan to clean it up and service it as best I can.
Only mod I plan will be a "touring" handlebar as I don't dig the buckhorn one (I tried superbike bars but they pose a challenge with blinkers).

Anyway, hello ! I've been surfing KZriders a lot already, and I'll have a bunch of specific questions coming up...
Cheers 

PICS NEED PICS 

Just added 2 pictures in the original message (I thought I had inserted them earlier but wrong format so did not)

wrote:

PICS NEED PICS 

 

Just added 2 pictures in the original message (I thought I had inserted them earlier but wrong format so did not)

Welcome Marc.

The LTD looks in good shape.
Enjoy the tinkering.

wrote:

Welcome Marc.

The LTD looks in good shape.
Enjoy the tinkering.

Well thanks rstnick.
Have a look at my "Project" thread called "KZ1000 full spa" here .
It is in good shape but has not had a bath or fresh underwear in probably 20 years....
This is gonna be fun...
 

Salut Marcel,

Je navigue sur ce forum que je découvre.
Et je vois que tu viens juste d'avoir ton Z.

Elle est propre la dame.
J'ai mon ltd depuis 2 ans et un autre que je viens de choper. 
Sur les deux le même défaut et la dernière plus que l'autre.
Regarde bien le châssis sous le moteur qui est sujet à la perforation par la rouille. L'entrée d'eau coupable se fait aux renforts de cadre,juste au niveau des suspensions arrière.

Si tu démonte la rampe de carbu entièrement attention aux deux petits ressort et bille de la tige de starter, après c'est de la mécanique simple, efficace et robuste.

A plus

Merci Kaya.
Pour ce qui est d'etre "propre"... euh, va voir sur mon fil "projet" (lien dans ma signature) et tu verras que la belle n'avait pas pris de douche depuis longtemps, ni changé de sous-vêtements...
D'où démontage complet ou presque, ça avance plutôt bien...
Mais c'est un vehicule original, complet, un seul proprietaire.

Je vais aller regarder sous le cadre en effet...
Si problème, tu y remèdes comment ?  

 

Welcome to the PNW and the Site!

Im a couple hours south of you in Vancouver Washington, I just sold my '81 ltd this last year, great bikes.
Did you pull this one out of the forest up there by you? I saw one for sale over this winter and the seller was snowed in! Look forward to your build.

wrote:

Welcome to the PNW and the Site!
Im a couple hours south of you in Vancouver Washington, I just sold my '81 ltd this last year, great bikes.
Did you pull this one out of the forest up there by you? I saw one for sale over this winter and the seller was snowed in! Look forward to your build.

Yes, I think it's the same bike, I showed up during the snow storm and this great-grandfather guy was resigned to let it go. You have seen the photos (link in my signature, otherwise), it was loved for years but neglected under an open-side shed deep in the PNW forest, so the old girl's skin got some wrinkles.
Do you have any other KZ, having sold the Ltd ?  

Welcome Marcel! I’m also in Vancouver WA, so greetings from just a little south. 

Nice project, I’ve always wanted to do a full bike tear down and rebuild. Sometimes I think I enjoy cleaning things too much, lol. 

Great to see it get picked up and brought back to life!

I do have a few other KZs, A 750 powered chopper. A couple stock 650s and a some 1000 projects.... Seems like a addiction when I have to list out....