I'm a sucker (or, what I'll agree to do to help an old bike get back on the road)

After getting my SR on the road a couple of years back friend mentioned his bike which had trouble starting. Turns out the starter clutch has problems. I was reluctant to take this on, but after thinking it over, I decided to tear into it. It showed up Monday night and I tore into it last night.

The kickstarter was held up by tie-wraps since the return spring was assumed to be broken but turned out to have slipped out of place. It will probably need airbox and intake boots, chain and sprockets, fork seals, new petcock, swingarm bushings, as well as the various gaskets to put it back together.

Things it should get include tires, new front brake lines, and probably some other items I haven't thought of. The question will be how much he wants to spend on it.

Enjoy the pics!

Oh yeah, it's a 1978 KZ650 SR.

With slip-on mufflers.

Needs degreasing...

Various pieces that need cleaning...

Carb boots need replacing (note the incorrect one on #2) as do the intake boots.

Air filter was shot. The kickstarter retainer is a classic!

Man is that sucker grungy! Looks a bit like my "Brillo Pad special" when I got it. If it were me I'd invest in some degreaser and a trip to the quarter car wash before I'd even start working on it. It will save you a fortune in laundry detergent. That said it looks to be all there. What kind of miles are on it?

Hey Nate!

If you're looking for a project after that one - get out your axe and a dremel tool:

The speedo shows 32k and change, the owner suspects it to be higher.

Yeah, it's fairly filthy, but I really don't want to turn a high pressure water nozzle on a bike. Simple Green and a bit of scrubbing will clean it right up.

Ptero, where do you get these pics? :lol:

Looks like there's a real pretty bike under all that crud. When's the last time it ran? Have you turned the motor over yet? Or tried push starting it just to see if it runs?
That front brake rotor looks pretty smooth. Can't see any grooves at all. Maybe the miles are actual.

I seen worse in my day......you definately got you a "project" there.....best o' luck!