KZR's Bikes of the Month for 2024

Project GPz

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16 Sep 2007 12:55 #170948 by OutlawGPz
Project GPz was created by OutlawGPz
Well now as of today im the new owner of a 1981 GPz550. Made a deal with my roomate..he wants another Interceptor like the Yellow and Red bikes shown in the pics..the Yellow one used to be his till it was reduced to parts bike status by two dead cyls..so now its the parts donor for the red bike.He found himself another Interceptor for $200 so im basicly giving him the cash for it and i get the GPz. Now that its officially mine its time to post an actual project thread...

Heres some of the initial pics i took of it.





Now From what i have read on here and on different sites the GPz is a hopped up version of the KZ550. Higher Compression pistons and hotter cams from my understanding. This one also has a Supertrapp 4 into 1 on it and soon enough pods will replace the air box to shave some weight. Well that and make it easier to service the air cleaners..besides..pods just look cool lol. Still on the fence if im going to reinstall the small faring or not. More concerned with the suspension and wiring at the moment for that to be a worry...do know its getting new LP signal lights to slim the bike down a bit..going to have to space the front ones out a bit if i reuse the fairing. Enough rambling for now...

Just a question..if this was your project to toy with what would you do with it?

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16 Sep 2007 20:04 #171011 by Bad Kaw
Replied by Bad Kaw on topic Project GPz
First off: a well-played trade. Bravo!

Second: you have some work to do, eh?

Lastly: I'd go with suspension. Always suspension. Getting a set of 17"s on there would be paramount to my project...then rear-sets and a re-routing of the exhaust (the rear-sets frees up a ton of space and manufactured headers leave huge visual gaps...you'll see)...then cosmetic goodies like paint, an ELR-look seat, mirrors, etc...the cosmetic part is the owner-subjective, so there ya go.

Drive on!!! ...and keep us posted.;)

78 Kawasaki Z1R
81 Kawasaki KZ1000J (mods)
82 Kawasaki ELR Clone (1000 J)
82 Kawasaki KZ750R1/GPz750 ELR-ed
70 Kawasaki KV75
83 Honda CB1100F (few mods)
79 Suzuki GS1000 (rolling frame / project / junk)
84 Suzuki GS1150ES (modified project)
83 Yamaha XJ900R (project / junk)

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17 Sep 2007 05:14 #171065 by iandz500
Replied by iandz500 on topic Project GPz
It looks very similar to my Z500, only mine has a round light and slower engine!

Bikes: 1960 lambretta Li125 sold; 2001 Honda CG125 sold; 2006 Yamaha FZ6 sold; 1980 Kawasaki Z500 sold; 1967 BSA Bantam D10; 2008 Aprilia Shiver sold; 2010 KTM Duke 690R; 1954 BSA Bantam; 1980ish Kawasaki Z200
Location: Buckinghamshire, UK

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17 Sep 2007 05:15 #171066 by iandz500
Replied by iandz500 on topic Project GPz
It looks very similar to my Z500, only mine has a round light and slower engine!

Bikes: 1960 lambretta Li125 sold; 2001 Honda CG125 sold; 2006 Yamaha FZ6 sold; 1980 Kawasaki Z500 sold; 1967 BSA Bantam D10; 2008 Aprilia Shiver sold; 2010 KTM Duke 690R; 1954 BSA Bantam; 1980ish Kawasaki Z200
Location: Buckinghamshire, UK

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17 Sep 2007 08:07 #171084 by OutlawGPz
Replied by OutlawGPz on topic Project GPz
I have considered swapping on an EX500 front end and rear wheel. I know thats the hot trick on the triples..so im thinking it may work on the GPz as well..im going to have to do some measuring to see if i can use the EX triple trees as is or not though..hopefully at the worst i need to swap in some different roller bearings on the neck and as for the rear find out if the KZ rear swingarm matches the H1 rear swingarm in width at the rear...then i will have a better idea if the EX wheel will work back there..have looked at the idea of rearsets..rasik makes a nice set specifically for the GPz. as for the header...well the supertrapp unit is pretty tight against the frame..at the most i may do with it is have it either powdercoated or repainted with high temp paint.

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17 Sep 2007 09:09 #171098 by loudhvx
Replied by loudhvx on topic Project GPz
You should check compression and valve clearances. Compression should be in the 180 psi range. (choke open, throttle wide open).

RE carbs:
With pods you'll lose a little pull off the line, but the thing will scream on the highway.

With pods you'll want #98 main jets (stock is 94).

You may want adjustable needles. K&L rebuild kit 18-2462 comes with an adjustable version of the stock needles. Second groove from the top is stock. You'll probably want to go to the third groove from the top. The kit comes with #92 main jets which you could drill to 98.

You should also consider the Dynojet kit #2305. It comes with better adjustable needles (use third groove from top) and #98 jets (along with other jet sizes).

Also, you'll probably want this choke mod to make the choke operation more controllable:
www.geocities.com/loudgpz/GPZchokeScrewMod.html

The 1981 gpz550 carbs (Teikei-22) are simpler than the other years and are easier to tune correctly, but the choke system can be frustrating.

Also, you'll want to check out this site if you haven't already joined:
www.nwsca.com/scripts/gpz_forum_2005/default.asp

Post edited by: loudhvx, at: 2007/09/17 12:12

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17 Sep 2007 15:27 #171163 by OutlawGPz
Replied by OutlawGPz on topic Project GPz
Thank you for the great info man!..When i start wrenching on that part of the bike im def doing that fast idle screw mod. Going to address the butchered R/R harness first..Since that is this bikes main issue at the moment...Also..The other main issue is the cracked up headlight..which will be replaced with a round headlight and a Puig Cockpit flyscreen..



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17 Sep 2007 19:54 #171237 by dvrpilot
Replied by dvrpilot on topic Project GPz
Dude I bought one of those brand new at a motorcycle show in a mall!! Pushed it out the front door and hauled ass. Fast bike in its day.

Mark Keep pics comming

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18 Sep 2007 13:44 #171371 by OutlawGPz
Replied by OutlawGPz on topic Project GPz
Heres some more pics of the bike now that i have moved the parts bike to storage and the other bike is at the shop right now for repairs. More or less assessing what it needs at this moment..Which is the Ignition cyl, Gas cap, as well as the seat lock..(mainly due to the key being lost) I might be able to get a key cut from the original ignition lock but i would rather just get replacement parts in those areas...

Anyways on to pics..





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18 Sep 2007 18:20 #171420 by themachine
Replied by themachine on topic Project GPz
what the h*** is the blue bike in the background, Give me your frame!:blink:

i'd use the gpz motor in the blue thing.

82 kawaski csr1000 Evolved into a streetfighter.

I love Speed! Hot Nasty Badass Speed!!!

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  • CoreyClough
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  • GPz550 Addiction
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18 Sep 2007 19:11 #171436 by CoreyClough
Replied by CoreyClough on topic Project GPz
Could you list the VIN and Engine Numbers from that bike? I don't think I've ever seen that red on a GPz before. The first color in the set of pictures looks right, but the second set doesn't. Was it repainted?

'85 GPz550(ZX550-A2)

GPz550 Base Manual --> tinyurl.com/ze5b3qo
GPz550 Supplement Manual --> tinyurl.com/h34d2o6
GPz550.com --> www.nwsca.com/scripts/gpz_forum_2005/default.asp
First Race Win GPz550 --> tinyurl.com/o5y3ftp

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19 Sep 2007 08:07 #171541 by OutlawGPz
Replied by OutlawGPz on topic Project GPz
The blue thing in the back ground is a CB750 Honda powered drag bike project and as for the color..that could be how the light was hitting it at the time..i will try to get the numbers off of the bike later today.

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