78 kz 1000 ltd build

i thought i would post this just for shits and giggles...it started with a WELL WORN bike with 32,000 on the clock..i paid 1000 bucks for it...young kid had it for sale on craigs list for
1200....i think he had ideas and no money...he hemmed and hawed saying he bought it for more and had money in it....he ended up bringing it to my house...sweet!....it was definitely a project bike...had 3 oil leaks, a sad excuse for a seat,
pc of crap kerker with no baffle,motor covered in oil....but it had potential...ran o k, had dyna ignition,and frame looked o k..
i grabbed a new seat, fixed oil leaks, put on new brake pads, new stainless lines, rejetted carbs, new vance and hines pipe,new starter clutch and countless other things...i also started cleaning 30 years of smeg....
well, i rode it this summer and although it ran well,i sensed it was tired...smoked a little when warm....i m thinking time for a motor job...
i started with a 1075 mtc piston kit and matching jugs from pit stop performance..i also needed all new cam chain rollers and guides..i was surprised this bike ran as well as it did....i replaced the cam chain with a new one with a master link kit as bottom end and tranny seemed tight ....as it stands right now ,my head is on its way back with new guides, oil seals and a new valve job...its all shimmed up with my used but decent andrews 2x cams ready to go..again by pit stop performance....i plan on assembly the weekend of jan10/11.....a lot has been done and a lot more needs to be done...its not gonna be a show winner and might not be up to par with some of the other rides here, but it s my occasional weekend ride.....pics to follow
and some more when its done...thanks to all here
for their help and advice........keith

keith1 wrote:

i thought i would post this just for shits and giggles...it started with a WELL WORN bike with 32,000 on the clock..i paid 1000 bucks for it...young kid had it for sale on craigs list for
1200....i think he had ideas and no money...he hemmed and hawed saying he bought it for more and had money in it....he ended up bringing it to my house...sweet!....it was definitely a project bike...had 3 oil leaks, a sad excuse for a seat,
pc of crap kerker with no baffle,motor covered in oil....but it had potential...ran o k, had dyna ignition,and frame looked o k..
i grabbed a new seat, fixed oil leaks, put on new brake pads, new stainless lines, rejetted carbs, new vance and hines pipe,new starter clutch and countless other things...i also started cleaning 30 years of smeg....
well, i rode it this summer and although it ran well,i sensed it was tired...smoked a little when warm....i m thinking time for a motor job...
i started with a 1075 mtc piston kit and matching jugs from pit stop performance..i also needed all new cam chain rollers and guides..i was surprised this bike ran as well as it did....i replaced the cam chain with a new one with a master link kit as bottom end and tranny seemed tight ....as it stands right now ,my head is on its way back with new guides, oil seals and a new valve job...its all shimmed up with my used but decent andrews 2x cams ready to go..again by pit stop performance....i plan on assembly the weekend of jan10/11.....a lot has been done and a lot more needs to be done...its not gonna be a show winner and might not be up to par with some of the other rides here, but it s my occasional weekend ride.....pics to follow
and some more when its done...thanks to all here
for their help and advice........keith

more pics

pics

another

another

cool,its gonna be a nice looking bike!

Nice, Keith! Thanks for the photos...the bike will be very nice when completed:)

i had that year and model and it was one tough bike...i never had any problems......i really liked it as far as how strong all the chassis,electrical,any body stuff was....i was'nt a fan of the tank...but who cares.....nice pictures.....great bike...

Although pics make the aluminum look better... i can't help to think you did a great job on the clean up.

Did you blast the case?

supercharged wrote:

Although pics make the aluminum look better... i can't help to think you did a great job on the clean up.

Did you blast the case?

the jugs have a silver finish that pit stop applies and the head will match when it comes back...the rest of the cases had a lot of smeg and oil..i basically just cleaned em by hand..the front of cases down low behind header need some more work ....like i said ,its gonna need more clean-up, but its getting there....thanks guys

Great job Keith! looks great! lookin forward to more pics! It's giving me motivation to get outside and do my own!

the head came back today!!!! looks great.....got second set of hands for the weekend....be nice to have a running bike again.....:woohoo: