new owner of an 81 kz 550 ltd (video)

Nice job!
If you live where they use salt, watch out, that stuff makes all the roads slippery until a few good rains wash it off of the roads.

im down in north fl it doesnt get this cold often. it shifted so nicely and the throttle response was great. it is really quite but i hope that will change when i get a 4-1 to put on

So I have a flat front tire and the bead popped are there any good ways to reseat the bead with the tire still on the front of the bike. I've seen the starter fluid trick and also the tie strap just wondering wat has been done in the past

ok i got the tire fixed after a few days of me trying to get it to bead me and my brother in law tried the starter fluid trick it didnt work so i gave up and my brother inlaw was like hand me the air house so i give it to him it airs up first try no strap or anything.

but i think im starting to developing a starter clutch issue it just whines at me and doesnt turn over it was running the other day. anything i can do to prolong this till i can fix it or a fix thats on the cheap side. i just want to ride that little 15 mile run got me all antise.

any input on what i can do would help out a lot

If it really is the starter clutch, there are no quick or easy fixes. It's not very common for a 550 to have a starter clutch problem, though. Make sure that is what it is before tearing it apart.

You can try bumpstarting it for a while. Try to play with the shifter to get it into 3rd gear to bump it.

it shifts fine what speed should i be going when i try so bump start it in 3rd

this is what it sounds like

I've been trying to push start her but she seems harder to push in gear with the clutch in than it is in N. Should I be worried or just check my clutch adjustment. Anyway I'm going to try again today with the help of my brother and his tracker

To push start a bike, start rolling it in neutral. When you get up to speed, pull in the clutch, put it in second gear, and pop the clutch.

lightitup wrote: ... seems harder to push in gear with the clutch in than it is in N. Should I be worried or just check my clutch adjustment....

It's normal.

Push start options --

Ignition switch ON, transmission in third gear, clutch disengaged (keeping the handlebar clutch lever squeezed), get it rolling up to desired speed, engage the clutch (release the handlebar clutch lever).

Ignition switch ON, transmission in neutral, clutch disengaged (keeping the handlebar clutch lever squeezed), get it rolling up to desired speed, shift into third gear, engage the clutch (release the handlebar clutch lever).

Good Fortune!

In third, I can just push and release the clutch. But it won't turn over quickly. (And the KZ is designed to not go from neutral to the other gears when stopped, which is why you sometimes have to play with the shifter and rock it back and forth to get third gear.)

Bumping in first, the rear wheel will lock up, so i have to jump on it, but it turns over a lot more quickly.
home.comcast.net/~loudgpz/BumpStart.wmv

If the bike is hard to push, you will have to start in neutral, flick it into first and jump on and let go of the clutch. This is by far the trickiest method of bumpstarting, and is usually not successful for beginners.

So it depends on your experience level with bumpstarting.

I't more likely to start using first gear, but it requires more coordination.

lightitup wrote: I've been trying to push start her but she seems harder to push in gear with the clutch in than it is in N. Should I be worried or just check my clutch adjustment. Anyway I'm going to try again today with the help of my brother and his tracker

I interpreted this to mean the brother on the tracker would tow the KZ550 with rider aboard, probably using a rope.

Being towed on a bike to attain enough speed for bump starting is possible. Bit it's tricky, as the tow rope must be attached so as not to twist the handlebars, and in a fashion whereby the rider being towed is able to release the tow rope and allow it to immediately disengage from the bike being towed.

It's a bad idea to engage the clutch while being towed. The bike should be coasting on its own and completely free from the towing vehicle before engaging the clutch.

Where feasible, the easiest and safest means is to have a buddy give you a push to get you started on a downhill coast while you're already mounted on the bike.

Good Fortune!