Saving a '81 KZ750-E

Timing is everything. The 4 day cure time on the tank sealer ends the day before my painter goes on vacation for a week. The longer the cure the better, I guess. It will be more than cured by the time it gets paint. So now that hurdle has been jumped, it's time to start on the bottom end. I ended up buying another impact screwdriver set since I couldn't find the right size bit for my existing one. Stuck side cover screws are no match for the right tool. I found a good deal of crud under the ignition cover, and the advance was starting to rust.


The clutch is looking real good for 34K miles. It was not ridden hard (I know the original owner). I still need to take measurements on the clutch plates and friction disks. Then I realized I do not have a 30mm socket to remove the clutch basket. You can never have too many tools, so one is on the way. I have a sneaky suspicion that this will not be the only tool I need to purchase before this motor is put back together.

Engine is coming apart slowly. Between having to make my own special tools, and ordering certain size sockets, the process slows way down.

Skidmark wrote: Between having to make my own special tools, and ordering certain size sockets, the process slows way down.

Sounds familiar

It almost looks new behind the clutch and transmission covers.

I am tearing apart the bottom end to put in new bearing and seals, and also refinish the exterior on all the cases/covers. So very relieved I was able to save that tank, and can finally get the last piece to the painter. I have no expectation to finish the motor before the bodywork arrives. I still need to order all the bearing and seals, but want to take measurements prior to ordering the bearings. I would love to have a solvent tank, but really don't want to deal with the lingering smell all of the time. Cleaning parts without a permanent tank in the shop allows for clean up and airing the building out. I have a feeling the motivation on this project will spike when the bodywork comes back. Already getting excited to see the cosmetic change!

When I end up making my own special tools, I focus on functionality over pretty. Here is the rotor holder. I just need to get the bolts and weld some nuts on the ends. I cut the shape out of 1/4" plate steel using a 4-1/2" angle grinder and several cut off disks. I found the sleeves in my junk drawer.
Yeah, it's not pretty, but it will get the job done.

A trip to the hardware store, some bench grinder work, and it's ready to use.

I am almost to the point of disassembly where the engine needs to be turned upside down. I guess the next "special tool" will be an engine stand. I have several lengths and sizes of steel angle and flat bar in my shop, so I will see what I can make with what I got. The goal is to hold the bottom half of the engine case with a rectangular structure that has enough clearance to still remove the bottom pan. I am hoping to find a shop that can vapor blast the cases once fully disassembled. I may end up having to go up to 50 miles away to accomplish that. But I would prefer that over a degrease and glass bead blast.

Interested to see what you come up with for the engine. Wanted to make something with the kids at school for our '83 750 motor but then we all got sent home.
Nice work on the rotor holder - there are never any points for looks, it's all about function

I figured the most logical approach to designing an engine stand was to start at the attach points and build out from there. I cut 4 pcs. of 1/4" x 1" flat bar and drilled a hole in each.


It took some scrounging, but came up with enough hardware and bolted them to the motor.


I am going to cut and weld a rectangular frame to those. One corner is offset inward 2.625", the other side both corners are in the same plane. More to come...

Fitting up the frame pieces.

Once I fill in that offset corner, I will start tack welding it together. The plan is to adapt this mount onto an engine stand with a rotating yoke. I am not planning on finding the CG very close since I can pin the rotation every 45 degrees. Just close enough to where I don'thave to lift all of the motor weight while turning it.