New Bike, New Member

Hello From the WA / ID border of the north west.

I just bought a 1980 KZ750 LTD - four cylinder model. I got it for $20 including title & key!

Previous owner said he was riding it and it just quit. Motor turns over and there is spark. Not many concrete details.

Throttle cable has no spring action so I will make sure it's not broken.

On the left side, the panel is open and wires have been spliced. I hate it when people do this! I will be looking for a manual, but for now, are there any wiring diagrams or other helpful PDF's online?

Other than getting it running it needs the flat front tire fixed, rear turn signal lense, fork seals, left perch ass'y, luggage rack tightened / new bolts?, left side cover, and some cleaning. The engine & carbs are very clean.

Bike has 18k miles. What is the average life expectancy of an air cooled four?

I'm used to working on Yamaha 2-stroke enduros ( www.yamahaenduro.com ) so this will be an enlightening step in my mechanical experience.

Will post pics tomorrow.

James

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OK here's a couple night time pics:







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Welcome, Seems to be the night for give aways. Roy

welcome and that is areal good score as far as life expectancy goes it varies on hard you twist the wrist and how you are with maintenence there are people on here that have gotten 100,000 plus with out ever taking the barrels off and then there are other people that are having a hard time getting out of the drive way.your mileage may vary. but seriously these are a very strong almost bullet proff engine design and they seem to last a really long time and there is a ton of parts still around for them.

Welcome James...there is plenty of info on your new scooter available...wiring diagram...go to (on the green tab bar at the top of the page) 'KZ information'...on the left 'filebase' will appear...click on it. Scroll down and find your bike...click on it. There should be three entries associated with your bike and at least one is a pdf of the loom. KHI shop manual...follow this link for a free download pdf (beware, it's a large file)...

kz.mbsween.com/manual.html

Hey James where do you live? I'm in Post Falls so if you need any help let me know.

Thanks Don. I work in Lewiston ID, about 2 hours south of you. I'll have to ride up & say howdy when I get on the road.

I went to go pick up the keys & he handed me a Clymer manual so I'm covered there.

I'm stopping by Walmart tonight to get an Everlast 12AA battery. Anyone ever use one of those?

The manual states that it is not advisable to charge the battery at a rate of more than 10% of the capacity, ie. 1.2amps for a 12Ah battery. Any feedback on this?

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That's why I don't read the directions. :laugh: Things take to long. I just put mine on and charge it enough to get it started. No problems-yet. :laugh: My son wants to go for one last ride this year and I should have my forks together this weekend. Maybe we could meet up next week or so. It's supposed to rain all this week. Send me a PM.

Welcome James! Nice score on the $20.00 bike.

First thing you need to do is to trash those HIDEOUS pullback handlebars!! lol, j/k.....well not really kidding, but you know what I mean.

Enjoy you new ride. (once those bars are gone!)

Nice looking bike, same as mine except the seat changed in 1982. I'm a big stock fan so I don't necessarily agree Terry on the handlebars. Definitely try and get your hands on a Factory Service Manual, I got mine on E-bay (covers a little chewed up but otherwise ok). Shoot me a PM when you get around to doing the front fork seals and I send you a pic of a tool I built to help with that.

Have fun. Oh yeah, the PO on my bike had the same trouble, it would turn over but not start. Ended up just being the vacuum line to the fuel petcock was cripped and the carbs weren't getting any gas. Easy fix!

Well I got my Walmart battery installed & gave her a try. When I hit the start button, the selenoid clicks and it draws the VDC gauge down, but no turn over.

The wiring has been hacked a little. In the pics you will notice a wire that has been spliced, and the top fuse is the wrong physical size.

I think at this point I need to pull the ignition cover and see if I can turn the crankshaft?

Then pull the starter and see if it turns when removed. If not I can go through it, clean & test.





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Any other ideas?

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Hmmm, I'd definitely see if the crank can turn. Have you drained the gas and replaced it? Is there a fuel filter on you gas line? I had alot of corroded wiring and spent a lot of the winter going over it. Make sure that you've got a good ground to the frame and then start cleaning up the positive side and least to the fuse box. I'd do that before I pulled the starter.