What have I found?

OK, I'm new to the site and I've enjoyed trolling around a bit. OK, now...why I've registered. I need some opinions. I've found a bike...mild project...and want some opinions.

I found a 1978 kz1000 in a garage sitting on one of those Harbor Freight lifts. The bike is supposedly something special. It was built by two brothers to be a hot street/strip bike.

It has a Wiseco big bore kit. Cylinders are Wiseco and say Wiseco on the sides. He says 1080 or 1180? I couldn't find either but I couldn't find any kits listed with cylinders. Vance and Hines allegedly built the engine around 8 years ago...has some special crank, Kelly? cams, 38 mm mikuni flat slide carbs, lots of head work, chrome valve covers, adjustable racing clutch with kevlar plates, dyna coils and box with 9800 rpm chip, blah, blah, blah.

It doesn't run but allegedly only needs the intake to carburetor boots. Carbs are off the bike but are complete.

Tank is clean, but paint is bubbling off in a place or two. Most of the chrome is actually pretty good. It has cast wheels, not spokes, in good shape. It has the dual disc front end with the crazy-drilled rotors. No side covers, naturally.

Owner describes the bike as having ran a 6.30 on it's only pass on the 1/8th about 6 years ago on a slick. He says it won't really "idle" and that it is almost unrideably fast...keep in mind that I'm a 40 year old former roadracer, who just sold a ZX-10 so I'm not new to this kind of talk or what a "fast" bike is.

I can get more specifics on the engine build, but the brother I'm dealing with is a respected drag car builder in my area so he knows at least some of what he's talking about.

I can buy the bike and the lift for, well, almost nothing. But do I want another project? THIS project? Should I get the bike, try some intake boots, loosen up the clutch that I can barely pull, and give it a shot to make a conversation piece out of it? Would anyone want the pieces if it doesn't work out? Will I ever really be able to get any side covers?

Any revelations or suggestions are welcome, like why I can't find anything on this particular kit with Wiseco cylinders...all I find are piston kits.

What would you guys do? Seriously...very cheap....seriously. Oh, owner says if I buy the boots for the carbs that he'll help me get it running before I buy it....

I ll buy it
sounds cool
how much?is cheap?
where is it?

See, that's what I'm thinking....on one hand it sounds like trouble but on the other it sounds really cool.

I am almost ashamed to say how cheap....$400!!!! Yes, that's WITH the bike lift.

Oh, we're in North Carolina.

Well im up in north Ontario Canada If there ever was a place where you could find a old hotrod Kawi You are there buy it then sell it to me
DO IT JUST DO IT!!!

lcc wrote:

See, that's what I'm thinking....on one hand it sounds like trouble but on the other it sounds really cool.

I am almost ashamed to say how cheap....$400!!!! Yes, that's WITH the bike lift.

Oh, we're in North Carolina.

No matter what the parts are you could flip the bike for more than that if you ended up not wanting another project. Just do it.

Keep pushing me fellas....

What a Hoser

Title ?

i would walk away from it

just my .02

shit if you don't want it I'll drive from Indiana to buy it. Don't worry about not seeing a particular cc piston kit on a website. My brother has a 900 based 1230cc. It has 77mm pistons in it, while most of the mass sold stuff is 76 or 78mm.

Yes, bike has a title....

.

Show us pictures.