'80 KZ550 Project

As you can tell with a different tank, bars, seat trimmed and rear fender trimmed my bike has taken on a whole new look!





drastic!



Im way too happy, and look way too young to be bad ass on this thing haha.
I bet ill finish the bike before I could grow a full beard!


Video walk around:

I got bored at work so I started messing with pre-mask and spray bomb..





I really should have left it at this:


and now just sitting on the bike.







Look how long the front end looks from here!

Rounded up some scrap metal I had laying around the barn,
put together a simple jig. everything slides in the middle. I built a cradle, axle locator, and a neck locator.



heres how the bike sits today

Started messing around with electrical.
Came up with a simplified bare bones wiring diagram and integrated a normal car type ignition switch, 4 position (ACC-OFF-RUN-START), also removed the neutral safety, and push button start...





I put the switch in the center of the mini keg..


I had to make a rack for the fuse block, ignitor, rectifier, flasher, and brake light failure switch thinger.
Ill leave my starter relay out and by the battery.

so with the door cut the edges are very sharp. Another friend gave me 3 feet of vacuum line to split and use as edge trim. Its a little rought right now but i promise it will be pretty later


Finally finishing up the electrical box, and not following the cardinal rule (never put a bolt you cant get to) I mounted it on a bracket I made.

I use an old belt to hold the thing shut!



Inside view! Im going to have to trim the keg down because my chain will for sure run into it and if not my keys will dangle into my chain. Oh lord I love hot rodin'

Todays list?

- Cut neck gussets
- Mount gas tank using new bungs
- Re-do the seat mounts
- Weld nuts to vertical flat bar fender mount, and trim fender struts
- relocate kickstand spring to bottom of the kickstand (clearance issues with foot peg)
If that goes over well I may be able to get the engine back in the bike, and if I can get the engine back in I can:

- Make shifter controls
- make a chain tensioner
- fix chain/keg clearance issues
- mount chain guard

nice lines on the frame.

keep the pics comin.

leon

hey bro!!! greetings from australia!! inspiring stuff man, amazing job! any youtube of you riding her? keep up the good work!!!

Thats looking great!! I've got a Kz1000 spare frame i'd like to hardtail and get together at some point when I've finished the csr I'm on. keep us posted I'd like to see the finished product!

One thing I've never been crazy about on the LTD's was how vertical the forks were. Your's look just right! Judging by the electricals, that's a 1980 C1. (Later had different igniter and different stator/regulator). I'd recommend the Emgo pods from Z1 Enterprises. They are disposable and low cost.

Great work!.

Nice work mate. Digging all your fabrication. Definitely won't be another one in existence like yours.

Thanks for the positive feedback!

What Ive been able to get around to doing lately has all been clearance issues or maybe how I didnt like my seat mount, or my rear fender struts. I put the engine back in to check how my chain will clear the mini keg and of coarse I'll have to section that and fab a mount for the chain guard.

so to me Ive made progress but to everyone else nothing has changed haha..

- moved spring on kickstand to underside of the kickstand so it now doesnt bind on foot peg
- made new rear fender struts
- made a new front seat mount, still have to relocate the shock a bit but no biggy.
- put engine in, checked chain clearance for battery and ignition box.

I spent pretty well all night in the shed. I went in when it was light out, I came out when it was light out. Buggered me right up :lol:


I had the bike in the jig, then flipped around, then on the ground and now some wheels are back on it.
With the wheels back on I could check chain clearance.


The chain hit the mini keg. So I sectioned the keg. Then the chain hit it keys... Valueing my knuckles I opted to relocate the mini keg to where the mini shock mount was on my backbone.
Then I mounted the mini shock where the keg was.

I made a battery tray that I can unbolt. I can wiggle the battery out without unbolting the tray (flat bar more or less) but I figured it that might come in handy.



I went through the wiring harness and wired up the bikes bare bones. I swear I was going to be riding it this weekend but I took a bracket off my carbs 2 years ago and I dont know where it is! so I have to make one.

its got two screws in it: