1978 Kawasaki KZ650 --- Restorification

love that seat. Tractor Supply has bar stock aluminum in various widths and thickness you might consider for your bracket. can go a little thicker and still bend it and polish it if need be. Keep up the good work and keep posting the pics

damn thats a pretty seat! i have always loved that look... im lookin on ebay now...

I was kinda surprised. The ebay auction for the seat, the pictures didnt look very good. So i was expecting a seat that needed to be revovered. Turns out that the seat has been storage for a long time, collecting dust and the rust on the pan isnt bad either.

It cleaned up real well. Very happy with this gor only $120 (plus $70 shipping!)

I really hope that i can put this seat on today.


Question. How would you guys feel if i swapped out the stock suspension and wheels for a honda cbr f2? Its the one with the six spoke wheels. I can get both the front and rear end for $225 and if i throw in more cash, he can modify the cbr parts to work perfectly with the kz650. Machine work, shimming, bearings, welding, etc.

It really fits the bill for what im after.

i love the look of a modern rear end on these bikes, and the F2 wheel is a LITTLE wider isnt it? that would look sweet with the cafe seat and low bars, would he help you getting the KZ stem onto the cbr lower triple as well?

bearshawk wrote: i love the look of a modern rear end on these bikes, and the F2 wheel is a LITTLE wider isnt it? that would look sweet with the cafe seat and low bars, would he help you getting the KZ stem onto the cbr lower triple as well?

The cbr f2 has a 180 rear tire and a 120 front tire i believe.

The guy will do everything before shipping them out as he also has a kz650 as an example. I also plan to keep the dual shocks so tabs will be welded on the cbr swingarm.

looking good.. 1 more fan of that seat... i want one

Giuliari seat installed. All I had to do was swap over the hinges from my stock seat to my Giuliari. Bolts right up. Stock seat might be for sale...












I was originally looking for the Z650 badges but couldn't find them so I settled with the KZ650 badges. Here they are!

Side cover badges on and side covers put back on the bike.


What's next? I'm thinking mini stalk turn signals, bar end mirrors, and low profile headlight fork ears. That's all part of making the bike look more sleek.

That seat looks fantastic on your bike. Well worth the search.

testarossa wrote: That seat looks fantastic on your bike. Well worth the search.

Thanks! It certainly was well worth the search and the price. Glad i found it.

My other seat is for sale. Its the stock seat that has been recovered. No rips or tears. Hardly any rust on the pan. All stickers on the pan are present and in good condition. Sorry but the factory owners manual is not included. No hinges are included either. Im keeping those. Make offer


Now back to my plans. I think i want a gpz750 fender on my bike. I hate chrome lol.

Here's the 1992 Honda CBR F2 parts I was talking about and a friend's KZ650. He wants $225 plus shipping for the CBR parts. Should I jump on it? He's selling these parts because he's using Kawasaki ZX7 parts instead (keeping the bike all Kawasaki).

He has a friend that can weld, machine, bearing swaps etc. at an extra cost. If I decide to that, all I'd have to do is pay the guy and bolt everything onto my KZ650. What's your thoughts?

I'm really digging the six spoke wheels.

Love the seat and the emblems.looking good. I am a wider tire fan so making the swap gets my vote