1979 KZ650D Old School Cafe

I pulled the motor apart today.

All the cylinders look good. There is carbon build up, not not bad at all, well, in my opinion.

The head gasket came off so clean, I would say I could reuse it, if I didnt know better.

I'm gonna take the head in to the engine shop this week.

Hey there.

You interested in getting rid of the airbox?

M

Yea, I dont need it. I am going to cut all the tabs off too, so I can never use it again. The spin on ring that closes the top of the air box is cracked, just FYI.

Let me know if you are interested.

82Hey man, sorry I'm late to reply here - swamped with the daily grind.

So it's got a crack in the ring, probably a tough one to fix.

If the mounting plates and brackets are standard, I might wanna take them.

That being said, I'm only sourcing out a box, because I'm a total newbie when it comes to mechanics, and the 78 KZ650 is quite new to me, and the pods + 4 to 1 exhaust are running like crap.

If it's not a hassle for you to post a picture, I could make a decision on the pieces.

MLow

I will post some pics later today or tomorrow.

Also, I dropped the head off at the motor shop on Friday, so it is going to get cleaned and stripped and they will let me know where I need to go from there.

Ok, so the machine shop called me and everything is good. Water did not damage the valve seat and he was able to clean the valve guide. I have a question tho, head gaskets are available on ebay, but what are the small, oval shaped seals on the ends of the head? Not the half moon for the cam, but it is an oval ring, kinda thick, and I think it is the oil passage or something. Anyway, does anybody know where to get those?

Also, what should I put in place of the mechanical tach drive? I am going to do an electric tach, so I dont need that. Or should I just leave the mechanical drive in there?

Those 2 oval o-rings are still available from Kawasaki so any dealer can order them for you. They seal the oil passageways between the cylinders and head and should be replaced while you have things opened up. Ed

Hey guys,

So this has obviously been sitting for a while, but I need some advice. The engine has been all wrapped up, waiting for me to work on it. I decided to get started last night. I put the headgasket on, the cam chain tensioner and all those bits. I torqued it properly and then went to work on the cams. So I put the crank at TDC on 1 and 4 and then I hung the exhaust cam and so on. When I finished I had this problem. If I put the cam timing marks level with the head, then the TDC mark on the crank is past the mark on the block, and if I move the cams ahead one tooth, then the mark on the crank is behind the mark on the block, with the cams correctly possitioned. I went back and forth a few times last night, to make sure I wasnt crazy. Here are pics (cams in proper place, crank not)





So my question is, cause the cams turn at half the speed of the crank, do I need to be moving the timing chain on the crank sprocket, instead of the cams? I would have just tried this last night, but it was too late. In my head that sounds like a great idea, but lots of things sound like great ideas in my head. Please let me know.

Thanks,

-Josh

Also, are the rubber cam end caps (the half moons) available for sale from anyone? Z1 doesnt have them. Does Kawasaki still sell them?

Set your crank at tdc,then install your cams.
With an old engine there will be some chain stretch,like your drive chain.
By your pics it looks like you're right on.
The mark on the cam usually sits above the surface of the head.
At least that's my experience with the 650/750.

Ok, cool, thanks. By the time you had sent this, I had gone home and moved the chain one tooth on the crank. I didnt take pictures, I will tonight, but it is much much closer. I agree that chains stretch, but that was too much. I am ok with it now.

THanks

-Josh

Well, I had a more serious issue last night. I was checking valve clearance, but I only had the 8 shims in the motor. I was swapping them around to see if I could get measurements I needed. I did the intake cam and had all the measurements, but sadly when I was doing the exhaust cam, I stripped the threads out of one of the cam cap holes. What is the best way to fix this? Is there enough meat there to helicoil it? What has anyone else done in this situation?

Just curious; what was your torque wrench setting when the threads stripped? Ed