81 KZ440 Cafe

Okay, first of all, HI ALL! I've been lurking for a long time but finally just registered as I picked up my first bike in June of this year (I'm a new rider as well). Picked this up for $900 from craigslist. The video pretty much outlines most everything about the bike but I do have a few questions after you watch it and look at my pics to know what I'm talking about. Also ignore the way the muffler sounds, my phone didn't record how it truly sounds.

-1981 KZ440 Video-


Okay so right now I'm figuring out how to get this title business accomplished (I did a check and mailed the owner, sadly it was returned, but it is not reported stolen and has no liens).

Secondly, is it unsafe to have so much of my forks poking through my triple tree?



Also I took the stock idiot light bar I bought online and turned it into this (using magnets to hold it to the bolts of the Speedo/Tac panel that was bolted onto the headlight:









For those of you who know what the stock one looked like it took a lot of sanding and some creativity with a soda can to make a plate underneath. I also had to hack away some plastic inside to slide the lights up closer.

I'm looking at putting some Firestones on eventually but being a new rider I want to make sure they would be a safe tire and not purely form over function. Also looking at some of these: Duro Tires

Right now I have a ribbed "Racer" tire on the front and, I honestly like how it looks (a bit of a throw back), the rear tire is a Shinko Podium tubeless performance tire.

Any suggestions?

I've already repainted the seat cowl, redid some wiring, and am looking into replacement clipons since the one is broken.

Nice find. I own an '80 B1 that I picked up for <$300, but it was in sorry shape compared to yours and ended up costing me quite a bit more than you have paid. The B's are kind of rare compared to the LTD models amd they do make nice looking little cafe bikes. I like mine pretty well as a get-around-town scooter. They run like a twin should. It should make a good first ride for you. The folks here are very knowledgable and will offer good advice. I would have made even more stupid mistakes (and I made a bunch) if not for their help. 440s aren't the most popular bikes here. Those would be the big Zs. You might want to check in with KZ Forum where you will find more small twin owners. If you don't have a factory service manual (you really do need one), you can download one from a link at the KZ400.com site.

Personally, I wouldn't be buying tires based on cosmetics unless your goal is to put the bike on display and not ride it except in parades. If, however, you want the vintage tire look but actually plan to ride you could get a set of Dunlop K70 tires. They were the standard on the British twins of the 60's and early 70's. Dunlop still makes them, but with a better rubber compound than the ones they made back in the day. Ed

650ed wrote: Personally, I wouldn't be buying tires based on cosmetics unless your goal is to put the bike on display and not ride it except in parades. If, however, you want the vintage tire look but actually plan to ride you could get a set of Dunlop K70 tires. They were the standard on the British twins of the 60's and early 70's. Dunlop still makes them, but with a better rubber compound than the ones they made back in the day. Ed

Those Dunlop K70 fronts seem to be only available for 19" rims. At least I haven't seen 18" versions. My B1 (and Im guessing Spitfire's 440) runs 18s on both ends. There may be a Cheng Shin (or some such thing) knock off in 18". If you are aware of one, please let me know.

Oooops - you're correct. I didn't realize the KZ440 has an 18" front wheel. :blush: Ed

Thanks for the kind words all! I stumbled upon that manual just before finding this site but thanks WM. So far as tires go, I'll probably grab those Duros. I am however running into issue regarding the title. Also, thoughts on the forks sticking up out of my triple tree? I don't know if that is something to worry over or not.

Spitfire151 wrote: Thanks for the kind words all! I stumbled upon that manual just before finding this site but thanks WM. So far as tires go, I'll probably grab those Duros. I am however running into issue regarding the title. Also, thoughts on the forks sticking up out of my triple tree? I don't know if that is something to worry over or not.

I don't know if the change in geometry matters much. Others here will have an opinion. Does it shake its head or anything when ridden? Titles are a bigger deal in some states than others. Mine showed up without a title, but it was a fairly easy fix (even though it came with a long story) because the DMV helped me locate the last owner of record and he was willing to acquire a duplicate title for me. I paid him $50 for his trouble. What state are you in?

No shake whatsoever, no issues with handling. I'm in the dreaded Pennsylvania dundundunnnn.

Spitfire151 wrote: No shake whatsoever, no issues with handling. I'm in the dreaded Pennsylvania dundundunnnn.

Here (Nebraska) I was able to take the VIN into the DMV, tell them that I was in posesson of this bike and wanted to find the owner of record (to either return it or buy it). I was lucky enough to find the guy by calling everyone I could find with that last name until I hit a relative. If I could not have found him, I would have had to apply for a salvage title, which would have taken a long time. Members here from PA are likely to know how your state works. Otherwise, just start searching for PA rules at your DMV Web page.

Yes you were lucky! I tried along the same lines and had no success.