1975 KZ400

Hey all,
I am looking at maybe picking up a second bike to do a restor/very slight brat mod to. It is as the title said, a KZ400 from 1975. The tank is a bit rusty inside, the carbs need work, and there is the standard oil leak that most KZs seem to have. However, the owner has the airbox off and forgot to put it back on when he tore down the carbs in the Spring. He doesn't really ride it at all and when I test drove it, you needed the choke on to run the thing. I did not get a real good test ride bc it was cold, dark, and the choke was making the throttle grabby. He also has shorty mufflers on with no baffles I believe. The tach is gone, and I can tell it will need some wiring and a turn signal relay and new tires. Battery is good, side covers are pretty good, tank has no dents but someone removed the badges and bondoed the holes .

Currently I have a 1981 KZ440 cafe'd and love it. I'm looking for a bike that I may need to learn some things on (such as carbs, de-rusting a tank). Also, my current bike will need a starter clutch/rebuild soon so I will have to tackle that this Winter.

The owner is asking $775 and I think I can work on that. Let me know your thoughts, attached are two pics.

Aren't you worried that after running it with no filter of any kind, you're now going to have to tear down and clean the carbs again AND the engine, to make sure there's no nasty little surprises waiting to blow up on you when you're miles from home?

With that and the other issues you mention, it sounds like one hell of a lot of work for almost $800.

That was the reason for my post, yes. I'm guessing the carbs are once again full of crud and I did explain to the owner that the engine may now be a time bomb for me. I just wanted to hear more experienced riders' input before deciding either way.