76 KZ900 Restoration

OK so this is my first time working on a motorcycle let alone a restoration. I have a1976 KZ900 in diamond dark brown. I spent sometime working on the chrome fenders and wheels. I cleaned up the exterior of the engine with degreaser and I'malso working on cleaning up the frame. I've pulled the gas tank and dumped the old bit of gas. I'm just concerned with a few things. First with the old gas I'm wondering if I'll need the carbs cleaned and/or rebuilt. I am seeing what I think is aluminum oxidation on the engine even after cleaning. I'm planning on replacing the oil and air filters as well as the plugs, plug wires' and battery.
Just wondering if doing the carbs myself is feasible as I don't have a ton of money to put into this. Also what are the chances of all the electrical systems working when I put it back together. I'm going to post some pics of some parts to get some opinions. Thanks in advance for any help.

Well cleaning the carbs can be a pain, honestly I would have them serviced if I had to do it all over again. Adjusting everything and being sure they are clean can get tedious and for a beginner it can become quite the task. I had to pull my carbs more times than I could keep track because of the pilot jets clogging. Having them cleaned and adjusted will save you from soooo much headache and uncertainty.

If you didn't do anything to the electrical than it will work as good as it did before you started. If you have problems than you had or created a problem. Its not a matter of probability its a matter of putting things in their place.

Cleaning the engine is a daunting task depending on how dirty you started. Oxidation can be taken off with a bit of scrubbing. There are chemicals that can take it off, Id give some names of chemicals if I knew them.

Post some pics lets get a look at it!

Here are some recent pics. Once I got the correct key I was able to remove the seat and start working on getting it a bit cleaner. Anyone let me know if there are things you see that seem to need replacing or how to clean it up better. I'm also looking at replacing the mufflers. Just not sure what brand or whether to keep the 2 into 1 pipes. The bike only has 15,000 miles and the frame looks to be in very good shape also.

That really is a nice bike, and it looks like you're on the right track. Cleaning the engine can be very time consuming; just figure on doing one section per day rather than trying to rush it. You may want to try using metal polish on some small, stiff nylon brushes or Popsicle sticks wrapped with paper towel to remove the oxidation between the fins. Be careful not to wedge anything too large between the fins because they can break.

These folks make metal polish in different grades depending on whether you're removing heavy or light corrosion or doing a final polish. Their products are used on everything from airplanes to bikes. I have used the "Grade S" product for the final polish on my engine and I was very pleased with it. If I were you, I would contact them, send them the pictures of your engine, and ask their advice as to which grade would be appropriate to remove the corrosion. Their stuff is not cheap, but you get a good amount of it for the money, and it works. Ed

www.nuvitechemical.com/c-39-metal-polish-nushine-ii-system.aspx

You can use 0000 steel wool dipped in Mother's Aluminum Polish and it works really well. I have done lower forks, engine side cases, etc. this way.

Nice bike by the way.

that bike is freakin cool :evil: !

leon

Thanks for the good ideas. I'll be trying them out. My goal is to get the outside of the bike as cleaned and polished as I can during the remaining nice days that we have here in Michigan. Then work on the internals and get it running over the winter when I have time. I'll post more pics as I go and I'm sure I'll have more questions.

So can anyone recommend a brand of oil? I understand that it has to be specific for this older type of bike. Also is there any advantage to going with pods over the factory air filter box?

Hi that's a nice bike, that doesn't look like it needs a lot doing to it to make it a decent daily rider. 15000 miles is nothing for one of these motors so don't go taking the engine apart unless really necessary. Get a manual theres plenty on ebay. Regarding oil Id think any motorcycle specific 10- 40 would do .


Keep us informed.

Walmart csrries Shell Rotella T Meets all requirements. ots of folk here us it including me in my Turbo Kaw

Eleventy7 wrote: So can anyone recommend a brand of oil? I understand that it has to be specific for this older type of bike. Also is there any advantage to going with pods over the factory air filter box?

Regarding pods - They offer no advantages over the airbox for a stock street bike, but they do offer disadvantages including hours of fiddling swapping jets, etc. trying to get them to match airbox performance. Take a look at the following link:

kzrider.com/forum/3-carburetor/585949-po...-a-free-lunch#585949

Regarding motor oil - Make SURE whatever oil you choose is marked "JASO-MA" on the bottle! The ingredients in oils have changed over the years. For example, today's Castrol GTX oil (and pretty much all other AUTOMOBILE oil) is not the same as it was in the 1980's. Back then it worked great in KZ bikes. But, things have changed. Early AUTOMOBILE oils contained zinc phosphorus compounds (ZDDP) to protect engine components from metal to metal contact. This was good for engines, but it was found to be destructive to catalytic converters. Consequently, in AUTOMOBILE oils ZDDP was virtually eliminated and replaced with different chemistry generically referred to as "Friction Modifiers." These work fine and offer good protection for normal AUTOMOBILE engines. However, today's AUTOMOBILE oil "Friction Modifiers" are destructive to wet clutches. KZ bikes (and many other brands) have wet clutches. As a result of these oil chemistry changes a distinction needed to be made between those oils which are suitable for wet clutches and those which are not. That distinction was documented by the Japanese Engine Oil Standards Implementation Panel (JASO). JASO developed a number of different oil specifications for different applications. The specifications that apply to 4 stroke motorcycles fall under the "4T Specifications." Within the 4T specifications the JASO MA class oils are specifically formulated for 4 stroke motorcycles with wet clutches.

There are synthetic, semi-synthetic, and non-synthetic oils that meet the JASO-MA standard and any of them will work ok. However, using oils that are not designated as meeting the JASO-MA standard is destructive to KZ clutches.

I like fully synthetic oil so I use Mobil-1 Racing 4t. DO NOT use regular Mobil-1 car oil. Pep Boys carries it. Here's the link to the Mobil-1 blurb:

www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Oi...acing_4T_10W-40.aspx

Ed

I'm looking to clean the rust out of my gas tank. The bike was stored without gas by the previous owner. Is using muriatic acid the best way to do this? I see it used alot by other people.