'83 KZ 550 Freshening Project

I'll take a couple of pics Mcren.

Can my tach cable have an issue? I figure its either broke or it works.
It seems to flick downward 500-1000 rpms going down the road.
I'll pull it and inspect it.
Its does not feel like its spun up at 70 mph.

But the speedo can have an issue. Try to verify your speed by GPS if possible..
70 or 100 mph is a huge different,
Inspect a tach cable or real speed feeling can be difficult,t, Who knows what is the real speed.
A independent drive by compare with an other vehicle speedo give you some truth about the real speed.

AFTK ( away from the keyboard) 05:25 in the morning for me, here in Germany, good night KZ Riders

These KZ bikes are geared low. I think 7000 rpm at 70 mph is close. Maybe off 500 revs or 5 mph somewhere. It's pretty common for the speedo to read low. And 35 year old gauges may have all kinds of various issues since they work off a magnetic pickup arrangement with a damper on the needle. Inaccuracy is very common.

Nice looking bike you have there.

There are many smart phone aps where you can compare the GPS Speed with you bike's speed. I have used this one below, and with the stock gauge cluster and stock size tires, my speedo is dead nuts on.

Look for CMS Lap Timer
www.stoppani.net/products.html

I also downloaded this ap, and placed it on my tail light to record wind, and exhaust noise levels.
itunes.apple.com/us/app/decibel-10th/id448155923?mt=8

If you haven't pulled the tach and speedo cable I would do that to lubricate them. You are likely to find rusty ancient goop inside the cables. Pull them and wipe the cables down. Blast some WD40 through the cable housings to get the goop out. Then take 80 weight rear end gear oil and flush out the cable housings. Wipe the gear oil on the cables and reinstall. I suspect you'll be amazed at how smooth and steady your needles are after doing so.

Thanks ajs, this is on my list. I hope for the best, then I will gps my bike and compare to my gauges.
Both the tach and speedo needles are moving around quite a bit, so I can imagine they are crusty.

I have airbox pics for you Mcren - pm me and I'll send 'em your way.

My bike will not be ridden again till I lube the cables. But in the three rides I have taken on it, the bike shows its capability...
On ContiClassicAttack radials, I took it to the edge on the tires (well at least the rear). No chicken strips, which is not important to me, but it was pretty easy to do. :evil: I have a nice set of twisties right behind my house I know pretty well.
And I finally broke 1000 miles on this old bike! lol

Wow, your gauges are in excellent condition. As Nessism mentioned, you will almost certainly find the speedo reads 3 to 5 mph higher than your actual rate of speed.

Yes, gauges look pristine!