Trying to Rescue a Late 1970s (1977??) Kawasaki KZ1000

At the time period our bikes were made welding in Japan  was not as it could have been..
They have come a long way

They seemed to do a better job where the welds would be seen but remove a cover and… oof! 
Even on modern bikes.

Hi Wookie58,

Yes, the tops of those brackets are spaced away from the frame rails so water etc can get in, so I expect they punched in some drain holes to vent things.  Quite a dirty stream of water came out of those vent hole when I directed the pressure washer to the location of your arrowheads.

Thanks Blipco.

I can't complain about the ZR7s.

She returns more than 70 miles per Imperial gallon, and the only failure I've had was the front signal stalk rubber mounts, which cost 12$ each to replace.

When I first bought the bike there was a low rpm rattling sound coming out of the instrument cluster.  The dealer gave me a brand new headlight assembly to install, but the rattle buzz remained.

After way too long investigating, it turned out to be the speedometer needle experiencing an axial resonance just at a specific rpm.  I shimmed that axial play out of the needle, and the buzz buzzed off.

It's my only bike with Z-rated radial tires, which I've concluded are unnecessary for her power output, but are perhaps a benefit for stopping her.  I've only had to do one "balls out" stop for a country dog that popped onto the road from a drainage ditch, and the ZR7s can STOP!!!

Street Fighter LTD wrote:

At the time period our bikes were made welding in Japan  was not as it could have been..
They have come a long way


Thanks Street Fighter LTD. 

When I saw all those weld whiskers I was reminded of some of those Japanese videos of assembly line workers moving about with a great hustle.  So I expect they had high productivity demands which were more important than hidden whiskers.

 

I always clean up the frames by removing welding wire whiskers and splatter beads. For the splatter beads I use a 1/4" punch and hammer. Make sure the punch has a flat surface with a clean edge. Put the punch on the side of the splatter bead and give it a sharp tap with the hammer. The bead usually pops right off cleanly. It's also easier on the sandpaper and your fingers when sanding with the other splatter beads gone.

Kelly E wrote:

I always clean up the frames by removing welding wire whiskers and splatter beads. For the splatter beads I use a 1/4" punch and hammer. Make sure the punch has a flat surface with a clean edge. Put the punch on the side of the splatter bead and give it a sharp tap with the hammer. The bead usually pops right off cleanly. It's also easier on the sandpaper and your fingers when sanding with the other splatter beads gone.

Thanks Kelly,

I chiseled off a few splatter balls already.

As is the case with this lousy Spring weather, my progress slowed again.
 

A cold rainy day motivated me to do some indoors work, and got busy of the 1977 KZ1000 frame.  After pressure washing I gave the frame a strong scrub down with warm water with detergent and an industrial grade coarse ScotchBrite.  The factory paint was more durable than anticipated  and the pad gave it a nice etch, but not often down to the steel.

Then a rub down with a clean cloth and hydrocarbon heptane based brake cleaner.

That Armor Coat gloss black paint goes on very well, even with a cheap brush, and levels very quickly.  I can't spray as well as this paint goes on.  But it does take more than 24 hours at room temperature to cure to the point of handling.   And nearly a month for a complete cure.   

I'm sure I missed a few spots, but black is an easy touch up.

Next I'll face that lump of an engine.  

 

It’s tedious cleaning and painting the frame but so worth it when the job is finished. 
I wish I used that paint when I did my last project. I used spray paint which is easier but not as good as a brush on paint.

blipco wrote:

It’s tedious cleaning and painting the frame but so worth it when the job is finished. 
I wish I used that paint when I did my last project. I used spray paint which is easier but not as good as a brush on paint.


Thanks blipco, these modern paints are pretty good.  And you can get a thick coat in one application, which is why the cure rate is so long.  I don't know if that Armor Coat is total oxygen cured alkyd or polyurethane which is moisture in air cured.  I'll google it.
 

I googled and thought I saw polyurethane but double check. And only sources in Canada came up. I was on my way outa the house but anyways, I don’t need it now but it would be good to know about.
When I resurrected a ZR7S I bought off of Craigslist (It looked alright but it’s history was unknown) I wasn’t sure how much effort I should put into non mechanical items. But now that I see how much I like the bike and how well it runs, I just may strip the bodywork off it and spruce up the frame like I should have done in the first place.

Noticed the rag type plugs you used in all your engine openings, here's something I found to work.  I saw some soft rubber "practice golf balls" at wal-mart, it turns out they are the perfect size to plug the intake and exhaust ports in the cylinder head with a nice tight fit. And they are cheap.  (I have no idea why I was in the aisle with the golf items, must have been looking for something else ! )

Scotty