where to start? want to get my hands dirty.

Hi dudes.

Probably get guys like me all the time who dont know what they are doing yet, but my mechanical inclination wont let me leave my bike alone.

Heres the whole scoop. (just so everyone knows)

my kz650sr is older than i am. Its a 79. i on the other hand am an 87. my dad has had a 75 z1b900 since he was my age, so my only real motorcycle choice was a smaller version.(for now...) the 650 i have is a good bike. its been midified with pod intake, a 4-1 exhaust, though not a "kawasaki by kerker" basically all my rambling comes to this:

What can i do, (knowing that i am mechanical enough to replace the water pump and the bushings on the sway bar on my blazer in an afternoon) that will
a) teach me a little bit about my ride,
b) give me a little hp
c) give me reasonable belief that i wont eff the whole bike up before i get comfortable with its workings.

once again, sorry for being long and rambling, any experience based advice is greatly appreciated.

Post edited by: jp650sr, at: 2007/08/16 01:04

well being new here myself ive learned that if it aint broke dont try to fix it.bye yourself the owners manual and get to know your bike before you tear into it

You could do a top end rebuild and go with the 810cc kit. It's not too hard and you get to know the valve train on a personal level.

start by cleaning it up from one end to other,then go back and start checking every nut and bolt looking for loose/broken stuff.that will keep you occupied,and much easier than tearing your motor to pieces.if you dont have a manual get one.

Yes, get your hands dirty. Plummen offered good advice. Clean the bike up, pull out the tools and check the chain, throw some new plugs in her, check the clutch, grease the swingarm, tune her up, replace the fork oil. The easier stuff is covered in the owners manual, then buy a factory manual or Clymers and start digging deeper as the need arises.
Most of all have fun riding it!

How well does it start, idle and rev up. You might take a few hours and clean the carbs real good and then sync them to make sure they are working together properly. While you have them apart I would make sure that the jets have been changed to larger ones since you have pods and a 4-1 header. Take off all the cables and lube them. Lube swingarm shaft. Take the wheels off and grease the bearings. Bleed both front and rear master cylinders until all the old fluid is gone. Take the front end off and change the roller bearings to tappered bearings for much better handling. As most here will tell you it is better to make sure the bike is safe and realiable before you start adding HP.

haha someone my age!!!