1983 KZ750-K LTD Been in storage for 8 years, what now?

My boss has just given me an 83 kz750. I picked up this weekend and she is beautiful. All stock, and other than minor wear, in superb condition (the original tool kit is still under the seat).

The bike has been in storage for about 8 years, and this being my first bike, I have no clue where to begin.

I have done a cursory inspection and believe I must do the following things

1. Replace battery – It was terribly corroded
2. Change oil and filter
3. Change air filter
4. Change break fluid

If someone would be so kind to expand on my list as to what I need to do to make this a safe ride, it would be much appreciated.

I am mechanically inclined, but have no experience with working on bikes.

Several questions:
How do I replace the oil filter?
How do I test the shocks?
How do I drain the gas?
How do I drain the break fluid?

I am also looking for a manual. Does anyone have a digital one or know where it can be located?


Thanks for taking your time to read my post, I look forward to contributing to this forum.

To replace oil filter.
Remove left side drivers foot peg.
Remove Shift lever.
Remove sprocket cover.
The round cover on the upper left behind the sprocket cover is the oil filter cover.
Remove small plug under large bolt in the center of the oil filter cover to drain the oil filter.
Unscrew the large bolt to remove the cover.
Don't lose the spring that is between the oil filter and the cover.

To test shocks.
Bounce the back of the bike up and down, when you stop bouncing it the bike should stop bouncing.

To drain the gas.
Make sure the petcock is in the "On" or "Reserve" position, remove the fuel hose and attach a longer hose to it. Put the end of the new hose in a contqiner and turn petcock to prime.
Or just take the tank off and turn it upside down with the gas cap open

Change brake fluid.
Put a hose on the bleeder valve on the caliper.
Put the other end of the hose in a container.
Open bleeder valve.
Add brake fluid to the master cylinder as required, don't let it go dry.
When you have new fluid flowing out of the hose , tighten the bleeder valve, remove the hose, top off the master cylinder, you are done.

For those that don't know, a 83 KZ750K1 is a belt drive 750 twin.

Post edited by: steell, at: 2007/04/30 22:15

Welcome to the site. Good for you on your obvious taste in bikes.

There are some files in the file base that talk about how to bring a bike out of storage assuming it was stored correctly. Assuming it was not stored correctly you will want to go over a few more things.

Here is a partial list I got from another member in an old post:

Change oil/filter
Clean out carbs
Change fork oil
Lube the chassis
Lube the chain
change brake fluid
check/change the spark plugs
adjust the clutch/chain/brakes
check the tires
check / tighten all bolts.

I think that there are a couple of manuals posted electronically or another member might be willing to send you some files. I don't have any.

I recommend buying one so you can have it with you when you work on the bike (unless you plan on printing out the whole thing).

Also, we need Pictures:)

Thanks for your quick replies guys. I will try to get some pictures tomorrow for you.

A few more questions.
When sitting on the bike, which side is the oil filter cap located on?
Do i need "special" break fluid? Or should i be able to pick some up form an auto store.
Is a carb clean necessary? If so how long does this take?

you might remove the petcock on the gas tank to see if the fuel filter is still there and clean. mine was completely disintegrated.



i installed filters in the fuel line as well.

there's parts diagrams available at www.kawasaki.com that are really helpful.

Everything made of rubber on the bike will be in poor shape. Consider just purchasing and replacing a few rubber bits. The gasket under your gas cap, the petcock diaphragm, the carb holders, vacuum caps and vacuum hoses come to mind. If folks replaced this stuff when they buy an older bike, they would save themselves a lot of misery. In addition to changing ALL fluids including fork oil, brake fluid, etc, check the brake pads for thickness and watch the chain carefully, if the bike is chain driven. An older chain can be stiff from disuse and look carefully at the sprockets... any waving on the teeth and they should be replaced with the chain... again, not sure if this applies to your model.

Hello guys,

First of all, thank you for all your help. Today I picked up some oil and a new filter and after a few bloody knuckles, I was able to do an oil change. I removed the gas tank and emptied the gas and checked out the petcock, which looks to be functioning fine.

My friend’s bike is parked in front of my house, so I even had enough time to pilfer his battery and hook it up to the bike. I did a quick electrical test, and it seems all signals, lights and horn work great. I decided to try and fire her up, but I didn’t have any luck I had the bike in neutral (green light on) and the oil light on the tach was also lit. I put the petcock on prime. I pulled in the clutch and hit the starter button. It sounds like it wants to start, but just doesn’t quite do it. I even tried the kick start.

Any ideas of where things are going wrong?

Could someone please tell me the proper way to kick start?

Sorry, no pics today, too busy working.

The carbs need cleaning.

As for the oil light I am not sure but most likely the oil pressure switch hasn't felt pressure in so long that it came on. Thats my guess, O or there could be alot of sludge in the bottom on the oil pan. I would take that off to check and spray some oil in the cylinder before you try to start it, or you will need new piston rings. Our best reference to you for replacement parts is www.z1enterprises.com

kzwolfsr wrote:

The carbs need cleaning.

I totally agree.
Depending on the quality (or lack of) and age of gas, in can literally turn into a varnish-like consistency and clog up the carb jets AND passages in less than a month on any bike.

The oil light should light up when you turn the key to "ON", and as you're cranking the engine over it should go out. If the bike doesn't start, the light should come back on again.
If it stays on once the bike is running, then that would be a concern.

If it stays on while cranking over, or more importantly once running, then it could be as simple as a clogged oil pump screen/oil passageway or sludge that needs to be flushed out.
It could even be a worn and non-functioning oil pump, but that's not a very common thing to happen.

welcome aboard nice to see another twin survive,i have the exact same bike that i am in the middle of restoreing.i wish you luck with yours it sounds in great shape.mine sat for a number of years also,i removed the carbs disassembled them and cleaned the varnish out of them.as mentioned earlier in this post it dont take long to gum up 8 years is a long time for sitting gas.

You might want to consider popping an inline fuel filter in the fuel line, as well

Not doing this when I got my Z650 back on the road after a 5-year layup caused me a lot of grief, as rust from inside the tank repeatedly blocked my jets.

Good luck, and I look forward to seeing the post that says "Yeah, it lives !!!"