82 KZ750 H3 ltd engine problems???

When I shift into a gear it seems like there is no power when I fist shift into the gear it takes a couple of seconds then the power kicks in.
Also I can go around the block about 2 times and when I come to a stop the engine just quits out of no where and smokes I guess from overheating but I am not for sure. I am new when it comes to bikes.

What can I do???

First, welcome to KZR! A huge amount of knoweldge here concerning all KZ's. Second, a few things need to be checked to isolate the problem, it could be fuel, ignition, etc. Give us a little history on the bike, how was it when you got it, stock or modified (what mods), what have you done to it, etc. Put your bike info and location in your signature line so we can help you better. There may be a member who lives close by who can help you personally. Let us know...

Sorry bout that. when I first got the bike everything ran but had a bad head gasket. I was only paying 600 for the bike so I thought it wasnt a bad deal for my first bike. So I had fixed the gasket and retimed the bike acording to the bike manual.

After that I had started noticing a couple of things missing on the bike. Like the breather that is on the valve cover was missing. The guy that owned the bike befor me had taken a piece of hose and connected the reeds together instead of having the breather.

that is pretty much all was done so far.

It's not a breather, it was a smog device, all of us have ran that same hose side to side after the device quit working, that's fine. As far as the "breather" goes, if you have K&N pods you must run a hose from the breather (large round disc with nipple below and behind carbs) over swingarm like carb overflow hoses. Did this problem start after you replaced the headgasket? If so then something changed, recheck your cam timing, valve adjustment, etc. Also may have a jetting problem, 4/1 and pods require a major jetting, carb adjustment. The "overheating" you think is happening "could" be from running extremly lean. This is just stuff off the top of my pea brain. There are many members here smarter than I am, so am sure they will chime in with their thoughts and corrections. Keep working with us and we'll figure it out!

Oh ok so its a smog device got ya. Would you have any idea on what siz jets I would need to look into since I am running pods? I have tried taking to shops around my area and they are a bunch of reres. You have giving me more info in 1 message than they could give me in 2 hours sitting in there store.

Hello and welcome!

First of all, we're gonna need to see some pictures of your bike!

Second, it sounds like a fuel problem to me. Do a forum search for "plug chop" and learn how to do that operation, which is a good diagnostic tool for trouble shooting your problems...

bigbenSS wrote:

When I shift into a gear it seems like there is no power when I fist shift into the gear it takes a couple of seconds then the power kicks in.
Also I can go around the block about 2 times and when I come to a stop the engine just quits out of no where and smokes I guess from overheating but I am not for sure. I am new when it comes to bikes.

What can I do???

Hello bigbenSS and Welcome to KZr! We're glad you're here!

Being new when it comes to bikes, please forgive a nagging hunch that it might have been a valve cover gasket rather than a head gasket which was replaced. And just maybe the re-timing effort erroneously used the T mark instead of the F marks (wouldn't be the first time).

Of course I guess wrong a lot -- and now that I'm forgiven, will defer to the advice already mentioned by others in this thread.

Good Luck!

bigbenSS wrote:

... fixed the gasket and retimed the bike acording to the bike manual....

Just viewed the parts diagram for 1882 KZ750 ignition on Kawasaki.com, and am wondering about what sort of re-timing is involved with this type ignition. Am thinking timing may be checked but is "set" by the factory design and not readily variable.

A strobe type timing light should reveal proper operation of the automatic advancer unit (which sometimes sticks in the open-advanced or closed-retarded position).

What I ment by retime the bike was when I put it back together and set the cams to the crank with the timing chain not the ignition. Sorry about the confusion

The gasket between the bottom case and the middle case was the one that had the leak. So I tore down the motor past the pistons and replaced the bad gasket.

When I put it back together I went off the manual as far as torque specs and setting the cams to the crank.
I believe I set the crank to the "T" and pistons 1 and 4 were TDC??

I am out of town right know and can't really remember what the book said. I guess I should just pull it back apart and redo the timing. Making sure it reads correctly with the timing light too.

Thanks for the info guitargeek I will look into that.