Dropped off the bike - picked up a new one!

At least that's how it seems.
i took the GPz down to have the carbs sync'd and the valves adjusted. I have not really worked on anything other than dirt bikes and cars and since I am commuting on this bike I wanted to make sure all was well. I was somewhat disapointed in the power and had chalked it up to either age of the bike or the recollection of how fast my old 550GPz was 20 yrs ago being faulty. It also had a cold start problem and some hesitation when taking off from a dead stop.

The owner of the shop called me up a few days later and said the valves were so far out of adjustment they had zero clearance! He did not ride it before he did the adjustment since it would not start (easily) and told me it was running fine now.

I picked it up and WOW! What a difference! It starts right up with a little choke and settles back down again. It is super smooth from stops and accelerates like bat-out-of-hell. This is not the bike I dropped off!

Lesson here is check your valves. Especially on a used bike. Mine has 17K plus on the clock and it is likely the valves were never adjusted. Now to address the slipping clutch....
BTW The name of the shop was JIMSS here in the North Atlanta area. Highly recommended.

Now you know why I keep encouraging people to do a "complete" tune up on their bikes

ThatGPzGuy wrote:

... Now to address the slipping clutch....

Clutch pushrod adjustment -- (not talking cable-slack here)

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

Patton wrote:

ThatGPzGuy wrote:

... Now to address the slipping clutch....

Clutch pushrod adjustment -- (not talking cable-slack here)

Could it be that simple? It only slips when it is revving way up there (8K at least). The shop owner said it needs a new set of plates. He also said it can wait since I had just changed the oil and I tend to tractor around anyway.
Doesn't matter, I love this freakin bike!

For consideration:

Performing the clutch pushrod adjustment is shown in the factory service manual (and owner manual) as required routine maintenance. Seems this is sometimes overlooked, ignored or simply disregarded in a headlong charge toward addressing the plates and springs for correction of a clutch slippage problem.

If the clutch pushrod gap has reduced or vanished (from perfectly normal ordinary gradual wearing of the clutch plate material), the simple quick cheap easy fix is often a clutch pushrod adjustment. The "other" fix is replacing the clutch plates, which returns the clutch plate material to "thick as new" thereby restoring the required gap in the clutch push rod (and without having to deal with the dreaded 30 second clutch pushrod adjustment )

Perhaps not the situation here, but where measurements after clutch disassembly are found within specs, boo on any failure to having first tried adjusting the pushrod gap .


Here it is, straight from Mama Kaw's lips :kiss: :

Clutch push rod adjustment -- Need and Purpose

The FSM covering Z1 and KZ900 includes a periodic maintenance chart requiring clutch push rod adjustment at 2000 mile (3000 km) intervals and explains the need therefor in separate text, which explanation is quoted verbatim as follows:

Besides cable stretch, clutch plate wear also causes the clutch to go out of adjustment, with a decrease in push rod play. Due to this wear, the push rod gradually moves closer to the clutch release lever (at the lower end of the clutch cable) until it touches the adjusting screw. When the rod is touching the screw and therefore has no play, the clutch will not engage fully and clutch slippage will occur. Note that the clutch push rod does not necessaily have play just because the clutch hand lever has play, and so hand lever play alone cannot be used to determine whether or not the clutch requires adjustment.

The FSM covering '77-'79 KZ1000's includes a periodic maintenance chart requiring clutch adjustment at 5000 km intervals, and explains the need therefor in slightly different language, which explanation is quoted verbatim as follows:

Clutch plate wear also causes the clutch to go out of adjustment. This wear causes the play between the push rod and the adjusting screw to gradually diminish until the push rod touches the adjusting screw. When this play is lost, the clutch will not engage fully, causing the clutch to slip.
NOTE: Even though the proper amount of play exists at the clutch lever, clutch lever play alone cannot be used to determine whether or not the clutch requires adjustment.

Good Luck!

I'm convinced.
I'll give it a try and report back with the results.
Thanks!

Yep, when I first got my KZ it ran "OK" but within a couple weeks the plugs were so fouled it wouldn't even start.

The prognosis was 3 cracked overflow tubes and valve lash out of adjustment. It was only when I got it back that I realized I had a monster

According to Kawasaki.com, the 1982 GPZ750 clutch has the ball and ramp style adjuster for the clutch pushrod (as opposed to the worm gear style). Both styles employ a screw and locknut for making the adjustment (setting the specified gap for clearance slack in the push rod when fully engaged).

My experience is with the worm gear style where the adjustment is made by loosening the locknut, turning the screw in clockwise until lightly seated and then backing the screw out counterclockwise 1/2 turn, then tightening the locknut. I have not done a clutch pushrod adjustment on the ball and ramp style, and do not have available a FSM to reference.

Am uncertain, but believe adjustment on the ball and ramp style is by turning in the opposite directions, with adjustment being made by loosening the locknut, turning the screw out counterclockwise until lightly seated and then back in clockwise 1/2 turn, then tightening the locknut. Have learned here that some of the shop manuals are misleading or wrong about the adjustment procedure with the ball and ramp style.

So please await specific instruction from someone with more assured knowledge about this on the 1982 GPZ750.

Good Luck!

Your clutch springs may be weak. I replaced mine because the clutch lever felt soft and the springs, under 10 bucks, fixed the problem for now. I will probably have to bite the bullet and replace the discs down the road a bit. I am not a hard rider, got that out of my system with my Z1 back in the 70s.....chris3

Hey, I am interested in the valve clearance aspect of this thread. But it has turned to clutch rod adjustment, which is all good.

What he said initially intrigued me. I sometimes feel that my bike should be faster than it is. Is this an easy thing to do? I am reasonably handy with a wrench, and am wondering if this measurement could be done in an afternoon.

Difficulty scale of one to ten, would this project be about a 4 or 5?

Maybe $150 at the shop?

You need the correct feeler gauges and a new gasket to check the clearances. Very cheap and easy.
To adjust the clearances you will need shims. 5$-$12 a pop. Problem is you won't know what size is needed until you get the old one out and measure it. A lot of dealers wont stock them:angry: so may have to wait on shipping.
A magnet for pulling the buckets. $5
You will also need to remove the cams and cam chain the change the shims. For that you will need a manual.