art of the kickstart

took a break from the 1000 to fiddle with the junker(78 kz650). I put in the cleaned carbs, changed oil and filter, put in new battery, and a gallon of gas. I just wanted to see if the thing would turn over today, wishful thinking.

I went at it for a good 10mins, sweating by the end. Then i thought am i even doing this right???

So let me know, how do I kickstart a 78kz650? The electric start does nothing.... Does it have to be in neutral?gear? clutch in?? Give me a step by step....

To kick start it needs to be in neutral clutch out.assuming you have fuel good fire to plugs and good compression.(switch off) apply full choke kick it thru once or maybe twice(switch on) kick it again and it should fire right up.

i cant kickstart to save my life while on the bike,i stand next to bike on right side and kick with my left foot works much easier for me!:laugh:

I start my KZ650 pretty much all the time using the kicker to save the battery.

Ignition switch: ON
Kill Switch: set to RUN
Clutch: OUT
Transmission: NEUTRAL
Choke: ON
Headlights: OFF

Usually when it's tough to start, it's fouled plugs or flooding.

Good luck!

Make sure the fuel tap is on prime!

Will add to all the above excellent advice --

Turn petcock on a few moments before cranking to assure float bowls get filled with gasoline. If manual petcock, turn to ON or RES position. If vacuum petcock, turn to PRI position.

Leave the throttle completely closed during the cranking procedure. The carb has its own separate enrichment circuit designed to work with closed throttle. Any opening or cracking of the throttle during the cranking procedure impairs proper functioning of the enrichment circuit.

My best advice -- simply don't even touch the throttle grip until the engine fires up and is running.

Good Luck!