Normal to have some smoke on a '79 KZ 1000 E-1?

Hi,

The bike seems to be in excellent condition with 14,XXX miles on it. I noticed that it smokes whenever I really "give it in the pipes" but the smoke goes away as soon as I lower engine rpm. Do these engines normally smoke a little, or is this a sign of something more severe? I checked my spark plugs to make sure the fuel/air mixture they are burning is appropriate. The plugs read light grey with a slightly 'fluffy' texture. I believe I've dialed in the pilot screws just right. Any suggestions on this? Thanks in advance!

My ST does the same thing, it only smokes out the right side though. It maybe the rings or the valve buckets? A little too much oil mabe, check the window , it should lie between the 2 lines.

I think I read that somewhere. Anways maybe someone can offer some advice.

I just had the cam plugs replaced on my bike and they said that the bike was looking fine under the valve cover so I will keep riding it until I get an idea why it is smoking.

I have only ridden my 650 and no new bikes but the 1000 E1 makes getting to 140 kmph easy.


The ST is a really beefy bike. It seems like everything is made to Heavy Duty specs.

KRB)

Smoke is not normal. Smoke can be caused by a number of different things. I would FIRST check compression both wet and dry. This will give an indication of the piston ring condition. If compression is good and doesn't shoot up with some oil in the cylinder, then the cylinder head is likely the culprit. The smoke you describe could be worn valve stem oil seals or valve guides are worn. If the bike is running good, I personally wouldn't worry about the situation too much. I have a 79 KZ1000E1 ST as well and it doesn't smoke.

Ok, I will try and track down a compression tester. Thanks! I noticed that a month ago it was only smoking out of cylinders 1 & 2 on the left exhaust pipe. Since then, it has begun smoking out of cylinders 3 & 4 on the right pipe as well. I have always kept the oil level just right and perform oil changes regularly.


Disclaimer: This is not me

You've got a thread about nasty valve stems, so I'd suspect stem seals.

If you have gray "fluffy" stuff on your spark plugs I would guess that is to much fuel. Is the smoke black/gray or is it blue/ white? Black/ gray is to much fuel ... blue/white is oil. If it is the valve stem seals then you will need to take the head off to change them out. Good luck a smoking engine is a pain in the ass.

Matt-

The bike smokes a bluish color and only slightly under rpms greater than 5-6000...I never keep the oil level above the upper fill mark on the sightglass. I've studied diferrent charts on reading plugs and they say that grey looking plugs with a small amount of fluffy deposits are normal. If the fuel/air mixture was too rich, wouldn't the plugs be carbon-fouled: brown, or black looking? Maybe it is my rings or valve seals..Oddly, the bike seems to be running better than it ever has but that doesn't explain why it has recently started smoking.