1978 kz650 rebuild?

i just got my first bike. i paid nothing for it but its not in top shape its got alot of small issues its been in the weather for like 2+ years and the motor is siezed and im not entirely sure what i should do my dad suggested taking the motor apart and doing a rebuild but im looking for something a little more affordable. any suggestions?:dry:

Get a low mileage used motor off ebay, hopefully one that was running before somebody trashed the bike. A seized up motor is starting out with a whole bagful of expensive problems that you know about (and probably a bunch you don't), at minimum you will need to bore it and install oversized pistons and rings.

tommy_boy1990 wrote:

i just got my first bike. i paid nothing for it but its not in top shape its got alot of small issues its been in the weather for like 2+ years and the motor is siezed and im not entirely sure what i should do my dad suggested taking the motor apart and doing a rebuild but im looking for something a little more affordable. any suggestions?:dry:

Here is a thought for ya, i would pull the plugs and pour or spray some Kroil or pb blaster down the cylinders and see if that frees it up. Most likly it is just stuck and not seized, my kz 650 did this when it sat one winter, some pb blaster and i was back in buisness. It worth a try and is alot cheaper than a rebuild or another motor.

thx guy i appreciate the input and im looking forward to telling you how it ends up. im a verry avid mechanic and i know a verry good machinest who is willing to help make entirely new parts for a low price (he made a machine for coke-a-cola and still has the patend) hes a good friend of mine and is verry good at what he does so anyone who cant find a part let me know and ill find out how much it will cost to get one made from scratch

tommy_boy1990 wrote:

thx guy i appreciate the input and im looking forward to telling you how it ends up. im a verry avid mechanic and i know a verry good machinest who is willing to help make entirely new parts for a low price (he made a machine for coke-a-cola and still has the patend) hes a good friend of mine and is verry good at what he does so anyone who cant find a part let me know and ill find out how much it will cost to get one made from scratch

Interesting...... those of us with the old KZ twins are always searching for a source for 32 mm diameter valve shims of various thicknesses to adjust valve clearance. Nobody makes them anymore so they are sort of the holy grail. They would have to be ground and then surface hardened. The "new old stock" ones sell on ebay for about $20 each, so there is definitely money to be made.

"those of us with the old KZ twins are always searching for a source for 32 mm diameter valve shims of various thicknesses to adjust valve clearance"

Here are some (you will need to make sure of the part numbers), but they're not giving them away...

shims

Yep, around $20 each delivered and you usually can't find the size you need. I watch ebay and usually the shims I see are the ones at the ends of the range like 3.00 and up and about 2.50 and down. The most used ones are in the 2.60 to 2.90 range, hence them never being around for sale.

well like i said gentlemen if you need it ill get you a price and it will be brand spanking new and to exsact specs. so just let me know and ill give you a price on them glad to help anyone whos will ing to help me...speaking of witch i need a clymer or some other repair manual so i can do a basic refurb on the engine so if anyones got an extra maual for a 78 kz650 sr it would be much appreciated willing to pay or trade something of equal value:woohoo:

www.kz650.info/ has a free Haynes manual download and has a ton of useful information on your bike, also has a really good forum as well. Here is the link to the manual: forums.kz650.info/index.php?topic=1833.0 Also Dan's motorcycle repair web page is an awesome information source as well. There is a great section on how to free a seized motor. Here's the link: www.dansmc.com/ Link to the section on freeing seized motors: www.dansmc.com/stuck_engine.htm

Good luck with the bike, KZ650's are a blast to ride.

thx alot for the manual its a great help and i look foward to telling you all how it works out for me