need advice bringing zx6 back to life!

This zx6 sat inside a garage for 16 years.
Today I drained the gas out of the tank -- smelled a bit like varnish.

I drained the tank and am flushing it with lacquer thinner to dissolve the old gas inside.


This is a 1995 zx-6r and it looks like a major deal to get at the carbs!
The carbs stick up nearly vertical and to me, it looks like I can remove the carb float bowls because of the carbs' near-vertical orientation.

Can I squeak by just by pulling/cleaning the bowls and jets and save the trouble of removing a "hassle's worth" of airbox/hoses/yada yada?

Ive had 2 zx600s
both blew crank bearings
one a 92 the other a 95
these bikes are intrinsicly weak on the bottom end
you have a set of downdraft 36mm keihin cv carbs
every zx600 ive ever seen has had bottom end failure at one point
if your gonna bring it back to life
drain the oil
change the oil filter
drain and change the coolent
youll have to remove the carbs and clean em
sorry
when you get it back together be very careful
never rev this motor until its been warmed up
and i mean warm good and warm
itll probably blow up anyway
absolutely the worst bike ever to come from kawasaki
seen too many people blow em up
it happens every time
and every time its from people that rev the shit out of em before theryre warmed up
just my 2 cents worth

Good to know about the bottom end. I guess being lazy with the carbs is not in my future.

I couldn't pass up this bike, I usually buy 70s KZs but I once owned a '93 zx-7 and this '95 zx-6 looks so much like it.

Plus the specs on this zx-6:
105hp
400 lbs dry weight

Man oh man. That's hot for a 52-year-old guy like me. Maybe too hot.

The other reason I bought it is -- the first owner was afraid of it.
This 105hp lightweight beast was the first motorcycle he ever owned in his life.
No way is a hot beast like this a good 1st bike for a new rider! Good gawd.
He was 24 when he started riding and bought this -- this is not a beginner bike.
The seating position alone is not good for someone who's never ridden before.


It has only 3300 miles on it and he stopped riding it soon after buying it
and it's been in his garage ever since -- it looks show-room new.
Like a time capsule.

Those factors have me hoping the bottom end is okay but I'm still gonna be super cautious,
and thank you for letting me know about the bottom end problem, I would otherwise never have known.

these bikes can and have been rode hard
and can last a good long time
as long as you know that its a race engine
yes they do make horsepower
but make sure that you have it up to operating temp
before you open er up
IF you know what youre doing and understand what the bike is capable of
youll have a good old time with it
IF!!!! you start it up and try to outrun smokey then youll pay the price
you sound like you know what youre doing so heed the advice
once warmed up these little 600s are a joy

Not sure how compatible but here's a 2005 Manual I used for my build....

zx-6r-2005-service-manual

Old Man Rock wrote: Not sure how compatible but here's a 2005 Manual I used for my build....

zx-6r-2005-service-manual

Thanks OMR, I do need a manual. Unlike a kz1000 or kz550, this is not as straightforward to get at stuff. I'll have a look in that manual to get an idea about the ins and outs of the airbox removal.

One thing I did notice -- even though this is not a fuel-injected bike, it has a fuel pump.

I see what looks like a stock, designed-to-be-there fuel filter just before the gas enters the fuel pump -- is that indeed a filter or screen and do I need to pull it and clean it or replace it?

PM me and ill send you a set of carbs with a stage 3 jet kit in em for nothing
ill never use em

Jeff, that is quite nice of you -- those are best held out for someone more needy!
Very very gracious of you to offer. I feel it's more important to get them to
someone who will use them, but I am very grateful for your offer!

Somebody on the board here can use those. Thanks again Jeff!

Here ya go....

1995-1997 Kawasaki ZX-6R Service Manual

these carbs are off a 92 zx600
who wants em?

Old Man Rock wrote: Here ya go....

1995-1997 Kawasaki ZX-6R Service Manual

That did me, thanks OMR I verified in the manual that indeed there's a stock inline fuel filter just in front of the fuelpump. Normally a 3300 mile bike probably wouldn't need one but I'm inclined to put a new filter in there due to the old gas. He put it away wet. The cool thing about the fuel pump though, compared to my standard fare of 70s vintage machines -- the pump probably prevents fuel from getting to the cylinders during storage if the petcock is leaky (and he did say the petcock was leaky a bit).

OMR I appreciate your help with the shop manuals, thanks man.