Cant get my KZ650 running... :/

So first time posters, total Noob.

So bought this KZ650 off a dude in great condition. Dude had it in a garage for two years. Said it should start right up... has yet to do it. Replaced the battery because it was completely empty of fluid. Next cleaned the petcock and replaced an inline fuel filter. Drained old gas and poured in new gas. Gas flows threw in the inline. Took the carbs off and checked each bowl to see what kinda gunk was sitting in them. Pretty clean nothing worth noting. Didnt want to mess with them too much and mess up them tuning. Clean the float needle, main jet, carb venturi, and sprayed clean in the choke passage ways and other passage ways. Nothing seemed to be clogged. Loosening the drain screws in the bowls in the float bowls shows gas in them after the cleaning. Plugs all have spark. Check their gaps, all okay. Checked the point gaps all with in their tolerance. The 2-3 points ark... thats all I've done.


Now the bike seems like is was raced, although the dude said he just rode it around town. Everything is safety wired. Can with a maintenance log and was taken rather well. Was taken to a shop to have pods installed. the starter arm is missing, ordered one off ebay this morning.

So. With that said. When I go to start it using the electric starter the starter motor just cranks and cranks with no reaction. I've taken out the plugs and seen the pistons move. Sprayed starter fluid in the cylinders and into the pods. Still no dice.

What should be my next step? Drained the battery once so far, currently recharging. Figured the motor can be flooding but cant clear it with out the starter arm.

Think I should check the timing, cylinder compression, and dread the thought of peeking at the values... but those seem like over kill.

help!

Also enjoy having another forum to read. Party On!

Welcome aboard! I saw that you checked the points gap, but if the points timing is not set properly the engine will not start. It is worth checking; here's how I do it......

The manual has several pages of instructions, pictures, etc. on how to set the timing using the static method plus timing light, plus dwell meter. I can give you a fairly easy way that will get you in a pretty close ballpark without a timing light or dwell meter, but you will need a 0.35 mm feeler gauge and a multi-meter or other device to test continuity. To be very precise, the timing light and dwell meter will be needed.

Remove the points cover on the right side of engine. Under it you will see 2 sets of points. The set on the left fires cylinders 1 & 4; the set on the right fires 2 & 3. When replacing points observe carefully how the little bits and pieces are arranged where the wires attach. Some of those pieces are actually insulators and if you leave any of them out or put them back in the wrong place the points will be grounded and won't work. Take a very close look at the contact surfaces of the points. If they are pitted you really should replace them. You can sand down pitted points, but they will quickly pit again. Replace one set of points at a time so you can look at the other set in case you get the little bits confused.

Use a 17 mm wrench to turn the nut NEAR the end of the crankshaft clockwise while looking in the hole above that nut. (Do NOT use a wrench on the smaller bolt on the very end of the crankshaft to turn the engine.) Inside that hole you will see a vertical pointer cast into the casing. As you turn the 17 mm nut you will see a 1 & 4 and F and T roll by and then you'll see a 2 & 3 and F and T roll by. Each F and T has a line next to it.

Here's the method I use for static timing. I turn OFF the ignition. I disconnect the green wire near one coil and the black wire near the other coil. (This is not in the book, but it makes checking continuity much easier for me.) After installing the new points or cleaning up the old ones, turn the 17 mm nut while watching the points. When points set 1&4 are at their widest gap adjust them (by loosening the 2 screws that hold the points to the backplate) so the gap equals 0.35 mm. Turn the 17 mm nut clockwise through a full revolution again and double check this gap. Then repeat this for points set 3&4. Now set your meter to test continuity and clip one wire to the leaf spring on points set 1&4 and clip the other wire to ground. Turn the 17 mm nut clockwise until the 1&4 "F" mark aligns with the pointer mentioned above. You want the continuity across point set 1&4 to just break when the F mark aligns with the pointer. The idea is that when the continuity just fails is when the points will fire their respective coil and cylinders. In order to adjust the point at which continuity fails you loosen the 3 screws that hold the backplate to the engine and slightly turn the backplate until the meter shows a break in continuity. Once you have the 1&4 set timed properly you can check the 2&3 set to make sure they break when the 2&3 F mark aligns with the pointer (they should or something is not right). Don't forget to plug in the green and black coil wires when you are done, and put a little grease on the rubbing block felt. Assuming you are using new points of the correct type this should enable you to get the timing very close. Trying this with old points may give poor results, especially if the points are pitted and/or the rubbing blocks are worn.

After you have set the gap (which in effect sets the dwell) and the timing using the method above you can use a dwell meter and timing light to fine tune dwell and timing (but the engine must be running to do this). If you have followed the above procedure carefully, very little if any fine tuning will be needed.
Sorry this is so long. It's not as difficult as it sounds. Ed

Hi Matt, If it sat for two years, I'd put some Sea-foam in the fuel tank. Did you check what size jets were on the inside when you had the bowls off? Get a Factory Service Manual for your particular bike, it's like having a Kawasaki mechanic next to you. You didn't say how you tried to start the bike. If you have spark, compression and fuel, it should start. These bikes need the choke (enrichening system) to start when cold. You can always go to KZ650.info for another opinion. Both these sites helped me get my KZ 650 E running strong. Also, a good carb cleaning can,t hurt. Bob

full choke..good battery....bump start...worth a try...just to hear it fire up....do the plugs smell like gas after you tried it....do you see spark on the plug...pull a wire and put a plug in it ..

And the problems is... the Throttle Adjustment screw on the carbs wasnt screwed in enough. Had some friends push me while I popped the clutch in. At first started right up but wouldn't idle. So stopped the bike, over screwed the adjuster, started the bike using the electric start which started right up with a high idle, and slowly backed out the adjuster until I reached a descent idle. Been riding it all day since. Probably wasn't pulling enough air into the mixture. Party all day....

Also thanks for the input from everyone! Sea foam will be going in the tank to clean everything. Seems like the timing is pretty bang on, but might need a new condenser soon. Service manual always a must always!

Welcome Matt.
Congrats on getting her fired up.
Have fun, and ride safely.


Do post up some pictures of her when you get a chance.