83 KZ750 Shaft drive. chain rattle

zOk, The bike only has 9400 miles on it. Isn't that a low mileage to have chain rattle already? I am in the process of cleaning and syncing the carbs. I am gna check for exhaust leaks as suggested. Now, my question is,what's the correct way to inspect the auto tensioner to make sure it's still working? Can I remove the tensioner without removing the valve cover, pull the plunger in, then reinstall and release the plunger? Also, to check the primary chain for slack, (mostly just for piece of mind) I can just pull the bottom pan off the motor and it will be right there correct?

If the primary chain is making the noise at idle you may just need to synch the carbs. If they are out of sync it will make noise. Ed

I had the same problem in my 83 kz550 M1 at 30,000 miles. If the bike sat for any length of time I would say the auto tensioner could use a rebuild or you could just switch to a manual tensioner like I did and save yourself a world of trouble. Those auto tensioners are famous for going bad.