KZ 650 Engine Removal

Hello All,

I am in the process of restoring or creating my first cafe. I have 78 KZ650 and I have stripped everything off the bike so it is done to wheels and the motor, but for the life of me I cannot come up with a safe way to get the motor out of the frame without damaging me or the motor. All motor mounts are out etc and the motor seems to be resting on the frame rails.

I have heard of people turning the bike on its side. I was thinking of trying to use a floor jack to lift it slightly. Does anyone know if they make a lift?

Also what are most of you using for an engine stand as you perform an overhaul? Any help would be appreciated

Thanks

Does the bike still have its center-stand? That makes things
MUCH easier. I just kind of straddle the bike and push-pull-turn and
Heave! Double check to make sure all the mounting bolts are out. And
Watch you don't hurt your back!

You can remove the head and it might give you enough clearance to slide it out.

Having my 650 on its center stand I used a 4 foot by 1 foot piece of plywood supported by paint cans and pieces of plywood to get the board just under the frame.

Then I made 6 or 7 approx 8 inch by 1 foot 5 eighths thick pieces of plywood taped them together and used them in between the frame to jack the motor up with. A after you get all the motor mount bolts out you can jack it up and outta the mounts pretty easy using the plywood. Only takes 3 inches and its sitting there pretty steady all ready for you to grab.

Myself my wife and son very easily lifted the motor out the side and set it on the 1 by 4 piece of plywood I used for a plat form. Two could do it but three made it a piece of cake. Taped the frame with newspaper to keep from skinning it but really if your careful it shocked me how easy it was...after all the worrying I did about it too.

I had the head on and the exhaust studs still in too taped and padded up though.

The plywood and jack also worked great for getting it back in also.

With the engine still in the frame, you can easily remove the head and cylinders. Once these are off, you should have lots of space to get the engine out. You can also use a jack and a 2x6 (to protect your oil pan) to help lift the engine just above the frame rails. Then, it's as simple as pulling it out.

-Murray

Laying the bike on it's side and lifting the frame off is by far the easiest way, there is less than 5 minutes between the two pics below, didn't even sweat.

The engine will only come out to the right, so lay the bike on it's right side - you may want to support the head with a wooden block or similar - wiggle the frame a bit to make the rear mounts clear and simply lift the frame off, piece of cake.

Installing the engine you just reverse the process, I like to install the long mounting bolts front and rear with the bike still on the side, that way the engine is already positioned when you stand the bike up.

Note: ONLY do this if you drained the oil first.

Thanks all it is out. I laided the bike on it's side as my center stand is gone.

The whole engine can be lifted out of the bike by one guy, but it's not a job for someone who doesn't lift heavy things. It's heavy, but managable by a single pair of hands.

This is how I did the 1000

kzrider.com/forum/2-engine/527883-engine-swap#527954