'78 KZ650B won't shift gears

Hello All-
A little bit of a newbie here so bear with me! Here is a quick rundown of the situation:

The other day my front sprocket came loose, so I was able to switch gears, but was unable to engage the engine. I went in and placed the front sprocket back on, and everything seemed fine. I took the bike for a ride around the block with no problems.
I had to order a new flanged nut (which was missing... the reason the front sprocket fell off in the first place.). When I received the nut I went and tightened it with the lock washer finger tight just as the book says. I figured I might as well do a clutch adjustment since I was working in that area, followed the instructions in the book as best I could, started the bike up and.... now I cannot change gears.
It almost feels as if it is locked, or as if something is in the way. It just won't click over smoothly as it always had. I took the nut off just to test if that maybe was blocking something but no such luck. My only theory is that I somehow messed something up when adjusting the clutch, but I am a little lost at this point.

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

You state:
"I had to order a new flanged nut (which was missing... the reason the front sprocket fell off in the first place.). When I received the nut I went and tightened it with the lock washer finger tight just as the book says. "

First of all, to my knowledge there are no nuts at all on any KZ model that should only be tightened "finger tight." If you tightened the countersprocket nut finger tight you are going to have a problem very soon when it comes off. What manual stated finger tight?

Second - what "flanged nut" are you referring to? Please take a look at the diagram below and let us know which number identifies the nut in question.

Third - Are you trying to shift into 2nd and higher gears with the bike sitting still and the rear wheel not spinning? If so, the transmission "neutral finder" feature will prevent you from shifting to 2nd or higher gears. Ed

Finger tight? It should be more like 1/2" drive air impact wrench tight.

And like 650ed said, it's got to be moving to shift into anything but first and neutral.

Thanks for the reply 650ed.

First- Indeed my Clymer manual does indeed state to tighten this nut only "finger tight"

Second- #43 seems to identify the nut in question. Here is the link to actual nut purchased:
www.z1enterprises.com/ItemDetails.aspx?i...x+P1&item=92015-1210

Third- In the past I had no problems shifting in to higher gears with the back wheel not spinning, but with that being said I cannot even shift in to first gear from neutral. I have also been reading about this neutral lock, which I will admit, I was not aware of so maybe some of the problem lies in there?

My next question based on this new info is that could I have done something while adjusting the clutch that could have caused this issue?

If the Clymer manual says to tighten the engine sprocket nut "finger tight" throw that manual in the trash can before it gets you into BIG trouble, and buy a Kawasaki Service Manual. Be sure to get one for your exact year/model as there are some differences in some of the systems; they usually are available on eBay.

Notice in the excerpt below the torque spec for the KZ650 engine sprocket nut is 54-61 foot pounds. Even King Kong cannot apply that much "finger tight" torque!

Regarding the shifting problem possibly being the result of adjusting the clutch - YES! If the clutch adjustment instructions in that crappy Clymer manual are as bad as their torque advice who knows what you have done to the clutch adjustment. Again - I would re-adjust the clutch using the instructions in the Kawasaki Service Manual and see if the problem goes away. Ed

mvincent wrote:
First- Indeed my Clymer manual does indeed state to tighten this nut only "finger tight"

It does, yes - however it does suggest a bit more if you continue to read step 4 - 8 below the note.

OnkelB wrote:

mvincent wrote:
First- Indeed my Clymer manual does indeed state to tighten this nut only "finger tight"

It does, yes - however it does suggest a bit more if you continue to read step 4 - 8 below the note.

That makes more sense! I'm no big fan of the Clymer manuals, but even I didn't think they would recommend finger tight sprockets. :laugh: :laugh: Ed

Clutch has no real effect on shifting while the engine is not running. Most likely just the dogs of the gears are butting together. Once everything is turning as intended, most likely you'll be fine. The transmission is pretty foolproof in operation.