TOPIC:

I did put a straight edge on the block deck. I put a light behind it and could see some light leaking through so out come the feeler gauges. One area near the center has a .002 in gap. The gauge tip will stick so I believe it is right at .002. Oddly enough I did not do so on the head. I will do so. Thanks.

.002" is good, .003' is bad. Block and head.

Thank you. Are you saying if I put the head without a gasket on the cylinders, the gap between the two cannot exceed .002? Torqued down?

No. Straight edge and feeler gauge on the head, just like the block.

Head checks good for being flat, Same as the jugs, one spot where a .002 inch feeler gauge will stick. O-rings came in tonight so the top end goes on tomorrow.

I'll do some searching here, but does anyone know where I can get stock stripes for the CSR?

Hi,

I've taken quite a few 1000/ 1100 J engines apart. 3 were virgin KZ1000J's (2 LTD's and 1 CSR, 81's and 82's) that had never been taken apart before (so just as Kawasaki had built them), and none had any hint of silicone sealant on the cylinder base gasket or head gasket.

The o-rings between the cylinder and upper case, and the cylinder and head, sealing the oil gallery / cylinder studs, are purchased separately / not included in all the A/M gaskets kits I've seen (Cometic, Vesrah, Bike Master, Emgo, etc.). The OEM O-rings are ridiculously expensive, and have to be ordered individually. They are odd sizes (very thick) so you aren't likely to find a cheap alternative at the auto parts or hydraulic supply store, either. Just one of a few nasty bits of reality in rebuilding one of these engines.

I like using the one piece Cometic fiber head gaskets. and the Vesrah complete engine gasket kits are very good quality IMO. I've never had a problem with any brand's head gasket leaking as long as the cylinder and head are not warped beyond the FSM limits and are completely undamaged, and clean. I always grease or oil the base gasket before installation, but install head gaskets dry unless the gasket manufacturer instructs otherwise. I hate unnecessary use of RTV - in fact I tell my engine customers "I use bolts to hold engines together - I don't glue them together". The exception, of course, is the case halves. I have used various brands of RTV sealant for case halves, and never had any leaks (so far). Most observers are shocked because I apply so little RTV - an absolute minimum thin even layer - to one case half, so little that the squeeze out is a bead 0.010" at most.

I have seen a few differences in the hardware Kawasaki originally used to secure and locate the cylinder and head on theses engines. For example, my 81 CSR had a set of paper thin hard spring steel split sleeves on the 4 outer cylinder studs that fit tightly in the holes in the original head gasket, and went part way into the stud holes in the cylinder and head. I haven't seen anything like that on any other KZ or GPz engine. They aren't shown on the parts diagram from Partzilla, either. There were also the usual knock pins for location of the head.

The 82 1000 LTD had copper faced head washers installed on about half the studs, not just the corners. The 81 LTD had plain round o-rings on the oil pump and oil pump passage between the case halves, while all the other J's / GPz's I've seen had the flat and pointed o-rings in the same locations....I re-used them, as they were still pliable and looked like new after 30k miles, and had no problems with oil pressure or flow.....

Hey Kray-Z. Funny you mentioned those o-ring springs. If you look at P bike parts you'll see them listed. They are supposed to prevent the over-squish of the outer orings which may obstruct oil flow past the studs. I guess that's even more important on a machined block where the o-ring groves are no longer as deep. I'm going to use them this time around seeing my block was machined, and I'm using oversized studs.

This is why some engines need external cylinder head oil lines

Hey Scirocco. Love that bike! So you mean you went with outside lines because too much off the block to accommodate o-rings? My ZRX has external lines, Oil by the studs was not the greatest idea,. especially after mods. Best method,, like most engines, separate oil galley through the block to the head.

This is a very popular engine mod to secure a stable oil flow to the cylinder head.




I will do this on my project bike this winter with a big bore kit.

So have you seen any real examples of oversize studs reducing oil flow enough to hurt the top end? Most folks say it's not enough to hurt anything, including APE. Possibly even a benefit with the obstruction forcing more oil to the bottom end in performance applications. I've already calculated the amount to drill out the outer stud holes in the block and head to maintain OEM oil flow with oversized studs.

The big issue is in the head, not the block, since the head holes are significantly less ID than the block. So that's where any significant oil flow reduction would take place,

PS: You're bikes are killing me! Reminds me of Bull Dock in Japan...

oversize studs reducing oil flow? Yes, and rises the oil pressure in the oil flow system.
Liquids can not compressed like air. This let the oil pump do a lot of stress by blow by oil and a loss of engine power.
Thats the physics of liquids in a close system.