TOPIC:

I dont have time to work on my bike because Im a student. I was given two bikes from my uncle's collection for christmas.The 1977 KZ650 B needs the top end redone. The valve seals are shot, etc.  I bought a separate cylinder head, without the cams in it,  and thats being handled by a reputable head rebulder. All the valves, rubber, etc are being replaced, machining and whatnot, but thats not my issue.My uncle's friend said he will take the old head off and put the new one on,  but that I need to get a "shim kit." He said he cant just take the shims out of the old head and put them on the new head without having shims because ....whatever. haha.Does this make sense, and what is the best shim kit to get and where from? Im fairly new to all this tech stuff and can use the guidance.

Thanks!
Daniel

He can use the shims from the old head to calculate which size shims he needs to get the new head in spec. He/you would only need to buy 8 shims at most but will possibly be able to use some of the shims from the old head in the new head so maybe you'll need less than 8.

Awesome. Thanks. and again, your bikes are awesome.

I want to pay him something but hes saying he wont take any money because my uncle is his friend. The hourly rate here in ohio is $95 per hour to work on a bike. How many hours do you think it would take to take off the old head with the engine still in the bike, put on new piston rings, put on the old head and swap the new cams in? 4? 8? 10?

" IF" and that's a big if he doesn't find anything which needs sorting other that straight swop, hone the barrels because of new rings, sort the valve shiming etc I could do that in 2 or 3 hours. He will need new base, head and cam cover gaskets and possibly oil gallery o rings.
He will need a break waiting for the new shims once he's calculated which sizes he needs. 

Thanks. I have ALL of the o rings and gaskets for the top end rebuild. I was pretty thorough when researching what gaskets I would need.

Before my uncle said he would do it, a local shop quoted me 10 hours at a total price of $1,195 for the job.

Shop prices include premesis rent, power costs, taxes and hundred other things a DIY er doesn't. 

True indeed. And mechanics have mouths to feed too. One shop in a neighboring state told me $1750!!! ppl are insane. When I brough this up to my uncle, it was then that he reached out to his retiree friend.

When I'm working on someone else's bike I charge £100 a day for my time. (and if it isn't a 70's 4 stroke Kwak i tell them not to bring it round ​​​​​​) 

well this old timer seems to know what hes talking about. A friend told me to go ahead and buy a master shim kit. I called the old timer and he said "no, thats a waste. Bring the bike round. I may be able to use the old shims, and if not, I can tell you EXACTLY what size shims you need so you dont have to spend a ton of money. He said I would need only 8 shims at the most.

Any bike shop that does service & repairs should have 13mm shims which they usually trade for a small fee. When you know what sizes you need, hit one up.
I had a bike repairer let me take his shim kit home to set my lash and all he wanted was a bottle of Coca Cola.

Search on ebay or amazon for a 13mm shim kit.
I bought two shim sets on german ebay privat sales for 100 Euros.

 

Anybody know if HotCams shims are any good?  Or are there brands that should be avoided? 
wondering if some kits are made in china or known to be poor quality. 
Personally, I'll probably just buy oem as needed instead of a kit. Thanks.