Tach problem on KZ1000

The tach on my 77 KZ1000 is flaking out. If I rev the motor in neutral, the tach works fine. Out on the road it will either lag way behind or jump well above the rpm's that I'm actually turning. I've see it jump up to 11,500 rpm while cruising. It doesn't always act this way. Somtimes it will work fine. The tach is cable driven. I glanced at the gears on the cam and tach drive while I was adjusting the valves, and they appeared ok. Is is just my cable going bad or the tach?

Try lubing the cable and see if it helps any.

I had the same problem. I took my tach apart, cleaned it, put it back together and it worked fine for years after that.

How difficult is it to take the tach apart? Are there any online tutorials for it? I took the bike for a short ride yesterday and the take worked good. Maybe the warmer weather helped??


Tony wrote:

I had the same problem. I took my tach apart, cleaned it, put it back together and it worked fine for years after that.

check cable first it could be binding inside the outer cover or one of the square ends could be rounded off.