kz 650 project is kicking my ass

hi everybody ijust cleened my carbs-charged my battery-nice and cleen-but now when i try to start it up sounds like my stator makes a blood curdling screeching noise and keep going for a couple of seconds after i take my finger off the button-nothing at all happens when i try to kick start-what i thought would be an easy project is turning into a nightmare[one thing after another]could i have over charged the battery?-but the battery should not affect the kick start?right-right now im taking a break for acouple of days and iwill start again with a better atitude and hopefully some help from my knowledgable friends at kz rider..thanks mike

Are you positive that the noise is coming from the stator and not the starter? Ed

What I believe your hearing is the over running clutch for the electric starting system. It's comprised of three rollers and springs that with time and wear start to slip.

On most larger Kawasaki's (900's,1000, and 1100's) the starting clutch is behind the magnetic rotor for the alternator requiring the alternator cover be removed,the rotor be pulled, and new rollers and springs be installed
with assembly being done in reverse.

Sometimes just changing the oil helps this problem as the starting clutch needs a little oil for operation.

What type and weight of oil are you using? I've heard good things about the Shell Rotella oil in both 15W40 and 20W50
for bike use.

im using castrol 10w40 is this good in your opion-the bike ran when i bought it[rough] now nothing ,idid change the oil -maybe you have a point there -ill try an oil change before any surgery ..thanks..mike

sure sounds like the starter clutch to me.

irish mike wrote:

im using castrol 10w40 is this good in your opion-the bike ran when i bought it[rough] now nothing ,idid change the oil -maybe you have a point there -ill try an oil change before any surgery ..thanks..mike

Car oil? That may be bad as the latest formulations lack the level of zinc needed in these older engines to prevent excessive wear. If it's Castrol bike oil, then it shouldn't be a problem.

Generally speaking, the starter clutch makes noise under load, i.e. when you're trying to start the engine. Once the engine starts, centrifugal force causes the rollers to retract from the hub. However, that doesn't mean that there isn't some odd problem that is causing one of the rollers to not release for a while.

Without being there, it's rather difficult to offer a better diagnosis.