Electronic tach?

can someone recommend an electric tach for my kz900 drag bike?

I use one from a ZN1100 LTD, but you can use any Kawasaki later model electronic tach. You want to stay with an analog needle and not #s. This way you can see the position of the needle in the periphery of your vision. This means you can keep your eyes where they are supposed to be and not on the tach.

order 4cyl version from auto meter

I looked up the autometer tachs and they start at close to $300. My bike is an entry level brackets bike so I run a stock motor (consistency and weight savings over sheer hp), don't need to step up to the expensive race parts yet (maybe if I go turbo then I'll spring for $300-$500 tachs).

If I go with the zn1100 ltd (that's the zeypher right?) is the wiring straight forward or do I have to worry about a control box?

On any of the Kawasaki electric tachs, which are designed for the 4 cylinders, you just need to splice into the Black coil wire. You can splice into the other coil also it makes no difference which coil you splice into, just do not splice into the common coil wire. Or you can also buy one of these for $20, but the automotive meters are not waterproof.
www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=98480

is the kz900 a wasted spark bike? if so then don't I need a bike specific tach and not an automotive tach?

if your drag racing don't bother with a tach use a shift light set-up. what ignition system are you using.

Geeto67 wrote:

is the kz900 a wasted spark bike? if so then don't I need a bike specific tach and not an automotive tach?

You can use an adapter circuit to use a car tach on a bike, but like Otakar said, the car tach is not very weather proof, or even very vibration proof, compared to a bike tach.

I use a cheap car tach, but I took it apart, siliconed all the internals for vibration, then sealed the case with silicone too.

Redline sells an electcric tach that goes right in your instrument cluster - looks like a stock unit. Around 200.00 maybe the stop lamp on it can be rigged up as a shift light??

will61310 wrote:

Redline sells an electcric tach that goes right in your instrument cluster - looks like a stock unit. Around 200.00 maybe the stop lamp on it can be rigged up as a shift light??

Here's the link.
Click here to see it > Z1 Electric Tach Conversion

Good Luck!

I guess I should give you the run down on my bike.

The bike is a 1976 kz900. The previous owner converted it to a "drag bike" for use in our local street bike class. It was a budget built bike and it shows. I don't have a gauge cluster because he had an autometer setup with a mini speedo on the bike which he kept when he sold me the bike. He also hardtailed the frame (welded - ick) but left the engine alone because as a brackets bike it needed to be consistent more than it needed to be fast. I normally run a h1 kawasaki as my brackets bike but it was starting to get inconsistent when I dropped into the low 12s with it and the motor needed to come apart anyway so I bought the kz900 so I could go 11s and also I wanted to shift back to 4 strokes and run in a different class. Since this is a street bike class, I do plan on running the bike on the street occasionally (though it is loud). MY racing budget is pretty thin right now (as is everybody's) so I am trying to get an electronic tach on the bike so I can make a pass or two before the track closes for the season next week, just to sort it out.

I have a cluster from a 1986 zx1000 (I own one so I bought a spare cluster), do you think I can rig that to make it work until I can find a better solution? I think my local shop has a ZL600 tach from the 1990s on the shelf and it looks like it is electronic, will that work?

Patton wrote:

will61310 wrote:

Redline sells an electcric tach that goes right in your instrument cluster - looks like a stock unit. Around 200.00 maybe the stop lamp on it can be rigged up as a shift light??

Here's the link.
Click here to see it > Z1 Electric Tach Conversion

Good Luck!

cooooooooooool!