Bare Bones Wiring KZ550

Sweet! Thanks. yeah I would be using new wire the whole way. Thanks again, good stuff.

home.att.net/~sherri2000/550bareBones.GIF

I updated the diagram with some more color details.

If you want to use the original ignition key switch, I showed which wires to tie together to double up on the contacts to be sure to get good voltage to the coils. (Sometimes I eliminate the kill switch and use only the Key switch if the owner wants it that way.)

The colors are based on Clymer diagrams, so there are no guarantees on the color codes. The colors for the switch are based on the colors going to the switch side of the plug, not necessarily the harness side of the plug.

I also added an optional fuse which is not absolutely necessary, but is a very good idea in case the rec/reg shorts out. Some KZ's don't have that fuse, but they were added to later KZ's for that reason.

I recommend using the spade fuses with the sealed-boot fuse holders. They are the most weather proof and you won't have to make a seperate fuse box. (Throw away the old fuse box! Don't use it.)

Note this is really a schematic, not a diagram. A wire diagram shows the physical wire layout whereas this schematic is organized based on electrical concepts. The top horizontal wire is the switched positive (which should be all new 14 to 12 gauge wire), and the bottom wire is the ground line (which should be all new 14 to 12 gauge as well).

Also note that most KZ's have the starter solenoid wires colored in a strange way. They use a black wire for the 12 volts to trigger the solenoid. The ground is red/yel. That's strange, but that's how it is. I always swap the black and red/yel so it makes more sense. The choice is yours, but I would make a not of it on the schematic if you change it, otherwise you may blow fuses if you try to jump it.


If you want to do it right, you need THIS
tool. A cheap crimper will only cause headaches.
Soldering is not good for normal connections. Solder heats the wire making it weaker at the joint. That plus flux makes it corode faster. The stiffness of the solder joint creates a stress point which causes the wire to break. Good crimp joints will outlast the solder joints.

Post edited by: loudhvx, at: 2006/11/17 13:21

Thanks A Million for your wiring help. I've got everything stripped down and I pretty clear on everything execpt there are two wires I'm not sure about. A blue w/ red stripe and a light green coming off of the alternator with the three yellow wires. Are they needed?

Blu/red is oil pressure switch for the oil light. The green is the neutral switch for the neutral light. They are not necessary, but don't get rid of them in case you want to use them sometime. Just tape them off.

Thanks again

hey i have a 1981 kz550 c-2 doing the same thing but i had a question about fork oil? the book i have does not show how much to add on a dry fork for a c-2? any ideas

is there a way to get a peek at that wiring diagram?

Wiring diagrams from KZr FILEBASE
www.kzrider.com/filebase/doc_download/302-z550c2
www.kzrider.com/filebase/doc_download/303-z550d1

Manual and more from loudhvx
home.comcast.net/~loudgpz/KZ5mnl.pdf
home.comcast.net/~loudgpz/GPZweb/index.html#home

Good Fortune!

Edit -- manual is not FSM.
[Thanks, loudhvx!]

The link in my signature is a manual, but not an FSM.
It has info on how to measure fork oil. You will need to make a long dipstick to get it right.
Page 45 explains, page 68 has the numbers.
Summary:
Get the bike with front wheel off the ground so the forks are full extended.
Remove the fork cap.
Remove the spring.
Add about 9 fluid oz of fork oil. (Bone dry will take about 9.8 oz.)
Move sliders up and down slowly to get the air out of the damping mechanism.
Then add a little more fluid, a little bit at a time, while checking the depth with a dipstick.
Fashion some way so the dipstick will be in the center of the fork when it touches the fluid.
(That is so you can do it while the forks are still on the bike. It's not necessary if the forks are straight upright.)
The depth, from the mouth of the forks to the oil surface is 14.0" (356mm).



I'm not sure what happened to the diagram in that link from 4 years ago, but that manual in my link has wiring B/W diagrams for the 550, also there are color diagrams in the filebase, as Patton pointed out.

great info. thanks alot.

is there anyway i can get you to send the kz550 bare bones diagram to my email?
It would be very much appreciated.

Thank you
Dusty

Forestvilleclub@yahoo.com

You don't happen to have that barebones wiring somewhere deep down in your computer do ya? If not no worries man. I'm wiring mine up right now and thought it might be a bit easier with your diagram. I know its been like 6 years so I understand if you do not have it anymore.

Thanks
Jay