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It all got kicked off in 1983.  I was in Washington D.C. when 3 or 4 "barking Kaws" got the arrow across from us leading onto the highway.  I had to have one,  
This was good timing for a buyer as the industry was depressed and it had turned into winter.  I had never ridden a bike on the street, unless I can count a Rupp minibike.  I went to the dealer and purchased a new in the crate 1982 KZ-550 delivered to my house, it was silver with a cool black stripe and a smaller brown stripe.  I peeled the brown off and it looked great.  So, I jumped on my 550 with no experience and zero training.  Rode it for 12 years then sold it as I was not riding it much and Florida coast had done a number on it with the salt air.

So, in 1997 I got the bug again and bought a 1982 GPZ-550.  It had been gone through by a motorcycle mechanic and repainted, you guessed it, lime green complete with 1000R badges.  Rode it 2 years then had to get a CBR600F3 brand new.  The Kaw sat in the garage and after a silly drop onto my left leg I sold the CBR but the Kaw sat in the corner of the garage until a few weeks ago.  Wife kept asking me what I was going to do with it but I would not sell it.

Performing a light restoration on it to test the waters so that brought me here.  Glad there is still interest in these awesome machines.  Chris

Welcome!  The 550 is a bit small for me but I've ridden it a few times and found it to be an impressive model.   Lots of info here for you.

Welcome Chris and don´t forget to show some pics of your bike. We all are pic junkies and need our daily dosis!

Welcome Chris. The GPz550 was my first street bike during my college years. Would love to have my '83 back. 

Welcome aboard!

I was stationed in Hawaii in the early 1990s and was riding a Ninja 250. A co-worker wanted to go bike shopping, so we went to a local shop (now gone) to see their used bikes. We didn't find anything for him but I found a 1981 GPz550, which I've had for about 30 years.

Part of what pulled me in was the sound. That is a 1980s-vintage 4-into-1 with a fiberglass repackable baffle, minus the fiberglass. I recently picked up a set of Keihin CR26s and look forward to installing them and hearing her run again.