Nearing the end of a lengthy restoration Iim having some issues with the stands.
1. The centre stand has new springs but when it's up it just bounces under the swing arm. Should it be tensioned somehow?
2. Side stand has strange lockout piece with double spring. Is this normal? I can't see it in any parts diagrams to check spring sizes etc.
3.I have lowered the bike front and rear as I'm vertically challenged so wondering if I could leave the centre stand off as it is now higher to lift onto the stand.
4.different subject, but was wondering if the front guard stays are necessary as mine are in poor condition and I think it looks better without them.

Cheers

Ok,Things have been moving along glacially.Ive done bog all for ages.I got really stuck with the rearsets and it pretty much killed any inspiration to move on with other stuff. So this weekend I thought Id get stuck in again. There was a lot of half finished things and stuff that I wasnt happy with and wanted to change. So, forgetting about the rearsets,I consentrated on these things.
First was bolting down the cam cover properly. I tried it a while ago with a torque wrench and the torques in my book must be misprinted or I had the wrench set wrong. I was sure something was going to snap! I decided to back everything off and just do it by hand.Thats off the list now.
Next was to get the coils mounted.No problem there,job done.
Then theres the swing arm.I was not happy with the clearance on the right hand side twixt the swingarm and the frame down tube.There was space but very little and any travel in the shock would have seen the arm wedged up against the frame.

I dropped the wheel out,pulled the shocks off and had at it with the grinder. I calculated a maximum 'swing' upwards of 8cm +- ,this would be the maximum travel of the shock at the most extreme. I managed to shave off just enough for about 10cm travel. Plenty.
Shocks back on,wheel in.Job done.
Next was the exhaust bracket. Im not happy with it and Im sure I can do something better. As I was staring at it,the back brake rearset started laughing at me.
Ive explained the problems earlier in this thread,so I wont go through it again but as it stands the brake pedal clears the pipe,which is what I was after but the rider position is not too good and my knees are almost touching the corners of the head.
So,I had a thought. I took it off,took off the adapter plate that I made and took the grinder to the brake arm. I ground a bit off the bottom,opened it up to get the right position and welded it.





I drilled a small hole and tapped in an M4 bolt as a stopper,to keep the return spring under a bit of tension






and it works! Peg position is good and comfortable .Plenty of space twixt knees and engine and the brake lever has enough swing without hitting on the pipe! Result. Finally,its done and out of the way.
Now I just have to get the other side sorted so the gearshifter dosnt foul on the side stand.

Wobble – there should be none. On my KZ650-C1 I never had any wobble for more than 30,000 miles. Then things changed. I found that when I hit around 90 mph the bike would wobble badly which at that speed was very dangerous. Even though I only hit 90 and above occasionally the thought of the wobble waiting there for me was unnerving.

In trying to nail down the problem I replaced the steering stem bearings with All-Balls tapered roller bearings, installed new wheel bearings, and installed new swingarm bushings. I installed high quality shocks and changed the fork oil. These things tightened the bike up to like-new condition, and somewhat reduced the severity of the wobble, but these items obviously were not the source of the problem because it persisted.

As a last resort I installed new tires. The tires on the bike were Michelin Macadams and they looked fine with no uneven wear. They had been on the bike for several thousand miles and certainly did not cause a wobble when they were new, so it was not a problem with how they were mounted. However, despite their good appearance they most definitely were the source of the wobble. I put on Pirelli Sport Demon tires and the wobble completely disappeared. I have run the bike up to 120 mph and it is as steady as a rock.

I’m glad I replaced the bearings, bushings, etc. as it’s nice to know everything is in tip-top condition, but in my case, without a doubt, tires were the problem. If you replace a bunch of stuff and still have the wobble you may want to replace the tires even if they look good. Ed

531blackbanshee wrote: congrats on the progress!

all the fab,and body work is killer :evil: ,

keep us posted,

leon

Thanks Leon. The majority of the fab is finally done. I have 255 hours of labor into the bike so far. :blink: I have a little more welding to do on the aluminum seat/tail combo and then I can do the bodywork on that, make a seat pad for it and get some primer and paint on it and the tank. I'm just dying to see it as a roller. I have my colors picked out as well as the paint design and I think it's going to look just incredible! :ohmy:

I was planning to have the frame, center stand, swing arm, etc powder coated, but in keeping with the cafe theme of keeping it cheap and doing everything yourself, I might just go with paint instead. We've had things powder coated in the past and generally haven't been all that thrilled. Everything looked great, but if a big enough rock flies up, it's going to put a scar on powder coat just as much as it will on paint. And since it's not a dirt bike, I think powder coat might be overkill anyway. I'd rather put that part of the budget into performance upgrades like the Boyer Bransden ignition system, stainless shorty mufflers, etc.

Anyway, stay tuned. Much more to come!

It seems to hold glue well. I was told not to repair it yet so 100 more miles with a mangled box. Gotcha on the damage. I'm going to give her a bath and polish. I'll be looking at the frame, swing arm etc. At least it's cooler so I can do this.
I noted how calm I was during and after. After the wreck in 86, I don't frighten like before. I had a big biker guy come to my house to try and intimidate me. I calmly told him he wasn't scaring me, HE WAS PISSING ME OFF and I can pop caps just as well as the next guy. Conditioning I guess.
I found some Vetter bags on eBay. Most want as much if not more for shipping. I sold an original worm drive Skil saw on eBay. Not only was it heavy but it was a odd size. $41 to ship to NJ. Nothing that matches mine though. Other vintage bags look UGLY and are smaller. I think I'll print out a couple of those ads and hand them to the adjuster if nothing else than to show the value of vintage stuff. We'll see. :whistle:
Steve.

Progressive springs up front. (sold under the same name) Replace the rear shocks. I bought some progressive rear shocks for a good price. (not a track bike) lube the swing arm pivot. If it's worn out, you'll know right away. Clean out the gunk in the forks. (you will while doing seals) Ride it and see if anything else is needed. I've taken my bike up and down logging roads and trails. I've furrowed my way through soft sand and held my own in the twisties. They do handle well if taken care of.
Now if you want a canyon carver, get yourself a modern crotch rocket. :whistle:
You can keep'em in my book. :lol:
Steve

I put progressive shocks on the back of my 650 and have been very happy with them. Still run stock springs up front.

Make sure you're swing arm bearings are still tight and you should also put tapered bearings in the steering stem of you haven't already. Also make sure your wheel bearing are good and your wheels are balanced properly. It all contributes to the ride quality and "feel" of the motorcycle.

Wow. I'm really glad my bike came with a centerstand. I can pull the front forks, rear wheel, swing arm, etc. using it. The only help it needs is a small bottle jack under the front of the engine when pulling the front wheel or forks. It's a shame that newer models didn't at least have a boss or bracket underneath to allow a centerstand to be mounted temporarily for repairs and maintenance. I wonder if such a thing could be welded under the frame for that purpose? It sure would make life easier for folks with bikes that have no permanent centerstand. Ed

Rayray10147 wrote: Thank you for the info I'll definitely look into the other bikes to see if there compatible with the 440 worst case scenario I just change the shoes and leave her how she is. Again thanks for the info

The 550 GPz won't be compatible, it'll just be the closest match in size, as opposed to a 650 or 750 for instance. The first thing to do would be to get a swing arm measurement or two. The width would let you know straight away how doable it would be. Or the sleeve/bolt length.

For better stopping power, it might be easier to swap a dual disk front end, but that opens a can of worms as well. The stock brakes ought to be fine, though. When replacing the rear brake shoes, I sanded the glazing off the drum very carefully & evenly w 100 grit --- don't contaminate the bearings. Don't breathe the dust as it may contain asbestos.

[/quote]The guy that taught me to weld only uses a tinted lens, no autodark. He used to work for one of the top exotic welding specialists in the area so he def know his shit.[/quote]

Used the tinted hoods when I was doing collision repair. I remember tacking some rust repair on an old 240z (love those cars!) I had when I was still a cocky teen, it was bright as hell outside and I thought I could do things a lil faster by not using the hood to tack since it took so long for my eyes to adjust from bright sun to hood down, let my eyes adjust, tack. So instead I did the "hold the gun where I needed a tack, shut my eyes and look away :whistle: NEVER again..flash burn is not cool. So past 12 years or so, been spoiled using auto hoods and have a good stock of cr2025 and 2045 batteries when either one flickers.

Back on topic..much needed update. Bike is running fantastic so far, I think I dodge a few bullets with my carbs and pods? Did a lot of plug chopping, I'm definitely not sizzlelean or thick sooty carbon rich. judging by the NGK plug color chart I have and the almighty google, I'd say on the rich side of normal. I also haven't had any back stabbing electrical problems the past 3 weeks. One little issue I had was a vibrating headlight. Thought I fixed it, but it came back with a vengeance! So swapped out the stock bucket and hl for a 7" H4 I had. The night after that swap, low beam goes out..smh. Thought the 7" looked too big anyways . Took apart the stock one and noticed not much plastic left for a bushing in both pivot joints. Used a rubber grommet(ones to make holes in firewalls safe)on both holes...omfg! it's so peaceful now! I swear i almost wanted to cry on the freeway..hahaha! but now.... I can hear shit, like my chain is rubbing either on top close to the pivot of the swing arm or the foot of the center stand or maybe both? I'll see in the morn.
Other than that, I have no regrets of how much I've spent yet alone the time I invested into this project, my very first motorcycle build, I'm lovin my KZ and the thumbs up I get on the freeway and compliments at stops. Best part is that I'm not even done with the bike yet!? I think my red springs are hypnotizing? lol..Couple nights ago decided to take a super scenic route home. Half way through, 2 crotch rockets and a converted DRZ zoom pass me. I was 10 over the posted limit. I'm sure 2 of the 3 riders were novices, since I was able to safely stay behind one of the riders R6. The supermoto must've been the experienced rider cause he was parked in the shopping center lot eating a burrito. they didn't believe me when I said it was a 440.
Late night..


Front..I gotta remember to take the side reflectors off before taking pics...lol


Some header stuff going on..


decided to do a single..so here's the merge I made..


ed