Hi i have a z2 frame and 92 gsx-r forks and swingarm in place. I have been away from m/c ing about ten years .I need all the help i can get. THANKS, HENRY

Smart move! You will be amazed at the amount of information in that manual. Take some time and go through all the sections as it not only describes maintenance and repairs it also describes how each system on the bike works.

Here are some tips that you may find helpful:

Many newbies and not so newbies run into or issues with their bikes which could be easily avoided with a little preparation or information. Here are a couple recommendations that I hope you will find useful.

Before riding your KZ you should take a little time to become familiar with it. Simple things like checking the oil, tire pressures, etc. are explained in the Kawasaki Owner's Manual. If you bike didn't come with one (they normally are in a little holder on the bottom of the seat) you can usually find one on eBay - be sure to get one for your exact year/model.


MANUAL

The factory service manual provides instructions on the various maintenance procedures and schedules for your bike, procedures for diagnosing problems, proper torque values for the various fasteners (VERY IMPORTANT), and insight into how each system on your bike works even if you are not repairing that system. Studying the manual before you attempt performing service on your bike will impart an understanding of the system you are working on which will increase the odds of success.

TOOLS

WARNING! Do not even try to use Phillips screwdrivers on the Kawasaki cross head screws. Despite their appearance they are not Phillips screws. They are Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) screws. The tips of Phillips screwdrivers are too long & pointed to allow the 4 blades of the screwdriver to properly engage the screws, so when you apply force the screw head slots will deform and look like crap. The fact is that Phillips screws were deliberately designed to have the screwdriver bit "cam out." This was done to prevent production line assembly from over-tightening, stripping, or breaking the screws. JIS screws do not have this problem. A proper fitting JIS bit can tighten a JIS screw to and beyond the torque spec without camming out. Here's the good news - you can easily modify standard Phillips screwdriver tips to fit the JIS screws.

I have ground down the tips of DeWalt #2 and DeWalt #3 Phillips to make them fit JIS screws. The large crosshead screws on the cases take modified #3 bits (or genuine #3 JIS bits). To modify the DeWalt bits you need to grind the very tip a little, then test fit, then grind a little more and test fit, etc. until the bit no longer "rocks" back and forth in the screwhead. Picture 1 below shows how a DeWalt #3 bit fits the case screws of my KZ650 after being ground properly. The #2 DeWalt bits can be modified the same way to fit smaller JIS screws. Pictures 2 and 3 below shows DeWalt #2 and #3 modified bits.

I did find a place that sells authentic JIS bits. They don't list the #3 bit, but if you contact them they can provide the #3 JIS bits even though they are not listed on the website. These folks were very easy to work with, and the authentic bits do work great. Here's their site:

www.rjrcooltools.com/shop_item_detail.cfm?subcat_ID=89

Pictures 4 & 5 below show a comparison between my home made modified bits with the authentic JIS bits.

PICTURE 1

PICTURE 2

PICTURE 3

PICTURE 4

PICTURE 5

Before reaching for that wrench or ratchet consider the following. The bolts are steel, but your engine and front forks are aluminum. The bolts are much tougher than the aluminum and if over tightened will strip the aluminum threads. Although these can be repaired, preventing damage by applying proper torque will save you grief, time, and money. Tightening fasteners properly requires torque wrenches. Various vendors, including Snap-on, CDI, Sears, etc., market torque wrenches. The two most popular types are the bar type and micrometer type. Either will work, but the micrometer type is a bit easier to use, especially if you are tightening several fasteners with the same torque - such as cylinder head covers. You will need a torque wrench calibrated in INCH POUNDS for many of the bolts. You will also need a torque wrench calibrated in FOOT POUNDS for the larger bolts. Don't try to use the foot pounds wrench on the smaller bolts as it will not be sensitive enough at low torque settings to provide accurate torque. There are many fasteners that require low torque. These include such things as 6mm oil pan bolts, cylinder head cover bolts, etc. for which the torque in 61-78 inch pounds. These low torque bolts require a wrench that is accurate at low settings and this wrench should be graduated in inch pounds. In addition, there are numerous high torque fasteners such as the front axle nuts (51 - 65 foot pounds) or swing arm pivot shaft nuts (58 - 87 foot pounds). These require a wrench that is accurate at higher settings; this wrench should be graduated in foot pounds. Using the proper torque wrenches to correctly tighten fasteners will help prevent damage and contribute to a safe bike. The Kawasaki Service Manual will list the various torque specs for the bolts. I suggest you get the manual before buying the torque wrenches so you can decide which wrenches best meet the torque specs.

Consider buying a can of Kroil penetrating oil and use it to soak stubborn fasteners for a couple days before trying to loosen them. Remember, the original screws and bolts were installed on your bike when Jimmy Carter was President, so many of them may be hard to remove. Kroil can be bought online, at guns shows, and at some other venues.


MOTOR OIL
The ingredients in oils have changed over the years. For example, today's Castrol GTX oil (and pretty much all other AUTOMOBILE oil) is not the same as it was in the 1980's. Back then it worked great in KZ bikes. But, things have changed. Early AUTOMOBILE oils contained zinc phosphorus compounds (ZDDP) to protect engine components from metal to metal contact. This was good for engines, but it was found to be destructive to catalytic converters. Consequently, in AUTOMOBILE oils ZDDP was virtually eliminated and replaced with different chemistry generically referred to as "Friction Modifiers." These work fine and offer good protection for normal AUTOMOBILE engines. However, today's AUTOMOBILE oil "Friction Modifiers" are destructive to wet clutches. KZ bikes (and many other brands) have wet clutches. As a result of these oil chemistry changes a distinction needed to be made between those oils which are suitable for wet clutches and those which are not. That distinction was documented by the Japanese Engine Oil Standards Implementation Panel (JASO). JASO developed a number of different oil specifications for different applications. The specifications that apply to 4 stroke motorcycles fall under the "4T Specifications." Within the 4T specifications the JASO MA class oils are specifically formulated for 4 stroke motorcycles with wet clutches.

There are synthetic, semi-synthetic, and non-synthetic oils that meet the JASO-MA standard and any of them will work ok. However, using oils that are not designated as meeting the JASO-MA standard is destructive to KZ clutches.

Good luck with your bike. Ed

thanks Leon. I haven't done much of it myself. I drew out what i wanted the axle plates to look like and cut out the old ones, but my friend Eric did the welding. I don't trust my aluminum welding skills yet. Since this is going on a bike with drum brakes I cut all the tabs off and am going to flip it over and box in the extrusion. gonna look pretty cool when its done i think.

very nice work on the arm vic! :evil:

leon

When the bolt is tightened the end caps, sleeves, and collar are all squeezed tight together between the frame. The total length of the bushings and swing arm is a little shorter than that of the sleeves and collar so it doesn't bind between the end caps. The o-rings help retain the grease, and I believe the end caps are slightly dished to keep the o-rings in place. Ed

Ed, thank you very much, that was very helpful.

Thinking through how this all clamps to the frame, and what's fixed (the bolt to the frame and the bushings to the swingarm) and what rotates (the collar on the bushing) it's clear that collar to bushing fit is the most important interface. The bolt is not rotating, and neither is the collar: it is clamped by the boss on the frame, all the way through the swingarm via the spacer to the collar on the other side, it's not rotating either when properly installed. It's fixed along with the bolt. The arm is rotating around the outside of the collar.

So while I still think my bent bolt is contributing to the binding, the takeaway is that's not the most important fit. The collar to the bushing is. And thinking this through further, that bronze is relatively soft for a reason: it will break in to the new collars as you guys are suggesting. Much clearer in my mind now.

Related question: the dust caps with the o- rings: those are slightly dished so they themselves don't bind, yes?

I don't believe the pitting on the swing arm bolt is having any effect whatsoever on the movement of the swing arm. There should be a swing arm sleeve (see parts #5 in image below) near each end of that bolt. Each sleeve should have a curved grease slot on its outer circumference. When you apply grease to the grease fitting on the swing arm the grease squeezes between the outside of the collar (see part #7 in image below) and the swing arm and goes into those slots and lubricates the sleeve/bushing surfaces. Those sleeves, not the bolt, are what bear against the swing arm bushings (see parts #6 in image below). The swing arm should have a bushing in each end, and those bushings rotate on the sleeves. The sleeves do not rotate on the bolt, so the roughness on the bolt should not affect the movement of the swing arm. Ed

I believe the bearing that fits the GS arm is TA2530Z www.hellerbearings.com/hk-TA2530Z-bearing-27794.html
You can also use oven cleaner to strip the anodizing. However it leaves the aluminum dark and needs polish. I have been working on customizing a GS arm for my 750 twin project. I shortened it to the stock length and had some new axle plates made, still need to fit the shock mounts. Now that you mentioned it I didn't realize there is no zerk on the arm. gonna add that now.... such a funky tube extrusion for a swing-arm


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I greased my swing arm. It was tight but now it's loose. Another project. The old grease got hard and the arm was tight. This time I'll go with needle bearings when I get my new HP shocks. Yes, better tight.
Steve

When I replaced my swing arm bushings in my KZ650 the sleeve was a tight fit. That was 8 years ago (12,000+ miles) and it's never been a problem. Having greased the swing arm every 1,000 miles everything works as it should. I suspect it simply breaks in with a little mileage. Personally I'd prefer a little tight over loose. Ed