78 Z1-aaaaRrrrgghh! Winter project

Back in the fall, I sqirrelled away something to keep me busy during the winter, a 1978 Z1R that I bought for the princely sum of $500. It was generally rather ugly but reasonably complete and the seller told me it ran, but not very well, probably needed the carbs cleaned. This was the beast I brought home.





Not too pretty but a good starting point. Started with a total stripdown and body work. I did have to do a bit of fill and repair on the tank



And the frame was sorta grungy. 32 years will do that to a bike.

That was a SCORE for $500. You seem to have the project well under way. You must tell us more about your plans for your beast! Welcome to KZR

Here's what I did for the paint. Auto-air colors and Omni AU clearcoat.




POR15 raw metal finish for the forks. I may clear them, or not. I like the texture and color but don't know how I will like cleaning them.



So here's where the arggh comes in.

While the engine is out, I decide to check the valves. It will never be easier than now, so I line up the T mark on the engine and look at the valves and they make no sense. A quick persual of the shop manual leads to me check the valve timing and it is off by a tooth or 2 on the exhaust side, then found the 28 pin mark on tooth 26. After correcting that and actually engaging the cam cahin tensioner, I get the lobes to line up and find that #1 exhaust has .03mm, most of the rest have 0.0mm and #2 intake has all the clearance in the world. Juast to satisfy my curiousity, I decide it's time to pull the head.




The white stuff appears to be silicone bathtub caulk. And it is all over in the head and bores.



Check out the lovely job done on the base gaskets. Put down the (caulking) gun and walk away slowly!



And the fun doesn't stop there. The reason that #2 intake has so much clearance is that it is missing the shim!



This picture generated a bit on controversy on another forum. Here's the deal. At first glance I thought there was a shim and for some reason the valve wasn't coming up. Nope. There is no shim. The cam appears to have hit the edge of the tappet, leaving some nasty scars. The cam looks fine but the tappet will need to be replaced

All 7 remainig shims are .245mm. All of them. All too tight. Oh wrenching wretardation!

And the seller told you it ran?!?! Holy crap, I'd be amazed if it would have gotten out of its own way! Are you planning to keep her stock? I love the ELR green paint BTW

Bathtub caulk, now that's some funny sh!t there. I wish I knew how that shim went missing and didn't tear up the whole top end of that motor. Ghetto engine issues aside, that bike is still a steal at $500. Heck its worth ten times that price if properly restored.

Make sure that the shim isn't in the oil pan. I had a KZ1000 CSR that had every gasket replaced by orange RTV, but caulk, that's priceless.

I think Plumber’s Putty would have worked better, and it’s easier to remove. :laugh: That bike is going to wake up each morning and thank heaven that you rescued it from the previous owner. The work you’ve done so far looks great. Ed

Thats a great find for $500.
i hope the shimm didnt trash its way through the motor.::S

I'm amazed how many sellers say "probably just needs the carbs cleaned". It seems to be the blanket excuse for "I tried to make it run, but made it worse. Your problem now."

DoubleDub wrote:

I'm amazed how many sellers say "probably just needs the carbs cleaned". It seems to be the blanket excuse for "I tried to make it run, but made it worse. Your problem now."

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: That is SOOOOO TRUE!

porchev914 wrote:

DoubleDub wrote:

I'm amazed how many sellers say "probably just needs the carbs cleaned". It seems to be the blanket excuse for "I tried to make it run, but made it worse. Your problem now."

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: That is SOOOOO TRUE!

X3, but it also means that if you know your sh!t, and are willing to prove it, then you can be the guy who got a Z1 freaking R for $500.

testarossa wrote:

X3, but it also means that if you know your sh!t, and are willing to prove it, then you can be the guy who got a Z1 freaking R for $500.

Agreed - great score! Let us know how the shim mystery works out!

Those shims are pretty large to slip out and get lost but stranger things have happened but my guess is if it isn't in the oil pan it lilkely wasn't put back in the bucket. I've spit a couple through the head and that ain't pretty.