'77 KZ200 brat build

In February I was given a sad, worn out '77 KZ200. It was in a bad, bad way.


But, albeit daunting for my experience level, it's a great donor to the sort of project I've been plotting. The goal is to end up with a wee ratty-bratty beast for riding around the city. Maybe more mouse than rat, hah!

Plucked everything off, slowly - so that I could understand the ins and outs of it. For reference a KZ200 engine weights 190lbs, give or take - as my scale has passed it's prime. Considering I'm only 110lbs; engine removal was by far the hardest task (to date).





The tank is my favorite part so far. Ground off some rust, removed some paint, leaving part of the metal pitted and rough, the rest brushed and fresh. The layers of paint and primer left amazing stripes - like lines of elevation in a topographic map. The interior is pretty rusted (not surprised!), so I got some Caswell Gas Tank Sealer and I'm going to give that a whirl next week.

A lot of parts are damaged or missing, which will drive up the cost of the build. The sleeve in the poor carb, for instance, looks like it bit down on some stones and is pretty ragged.
Front calipers are missing, rims are mostly rust, tyres are long dead, both sprockets are AWOL... the list goes on.

As far as the end product goes, I'd like to emulate this CB450 by Holiday Customs ... but with a bit more rust & raw.



Thankfully I've got some good people who are willing to help me slice and weld the frame. But since I'm out of town for 8 weeks this summer, I can't imagine this will be rolling before the spring.

I love the direction with that CB450 as inspiration!

Frame is now sitting in a friend's garage, waiting to get chopped up a bit so that a flat seat can be built in.

Took some shots of the tank, and I guess I'll have to see how the bike looks all together if I decide to take this remaining paint off, or if I leave it to complement the rust and pitted metal.

Clear coat the tank and mount it

wireman wrote: Clear coat the tank and mount it

+1

I like where this is going.

Looks good so far man. I had the same sort of project an abandoned kz200 in boxes. EBay has lots of the things you will need that are missing. Lots of kz200 NOS parts too fairly cheap. Good luck with your build. I'm doing a cafe racer style for mine so seeing the different styles these little bikes will have will be interesting. If you can't find kz200 specific parts search for bintzer merzy its the same bike. And a few kz400 parts will fit too

whats up bro I have an 79 kz200, I haven't posted mine yet but I was wondering when you break down the motor how do you take off the rotor/ flywheel with out that special tool that is used in the Manuel ?
thanks

Moved the spam hijack to problem threads. Carry on.
Steve