1976 900 A4 is Next Up

Thank you for all the help with the '78 1000 B2.


Now that it is running and will hopefully be a very reliable daily rider it's time to start on the next one. A '76 900 A4



I bought this bike about 25 years ago and trailerd it home and never touched it. I have a few concerns after looking it over. See pic below the rear tire is out of line in my opinion.



I hope the frames not bent. I'm not sure how to check it so I already have the carbs off so I threaded in some bolts into the carb manifold and set a level acrossed the bolts and the engine is level



Then placed the level acrossed the frame under the seat pan and it's not level


Can someone please advise me maybe this is a parts bike and not a good choice to restore

I would not be ready to part it out yet. Your main problem might be a tweaked swing arm in conjunction with an imperfect frame. Frames from back in the day were rarely in perfect alignment, so a little additional "adjustment" can look like a bigger problem than it actually is. Even if the frame is significantly twisted or bent, it can be straightened. A member of this forum built his own jig to do just that. There are also frame straightening companies who can do the job.
If there is a serious kink in one or more frame tubes, then it may be too far gone, otherwise, you have an opportunity to learn some new skills.

I looked it over really well last night and I don't see any kinks, cracked paint or any sighs of damage to the frame or that it had been repaired.




I looked at the steering stop pin and the lugs on the lower tree and no signs of damage.




I only found one suspect weld, It appears to have been ground down. Its the only weld I could find on the bike that looks suspicious. Did the factory ever grind welds?





Its obvious the bike has been down but the little damage shown in these photos doesn't seems like enough to bend a frame.

if it bounced off a curb could just be the swingarm is bent.
they have all the strength of a wet noodle ya know.

leon

I don't think the factory ground welds down....that one looks very post factory and a bit suspicious.
Looking at the pic from the rear the wheel looks vertical enough so I would first look at whether the PO loaded the wheel back on with the spacers in the wrong place....or something amiss with the sprocket carrier.

Very nice...I have restore two of them already.

Thanks for all the advice. Looked the frame over again see below photo of the opposite side of the "suspect" weld. It doesn't show any signs of repair. I must have a rear factory weld clean up.

I'M moving forward with this restore. The '78 B2 was a mechanical update I'm thinking this one deserves a full restore. I really like the Harley Davidson color Amber Whiskey.. would that be wrong to paint a Kawasaki a HD color?

Original paint better for resale. Other then that you make it your own.

spdygon wrote: Original paint better for resale. Other then that you make it your own.

I understand but the diamond dark green nor the diamond brown appeal much to me.

Pulled the carbs apart and was happy to find them very clean. I was disappointed to notice the have throttle shaft seals that are cracked. How difficult is it for the slightly more than average shade tree mechanic to replace them. How much do bad ones effect performance and drivability. I have looked at Partzilla and the number of items that appear to be removed to replace these seal is pretty overwhelming. Any advise?

Simple few screws and you can pull it out. It only comes out to one side don't remember which tho.
Have a manual ?
Here mine 76 kz900 restored about 6 month ago

spdygon wrote: Simple few screws and you can pull it out. It only comes out to one side don't remember which tho.
Have a manual ?
Here mine 76 kz900 restored about 6 month ago

That's a beautiful bike.
No I don't have a fsm for my A4. I do have one for my '78 B2 would it be the same