Would you run the engine with this broken exhaust valve guide

Nessism post=862785Take this for what it's worth, but a big KZ already makes more than enough power to get a sane person into trouble, so why bother spending several hundred dollars for a minor increase in power via porting?

That is very sound and sensible advice.  I should listen to that. 

On the other hand, reading the posts and discussion from Larry Cavanaugh here and on his own site, he made porting sounds so appealing.  I mean sure, that was his business and his passion, so he's not unbiased.  But he also came across as knowledgeable, honest, and very pragmatic.  He often suggested that good porting paired with mild cams and modest displacement could make broad and reliable power.  He made it sound like (after the initial investment) you can actually get that "free lunch".  That is, that you avoid the reliability issues of a big bore and the stress and peaky nature of big cams.  What's not to like?  Nothing to wear out.  No moving parts.  

Of course, everything you read or watch about head porting also goes on to mention all the ways that someone can go too far and end up worse off than when they started.  And in general it's hard to find folks who consistently do great work.  So not only is porting expensive, it may end up being wasted.  I have no idea how to verity that the job was done well.  I don't have the tools or knowledge to check their work.  That's why the decision of where to send it seems really stressful.

Anyone have opinions on where to have a head serviced?  I've been poking around the web looking for options...

APE:  kzzone.com/heads.html
Lazer Porting:   www.lazerporting.com
Carpenter Racing:   carpenterracing.com/services.htm
2040 Parts:   www.2040-parts.com/kawasaki-kz1000-kz110...-valve-job-i1354264/

APE is a pretty obvious option.  The others I don't know anything about.


 

I had a great experience at Pit Stop Performance in Orlando, Joe seems very knowledgeable and my engine looks and runs great.
 

Just chatted with this guy a bit on Marketplace. Sounds knowledgeable.

www.facebook.com/groups/1711224022430538/user/100041207776791/

wrote:

wrote:

wrote:

To each their own, but if that engine was mine, I'd tear it down and fix the head.  The valves look loaded with carbon anyway.



 

I agree that it's probably the right thing to do.  But I really don't know where to send it.  It seems like it would be cool to have some porting done while it's off, but I don't want it to get messed up.  How do I find someone who actually will do it right and end up with a real improvement?  Now that Larry is gone, who is the second best?

At the moment I don't have a shop to work in, but I'm hoping to have something set up later this year. I figure I could pull the head and send it out and have it ready to go back on once I have space to work again.  Once I figure out where to send it...

Take this for what it's worth, but a big KZ already makes more than enough power to get a sane person into trouble, so why bother spending several hundred dollars for a minor increase in power via porting?  On my bikes under rebuild, I do some mild pocket porting to knock off the sharp edges and blend casting imperfections, and then call it done. 

I've got some Neeway cutters that I've used for several rebuilds, and they work great for cleaning up the seats.  I'm half way tempted to put them in rotation for guys interested in doing their own valve jobs.  The cutter inserts wear, so buying inserts may be the cost of rotation?


You can put me in the queue for renting those cutters.
 

I had a great experience at Pit Stop Performance in Orlando, Joe seems very knowledgeable and my engine looks and runs great.

I have read reviews by many happy customers, and quite a number of unhappy customers.  Joe posted some very helpful guides on this site, but I don't think Joe is in the running for me.

I'd really like to find the place that is most certain to do the job right.  For whatever reason the risk of the head getting messed up seems stressful to me.

I understand its a stressful decision to make, I had my bike since it was new, 42 years, I also read the reviews but after talking to him a few times and visiting his shop I decided to go ahead and have him rebuild my engine and I'm glad I did.  I hope you find the right shop and get that Z1R back on the road.