1979 KZ 750 Twin

Hi all,
I am new to the site here, and I have to say I am glad I found it. I am also on a jeep message forum and the guys there have been a world of help, and so far this site is looking the same way.

Anyway, on to my question. I have a 1979 KZ750 twin, I believe its designated a B4 model, but as far as I can tell from looking at the spec pages here, a 1976 - 1979 KZ 750 Twins (B1 to B4) are really all the same bike and all parts are interchangable, right? I ask because my bike has some issues, mainly electrical, and I was looking for a good source of replacement used parts. If I can expand my search from just 1979 to 1976 - 1979, I would have a lot more options. Ideally, I would like to pick up another bike that needs work too and between the 2 build 1 working bike. Thoughts or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Sean

Welcome to KZr Sean.

I'm not really familiar with the 750 twins and what parts interchange between the years on them, but hopefully I can point you in the right direction.

If you go to the Kawasaki website and follow the prompts for year and model, you can look up what part numbers you need.
Once you have the part number, click on the "Parts" tab at the top of the page and enter that part number into the appropriate box and click "search". It will then pull up a sidebar that shows you ALL of the other Kawasaki's that the part fits.

i have a '77 kz750 b2, i have spent over $1000 restoring it, and i can't recall having any problems using parts from other year models 76-79,
i think some had the front brake caliper positioned differently, and there are just a few differences on the wiring, as related to the voltage regulator, and european models. good luck, of course ebay has been my savior

Thanks for the info. I was actually looking at the Factory Service Manual 2 nights ago, duh, I should have looked there in the first place, and it had listed on the back cover the differences. Unfortinately I don't have it in front of me now, but it said there were a few minor electrical changes from 76 to 77 to 78, like the addition of a starter lock out switch, voltage regulator, and they mentioned the repositioned caliper. I believe it said the 78 and 79 were basically the same though. It looks like my best bet will be to pick up a 78 or 79 parts bike. I'll keep my eyes open, and hopefully I will find one locally.

Thanks again, and I am sure I will be back with more questions once I really get into it. So far I have just started on mine, I have the tank and all the sheet metal and plastic removed. I already fixed the clutch cable, fixed the electric starter clutch, and cleaned out the carbs. Then I found the a fried wire in an electrical connector up behind the headlight and got frustrated, and put the bike on hold. I just need to trace out the electrical system and figure out what fried. The other big thing will be dealing with the gas tank, it was rusty inside, and sealed once, but it doesn't seem to have been sealed too well. Still it looks like it will be fun for a first bike.

Sean

I have a tank from a 76 it is in good shape with one small dent and very lite rust inside someone molded over the emblem mouts and painted it blue but its a decent tank.

The major difference between the 76-77 models and the 78-79 models is the charging system.

The 76-77 uses an electrical coil to generate the magnetic field, while the 78-79 uses permanent magnets. The entire charging system can be swapped, but not individual parts.

There are other minor differences between the 76-77 and 78-79 models, but nothing serious.

This is great info guys, thanks a lot.

Any idea if the 76-77, and 78-79 use the same wiring harnesses too? I would guess if there were changes in the charging system they would be different, but there is always that chance I could get lucky.

Sean