B420LD Episode 7 - 1980 Kawasaki KZ440 LTD Restoration
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 ส.ค. 2024
- This episode shows this 1980 (not 1981) Kawasaki KZ440 going through transformation from an abused, neglected and abandoned bike to a finished great riding bike. Purchased at a swap meet, this restoration tested all my skills to make it right again. Some of the original aspect were changed such as deciding to not re-chrome the fenders and opting to paint them to keep the project within budget and give the bike a more modern look. As with other builds, I opted to repair rather than replace some damaged parts.
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You sir are a man of many talents! It would be nice to see a Part 2. Maybe even a Part 3 that includes the little things that you left out of this one. I found every second of it very entertaining, and satisfying to see the end results.
Thanks. I was thinking of putting together a short video of tools used to do these repairs. However, first, I am currently working on bringing a 35 year old John Deere lawn tractor back up to snuff. Not as easy as a motorcycle as it was build to last but not necessarily for easy maintenance.
Very nice! Thanks for putting this together and posting.
Thanks for the support. Currently working on Part 2 to this video. Minor corrections and a run up to a local State Park in the mountains.
Really great video. Inspired me a lot for my own KZ440 1983 restoration project. Hope to see a part 2.
Thanks Étienne. I am working on part 2 now. I may need to split it and make a Part 3 as well. Time will tell.
Well well you have made Chicken Salad out of Chicken _ _ _ _. Great job well done. Wish I could show you mine. I've got 1980 KZ 440 LTD I've had for 43 years. Bought it new. Only been in rain 2 times. And I show it in bike shows. Never painted or anything it is a show piece. You ask why is he telling me about this. This is me showing what I've done. Point made so why. Because I'd be proud to put yours right beside mine. Great Job I'd give you a 10. 😎😇
Thank you for the comments. Boy, I wish I could have seen yours prior to starting this project. It would have been a template to follow, instead of winging it as I did. However I think it turned out OK and this bike is quickly becoming one of my favorite rides. That engine is so smooth. I am bringing it to the Barber Vintage Fest this year to rider around the area. Thanks.
Awesome job
Thank you! Cheers! I appreciate your support.
I’m in the middle of fixing up my 82 kz440 and have some questions. The first being, why go thru the trouble of making a new filter. Why not remove the air filter box and opt for two pod air filters instead
Hi Mathieu. I did that with the XV700 I turned into a cafe(ish) bike. They look cool and work but I wanted to keep it as close to stock as possible. Besides, I like challenges. Thanks for the comment. Let's keep these old beauties on the road.
I have an '82 440 that still looks like new but it's a piece of junk. Keeps shutting of while riding at random. No spark when it does. Replaced every thing in the ignition circuit and still it quits. Checked all wires and connectors and found nothing. Runs then quits. I'm gonna run it off a ramp into the river. That will solve the problem.
Hmm. Sounds like something I had with my Harley a couple years ago. It ran great for long periods of time, then out of the blue it would just quit. A complete shut down. Sometimes it would restart again after a split second. Sometimes it would need a restart after pulling over. I was lucky that it had an electronic speedo that would go berzerk telling me it was a main power or ground feed issue. Turns out, when I fed a power wire under the fuel tank to the handlebars for an auxiliary power outlet, I squeezed the main power wire under the fuel tank. When it got hot, the insulation allowed partial contact with the frame and the master breaker would trip. I corrected that by removing the tank and routing the new feed correctly. It did the same once again on my cross country trip from NC to the west coast. (day 3 if I recall) That was just a loose ground. You could have a couple wires in the harness that may be making a slight contact with a ground source. I have seen over the years instances where I needed a magnifying glass to see a wear spot on a wire. Not fun to find. Hope this helps.
Thanks for your reply. I checked ALL the connectors and wiring and found nothing. many times. I even bypassed the ignition and kill switches to eliminate a problem there. Ran 12v straight from the battery to the coil. Was able to start it without the key. Each time I tried something it seemed to work for a while. I could ride 20/30 miles then all of a sudden it would quit. I carried my spark checker with me and I had no spark. Thinking I'm going to have to get a tow. Tried once more and the bike starts right up?? Goes for another 5 miles or so and quits again and again. Yesterday I started the bike up in my garage. Let it idle for about a minute. Shut it off to talk to my neighbor. 1/2 hour later I tried to start it but it wouldn't start. No spark again. Almost seems heat related but I've changed the ignition parts (coil, igniter and pickup coil) back and forth with what I could find online but still it does the same thing. I'm pushing 80 years old. Maybe this an omen telling me it's "time" to hang it up.@@B420LDprojects
Wow. I guess I am lucky that my 1980 is points and condenser. I looked over the wiring diagrams for the later electronic versions and can only come up with one conclusion (but I could be wrong). With a solid 12 volts going directly to the coil and igniter module, both new with no change, then all I can come with is a drop in continuity on the ground side. This could be either from the IC Igniter module to the battery, or at the coil to frame ground connection. Maybe you have done this but if not, try running a wire from one of the coil mount bolts to the battery negative. I hope this helps @@trainmaster0217
That's a thought. The mounting boltsare supposed to be the ground connections. The manual says NOT to use different nuts and bolts and this would possibly cause problems. Never heard of that one before but they know more than I do. I made sure those mountings were clean and tight. But you might have something to at least try before I try to see if the bike will float. Thanks for your input. Weather has turned bad so I'll have to wait til next week to give that a try.@@B420LDprojects
Just a thought that may or may not apply here, but in my 45 years of being a mechanics (not motorcycles though), I have seen weird things happen with early electronics. I had one head scratcher case where the ECM would shut down momentarily due to voltage spikes. It turned out to be a loose bolt in the alternator that would walk back and short on uphills. Now I was thinking if you have an intermittent short in the battery cells, this may create the same scenario. Just a thought.@@trainmaster0217
That was a horribly abused and neglected bike.
It certainly was but it was a lot of fun bringing it back to life.
Buddy , don’t want to be too critical here but why put all that time,effort,money into restoring a Kawasaki that’s not going to be desirable and worth anything when it’s finished? Only Z650’s, Z900’s and Z1000’s are worth restoring in the Z range, surely you see what these are fetching on the open market these days? The 400’s don’t sell full stop, if they do it’s for very little money…..
Hi Guy. You are absolutely right. The bigger bikes are definitely worth more and sellable. However, I do this for fun and I typically do not sell my finished bikes. That may change some day. I just enjoy bringing these old abandoned bikes back to life and riding them. I will also note that I am vertically challenged and the smaller bikes fit me fine. Thanks for the comments.