Hi all, new to the forum and forums in general. Just bought a 1983 Kawasaki 750 LTD (Cam shaft). Needs a lot of TLC. It does not run and has not run for at least 2 years if not more. Probably looking at an engin rebuild. Previous owner said something about having work done on it and installed the wrong piston rings... just got it home on Friday Dec.11. So will start the tear down this week and will see what we have. I welcome any advice as I am new to the motorcycle rebuild world. Thought it would be a good hobby to pick up during this covid winter. Rode bikes 35 years ago and am mechanically inclined.

 

Hi
I also have a 81 LTD that I am about to start restoring.
Reliving a misspent youth .
How far have you got with your engine rebuild.
Interested in where you sourced parts from.
cheers Swagzz.

 

Hi There Swagzz,
Progress is slow. Some reason for the delays is due to procrastination, some due to weather. Too cold to work in the garage. I have some sources lined up, ebay and on an other forum. I will pass these on in a future post. What I have noticed on this model is that parts are interchangeable between one or two other models so parts should be relatively easy to source.

I haven't updated my posts in a while but will respond to messages.

 

"I welcome any advice as I am new to the motorcycle rebuild world. Thought it would be a good hobby to pick up during this covid winter. Rode bikes 35 years ago and am mechanically inclined."

Your kids are all grown up now. The Kitchen Table is a great work bench. Easy to clean up and you can stay warm while working on things. No more procrastination then! Solved

"Previous owner said something about having work done on it and installed the wrong piston rings..."
I can only imagine the "TLC" needed.

Enjoy

 

Right on Sagzz
Welcome to KF

 

Hi Dragone#19, I wish it were that easy! I don't have a kitchen table, only a dining room table and I would not live to see the day I ride this thing if I brought any part of the motorcycle in and set up at the dining room table! My wife would kill me on the spot! :-)

Warmers days are coming so I should be able to get back to it. To be completely honest, I have been procrastinating a bit. The thought of opening the cylinder head to find out what the damage is, is unsettling... I will probably get to it this weekend though...Any recommendations, the engine has little to no oil in it, should I put some in? Is there anything I should put into the cylinder prior to opening it? I have not aligned the cylinders yet and am thinking of adding oil through the sparkplug hole before I do anything. Could/should I spray some lubricant through the spark plug hole first and let it sit for a while before I try to move the pistons?