hi,

i am new to this forum, my close friend has a '73 kaw kz900.The bike has 21k miles on it.He has had this bike parked a number of years, atleast 10 yrs.When it was parked it was in excellant operable condition.Anticipating bringing it back to life we bought a new battery,air filter etc.As an enthusiast for many years i explained to him that Castrol "which we used back in the day" doesn't make the cut anymore and suggested a motorcycle specific oil. I'd like your ideas on the best oil. We pulled the carb plugs from bottom and pulled the jets and checked them, all was fantastically clean and in good shape. My main question is we've done all the pre crank maintenance. I was thinking maybe it would be good to adjust the valves on the overhead cams. I would really like the specs on intake and exhaust clearance. This motorcycle is the first "super bike" and we just don't want to make any mistakes in our assessment.Also we drained the oil, it looks to be every bit of 4 qts...is that right? I would appreciate any input from you old schoolers who apreciate the old jap bikes and any knowledge you share wil be appreciated.My bud kept the bike sprayed down with lube in sensitive areas, front forks, spokes etc are immaculate....i would appreciate any input on this subject and can provide pics if anyones interested..valve clearance and specs is my main concern now as we've looked at everything else. We just want this long time parked bike to be fired up properly and not make any mistakes. i am sure there are prepastory hints you can provide. Also it has dual points as ignition..thank you

 

Welcome to the site, post some pics if you can, sounds interesting.

 

Check here for the manual https://www.kawasakiforums.com/m_267008/tm.htm. Not sure if it was listed in there or not.
Welcome to KF!

 

by dul point you mean... those spark plugs with 2 grounds? my dad had the 4 ground ones in his sable guessing tha'd give him more power. then after a few thousand miles he went to get new ones and the guy at autozone laughed at him[8D] he said --and i quote-- "take those and hawk them as far into the woods as you can, then come back for some real plugs" so i assume they suck, anyone know more on this? autozone guy an idiot or a smartypants?

 

No dual points as in dual ignition points system. You know you are not a real mechanic until you have to deal with point gaps and the like. That was real tinkering with an engine. The last machine I had with mechanical points was my old 1967 Dodge Power Wagon. Here is a pic. Oh and KX here is a picture of the dual point system he was referring to.



My old Dodge I sold 4 years ago.

 

ohhhhhhhh ok. i got it now. been awahile since i messed with any eletronics on an engine (thank god) thanks deej

 

A '73 KZ? I belive you have a Z1 900. KZ 900 didn't come out until '76.

PM klx250s rider. He listed a '75 Z1 as a past bike. Maybe he can help you