i have a 1980 KZ 440 LTD. I need to adjust the valves. All the shops I have talked to say it is too old for them to work on. Can anyone give me some information on how to adjust the valves and what the specifications are? I do not have a manual for this bike. ANY INFORMATION WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.

 

The 400/440 series uses a simple screw adjuster set up. With the engine turned over to TDC on compression on one cylinder those valves can be adjusted very simply with common metric tools and feeler guages, then turn it over to do the other cylinder. Any reasonably competent mechanic could do the job. Heck, I did it all the time on motorcycle set ups back in the early 80s. I believe the valves have large screw cap adjusteres - as I am looking at a KZ400 on the cover of my Sideburn magazine right now and it has them. In other words, even the valve adjustment is relatively non-invasive to do.

Here is a site to seriously help you. http://www.kz400.com/Technicaltips.htm
There are lots of photos, the specs are there and about half way down the "page" is a section on valve adjustment. It will take more time to take off the tank and whatever else needs done than it will to actually do the valve adjustment. Ask someone at the shops who refuse to work on older bikes to give you the name of someone who will. A good shop service manager should be willing to do so.

They refuse to work on older bikes because quite often they fix what the customer wants, then get blamed when something else frequently unrelated goes wrong, since they worked on it last. Then there is the "money pit" situation where the customer doesn't want to do the job right due to cost and the dealership doesn't want to put their rep on the line for situations where they might "get it running" and it quits again due to the bandaid approach or they run across additional problems and the customer doesn't want to spend the money to fix it. It sounds foolish, but it happens.

 

nice link klx . Around here anything 84-86 or older was not going to be worked on because of the liability as well. It is a shame.