DannyMotor
Blood, sweat and beers.
Re: 75' KZ400
OK.... Been a week or so. Time for a huge update.
1. Got the brakes sorted, it was the pitch of the levers on the cam... WAY off.
2. Checked the valves... exhaust were WAY too tight... everything is perfectly gapped.
3. Checked timing... gapped the points, and then set the timing with a timing light. Mechanical advance works 100% as it should.
4. FIRED IT UP. It cranked right over, and it took minor fiddling to get the idle to level out. After that it would put-put-put-put away with zero fluctuation.
5. Balanced the carbs, and tried to adjust the idle A/F screws... unfortunately, the Pods make this near impossible without a re-jet. I started at 1.5 turns out, then went in and out a 1/4 turn at a time and waited for a change, then blipped the throttle to check for recovery. 3/4 turns out from bottomed out seems to be it's happy place. Not too bad.
6. Modified the Pods. I took it for a ride (WOOHOO) and hammed the thing down the road in 2nd gear. At about 6k-7k RPM I cut the power, shut the throttle and checked my plugs. They actually look perfectly tan around the electrode, with a bit of "chocolate brown" happening deeper in the porcelain. Not TOO bad. This is with 2 pieces of "milk jug" plastic wrapped 1/2 way around the inside of the pods (on the inside). So it looks like I can afford to remove a little bit more plastic.
7. Double checked the charging system. Made sure the Reg/Rec was in good working order... checked all 3 yellow leads against the hot and the ground and got 595-596-595 resistance on the negative, and 594-597-595 on the positive.. PERFECT.
8. ENJOYED! I've put 75 miles on it so far... rolls STRONG in every gear! It's got a lot of boogie for a 400! I almost wish it had a 40T instead of 45T sprocket on the rear, just to get a bit more out of every gear. It's also LOUD.... like, OBNOXIOUSLY loud... Sounds great at idle... but when you're on full tilt it's a cop magnet. May have to re-pack my el'cheapo Emgo Slash Cut's....
Anyway, that's it for now! I'm going to keep tinkering and enjoying it as it sits... crappy tank and all... then this winter I'll take the tank off and do some more work. Finish the body work, etc...
Here's how she sits right now: I'll post more as I'm riding!
OK.... Been a week or so. Time for a huge update.
1. Got the brakes sorted, it was the pitch of the levers on the cam... WAY off.
2. Checked the valves... exhaust were WAY too tight... everything is perfectly gapped.
3. Checked timing... gapped the points, and then set the timing with a timing light. Mechanical advance works 100% as it should.
4. FIRED IT UP. It cranked right over, and it took minor fiddling to get the idle to level out. After that it would put-put-put-put away with zero fluctuation.
5. Balanced the carbs, and tried to adjust the idle A/F screws... unfortunately, the Pods make this near impossible without a re-jet. I started at 1.5 turns out, then went in and out a 1/4 turn at a time and waited for a change, then blipped the throttle to check for recovery. 3/4 turns out from bottomed out seems to be it's happy place. Not too bad.
6. Modified the Pods. I took it for a ride (WOOHOO) and hammed the thing down the road in 2nd gear. At about 6k-7k RPM I cut the power, shut the throttle and checked my plugs. They actually look perfectly tan around the electrode, with a bit of "chocolate brown" happening deeper in the porcelain. Not TOO bad. This is with 2 pieces of "milk jug" plastic wrapped 1/2 way around the inside of the pods (on the inside). So it looks like I can afford to remove a little bit more plastic.
7. Double checked the charging system. Made sure the Reg/Rec was in good working order... checked all 3 yellow leads against the hot and the ground and got 595-596-595 resistance on the negative, and 594-597-595 on the positive.. PERFECT.
8. ENJOYED! I've put 75 miles on it so far... rolls STRONG in every gear! It's got a lot of boogie for a 400! I almost wish it had a 40T instead of 45T sprocket on the rear, just to get a bit more out of every gear. It's also LOUD.... like, OBNOXIOUSLY loud... Sounds great at idle... but when you're on full tilt it's a cop magnet. May have to re-pack my el'cheapo Emgo Slash Cut's....
Anyway, that's it for now! I'm going to keep tinkering and enjoying it as it sits... crappy tank and all... then this winter I'll take the tank off and do some more work. Finish the body work, etc...
Here's how she sits right now: I'll post more as I'm riding!