"Tangerine Dream" / Glemseck - KZ750

Life get's in the way sometimes....but hey, that's life :)


Even if I'm not actually working on the bike.....I'm working on it as I'm thinking through the build ideas
 
Don't worry, if you "just" look at the numbers of time spent and when you started, you're still a lot faster than me. :)

I may have to add though, that I plan (assuming that there's no snow outside) to treat myself to a turbo-testride for Christmas...

Cheers,
Greg
 
Any KZ750 freaks out there ..... 20% uprated clutch springs now available. top quality Swedish wire, gold passivated.

May well fit other makes / models.

£14.95 / set [ x5 springs ]

Available from next week - RAM Hi-Po block / head studs. Eliminate corrosion and potential stretching / gasket problems.

Initially available in Black with bright nuts complete set - CORRECT length 8 studs and nuts.

Rolled threads full diameter studs in grade 10.9. Pix in a couple of days. Will also be available in Gold Passivate.

Black - £80 complete set
Gold Pass - £83.00 complete set

No VAT / Tax just add carriage.
 

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id buy a set of those but i already have some HD springs for a ninja 650. Could the same guy make some high lift valve springs?
 
doc_rot said:
id buy a set of those but i already have some HD springs for a ninja 650. Could the same guy make some high lift valve springs?

This guys main business is making valve springs for Volvo and Ford. The problem with valve springs for the KZ750 is the low volume vs potential sales. He would have to make a minimum of 100 springs to get a reasonable price. But that would be very competitive.

I'm looking for a cross reference chart for clutch springs. if I can find other marques / models they fit I could increase the next order and get even better prices.
 
well if you get some valve springs made let me know. i'd probably buy at least 2 sets.

heres a cross reference for the clutch springs probably 200 models use them
https://www.partzilla.com/product/kawasaki/92081-1033?ref=e407781378bff39ecb056d6fc46f28247f6e0318
 
hey Doc. you're a star !!!!! Thanx for that info. I'll check with my spring guy next week - he's away in Spain at the moment. I KNOW the prices would be super competitive for the same or better quality. Might even be competitive with OEM items !
 
Finally tracked down the unit I need for the Glemseck bike [ Nitrous ]. Dyna DARC-2. Has high end retard facility. Due to the slump in the pound it will now cost me over £200 :'( but it's the final big ticket item I need. Hoping my pal can bring it back with him when he returns to the UK in Feb. That will save at least £60 on freight, VAT [ UK tax ] etc. ;).
 

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What will that do? Is it an ignition system?

Being the last big ticket item is a major step forward.

I'm untrusting of impenetrable boxes with wires hanging out of it...got to trust it works and almost impossible to fault find/check. Good luck :)
 
when you hit the nitrous button you need to retard the timing 4-6 degrees depending on your shot
 
Yep NR - it's a sophisticated and foolproof [?] unit. I've used many similar items with my 4 wheel Drag stuff. My pal's just tracked down a US company that's got a Christmas sale on - nearly 50% off retail. I hope he can score one for me. ;D

CXman - thanx for the reminder ......yes familiar with retards having used superchargers and Nitrous virtually all my racing life [ 50 years ]. My '27T Altered had 3 stage NOS on my 502ci Ford lump - which needed 3 retards ...... one for each shot. I started out using all MSD equipment as I'd used it with the blown machines, but switched to Jacobs Mastermind for the NOS only cars.

This Dyna unit seems the best all round for bikes and has retard facility which is why I went for that over the Ignitech or Sachse. Their tech peeps are also very helpful.
 

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FINALLY .... got someone who will weld my exhaust headers and alloy tank.

Hopefully in the next two weeks - it's a mates rates jobbie, so it has to fit in with his other work.

Here's the headers again ..... they were reshaped to be tighter to each other and generally a better "sweep".

The alloy fuel cell needed a recess "step" in the top ..... errr - forgot to put the sump on the engine when we made the mock up !!! Dummy.
 

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Well. 2 weeks was a bit ambitious !! ::) "By the end of the month" now. Not his fault though.

For anyone interested I now have stocks of the RAM uprated clutch springs [ £12.00/set ] and the RAM Hi-Po head studs / nuts. Grade 10.9, rolled threads and same diameter the whole length. BLACK finish only. I had to ditch the idea of the Gold passivated option. I KNOW these are super cheap £78.00 set retail and discount for club supporters. Carriage from the UK is a lot cheaper to the US than the other way !

The image [ thanx DocRot ] of the OEM studs are shown with the APE studs - not the RAM studs. Check out the corrosion !

The guys that made the RAM studs did a comparison strength test on the OEM [ non corroded ] vs the RAM stud. The OEM stud failed at 55% of the loading !! :eek:
 

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those studs were used for z1/kz1000 as well, they probably just used them because they were already producing them.
 
irk miller said:
Usually, studs like that have oil passing by.

Not on our bikes - the front studs are open to the elements - that's why they rust and break !!!!! Check the OEM stud on the right a couple of posts up. No prizes for guessing which one is from the front. Waisted studs are a cheap to manufacture. Logic tells you which will be stronger - even if you don't consider that the aftermarket items are 10.9 grade and have rolled threads. And if you're not convinced - take a look at the attached pic with broken stud - oooops, destroyed engine. :eek: :eek: :eek:. Wanna guess which are the front 4 studs ?? ;)

Doc - yes 4 of the Z1 / KZ studs [ at least ] are the same length. I'm trying to find out the lengths of all the studs. I'm told [ ? ] there are 3 different lengths. Now I have a rapport with the manufacturers I could easily get those made in a smaller number than the original batch for the 750 - say 10 sets. There would be a much bigger market for those models. Having said that, I've only got 4 of the 750 sets left from the first order. The German guys in particular love 'em !! Actually here in the UK and EU these RAM studs are CHEAPER than OEM !!!
 

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Whooopeee - finally got to see my bike yesterday ! My pal is now back from his trip to the US - first time I've seen it since October.

We've decided to set up my new blast cabinet and compressor in his garage - as my garage roof is leaking like a sieve ! Needs a total strip and rebuild which will have to wait for better weather.

Now we just have to round up all the parts and set a work schedule. Back to square 1 on the Dyna DARC-2. An American friend of a friend said he'd get one. Unfortunately he bought the part # DARC2-2, which is the wiring harness ..... which I don't need arrrrghhh. :'(

Also need to jump on the welder [ alloy fuel cell ] and the guy who promised to weld the headers.

At least we should start getting back on track in the next couple of weeks ....... 7 years and counting ! ::)
 
irk miller said:
Usually, studs like that have oil passing by.

That's what I was thinking, but following Beachcomber's threads had me wondering why he would miss something like that.
 
killerx said:
That's what I was thinking, but following Beachcomber's threads had me wondering why he would miss something like that.

I think Doc Rot had the same query when he modified the ARP studs [ virtually the same as the RAM studs ]. However, logic will tell us that at the base of the studs ..... is the crankcase mouth and any oil so drained has nowhere to go. ;)

The attached pic illustrates that point. Additionally note [ same pic ] the oil seal [ front and centre ] in the top of the c/case where returning oil DOES flow.

It could be argued that oil in the rear stud chambers would get seriously hot - aggravating the possibility of a head gasket failure. Of course our front studs are open to the elements .... that would make one serious oil leak !!

In over 50 years of building hi-po V8 race and 4 [ and 2 ] cylinder supercharged engines - the first step with a prepped bare block is TO REPLACE ALL THE STUDS AND FIXINGS WITH HIGH GRADE UNITS. AND TO REPLACE BOLTS WITH STUDS. This is not my idea - but 1000's of talented engine builders that came before me.

Ask ANY builder of a Hi-Po / supercharged engine [ bike or car ] what is one of the risks they want to avert at all costs ? Head gasket failure. What would be a mild irritation with a street engine - could be catastrophic engine destruction when under race conditions.

I'm new to our KZ750 twins, but I keep hearing about "head gasket failures". Some put this down to poor product, however I'd be looking at the integrity of the stud fixings. Take a look at the corroded and SNAPPED studs in previous pix. Studs will stretch anyway - but after 40 odd years of service ?

I'd be interested to know what position the majority of these gasket failures occur.

I have now sold the last of the first batch and have had an enquiry for a bulk order, before doing that I'll get the manufacturer to measure a selection of OEM studs from old engines to confirm any stretching. We can see visually the degradation of the front studs - serious corrosion / broken. And when they strength tested the new RAM studs against OEM - the OEM units came a VERY poor second. In fact they failed at 55% of the loading on the RAM studs !!

Oh, BTW - the engine in the pix was purchased as is ready for strip down and blueprinting !!! ;) ;) The new RAM studs were temporarily fitted as P.O.C.
 

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