diggerdanh said:Solid bikes. Engine is nearly bulletproof. Desirable - not necessarily but it has a niche group of people who love them. If you stick to the standard, not the LTD, models they have a really nice frame geometry that makes them suitable for converting the bike into tracker, brat, cafe style bike. There is not a lot of aftermarket support for them, unlike a CB750 or a KZ four, so finding serious replacement parts can be an issue. But they are a typical UJM bike and most parts that fit nearly everything else will work on the KZ750 twin. They do not produce a lot of power and they are not fast. However there are only 2 carbs and 2 sets of valves, etc. so it may be marginally more easy to maintain than an inline 4.
Factory electronic ignition from later KZ750s and KZ440s can be retrofit to earlier models.
Depending on where you are located $1300 is a decent price for a good running, nicely sorted KZ750 twin.
750Toys said:I hear the power to weight ratio isnt great, but that it will get up to 100mph. I have a Honda 750 and I assume a kawasaki wont be as fast as that?
diggerdanh said:Thank you. I'm sure it is nowhere near as quick or fast as a CB750. IIRC the HP is rated somewhere around 50HP. Capable but not fast. But definitely has the look: horizontal backbone, twin, air-cooled, etc. And you can shave off a lot of weight if you'd like.
canyoncarver said:I have two of these twins and really dig them. Parts are not that hard to find.
750Toys said:Thanks for this. I had a discussion with a good friend off line and he said, as the first responder said, if I get the weight down, say 50 lbs, it would greatly help. So how do I get 50 lbs off this pretty bike without hackign it up, which I will not do?
canyoncarver said:Well you'll have to get creative to drop 50 lbs (on just about any bike..) without "chopping". If you have the money, new alloy rims would help. Then fit new, better and lighter brake rotors and possibly different, lighter calipers. Aftermarket exhausts are available, stock exhausts are always heavy. Stuff like that is the "low hanging fruit".
750Toys said:my buddy said with right tuning i can make this faster than a CB 750. What are your thoughts on that?
canyoncarver said:SOHC or DOHC?
canyoncarver said:77' is an SOHC. As for making the twin faster, it all depends on who is tuning the bikes and what mods they did.
750Toys said:spec guide says its DOHC. See here:
http://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/kawasaki/kawasaki_z750%2077.htm
and here: http://www.motorcycleclassics.com/classic-japanese-motorcycles/kawasaki-kz750
"the KZ750 was thoroughly up-to-date. The 55 horsepower, 745cc twin had double overhead cams,"
canyoncarver said:Sorry, I was asking about which CB750 you were trying to compare it to. The differences between the SOHC and DOHC CB750's is huge. Yes, all the Kawasaki KZ750 twins are DOHC.
canyoncarver said:Dude, if overall speed is what you are looking for neither of the bikes we are talking about are all that fast. Get a liter bike if you really want fast, otherwise these vintage air cooled machines we are talking about are limited in HP and top speeds by their age and design. Sure they can be quick but I can't give you a direct speed comparison. Buy the twin.
750Toys said:I have 3 bikes.
72 Honda CB 750
73 Honda CB 500F
77 Yamaha XS650
Ive done 100+ on all of them. Id like the Kawa to at least be able to keep up
\\canyoncarver said:It'll keep up. With regards to the KZ Twin, think about torque not overall hp, it feels like more than expected and more than most Japanese twins and fours of its day.
Check out kzrider.com and lonesometwin.com
canyoncarver said:It'll keep up. With regards to the KZ Twin, think about torque not overall hp, it feels like more than expected and more than most Japanese twins and fours of its day.
Check out kzrider.com and lonesometwin.com