My Pile of Rust - 1979 Kwaka Z250 Twin - Made in Australia!

[detto]

Re: My Pile of Rust - Kwaka Z250

ohh very interesting build I too have just purchased a Z250 1984 (belt driven with uni shock) and I will be following this thread closely.

I get to take mine home in the next few days and I will be converting it into a Cafe racer also . (although the one I am buying is so hard to start and if you stall it then it just won’t start at all lol)

so ill have to get it running first too !

Hey mate, congratulations on your purchase. One thing I noticed about the Kawasaki z250's is they are only electric start, real bummer however if you do some fine tuning she'll start first time everytime.

In regards to your bikes starting difficulties.. I think first you should inspect your electrical system (starter, switch, breaker and points, battery, connections, solenoid, regulator, coils, starter clutch.) Then check your tappet timing clearances, advancer, fuel, carbs and most importantly jetting. (Your problem could be related to incorrect jetting)

And on a side note I personally think your regulator/rectifier is not charging your battery. Use a multimeter to check the charge output. (Just a guess)

Thanks for following mate, the more the merrier!

P.S. If you ever need any information and specifications in regards to your bike I got a service manual. Just pm me.

 

[detto]

Re: My Pile of Rust - Kwaka Z250

Things to come:
- 32mm Clip ons
- Shorty GP levers
- 7" Round bucket light
- Starter solenoid
- Gel battery
- Rear brake light and license plate mount
- Indicators
- Bar end mirrors
- Flasher relay
- Mini tacho gauges (can't wait!)
- Horn
- New switches (I got some cool ideas for placement)

And eventually:
- The Perfect Seat (hopefully really soon, I won't start chopping the frame till I get it)
- Firestone deluxe tyres (decided against getting these tyres as most of you all know why)
- Slashed muffler tip (running with stock exhaust and shortened muffler with custom baffle)
- Single carby (sticking with stock carbs as running a single on a 180 crank is too much hassle then good)

Also it took me a while but I found the perfect leads for the best price. I'm going for 7mm black with red cross tracers cloth wrapped and lacquered plug wires. As for coils, I would like the Dyna S but am instead going with the Dime city universals.

Note - I was going to go with full black cotton wrapped leads but I realized most people wouldn't even notice the cloth and fine detail. For some reason I get a warm fuzzy feeling thinking about it. A bit of nostalgia from my childhood days. Pure appreciation

 

[detto]

Re: My Pile of Rust - Kwaka Z250

- Update -

So I was lucky enough to go in and start reconditioning my own head at my old work place. (Head Specialist)

Once I started dismantling the valve train, the head revealed what I was hoping not to see. Unfortunately my seats and valve seats are pounded, most likely from running lean as you can see below. And the worst part is one exhaust seat has a little ding from something being crushed, enough to replace the whole insert.

So now I have to replace all 4 valves and whilst I'm at it, might as well fit 4 new inserts and machine them on the Newen.

The most frustrating part is finding the bloody valves. Obviously the OEM part is obsolete at all Kawasaki dealers (which I've tried). I've also been trying everywhere online and its proving futile.

Which has lead me to this. I'm actually thinking perhaps the KZ305 twin and Z250a use the same valves.

The part number for the KZ305 is:

Intake: 12004-1003
Exhaust: 12005-1003

If anyone has the Kawasaki parts cross reference software, PLEASE could you check if my hunch is correct.

Having said that there is absolutely no intake valves for the KZ305 available online at this present. The closest I have found is a company called 'Vesrah'. I have contacted them via email and am waiting a reply. (If anyone has any other leads please notify me!)

All this hassle kind of makes me wish I bought a darn CB250 instead... That's right I said it!

Enough ranting, here's some pics:

- post end -

 

[turbocrow]

Re: A Pile of Rust & Cobwebs - 1979 Kwaka Z250 Twin - Made in Australia!

Cheers ill keep you updated.

I peronsally think it is a Carb issue (worn boot ) so hopefully thats just it lol. ]

The bike has had a new loom put in so hopefully thats no it. The plug is really Lean so I think there is a vacum leak with the carbs well im hoping lol.

 

[Rmitch]

Re: A Pile of Rust & Cobwebs - 1979 Kwaka Z250 Twin - Made in Australia!

Hey mate,

Good work coming along!

Wondering if you are keeping the stock air box? I have the same bike but the boots running from the air box to the carb are shot and I'm missing the right angle hose going from the crank case to the air box. Would you be interested in parting with any of them?

I'm going for a bit of a desert sled type/brat what ever on mine.

 

[detto]

Re: A Pile of Rust & Cobwebs - 1979 Kwaka Z250 Twin - Made in Australia!

Hey mate,

Good work coming along!

Wondering if you are keeping the stock air box? I have the same bike but the boots running from the air box to the carb are shot and I'm missing the right angle hose going from the crank case to the air box. Would you be interested in parting with any of them?

I'm going for a bit of a desert sled type/brat what ever on mine.

Thanks for the post mate. Yeh I should have some old OEM boots for the air box laying around and most likely will have that breather hose.

If you live in Adelaide your more than welcome to swing pass and grab them off me for free. PM me if that's the case.

Cheers

P.S. one word to describe your bike would be 'unique' each to their own!

 

[detto]

G'day fellas and ladies!

Bugger it's been a while! As you can all see I am a big procrastinator and believer that you can not rush a good thing Having said that a lot has been done since I wrote on here last. I re-conditioned my heads and now just need to deck height my valves and waiting on a gasket kit and seals to fully assemble, though I have test fitted to have a better idea of how she'll look overall. I also started to chop my frame up and lay some beads. Once everything is in order I will definitely go over everything again till its up to my standard. (OCD)

I made my first order for parts and they arrived hassle free from the states and other sources.

These parts consisted of:

The DCC Original Ribbed Leather Wrapped "Cafe" Seat (though a bit peeved as there is a small tear on a edge. GRRR)
Old School Speed Universal Rearset Kit
Adjustable Clip Ons (sent me wrong ones, actually better, just need to anodize)
Intake & Exhaust Valves - Ended up speaking to a lad in Japan from Vesrah, very happy with their service and free pens!
NGK LB05F Spark Plug Resistor Cap - top up my order!

Oh and of course... Here's some snaps of the progress to keep you lot happy! Enjoy ;D













Please excuse the overly large photos, can't be buggered re-sizing them. As you can see I cut the rear end first and left extra for mock up, I then cut to perfect length and had to bend my frame and weld to retro fit. I didn't get to take any photos with new clip Ons though I did spin the handle bars upside down for shits and giggles. Also would like to mention she is finally registered in my name and I am indeed the proud owner of this gem. Oh Yeah!!

More to come...

 

[detto]

No rambling this time, photos will do the talking 8)

TEASER ALERT!!​

 

[CafeRacer650]

Hey man, glad to see you're still working on this bike! It's looking great. Looking forward to some hero shots!

 

[Sprocket]

Gday detto, I havent had a look at this post for a long time. Your bike is looking good. Since I last posted my bike has gone through some changes. Firstly in December 13 I blew up an engine, I spent many months looking for another one or a donor bike. I eventually found someone selling 3 bikes all in parts with at least one engine known to be running, so bought the whole lot off him at a steal.

This is what my bike looks like now. Now I need to start on one of the others.

 

[detto]

Hey man, glad to see you're still working on this bike! It's looking great. Looking forward to some hero shots!

Hey Jellybean! excuse my late reply. I know years have past by since I started the build but she will eventually be finished, even if its at a snail pace haha! And wow, your CRX.. Congratulations, shes gorgeous!

Gday detto, I havent had a look at this post for a long time. Your bike is looking good. Since I last posted my bike has gone through some changes. Firstly in December 13 I blew up an engine, I spent many months looking for another one or a donor bike. I eventually found someone selling 3 bikes all in parts with at least one engine known to be running, so bought the whole lot off him at a steal.

This is what my bike looks like now. Now I need to start on one of the others.

Mr Sprocket! Thanks for dropping by and sharing your stories and pics! Indeed it has been a long time. I wish I had more progress to share. Your current bike now looks fantastic, has given me that extra bit of motive to post an update. December 13 sounds like an interesting day! Good to see you made the most of it and are keeping the Kwaka Z250 twins alive. Also I am honored you decided to post on my thread. Cheers

 

[detto]

G'day all,

Wow Last update post was sometime in October 2014! Time to share some much needed updates in progress. Also I must say respect to all those who find the time to post there builds, honestly requires a bit of effort (at least for me) taking photos mid greasy hands, uploading, posting and what not whilst juggling life duties, sometimes I just want to work on the bike 110% so I postpone updating this thread and when I do, I have to sort through hundreds of photos and try remember what I did that day haha!

Ok, so I finally de-tabbed and smoothed my frame, still will require some welds to be done so I have not yet painted her. I also got an awesome idea to mount my new rear sets, will use the old passenger foot rest mounts I chopped off and relocate to my preferred position, only thing being it will not be adjustable however I get to keep the ridgy didge feel and maintain the right 'lines.' Just need to weld them up when I get the chance.








Notice anything odd about this next pic? Looks like previous owner snapped it off and just left it as is running. Me myself personally could not live without it, replaced whole clutch basket. Also I noticed something mildly interesting on the case surface sealing face, judging from the print I have reason to believe newspaper was used as a gasket, like I said mildly interesting haha.







Cleaned my oil level inspection window, well the glass anyway. Couldn't find a way to clean the backside of them fins, if someone has a genius idea let me know. I didn't want to try my luck popping it off and breaking the glass.

 

[detto]

Oh yeah here's some pics of the work I done to me head, been a while since I gave a good head job

Blasted head, cleared oil galleries, lightly linished cam journal, cut seats, checked spring tensions & all tolerances, tipped new valves, fresh seals, tapped threads and also replaced one valve guide due to excessive play. Didn't bother polishing ports, figured since I'm removing the air box and running pods on 3 jet Keihin CV carbs chasing hp power gains will be next to futile.









Here's a pic of the old valve stem oil seals with new one for comparison, they may not be blowing smoke yet but the rubber on them are dried hard as nails, causing wear on valve stems and soon to eventually leak oil. Next pic is a LPT (Life Pro Tip): As a general rule of thumb the tighter spring coils always is the bottom side of the spring.





And last but not least, how she currently stands:

 

[detto]

Whilst I was working on my heads I also started stripping paint off the bottom end, result was ok, will need some rust converter and light sand when prepping. The plan is to paint the engine and frame last. I'm also glad that's the case, as whilst getting her running again I seem to spilling oil and lightly scuffing surfaces!









Started to assemble the engine just to get her up and running so I could tune her, realized I needed some O-rings for head and barrel mating surface. Ahhh the waiting game. Here's some measurement pics for reference.

 

[detto]

So she pretty much sat around like that for a while, whilst I was flat out working and then left for a holiday to Cambodia for my birthday! Got back, and got straight back into it. Had to clean my carbs as they were all gunked up from sitting around and also tried out my new coils and in the process finding out one was a dud.. not happy Must order a new one now. Got tappets and timing on par with the service manual, news sparks and then I fired her right up!!











The Carbs came out a treat!! they look like a million bucks after my home brew station treatment haha! I used lemon juice and vinegar diluted in water as the solution and let them simmer for a while. In all the excitement I put them straight back together without taking pics! Will upload later. Also swung past a motorbike shop here in Adelaide to buy some jets as I couldn't wait to get her running even better. Turns out he only stocked specific sizes which is fair enough. Leaving me to order the rest I required online anyway, which was hard finding what jets where compatible for my carbs etc. A lot of sites don't list the Kawasaki Z250 twins but I eventually worked it out. Below is a photo of the main jets, if anyone needs measurements, let me know. Can confidently say these jets are compatible with Keihin CV32 carbs:

- Keihin Round 99101-393 Secondary Main Jet
- Keihin 99101-124 (99101-ZF5) Primary Main Jet
- Keihin N424-25B Pilot Jet



Took her for a ride down the street to a mates place for shits and giggles, only had front brake and no rear sets so my legs were dangling all over the place and I was air shifting haha! She's still running a tad bit lean especially after shortening my exhaust, waiting on baffles and more jets to come. I know she doesn't look like much now, but once I get her running close to perfect I can start on making her look pretty, I can't wait, got such a long way to go. Also orded a whole bunch of goodies I'm waiting on including angled UNI pod foam filters, brass bullet male/female terminal connectors, awesome cloth tape for my loom and much more!

As she sits as of now:

 

[CafeRacer650]

Hey, glad to see you're still at it! I myself am finally getting back on my project. Yours is coming along great!

 

[Sprocket]

hey detto, bike is looking great. Do you mind if I ask where you have been sourcing new parts from? I am looking at doing a complete engine rebuild on one of my spares, any idea where I can get pistons? Kawasaki originals seem to be no longer available.
Cheers

 

[MrChow]

Hey Detto,

Cool looking project.

I live in Adelaide too but I am currently out of the country.

Hope to see your bike up and running around town!

Keep an eye out for a white sr250 with brow seats!

 

[detto]

hey detto, bike is looking great. Do you mind if I ask where you have been sourcing new parts from? I am looking at doing a complete engine rebuild on one of my spares, any idea where I can get pistons? Kawasaki originals seem to be no longer available.
Cheers

Mr Sprocket, It would be my pleasure.

PM sent.

Hey Detto,

Cool looking project.

I live in Adelaide too but I am currently out of the country.

Hope to see your bike up and running around town!

Keep an eye out for a white sr250 with brow seats!

Hey mate!

Haha that makes two of us, I hope to see my bike riding around town as well! Will definitely catch up and go cruising for a bruisin in the hills

Coincidentally I skimmed past your bike already! Here you go mate, she's now got a spot on page 3 of my build thread... Only because your from Adelaide, Enjoy

 

[jramby]

Hi, My name is Jonathan, i am from Madagascar and I have a kawasaki z250a too, Your post really inspired me... but gave me some questions too... where do we have to get part... the most needed part from my motorcycle is the complete ignition contact breaker... I can find contact breaker points on ebay... but I can't see any back plate anywhere on the internet...

My second part is the most "unfound" until now, it is the full "camshaft chain tensioner"... Mine is broken... and the tensioner doesn't ever do what it has to do. So, for a quick fix... I just blocked the tensioner with something that makes the tension unchanged, and will reajust it as the time goes..

I just wanted to share it to you ... I am now buying the contact breaker points on ebay to make my engine run well for the first time...

Wish the best to your project,

Jramby.