The KZ750 twin Super Vintage Racebike

[longjohns]

what was that tank off of?

 

[tobiism]

what was that tank off of?

1983 Honda CX500

 

[chrisf]

Oh, I forgot about this project, and it was one of my favorites. Good to see you're still ticking along. I can find out for certain, but I think the R1 springs are 400lbs stiffer than the R6 springs. I know for sure the R6 springs are 554lbs/in. That would help distribute the loads better.

Well done on the swing arm. Can you take some closeup pics of specifically the swing arm? I want to have a look from above and side views.

What wheels are those? What are their dimensions and weight?

--Thanks!! Chris

 

[BlackRock]

I love this project, will you be useing those wheels or spoked, spoked would look bad ass, and I hope you paint that thing black.

 

[chrisf]

I like the mag wheels. I think it looks good with the monoshock. I'm interested to see if they are lighter...

--Chris

 

[BlackRock]

I am sure they are lighter than a stock set of spke wheels, but you can have a very light set of spoke wheels made with alloy rims.

 

[904cafe]

I like the mag wheels. I think it looks good with the monoshock. I'm interested to see if they are lighter...

--Chris

agreed. the mags def go better with this style of bike. its an old cafe with a modern twist!

 

[tobiism]

Oh, I forgot about this project, and it was one of my favorites. Good to see you're still ticking along. I can find out for certain, but I think the R1 springs are 400lbs stiffer than the R6 springs. I know for sure the R6 springs are 554lbs/in. That would help distribute the loads better.

Well done on the swing arm. Can you take some closeup pics of specifically the swing arm? I want to have a look from above and side views.

What wheels are those? What are their dimensions and weight?

--Thanks!! Chris

Hi Chris, thanks for the compliments! I'll get you some better pics of the swingarm once I clean it up a bit.
The wheels are from an early 90's Katana. I wanted to use radials, but did NOT want HUGE tires as they aren't necessary.
They are 17" diameter 3" front and 3.5" rear with Michelin Pilot Powers. They're not as light as Marvics, but they are pretty dang light. I was amazed at just how light they are compared to the stock laced steel wheels with bias plies. I'll weigh them soon.
I'm going for as light as (practically)possible on this thing. I weighed the bike tonight, and without the battery, electrics, or exhaust its sitting at 345lbs so far. SWEET!
The engine on this bike makes so much torque its unbelievable, and with some small mods(38mm Mikuni VM's, cleaned up intakes and exhausts, exhaust cam on the intake, and a good ignition)it should be a really fun bike.

 

[freshjive]

any more pics? IM LOVIN THIS!

 

[sl8rxlr8r]

That looks great! Let me know if you don't have a manual. I know mine is for the 1980 twin, and some others. Not sure if its for the earlier years... its at the shop. I'm gonna cut the spine of it off and scan it for posterity... ha

I just got my kz750 twin on the road this week, and its the first twin i've ever owned. I'm loving the torque. Not super fast, but its damn fun, and it sounds menacing. Pay attention to the starter clutch roller assembly. Mine was screwed up, and if they're not right they can lock up the crank, causing some catastrophic damage. Check out www.lonesometwin.co.uk

More pics!

brian

 

[tobiism]

That looks great! Let me know if you don't have a manual. I know mine is for the 1980 twin, and some others. Not sure if its for the earlier years... its at the shop. I'm gonna cut the spine of it off and scan it for posterity... ha

I just got my kz750 twin on the road this week, and its the first twin i've ever owned. I'm loving the torque. Not super fast, but its damn fun, and it sounds menacing. Pay attention to the starter clutch roller assembly. Mine was screwed up, and if they're not right they can lock up the crank, causing some catastrophic damage. Check out www.lonesometwin.co.uk

More pics!

brian

Hi Brian, yup, the starter clutch is getting pulled off of this machine, since the starter is already gone!
Here are some newer pics. I haven't done much to it since the last update, but I did get my new seat made with the old tailpiece off of a KZ550. I just 'glassed up a new seat pan and added it into the mix.

 

[madmart]

Excellent progress & looking good ;D. How did the cx500 tank fit - straight fit or mods required ? Keep us all posted with more info & pictures !!!!

 

[gt550guy]

Well, I made it to the vintage CCS races in Phx this weekend, and it was a blast. I saw so many cool bikes, that it cinched my decision to turn my KZ into a track only racer. I threw it up on the table, cut off the rear subframe in anticipation of the monoshock. Threw on some 3-spoke 17" rims with Michelin Pilot Powers, 110/70 17 and 150/60 17.
Forks will be fully adjustable ZX6, and haven't gotten a rear shock yet. The swingarm will run an overhead brace. I'm not sure what brakes I'm going to run yet. The frame will get some minor bracing, to help cope with the extra grip from the radials.
Weight was down to 400 with the heavy steel rims, and stock brakes and shocks. I'm super stoked to see how much the weight drops with these mods.

do you have any kz 750 parts like muffler and signals

 

[tobiism]

Excellent progress & looking good ;D. How did the cx500 tank fit - straight fit or mods required ? Keep us all posted with more info & pictures !!!!

Thanks! The CX500 tank needs a few mods, the mounting points on the frame need to change, and the seat needs to be modded to match the tank.
I'll have some new updates to post soon.

 

[tobiism]

Well I'm finally back to working on this baby.
I wasn't super thrilled with the GPZ seat unit, so I'm making a new one from scratch. This is what it will look like.

I can't wait for the first trackday!

 

[BigBSBusa]

Love the look of the mono shock!

 

[Derek4Real3]

where did you get that thick black seat foam?

 

[rockets of the metal man]

where did you get that thick black seat foam?

Looks like tool box tray foam to me. That's what I've used to make the seat on my project.

 

[tobiism]

Well I just about finished my plywood form for the seat unit. Realized my bondo was old and solid, so its unusable! Bummer! I'll pick some more up this week so I can bondo over it and smooth it out to get it ready for fiberglass.

 

[guitargeek]

Man, that swingarm is the cat's tits! Have you shown this over at KZRider? Those guys will have a shitfit if they see a H*nda tank on a KZ!