KZ650, intro and first build

[KeyMorgan]

Coming down to the wire now. There was only one real dent in the tank so I didn't have much body work to do. Then I got to spray color for the first time. 2 coats of Chevy stealth grey, 3 coats of clear then a scuff and buff it turned out pretty nice. The badges and stuff like the gas cap, upper triple, master cylinder and levers I bead blasted to give it kind of a raw touch then started final assembly.

 

[KeyMorgan]

Seat is pretty simple. I had a chunk of this foam that I could cut and shape for the rough shape. Then I had a local shop finish it. They covered my foam with a lighter foam so it feels a bit softer then made a cover.

 

[KeyMorgan]

Here is probably one of my favorite things on this bike, the tailight. They are strip of LEDs that can be cut every 1/2 inch then slid into a D shaped tube and capped off. The centers are wired as running/brake lights then the ends of each unit are 1 section, 1/2 inch, blinkers. They are insanely bright and very visible even in the day time. The only draw back is the blinkers aren't as visible as they would be if they were hanging off the bike but, in my opinion, this is offset by the cool factor of not having stuff hanging off the bike.

 

[KeyMorgan]

Here is the first "completion" of the bike and the first day I had it out. It looked pretty good sitting under the street light. Another thing I didn't get a picture of was the fork brace I built, you can see it a bit in the second picture. Now I have to rebuild it because the new tire is too tall for it.

 

[KeyMorgan]

Got the new tires on and the rear is at least an inch taller than the nobby. Now I have a bigger clearance problem and a height issue. I bought a 100/90 19 and a 120/90 18, which I read was the metric counterpart to the original, but the bike leans over a long ways on the side stand. To solve the lean angle I welded a 1/4 plate extension to the stand and ground it to shape, much better. Also my shocks came in and I gained 1.5 inches of clearance from the battery tray and the bike feels so much better to ride although I liked the lower seat height when holding it up. I thought I had a current pic but I'll have to post it later. Here are the new shocks and the new tires with the old shocks still on