75 KZ400 Engine Seized? (Newb)

[Flyingmachine1945]

Hello All. My names Dare. Im 18 and fulfilling the dream ive had since childhood of owning/building a bike. Im broke and live in the bad side of Toledo, Ohio. my tools consist of inherited bits and pieces, and my angle grinder. My garage is secured by a pad lock, it leaks rain and it had rats and mice until i befriended a stray.. but darn it im finishing this bike!!!! ;D

No compression, camchain wont turn when kicked. But heres the funny part. sometimes it will kick all the way down, sometimes it wont even move... but the cam never turns. I cant get to the bolt to pull the cam so i can pull the cylinder. Should I just cut the cam chain? :-\

In advance. i apologize for stupid questions, etc. but any help i can get is greatly appreciated.

Hers a couple pics of the ugly old girl when i got her:

 

[rockcitycafe]

you should probably try to sell it before doing anything to it and try to find a running bike on craigslist or elsewhere, in describing your working area and available tools, you're going to wind up spending far more money trying to fix a broken engine than you ever would by buying an already running similar bike

 

[Flyingmachine1945]

I already have a list of parts. I expect to put money into it. Half the fun for me is building it, it clears my mind to wrench on something. I've torn apart and put back together an integra, cherokee, and an explorer in that garage.

 

[Powderfinger]

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/mpo/4450561717.html

Here is a parts bike in Akron for $200

Sounds like your engine has issues. Are you sure the kickstarter is engaging when it does move?

What happens when you try to turn the motor over with a wrench on the end of the crankshaft?

 

[Flyingmachine1945]

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/mpo/4450561717.html

Here is a parts bike in Akron for $200

Sounds like your engine has issues. Are you sure the kickstarter is engaging when it does move?

What happens when you try to turn the motor over with a wrench on the end of the crankshaft?

First of all i want to thank you for taking the time to help me out

Im going to look into that bike in Akron. Seeing how i only spent $200 on this bike. And im going to go play with the crank right now. I sprayed wd-40 down the spark plug holes a day ago... if it is indeed seized i picked up a stock head and pistons for $40 in amazing condition... Again, thanks for taking time man, i appreciate the help.

 

[VonYinzer]

WD isnt going to do anything for stuck pistons. Kerosene or Kroil will loosen them up eventually. The issue is, once they're free you'll need to pull it all apart, replace the rings (at minimum) amd hone the cylinders. That's unless the damage is more severe. In that case you'll need to machine the jugs and go up in piston/ring size. No matter how you look at it, you'll need to do a 100% teardown and rebuild. Gaskets, rings, and any parts you'll need to replace will add up fast. Definitely take a look at the $200 parts bike.

 

[Flyingmachine1945]

Update: So i pulled the cover and a starbucks frappuccino poured out. lol. I then started playing with the crank, after a minutes of tapping on my wrench with a hammer, i finally got the cam to spin, pulled the bolts out, took the cam off and got the head most of the way off, it was clearly seized a long time.. WD-40 did indeed help free it. 2 and a half inches above the piston are heavy rust rings. ;D

And you were most definitely right, my kicker wasn't even engaging

I called many times and emailed the owner of the parts bike to no avail.. ill keep my eyes open for anther cheap bike without a title..

 

[firebane]

The KZ bikes are good if they run. You have to realize the parts for these bikes are becoming harder and harder to source compared to something like a honda bike.

I wouldn't even touch one of these bikes if it had a seized motor cause the cost of getting the motor cleaned up will be considerable and more than the bike itself.

My 74 has good compression and kicks over no problem and I only paid $300 for it. I've had to very little in regards to maintenance into it and the biggest costs has been the carb setup.

 

[Flyingmachine1945]

The KZ bikes are good if they run. You have to realize the parts for these bikes are becoming harder and harder to source compared to something like a honda bike.

I wouldn't even touch one of these bikes if it had a seized motor cause the cost of getting the motor cleaned up will be considerable and more than the bike itself.

My 74 has good compression and kicks over no problem and I only paid $300 for it. I've had to very little in regards to maintenance into it and the biggest costs has been the carb setup.

Ebay dude. Sure its not going to be as easy as something like a Cb450 or 360. BUT thats one of the reasons i dig it.

 

[Flyingmachine1945]

So.. I finally got a hold of that guy in Akron gonna head out there Friday. Hes been a big help, gonna throw in the pipes and some extra stuff ;D

Im going to pick up some chem dip and start cleaning up my carbs.