1985 Kawasaki 454 Project Bike

[Suspect]

I posted an ad in the Idems Wanted for a tail light from a Datsun Roadster. The only reply I got so far was that they wanted pics of the bike. I decided to make a separate page for this instead of posting them in the Idems Wanted.

 

I bought this 85 Kawasaki for $200 for a guy I worked with. It was wrecked and missing alot of parts. Then he asked me to fix his charging system on his bike and he's knock $50 off, so I did. There is also a bad socket on his bike that goes to the regulator and if I fix that, he'll take another $50 off. So atm I have $100 into buying the bike and I owe $50 or fix his bike to pay it off.

 

My friend did all the cutting, welding, and I basically was there to assist. I also came up with most of the ideas on how to fabricate and what to fabricate. So technically he did all the work that to experience and skills. What we had to work with was a 55 gallon drum, a wire welder, a couple cans of stain black paint, some 5/16 tube, long well pipe, and some odds and ends. Nothing we really had money into except the welder was out of argon.

 

I didn't take pics until we had already started to mess with the bike some. Here is the first attempt at making a rear fender out of a 55 Gallon drum.

 

Some cutting and grinding later I had the bike cleaned up some of extra brackets and stuff I didn't want.

 

Some pics of the rear fender also made out of a 55 Gallon Drum. Also the first attempt at a front fender.

 

These are the most recent, pipes welded on and the crappy seat I made from the original seat.

[Wide14u]

does the back finder shack alot

[Suspect]

does the back finder shack alot

 

Its fairly stout, it dont rattle. The engine is kinda lumpy and the whole bike shakes. I rode it across a field going pretty good and it was still good but I might have my friend brace the fender inside the ribs with a piece of 1/4 rod. That will make the fender firm enough to stand on.

[Z chopper]

it looks kool

[Wide14u]

i want to see lots of pics of all the progress on this

[lil89ram50]

bad ass! i am also sort of building a bike, out of a 77 cb550k. its pretty sweet, looks dumb without someone riding it though :) new hardtail this winter though. maybe ill post up a pic

[Suspect]

I have the carbs off it right now. It would idle but wouldn't rev much like the main jets are plugged. I took the bowls off and the jets were plugged. I cleaned them up and put the back together. Now every time I put gas to the, they have a fountain of gas running out. All I did was pull a jet and put it back in. I took them apart a couple times checking the floats and needle, everything looks shiny new. I'm about to go back outside and mess with them some more, maybe I'll figure it out.

[Z chopper]

I had a hardtail cb750 dohc, it went balls out fast

[Suspect]

I was reading up on wikipedia on the 85 Kawasaki 454. Its kinda interesting, I guess I accidentally bought a faster than normal beginner bike. 0-60mph is just over 5 seconds, 50hp @ 9500 RPM, redline @ 10,000 RPM, 445LBS wet, and top speed of 101MPH.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawasaki_454_LTD

[Wide14u]

i always herd they were quick

[FoxyRoadster]

I'll dig around but I may have a tail light that you can have, its rusty though but free!

 

I've got the generation before yours the KZ440, currently stock overall cept clubman bars and mikuni carbs.

[Pumpkn210]

Rath bikes are sweep!

[datrod]

Rath bikes are sweep!

 

Good one pukin. :lol:

[Gary]

you're making me want one real bad :(

 

i love when people get custom on their bikes, they look awesome. specially ones like yours, high front, low tail

[Suspect]

I'll dig around but I may have a tail light that you can have, its rusty though but free!

 

I've got the generation before yours the KZ440, currently stock overall cept clubman bars and mikuni carbs.

 

Sweet, that would be awesome. Rusty is better than nothing!

[Suspect]

Found a parts bike at a local junkyard. It must have been there for years. It was far back in an area where no one usually goes anymore. When I was a kid probably 10 - 12 years ago, I remembered looking out there for moped parts and running across a few motorcycles. I went to the junkyard to take a load of steel in for cash. I decided to stroll around looking for a headlight for motorcycle. I found a kawasaki exactly like the one I had. It was what was left over in the old motorcycle pile I remembered from when I was looking for moped parts. I hated spending the money but it costed me $75 and a ton of effort getting the bike to a path where the loader could get to it.

 

 

 

[Z chopper]

well atleast now you have extra parts which is always a good thing

[bonvo]

does this one run? the fist bike needs moar ape hangers

[Suspect]

I think it could run if everything was there, someone already got the coils.

[Suspect]

I cannot seem to get this bike to run right. I've had the carbs off and completely apart several times. I pulled the jets out and cleaned them. I don't see anything wrong with the carbs. The bike has another set of new plugs, good gas, good spark, etc. The bike will run, idle, but when you give it gas it won't rev up. If its on full choke it revs just a little more. If you slightly choke by hand on either carb, your hand gets wet from gas and it will rev up to redline.

 

There must be something I'm missing, I'm stumped. I really don't want to take the bike into a motorcycle repair shop and get charged 200$ to rebuild the carbs and then find out it was something els.

 

Does anyone have any ideas?

[paradoxx]

disassemble the entire carbs and sink it into thinner, skip the plastic parts just like, floats and plastic parts. Maybe the float check, the one that shuts the gas, is kinda hard to move. I think its a carb issue and not an electrical (CDI or coils)

[jesusno2]

The reason your bike wont run.

#1 no air box = super lean!!

#2 custom exhaust= even more lean

 

Anytime you change exhaust air filter air box what have you, it leans it out. all jap bikes are dialed in exactly dead on air/fuel ratio with factory equipment. The bike needs jetted and needles shimmed etc etc for it to run correctly. might wanna see if dynojet makes a jet kit for that bike. dyno jet kits will get you in the ballpark and normally come with different tapered needles or at least needles you can adjust. I'm suprised it idles, normally the idle goes crazy and starts drawing fuel from the mid range cicuit, and then your bike is trying to idle at 2000 rpm. Also get a set of sync guages so the bike will run correctly after you jet it.

[bonvo]

or take some small drill bits and drill the current jets out