Hi, new to the forum....very old to the bike world! Would dearly like to fit a kick start to my Z750 and wondered if anyone has tried a GT750 or if anything else might fit.
I am a fair weather biker these days and in no condition for bump starting such a heavy lump up the lane. The bike runs (and even starts) really well once I loosen the cobwebs and get some life into the battery but it seems obvious a couple of good kicks would do the job so much better (and I grew up in the days when elecric starters were a novelty).

 

don't know but welcome to KF

 

Thanks, glad to know there are other people out there. I know what I am asking is quite specialised and I still hope this is the right place to find people who know classic Kawasakis inside out.... time will tell.
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I have just seen a picture of a Z650 c with a kick start.... does anyone know if parts from Z650's (b & c etc.) are interchangable with Z750(b & c etc.)? I guess there must be somewhere I can read up on the technical/mechanical evolution/history of the Z's. I would like to be able to spot the difference and make sure mine is all original too.
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Cross reference the part numbers. Here is a link to a '78 750. http://houseofmotorcycles.bikebandit...US/1978/327348. I did not find any kickstart mechanism from '80 on.

 

Thanks the link is very helpful. I have been looking on ebay in the USA and found early KZ750s with kick starts....a couple of kick starts and shafts that look like the illustration so this may be the way forward. I have never seen one here in the UK. I have also seen what was said to be an 1980's 750 GT with chain drive and kick start. Knowing they exist gives me some hope. What I need is a doner engine somewhere in the UK and the courage to start taking my perfectly good engine apart or build up a second from the doner and the spare (untested) standard KZ750 I have laying in the corner of my garage.

 

So are you going to also ditch the battery and run a magneto? I have an old H-1 kick starter. While I agree there is a certain chutzpah to having a kick start bike, there are many moreinstanceswhen I'm glad I don't have to get a cramp in my hip when I start my later model bikes. (I'm a "late middle-ager" too.)
I wish you success in your search.

 

Thanks Jeff, I wouldn't know where to start finding a magneto and rewiring etc. but it sounds great. The main issue for me is long periods sitting in the garage leave the battery half flat and the engine hard to turn over... a few kicks would get the thing moving. I can bump start it easily enough but because I live at the bottom of a very steep hill pushing it is a bugger! When my son is at home the two of us get it up the hill and started but I do feel a whimp not being able to start my own bike. I need to find someone who is intimate with the inner workings of the late 70's early 80's Z650 Z750 fours and knows which parts are interchangable..

 

Rob, get a battery tender; the kind which shuts off when peak voltage is achieved.
Then, once a week (at the same time seems to help me remember) go out and just give it a start. It pays big dividends by keeping the top end lubrication in place, cylinder walls clean, etc. It's really tough on bikes to just sit. (But I understand how life gets in the way!!)
Best wishes.