Author Topic: KLX's - a shared disease  (Read 146033 times)

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Offline AjayVMX

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #15 on: August 08, 2007, 08:11:30 AM »
OK KLX lovers....  here's one for sale on eBay ;)

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140145675268&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:AU:1

Although I suspect the the asking price (let alone the reserve) is probably a bit high... :o

Doc

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #16 on: August 08, 2007, 06:56:37 PM »
The price as it sits doesn't seem too bad AJay considering you get a 70% spare bike thrown in. Looks like a decent going concern for a KLX enthusiast. I'd like to think the reserve would be under $3k or he may have trouble moving it especially when much later 2nd hand bikes seem comparatively cheap these days. Always hard to sell something that is/was your pride and joy. Even I have to admit I'd love 1 of those new fuel injected DRZ's..in my dreams ::)

Offline Graeme M

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #17 on: August 09, 2007, 07:50:27 PM »
I've said it before but the KX/KLX's of the late 70s just looked the part didn't they?

Here's another view of the mighty dirt tracking KLX. If I remember right, the local Kawasaki dealer had built this machine and rode it in local enduros. There was a lot of work done on the head and it was pretty quick. The guy pictured here I think ended up buying it and dirt tracked it in our 'trailbike' class. He got along OK!


Offline AjayVMX

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #18 on: August 09, 2007, 08:17:53 PM »
I think that the KLX legend was born and has subsequently survived because the bike was genuinely good, considering it's era and limitations.

It was based on a KX125 chasis which was well know to handle really well (and this was translated to the KLX :)) but it had a lazy motor which also became legendary for it's inability to produce any sort of competitive power. ::)

Because of this weird combination of no power and great suspension and handling, most people could ride the thing pretty fast - certainly faster than expected, given the meagre power outut - but the power never would get anyone into trouble, so the whole experience was just a heap of fun! ;D

Of course, some people then went looking for more power and that often ended up in fractured motors and tears... (although rebuilding was still a fraction of the cost of today's thumpers, due to the basic materials used in 1980/1)

I had a KLX in the early 80s and raced club MX and Enduros on it and had a ball, along with nearly winning some events.  For some reason, I still have this strong attraction for KLXs and think they still look great today.  Naturally, I still have one, which hopefully will be restored sometime soon.... ::)


Offline YUMASTEPSIDE

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #19 on: August 09, 2007, 09:20:09 PM »
gtmpaul,
         whats the red kwaka twin in the photos? I love specials.
       
                      Roger

Offline gtmpaul

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #20 on: August 10, 2007, 04:55:45 AM »
Hi all,
I think that photo of the sideways KLX is a fake! it's been retouched or made with photoshop the only time mine goes sideways is about a millisecond before I fall off.


If you want more info on the Kawa twins, but it's in German
http://www.history-routes.de/hr_legenden/witthoeft.htm

Paul

Offline pokey

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Doc

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #22 on: August 10, 2007, 02:07:41 PM »
Quote
Hi all,
I think that photo of the sideways KLX is a fake! it's been retouched or made with photoshop the only time mine goes sideways is about a millisecond before I fall off.
..GTMPaul it does look a little unbelievable I know but eh..it really is a correct and true picture of Mr Webmaster aboard the  nitrous KLX with a stuck throttle :o the track is really Action Park at Maryborough I recognize that! it could even be the 6hr short circuit of years gone by (I think it was 6hrs ??? ) Then again it could be any number of a zillion meets..lots of oil made this track pretty bloody fast!  8)
« Last Edit: August 10, 2007, 02:14:25 PM by Doc »

Offline evo550

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #23 on: August 10, 2007, 02:18:50 PM »
Yuma,
I don't know about the red one, but I have an old Trail and Track article on the green one which was manufactured by Kawasaki Europe to race in the German isde back in the early '80's If I remember correctly they used a z400 motor in the klx frame to race in the open 4 stroke class.
FYI got to www.thumperpilot.com to get your fix on all things four stroke and special.

Offline gtmpaul

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #24 on: August 11, 2007, 06:15:53 AM »
Hi all,
with ref to the KLX twins this is a link to some more info on them.
Paul
http://kz400.com/400/Binder1.pdf

derail

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #25 on: August 12, 2007, 09:28:22 PM »
Hi people, it seems the humble KLX has a number of interested followers. The secret is out. I've found them to be light weight, handle better than most bikes of that era and if you can coax a bit more power out of them they hold their own on a motocross track.
 Below for what its worth are some of the lessons I learn't and sources for parts I found when making the KLX engine go a bit harder.
As said before if your going to ride it hard get a Megacycle cam with the roller bearing mod or at least rebush the head where the cam runs using suitable bronze bushes.
If you do nothing else, get a piece of 12.5mm diameter aluminium rod 36.65mm long, take out the tacho drive in the head and put this in its place.(Comes std with a megacycle cam) You will have to cut down the spiral gear on the end of the std KLX cam that usually drives the tacho drive, but once done all the oil will now go to the rockers and cam.
With your new or reground cam only ever use new or reground rockers. While on the subject of oil, I found out the hard way that oil companies over time reformulate oil blends and while they sometimes put in better additives and also remove some of the old ones that were there to protect rocker pads rubbing directly on cam lobes. I now only use Belray Thumper oil and into 4 litres of it I pour a bottle of Comp Cams engine break in oil additive. ( it puts back all the good stuff) Its available from most performance engine shops.
Don't skimp- put in a new oil pump and very importantly put a new mesh screen that filters out any big bits (relatively speaking) before the oil goes to the pump.
Replace the head bolts with new ones. I have a number of engines and not one of them did not have stretched head bolts. The difference in length between new ones and used ones is enough to make you think you have the been supplied the wrong part. Since doing this I have no more leaking head gaskets. Torqued down to 25 psi they hold everthing together even with high compression ratio's (12:8:1 in my case)
I fitted a  wiseco piston 72mm- 2 mm oversize (PT NO:4052 M07200) You may need to modify the piston top or valve cut out depending on the cam you use in order to prevent the valves hitting the piston at TDC.
 If you get valves made, resist the temptation to have them made over size. Even 0.5mm oversize causes a problem with high lift cams as the valves run into each other on overlap at TDC.
Valves I got from RD Springs in the good old USA. I also get Valves springs from them. PT NO: VSK301-K. They don't have them stock but wil make them for you. If you can find some, S&W made them also  PT No: 11-026A
 All ths new power and youmight want H/duty clutch springs- try Vesrah PT NO SK-406
Funny thing about engines, if you change one thing you gotta change the rest if you want it to work right. An engine is an air pump. Once I bored it out and put a better cam in it, next came a bigger diameter exhaust and rejetted carb. It still would not run properly on the mainjet regardless of the jet size. Problem was not enough air. The only way I could fix that was to take that immaculate hard to get air box and drill the sides of it full of 1/2" holes
 I set the ignition pick up on the flywheel with exactly 1mm clearance, never touch the throttle and it starts if its hot or cold. Spark plug standard is a heat range of 7. I use 8 and in some cases 9 (Long periods at full throttle)
Last thing I can remember is to check the cam chain tension bolt. The bolt is only meant to hold the tensioner mechanisim back when its fully retracted (for assembly purposes) The rest of the time it bottoms out and does not touch the rod inside the tensioner. The tensioner now self adjusts to keep the correct cam chain tension. Over time, often well intentioned people have replaced the bolt with a longer one. This locks up the tensioner and prevents it from self adjusting and leads to major damage due a slack cam chain.
Thats me done, I hope this is of some use to others, saves you some time and money and gets a few more KLX's on the track.

Offline Graeme M

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #26 on: August 14, 2007, 10:00:09 AM »
gtmpaul, how could you doubt me? Photoshop indeed. The truth is that those Maryborough dirt trackers were all Gods on a dirtbike!!

Here's some more from that long gone practice day. Not sure how fast he is going, but that is the Action Park sweeper. You come into that at about 80km/hr and the top guys would be up around 130 by the end of it.



« Last Edit: August 14, 2007, 10:02:23 AM by Graeme M »

Offline cyclegod

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Ban BLACK rims NOW

Doc

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Re: KLX's - a shared disease
« Reply #28 on: August 14, 2007, 07:02:17 PM »
 :) Thanks! Some really good advice in that lot Derail..I'll be following up on more than a few of those items myself. Not particularly after more performance but having reliable oil feed is essential. 

Offline gtmpaul

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KLX cam mod
« Reply #29 on: October 06, 2007, 05:01:16 PM »
Hi all,
after reading about the mods on the cam for better oil flow, would it be worth doing on a std engine.
I've just put the new piston and rings in, I've got a good std cam and head, while the head is still off should I mod the cam and fit an ally plug on the tacho drive.

Paul