1989 kx125 restoration master thread

[queen of spodes]

Earlier this year I bought a project bike not knowing what all I would get into.   I've asked for some help along the way but thought I'd share a few pics of the bike before I got it and now that I am working on it.

Here's the bike from the Kawasaki brochure:

left side


and the right side:


I have no illusions about my resto coming close to showroom quality, but I hope to get it in the same ballpark. 

[queen of spodes]

Here are a couple pics from a previous owner.. from what I learned this bike had been passed around to a couple people after being rescued from a bad owner.   Nobody wanted to dive in, and after taking it apart I see why!

note the 88 graphics on the radiator shroud




Next, strip down

[queen of spodes]

Some close ups of years of abuse/neglect

Doesn't look so bad here?


Check out that sprocket!


right side.  engine was drooling fresh oil from somewhere...


swingarm was dirty but serviceable


footpegs & mounts trashed

[queen of spodes]

Carb & boot crusty




lots of corrosion here, but the bike put out a nice fat blue spark


orange RTV, tell tale signs of shade tree mechanic 


clutch pack looked pretty good considering the outside of the engine and frame

[queen of spodes]

had to grind down the sprocket welding to get the cases apart


no idea what was going on here... the more i looked at this bike the less I tried to think about it. haha.


source of the oil leak - cracked drain plug threads.  have to find some different cases...


crank and rod looked ok and spun freely.   sending it off to get rebuilt with OEM conn rod & bearing kit

[queen of spodes]

Found some cheap cases on Ebay.. they were painted forest green.   The side I needed is in decent shape though, so I just need to get these soda blasted.






ok setting the engine aside for the time being...

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Here's the gas tank that came with the bike.. it was pretty grimy and a little stained.    I picked up a nicer tank on fleabay (not pictured)

[queen of spodes]

Ok so now I move on to the forks.    More WTF goodness would be discovered...

89 kx's had the nice 46mm conventionals.. a lot of people ran these into the mid 90s (chunking the USD's that came on early perimeter frame KXs).  good forks.

But look closely at the axle holder on the right leg.  see anything? 


Let me enlarge that for you...


Previous owner had a 87 or earlier front wheel mounted up.. those wheels had smaller axles.. so they used their "ingenuity" to make this penny spacer to hold the loose axle in the 89 legs. 

[queen of spodes]

Got the legs off and disassembled on the work bench.    NOTE I wrote up a how-to on this process - click here for Thread #2. You will need a special tool to get the legs apart.  I have pics of the tool, where to get it,  and how it works - just follow thread #3.



First set of forks in storage:


Found a second set of legs that looked a LOT better - picked them up and broke them down too so I could pick and choose the nicer  components from both sets


Internals were pretty descent on both legs so I went with the ones that looked a little cleaner.


Rebuilt and ready to install

[queen of spodes]

Shock looked crusty and abused.   Removed spring and sent to a Race Tech service center here in GA. 

ps if you have tips for a better way of removing the spring please reply & give details


shock ready to be shipped off


shock received back from Race Tech service center with next to no packing material inside.  Shock was sticking out of the box when it arrived.  I was not impressed after having spent about $250 getting it rebuilt.


Need to get the original spring blasted and powder coated.. but thats for later.

[queen of spodes]

Linkage that came with the bike was frozen up pretty good. 


Luckily I spotted a set on Ebay that was fully disassembled.  Good for rebuilding

Pressing out the bearing races


Shock mount was rusted up pretty good.. had to press this little one out (wouldn't come out with my vice)


Got all of the bearings replaced and this piece is ready to go

[queen of spodes]

Linkage mount on the swingarm was tricky.   Got the sleeve out using this tool


But the bearings had to be pressed out.. took a bit of care and force to not damage the swingarm.    Had the same problem getting the pivot bearings out. 


Ready for new bearings  (to do - working on this today I hope)

[queen of spodes]

Back to the engine for a post..

The top end looked OK except for a broken post on the LH exhaust valve.   This led to a big search for a replacement, or maybe for a repair.  I posted a thread on VitalMX's Old School forum and got some help.   The VitalMX thread is worth reading.. lots of options listed there for getting a power valve for these old bikes (the power valves are NLA and nearly impossible to find as NOS).   Here's that thread: http://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Old-School-Moto,22/Custom-machining-an-obsolete-NLA-power-valve,1270119

Here's the top end with exhaust valves removed


Sent my cylinder & head off to PowerSeal a couple weeks ago and hope to have it back soon.

[queen of spodes]

A couple months ago I got the frame stripped and ready for some repair & powder coat



Had a local machine shop fix the right side footpeg mount (which isn't replaceable like the left side)


I regret not having them fix the brake pivot mount.. completely overlooked that (after powder coating). 

Dropped frame off at PCC in Atlanta


and got it back a couple weeks later

[queen of spodes]

Got some new plastic and OEM replica graphics in a few weeks ago.