Hi from Canada!

[booneylander]

Hey all,

I'm a proud new owner of an '83 KX500.

I've wanted a full sized dirtbike for a little while now (I've always had XR/XL Honda 80/100s), and I wanted a bike with a good bit of power on tap, which is why I've been looking at KX/CR 500s. I tried a 99 or so KX500 about a year ago and the price was right but the engine was running strangely (1st gear 2nd gear wouldnt rev, hardly any power, grab third gear and almost flip over backwards), so I didn't buy it. I had looked at an '03 KX500 recently and would have loved to buy it but the guy wanted a good chunk of money for it and, since almost all my disposable income goes into my road-racing campaign, I couldn't afford it. Then just recently I saw an '83 for sale and the price was very right so I took the plunge. Although I would have preferred a liquid cooled bike, I'd rather ride an air cooled KX500 than no KX at all 

The bike is in rough shape but the engine has been recently rebuilt and runs well with good compression, starts relatively easily, and for the price I paid for the bike I can afford to put a few dollars into a few parts in order to get the bike dialed.

Things I noticed on the '83/questions :

-Seems to be down on power substantially from the liquid cooled mill, which it should be, but can anyone tell me what the difference in power should be, so I might tell whether I'm just feeling the difference in power from the different engines or if my particular bike might be down on power relative to other air cooled ones. Is it like a 5hp difference or a 20hp diff? Can I expect to gain much with upgrades?

-The front brake hardly works, I pull on the lever what feels like enough to snap it off and I can't seem to lock up the front wheel. Should I expect to be able to lock up the front or are the brakes just that bad on an old MX bike?

-The engine seems very tractor-esque. It has lots of torque right off idle but doesn't seem to rev out like I would think it should. Might this be a fuel/ignition problem or does this engine just not rev that hard?

-The throttle seems very on/off. It feels like there's very little modulation to be had. To balance a wheelie I have to rock the throttle between say 20%-70% throttle all the time, it's very hard to get small increments, it seems like the bike always want's to be either idling or trying to pitch me off the back, with nothing in between. Is this common for these bikes? Is there a solution?

-The engine seems temperamental and very temperature dependant. I have to putter around at low speed for like 10 minutes before I get anything that could be considered decent throttle response or any power to speak of. Is this just another quirk of the '83 engine?

-The front suspension seems soooooooo soft and mushy. I don't know if there's anything wrong with it or if I'm just not used to having the front end of a bike compress so much on the brakes (keep in mind I'm usually riding a very stiffly sprung GSXR 600 which only dives maybe 3 inches on the brakes). What would be appropriate sag measurements for a bike like this?

Thanks a ton for any insight you guys might be able to offer me. You will find I have a TON of questions to ask as my project moves along. I know you will have a lot of answers for me and I've already found a ton of good info reading old threads on the site.

Ciao,
Sean

[MadKaw]

welcome to the disfunctional family. I don't really have any experience with your model, but I'm sure there are plenty that do...MK

[Johnniespeed]

 I too, do not have any experience with that year. However, I believe it should be stupid fast. You didnt mention, fear, death or the emergency room, so I am guessing that it isnt running right. This site has an over abundance of information on jetting,timing,pipes and more.  In my opinion jetting is the most important detail that needs to be addressed on any KX500.
  My KX500 is a 2004, the front brake will lock up with a firm squeeze of the lever.
  All two strokes that I have ridden, need to have the pipe hot to produce the big power that we all love. My bike will not rev fully and does not have full power until the pipe is hot. The reverse pulses produced by the expansion chamber require the exhaust air be hot.
  There is much information on flywheel weight, which produces bottom end, tractor like pulling power. Look this up using search.Perhaps you need a lighter flywheel.
  This site is filled with information on each of your issues, try the search feature.   
  John
 

[FuriouSly]

Dig the bike, like a diamond in the rough.... wheew, and that's alot of questions!

Just assume the bike is FUBAR.  Don't expect anything to be right and you will not be let down.  Just think how many relationships she has been in during her lifetime and how many of those were abusive!  Every bike I buy whether an 80's or 2000, it's FUBAR in my mind.   

Power = It's either on or off, that's the way it is.  Cold blooded until totally warmed-up.  The bike weighs more so less power.  Don't expect it to be running even at 50% until you go through everything.  Filter, jetting, needle/slide, reeds, timing, spark plug, muffler, gearing, fuel/mix......

Forks = Terrible old school design.  There are companies that have upgrade internals to mimic modern suspensions (emulators).  Expect your forks to be undersprung and with 20 year old fluid, if any.

Here is your bikes link to Race Tech for reference only (just a suggestion):   http://www.racetech.com/evalving/english/Srchpr.asp?bikeid=712&manufacture=Kawasaki&model=KX500&year=1986&TABLEINFO=dirt&langname=english

Brakes = Front disc caliper/piston probably needs a rebuild.  Definately should do a complete fluid change.  Might need to rebuild the master at the handlebars.  That front brake is more than adequate and should easily lock up and pitch you over on good traction when working 100%.
   Rear drum, well its a drum with shoes so don't expect much.  As with most motorcycles the rear only provides about 30% of the braking anyways, unless your in the dunes and you only use the front 30% or less.  Anyways, get into it and make sure the shoes have padding, the mechanics are clean, and the drum is not glazed over.  Most important is to have the linkage staright with no bends/kinks and that you have it very close to proper tension.  Drums need almost instant drag with about a 1/4" - 3/8" of deflection of the brake pedal since another 1" or more is needed to activate them to full stopping.

Treat her with love and respect as with any other older mature lady.  She is not a run and gun bike, ride and forget scoot.

Sly

[booneylander]

Thanks for the responses guys, I dove into the bike a bit last night and here's some interesting stuff I noticed now that I've had a closer look.

The left wheel bearing in the front wheel is the wrong one, the ID is too large and the axle floats around in it.

The clutch perch seems to be some cheap chinese knock off, which I think is why the clutch feels like crap.

The front brake master cylinder is off some kind of road bike, I got it to work half decently though for now, it was angled down steeply to clear the throttle cables so that's why it felt like I was pulling on it a lot harder than I actually was. With it in the right position, well, I still can't lock the front up but it's a lot better. Rotating the throttle tube helped out with the terrible throttle response, I can balance a wheelie now without too much drama. 

At some point someone tore the back wheel/swingarm off the bike. The dogbone has been broken then re-welded and stiffeners added. The swing arm has been welded back together.

At some point someone broke the frame near the steering head. It's been welded back together, ground down, and stiffeners welded in.

Oh and I was riding along yesterday, and I looked down and saw the nut on the top of the steering stem wobbling around ready to come off. The clamps for the handlebars weren't tight either.

Hmm, what else? OH YEAH! I went to check the tire pressures only to find that the rear tire had no air in it at all. The tire is just so old and the rubber so hard, the sidewall never flexed with me on the bike so there was no visual clue that the tire had no air.

I think that's it for now 

[BigGreenMachine]

Haha! Got to love it...you bought a project bike.

It should scare you, make you see the Almighty and water your eyes. If it doesn't then assume something somewhere is not right.

A new filter, clean carb and new carb internals should be high on your to do list.

Keep in mind yours is an 86 and parts will be hard to find. My 85 Tecate trike is brutal to find good or new OEM parts for.

[don46]

Not to burst your bubble, but I'm thinking thats an 83 or 84, the 85, 86 was liquid cooled and the 86 had front and rear disc brakes. 

[stewart]

1985 was watercooled my 1986 was water cooled  with kips  .the 1983 and 1984 were the air cooled kx 500s........1981 and 1982 was the 420s

[booneylander]

Good to know guys, thanks for the info!

The guy I bought it from had no papers and he had just said it was an '86 - obviously he was mistaken... 

[booneylander]

Hey all,
I got home tonight and found the VIN off the engine case, and matched it up in the chart here : http://www.kxriders.com/coppermine/displayimage.php?album=lastup&cat=0&pos=0

My VIN was KX500AE001203

So, looks like I've got an '83 !!

Which coincidentally is my birth year - creepy. At least now I know what bike to order parts for when I go in to the dealer.

So now I just have to match up the engine VIN to a frame VIN (which hopefully contains "...HT60..." (the only characters I could identify amongst the welding/grinding hacking of the frame). Then I can hopefully go get a title from the MTO so I can get a trail plate.

It's funny, on the track, I ride stuff like an '03 GSXR600 and an '05 ZX10R, bikes which you could eat off of, they're so clean, and which are always running perfectly and tuned just right for me. Now I hop onto this old clapped out POS bike and I'm having a ton of fun on it, I'm riding and parts are falling off and the controls and suspension are SOOO shoddy, and I'm smiling in my helmet ear to ear the whole time.

UPDATE: Finally found a decent picture of an '83 online and yes, my bike is most definetely an '83. Seems it was the only year for the gold wheels / gold swingarm.

So now the goal is for my bike to look as good as the one in the pic

[hughes]

I like riding old school bikes. I kick my a** every day for tearing down and parting out my restored 87 500  You could have a nice vintage race bike after you get started with the rebuild or just ride the thing.

[MadKaw]

good luck with the parts hunt. that should be fun...

[BDI]

Hey all,
I got home tonight and found the VIN off the engine case, and matched it up in the chart here : http://www.kxriders.com/coppermine/displayimage.php?album=lastup&cat=0&pos=0

My VIN was KX500AE001203

So, looks like I've got an '83

                 Hay that bike was stolen from me in 84 It still looks like I remember It good thing you posted the serial number I would have never known. Tell you what just go ahead and ship It back to me and we can just forget about the whole thing     P.S. High canada I went to British Columbi once and had a good time there