'73 Z1 Resurrection

[crazycunuc]

Hey all,

I dont plan on tackling this until my H2 is done but I thought Id start a thread to get the comments rolling as I'm not TOO familiar with the engines and fine details.


Here goes...After nearly 15 years my brother and I dug out my Dad's old bikes from storage and finally brought them home.

Backstory...After a whole year of ridicule of riding a Honda minibike to highschool my Dad went out and bought a brand new 1973 Z1 and rode it to school the last day. From then on the Z1 was synonymous with my dad. Having gone through multiple Z1s (all 73's) including a home built Turbo bike he narrowed down the pack to just 1.

The bike was retired in 1992 and in 2003 he began to rebuild the top end end get it back on the road. Halfway through the rebuild he passed away in a bike accident and the Z1 was put away.

Soo..MANY years later the Z1 is back. I dont plan on digging too deep into it until the H2 is finished but till then I have a MOUNTAIN of spare parts to sort through and put away.

A few things Ive found so far just from opening a couple boxes are:
-2 NOS fuel tanks
-NOS side covers
-NOS front end (forks /triple trees)
-NOS doul disk conversion kit
Etc etc etc....pretty much a whole new bike. Im like a kid in the candy store

[crazycunuc]

That's how it sat up in a barn for 15 years..















My brother and I on the bikes












My buddy came over with his 66 chevy so i couldn't resist a photo opp

[crazycunuc]

Back in 73

[drewski]

That's a sad story cc. Loosing your dad is one of the toughest things boys go through in my book.

It's pretty sweet that you and your bro get to carry on the family tradition though!! That might be the nicest score ever!




Nice Marzocchi shocks and Melber wheels on the z1! Pipewelder has the same mags on his z1 too! I think I have 'dibs' on his set. Apparently he's not a fan. What do you think?

Cool little Yamaha smoker as well. Your dad was some cool dude!



So, what's your plan at this point?

[drewski]

Love the drilled dual disc kit! I had the same kit on my kz back in the day. Never got around to drilling mine.

[crazycunuc]

Yeahh...I won't say it wasn't tough but like you said we're furtinate enough to still have his bikes and cary on his Legacy. One of the reasons why I was so drawn to Triples.


I'm digging the mags. I saw go for them! We've got the original wheels too that were packaged away and look like new. The bike's got a lot of cool period correct mods, like a kerker and a hindle exhaust, oil cooler, frame bracing, bored out to 1000 etc etc. I found a march 1974 Cycle World featuring the Yoshamira / Duhamel Z1 and tucked away in the pages was a sheet where my dad had written down all off the frame mods to use on his own bike.

The Yami has a cool story behind it.
Its a 1973 RD350 which was purchased by a woman in Toronto who raced them. She realized she didn't like riding on the road at which point my dad bought it. My grandfather wasn't too fond of the bikes so my dad rode it home and hid it in my aunts garage and it was never ridden again. Its only got 599miles on the clock and besides some minor oxidization looks brand new.


As of right now I plan on finishing the H2 1st before tackling another project. Although I am excited to go through all the parts. Overall plan is to Restore the Z1 to the way my dad had it with all the mods. For the RD I plan on cleaning it up, get it running good and then put away on display to keep the miles at a minimum.

[tdub56]

Love it. There's no bike I want more than a Z1.

[pipe welder]

Awesome!

Looks like you have a real gem there.

[crazycunuc]

Thanks!
It's been really cool having it back and making an inventory of everything.
A) there's all the sentimental value
And B) as a kawi fan how could I NOT get excited

[Curtis]

I may have some parts you require - send me a list

[crazycunuc]

Sept 29, 2017 18:46:48 GMT -5 Curtis said:

I may have some parts you require - send me a list

Thanks Curtis... when it comes time to tackle this bike I'll shoot you a message.

Ive got my completed inventory now of all our spare parts but have not gone over the bike yet to see what it all needs.

[Joe H]

Those are some great bikes with a great history behind them ..WOW.

Both my Kz MKII and my H2 I received from my cousin after he passed away from brain injury he sustained in a motorcycle accident. The family wanted me to have them. We were best friends most of our lives , he taught me how to ride , how to wrench, and so much more. I received the H2 in pieces because he never had the chance to finish it before he passed. It took me nearly 4 years to get it done, and another couple to get the Kz back on the road after the H2 was done.  Working on or riding either the KZ or the H2 floods my mind with him every time, I can actually hear him "Don't let the clutch out so fast", "don't strip that bolt " He wold get sooo pissed off if I used the wrong tool for the job at hand… LOL... good times!

I can only imagine the feeling you have with the history of the Z1 and the memories of your father. I hope it is a huge blessing to you and your brother to see it reborn! 

[crazycunuc]

Thanks Joe!

I remember you telling me the story of the H2 and finding all the parts when we were at RB's. What a beautiful bike. Your cousin would be really proud to see it now.

Thats whats so great about motorcycling and wrenching on these old bikes.