First KZ1000 let's make it run!

Hey all, brand new here and just got my dream bike, a 79' KZ1000 that my buddy had done up as a cafe racer. Got a great deal as it wasn't running. He rode it last year and said it ran kinda bad, sputtered out and then couldn't get it started. He said it wouldn't spark and that it needed a coil. I picked it up today and dug in. I checked all 4 plugs for spark (plug in boot against motor) and cylinders 3 and 4 had spark but kinda weak maybe intermittent. No spark from 1 or 2. All basic stuff like fuel flow, newish plugs, has new ngk wires and boots on the 2 angled ones, look stock for the other 2. He has it set up on a toggle switch and always kicked it but the bike ripped until that last ride and it had sat some time before. I checked wiring for anything obvious and I think he's right on with needing coils. It's weird to me that the coil wires looked like they go to cyl 1 and 3 and then 2 and 4 but I was getting spark from 3 and 4. Again I'm new to all this so bare with me. It's electronic ignition, he said it was upgraded from points but it looks stock. Should I get new coils, which type, been seeing 30 dollar eBay pairs and then a big jump to 100 for Accel and more for dyna. Thanks in advance guys!

1-4 and 2-3 are paired so if you are getting a spark on 3 -4 then both coils are producing but may be on the way out or possibly fuel varnish fouled plugs even if they look new..
Switch the plugs to see if the spark follows.
If not that then more likely a bad/intermittent connection to the ignition somewhere , maybe mismatched coil resistance to the electronic ignition or faulty pick-ups.
Pic of the ign would be helpful but the only replacement I would use is a Dyna coupled with appropriate dyna coils.
You could ignite a bucket of piss with those fitted.

That is a stock ignition off a later MK2 etc which will be coupled to an ignitor box .
It's possible the ignitor box or pick- ups are faulty if nothing else.

So he was right in saying it was upgraded from points to that. Wouldn't that make the coils incorrect now cuz they are stock? Maybe burnt out cuz of different ohms rating? I'm picking up a new set of ngk b8es right now. Does the igniter need to be grounded to bare metal cuz it's just hanging rn and how do I determine if the pickups are bad?

Got new plugs, ngk BP8ES is what I could get in town, just took the cap off. That ok? No change in spark in fact I didn't get any when I was getting intermittent/weak in 3/4 cyl before. The exciter is not grounded right now, just hanging. I also rented a compression tester from Orielly while I was there and it only tested at about 90 on all 4 cyl give or take will w.o.t. using the kicker. Should I not buy the bike all together due to low compression? Anything to be aware of that would cause a lower than accurate reading by the tester? I checked my other bike that runs damn good and it was also only 90. Previous owner said he always kicked it but could touch the starter cable to the battery and it would turn over? It didn't do so and as of now I'm not sure the battery is taking a charge.

"You could ignite a bucket of piss with those fitted."

Now that I would want to see in person! Imagine, never having to pay for gasoline again.....

Rick H.

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Anyone know if that 40 dollar pair of coils on eBay would suffice for now? Searched kz1000 coils.

Which coils? A link would be really helpful.

Bbd1983 wrote: ...

This poor bike. It looks like the wiring is completely "improved". IS there a battery in there somewhere? Charge rectifier / regulator? Igniter module? I I can't imagine any ignition issues? nah. (sarcasm!)

In this condition this bike will never run properly. At least it is lightened up nicely to make pushing it home easier.

TexasKZ I'm having a hard time attaching links but here's a couple screenshots. If you search that description they'll come right up. The battery is bunk and wouldn't hold a charge so I'm swapping that out. All the other components mentioned are still intact, were just relocated under the seatpan. Other than being on a toggle switch it's done fairly well.