starchild
Expert Class
Posts: 366
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posted May 11, 2008 12:36 PM
rods
ok did not want to bring this up and give a wrong impression on the 14. but i lost #3 rod 2 weeks ago. also i have to my knowledge been the only one to lose one on a 14, lost several trying to stroke the 12 .but i have not heard one bad thing about the 14s motor, so i hope i am the only poor slob to lose a rod. it is under warranty and is being done soon and i'm praying the tech can do more than change oil.maybe i should not relate bike techs to car techs but i have been screwed by dealerships before so i apologize to any bike techs out there
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jay
  
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dubious
Needs a life
Needs more time to ride!
Posts: 8442
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posted May 11, 2008 12:45 PM
#3 is the weak link.... your not the only one...
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natural selection.....
destiny will overcome intervention.
Some are not worthy of the effort.
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smokinzx14
Needs a life
Posts: 10197
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posted May 11, 2008 01:42 PM
quote:
#3 is the weak link.... your not the only one...
He is the only one i have heard of tossing a rod ...But i have seen a few that spun a bearing ..
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Smokin Performance Cycles..
Tampa Bay , FL .. Brocks Performance Dealer ..
Gen 2 ZX14R Best ET 8.43 , Best MPH 164.95
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smokinzx14
Needs a life
Posts: 10197
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posted May 11, 2008 01:49 PM
 Edited By: smokinzx14 on 11 May 2008 14:51
This off the busa site
So I rode my 03 about 4hrs in the saddle on Friday then got up Sat morning and headed out some more. About 40 minutes out (still 150 miles from home), I was on a long straight stretch and crept well into the triple digits. Then my bike suddenly started knocking really badly. I pulled over immediately. At idle, it wasn't noticeable but as I rolled onto the throttle it gets faster and louder. Granted, I know nothing of what it might be, so I shut it off and get on the phone. It wouldn't crank for about 15-20 minutes and still wanted to knock when it got running again. To keep from breaking more, I left it off. A LONG (day and) story short, 2 friends, 2 different trailers, and a lot of money given for gas, and I was home 9 hours later. Now, the bike's in the back of my truck and I'm taking it to the shop tomorrow.
I have no idea what it might be but I'm afraid it might be something bad. The bike's only got 8600 miles and had a fresh oil change within 300 miles. Sad thing is, the place where I'm taking it tomorrow is the same guy I got tires from...and he put the rear tire on with the tread facing the wrong way. Should I trust him with a total engine rebuild? Might not have much of a choice.
I'm just venting. But, you got any ideas?
Distraught over having just bought the bike a month ago,
-yow!
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It happens to all brands .... Plain Babbit bearing motors will and do fail ....Why Motorcycle makers got away from roller bearing cranks i will never understand ..
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Smokin Performance Cycles..
Tampa Bay , FL .. Brocks Performance Dealer ..
Gen 2 ZX14R Best ET 8.43 , Best MPH 164.95
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kawasakijockey
Pro
Posts: 1876
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posted May 11, 2008 03:30 PM
Ive seen one and Kaw is still scratching their heads about it. One problem is the rod big end bores arent bored straight on some of them. We saw it on the plastigage when checking the rod clearance. Tight on one side and loose on the other. QC is not a Kaw priority. There are some bad set-ups out there I promise you.
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Get on the shortbus boys 'cause its time to get schooled.
2007 ZX-14
1.38 60ft
9.03 @ 149mph
8.95 @153 small shot n2o
8.68 @160mph 5lbs boost
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smokinzx14
Needs a life
Posts: 10197
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posted May 11, 2008 04:22 PM
Edited By: smokinzx14 on 11 May 2008 17:23
quote:
Ive seen one and Kaw is still scratching their heads about it. One problem is the rod big end bores arent bored straight on some of them. We saw it on the plastigage when checking the rod clearance. Tight on one side and loose on the other. QC is not a Kaw priority. There are some bad set-ups out there I promise you.
Sorry i'm not taking anybodys word that uses plastigage... I'm not saying the rods were not round as you say but checking with plastigage is like pulling teeth with a hammer ....To check a rod you need a dial bore gauge ...I'm sure these rods like all other rods these days are done on a C&C machine and not by hand on an old Rod king machine...Still the C&Cing is only as good as the guy running the machine .. You do understand that a bearing shell is not round ? It's egg shaped when in the rod and torq'ed to specs.... It is made smaller at the parting lines as compaired to the thrust points .. So checking a rod clearance with plastigage is NOT going to tell you if the rod is round or tappered in the bore ..
Again i'm not saying there is not a problem but you have to use the correct tools to find out if it's out of spec ..
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Smokin Performance Cycles..
Tampa Bay , FL .. Brocks Performance Dealer ..
Gen 2 ZX14R Best ET 8.43 , Best MPH 164.95
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kawabunga
Expert Class
Cogswell Cogs Installed
Posts: 284
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posted May 11, 2008 05:12 PM
+1 smokin....he speaks the truth. Kawaski rods are some of the best manufactured rods out there. I build a lot of motors, strokers & turbos included and have never had a stock Kawasaki rod failure. As smokin said the weak link is the babbit bearings...I never use plastigage, only instruments that measure iinside, outside, depth and out of round. When the bearing goes bad, if the rpm's are high enough and run long enough, once the bearing has destroyed itself the rod will then fail. When the motor is torn down it always looks like the rod failed because it looks so bad and is one of the few remaining pieces that has been chewed up. I always drain the oil and cut the filter open and look for bearing material first and formost.
I just hope the tech remembers if replacing the crankcases he doesn't forget to order the 4 oil nozzles, they do not come with the crankcase set. I have known a lot of rookie techs that have made that disasterous mistake.
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