New to Japanese, need help with vin info.

[Radioguylogs]

It's weird that your gas tank and petcocks look much worse than the rest of the bike. Must have had plenty of moisture on the tank.

The rest of the bike looks pretty decent.

[DiverRay]

With an empty tank, as the weather changes you get moisture and condensation in the tank. Parked for the winter, my tank is full of NO ETHANOL gas and Sta-Bil. It starts easily every spring.
As stated, parts are available but finding a second "parts bike" my be the best way of doing things. I know, you then need more room, something most of us lack.

[DEEBS11]

This bracket is interesting. Start switch holder? Breather?

[Mathh]

This bracket is interesting. Start switch holder? Breather?

Looks like a cable lock holder ...

[DEEBS11]

Hey Mathh, you mean for this chain?

[jgonz]

The starter button on the hand control is busted. This is one of the mods I found when I starter going through the bike. A previous owner wired an aftermarket starter button in the spot. The switch is now also corroded but I'l like to rewire it properly to a button on the hand controls.

[jgonz]

I had to use the cherry picker again to remove the motor since it's only me. Once I got in there one thing led to another. There is no way of knowing what small things may be bad in there so I figure I'm just gonna break into her. The PO slathered a gob of gunk on the rubber gasket and when I looked in there, I saw some rust and corrosion. The shaft looked dry so in the interest of being thorough I opened her up. I have plans to open up the engine and massage the internals. Anyone have any idea of upgrades available?

[jgonz]

The carbs will definitely need a rebuild and anything that is rubber will need to be replaced. I also discovered that one of the exhaust bolts is cross-threaded so I'll have to see about that. Maybe while she's apart I'll paint the engine and pretty it up.

[DiverRay]

Do NOT buy the "cheap" carb holders, or anything else rubber. Do a quick search and you will find parts others have used that work well.
Do plan on the second gear fix, as doing it now will save time later. Second gear dogs WILL round, but if fixed before they get too bad your good for 100K miles.
There are big bore kits available, but be sure to look for one with forged pistons.
I have an engine in parts myself, just trying to get the time to start putting it back together. Most bits are available on ebay, and georgefix is who I use for most of my buying. Remember if you get the K&L carb kits, DO NOT use the jets!

[jgonz]

I'm putting a shopping list together going off of advice that Deeb s11 suggested. Now that I'm reading DiverRay's response, I'm building up the list and noting some points to consider:

- I looked up the big bore kits on ebay. I found a couple of 1196 kits but noticed that there was a big difference between the first one I found (1196cc no name kit for about $170), and the second one (Wiseco 1196cc kit for $550) I'm used to Wiseco products being pretty good and the difference in prices makes me think twice. Once again, input is appreciated.

- Based on what I'm seeing so far I'm looking at gaskets and brake rebuild kits. It looks as if K&L is the source as far as a lot of the available parts. My local indie shop mentioned rebuild kits for the carbs but I'll be sure and and inquire about the details.

- I had read something before about the transmission but never specifically about 2nd gear. One of the reasons I decided to redo the entire bike is because I want to get it going better than new. I watched a youtube video talking about the second gear and hopefully I'll get that going as well.

- I would like to service the hand controls so that they can be reused. If not, I'll go with Deeb s11 suggestions. I would like to keep the controls the same as stock. This would be the only bike I own that has turn signals, starter button, horn... stuff like that. I managed to clean up the wiring and I am very good at connectors so I'm not worried about that. I chased down all the wiring and will manage to put that back together.

- I also want to add a kick start and found a guy in California on youtube that has them for something like 50 or 60 bucks. I run kickstarts on all my bikes.

- No luck on a parts bike. I looked around and will keep looking.

- I'ma need a tank.

- Thanks for the input and I'll be sure and keep posting. I get the feeling that I'm going to deploy again in the upcoming week so I may put the project on hold for a couple of weeks. For now I'm here for a few more days.

I put the rear wheel back on so I can roll it... I took it off the lift and put on a shovelhead that I need to also work on. I have projects all over!

Thanks for the input and as usual, any and all help is appreciated.

[DEEBS11]

As Ray mentioned, the jets that are found in K&L kits are not drilled correctly and should be tossed as soon as you open the package. You could also just buy the gaskets and O-ring kits separately. Try to find Japanese parts and totally avoid Chinese parts.

Personally, I am not a big fan of "big bore" kits. The Wiseco parts are of high quality but it's the compression boost that plays havoc with these air cooled motors. They can run real hot with detonation. Not really necessary with a common street driven bike. You work hard for your money. Why would you spend it on a grenade motor? I usually hone and re-ring stock pistons unless of course there is a big scratch in the bore in which case you would have to run a larger piston. Lap the valves and install new valve seals and the motor will give you many reliable miles in return.

[DEEBS11]

Rings.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/303234375714

[DEEBS11]

Tank. Needs work.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/27634669509...Bk9SR_KDqO3GYw

[DEEBS11]

Viton valve seals.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/303762494321

[DEEBS11]

Engine gasket kit.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/275599101908