Re-posting my '80 Invader project - I had sortof been on the lookout for a Kawasaki so I could learn a little bit more about them, since they share power plants with my 80's JDs. I came across this sled on craigslist only 20 minutes from home, and picked it up for $75. It's had some custom paint, no windsheild, the engine turns over smooth, but the suspension is broken. Oh, and the clutch is stuck closed. The seller bought it in a package and never did anything with it, so he didn't know much about it's history.
When I got the sled in the shop and started checking things out, I found a lot of rust and crud in it. I thought, well crap, this engine is probably trash too. But after putting the engine on the bench and giving it a once over - everything on it looks great. Plenty of compression, has spark, peeking in the intake and exhaust- they look fine, and the crank seals were even in good shape. I suspect this engine was rebuilt fairly recently, but they didn't touch the rest of the sled.
The track turned out to be an original cleated version, which I'm told by the guys here were recalled & replaced. It would also need a good set of skis, as the originals were rusted through. A friend had aquired an Intruder that he was going to part out because of chassis damage, so I told him to keep the engine and components to sell elsewhere, and I would buy everything else. This got me a track, suspension parts, skis, and other misc. items for it.
So now the current status - I started by rebuilding the suspension. I used parts from both suspensions and all new bearings to put it back together, plus a set of new reproduction HD rear brackets from ebay. This is almost done. I just got new bearings & seals for the chaincase, so hopefully soon I will put the drivetrain back under it.
Topic: '80 Invader Rebuild Project (Read 4210 times)