H1

A 1976 model 400 is a thing of beauty mate, and also much more rider-friendly......

the story continues ...pg31
The continued refinement of the mid sized triple continued
(sic) with the KH400A3 of 1976. With CDI ignition
this was now a pleasant if unexciting motorcycle

there was a good looking triple at the barry sheene memorial at eastern creek on the weekend, it was an advertisment for classic jap spares I think

.......a pleasant if unexciting motorcycle

exactly what I was saying - more rider-friendly.....

you know, even the 750's were more *rider-friendly* than the 500's (imho).......they had a much greater reliance on a healthy torque ouput, rather than a screaming rush of a powerband that the 500's had.....

That triple at the EC meeting on the w/e was immaculate , I think Frank managed a photo of it in his shots from the Barry Sheene Memorial.

Last edited by Gosling1 on Thu Mar 16, 2006 9:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.

i still want one.
not to ride really, more for restoration purposes.
tho the 400 does sound like a good option as well.

Mate it sounds like a world of pain, but if you're determined to find out for yourself there are shit-loads of H1 parts on eBAY...

http://search.ebay.com/kawasaki-h1_W0QQfromZR40

...probably only limited by the depth of your wallet .

Here's a full one, $1555 US in Indianapolis:

http://tinyurl.com/rs7ec

Year: 1976 Warranty: No
Miles: 4738 Engine Size (cc): 500
Condition: Used Title: Clear
Exterior: Maroon VIN Number: h1F48942

4738 miles??? I do more in twelve months looking for the remote .

Go for it, better than pissing it up against a wall or betting it at the TAB .

.......a pleasant if unexciting motorcycle

exactly what I was saying - more rider-friendly.....

you know, even the 750's were more *rider-friendly* than the 500's (imho).......they had a much greater reliance on a healthy torque ouput, rather than a screaming rush of a powerband that the 500's had.....

not me Gos

I went from a MachIII to a Suzi 750 waterbottle
coz everyone told me the same..more rider friendly
but kerrrist..it was worse than the 500

I gave up riding for a while after that
..let my nerves recover
(and I got married 1st time and she wanted a house, a kitchen a car... )

back riding now......

Go The Bottle !! I'll tell ya, those things were *huge* in Melbourne during the 70's and early 80's......I used to work with a bloke from Melb. who had moved up here to work..........he had a 'Bottle with a 3-1 exhaust it was amazing that bike, you could hear it coming / going for literally *miles*, it had such a unique note.........

technically, a 3-1 should not work *at all* for a 2-stroke, however his exhaust worked *just fine* thankyou very much , I think it was a Bromlech ???

But Smitty, the power-delivery on a Bottle was pretty smooth mate ??

I bet your gear-position indicator worked really well eh ??

..snip...

But Smitty, the power-delivery on a Bottle was pretty smooth mate ??

I bet your gear-position indicator worked really well eh ??

power delivery...??? about as unfriendly as a MachIII
and a useless frame like the Kwaka..it just twisted
more, the more you opened the throttle

and gear indicator?
mine was the first model...with front DRUM brake
and no gear indicator

one of the guys i rode with had the next (newer) model ...an L model?
with front discs (useless in the wet mind you) which had a digital gear indicator between the main instruments

we both had the PLASTIC cone zorst extensions though.......

memories........

cheers
Smitty

u know i look at new bikes and i think (most times) HOT!!
i look at these older bikes and i think... MAGNIFICENT... they really are a thing of beauty. i aint gonna be able to ride my 9 any faster the better it looks, so i don't really care, as long as it's in good working order.
but these bikes are works of art.

Diesel you are dead right. Go for it son...I want to do the same thing an have been dabbling with some US contacts on the subject (750 though is what I want).

Had a 1973 500cc Kawasaki Mach III for a couple of years (1974 to 1976) and agree with most said here except for the 400 stuff. Not too bad to ride (smooth..powerful..) and very exciting but not a handler and no refine. Worth mentioning that most of the handlling reputation comes from the first model (1969) which was always reputed to be a real pig. Kawasaki refined it greatly (as is their way) over the years from dangerous to just worrying.

But dont even bother with a 400. If you get and restore a 400 EVERYBODY is gona say "noice...shame its not the 500/750" as these are the 2 models with cache and notoriety. Trust me, there is no curse worse than this if you are a restorer!!

Realistically...the whole line of em ride like a postie in comparison to anything from about 1980 on and so the *pick* of the bunch from a riding POV is completely irrelevant.

By the way the 73 500 certainly had CDI (I remember hours on the road side at Nowra NSW and a subsequent drive down from Sydney a day or two later thanks to a failed CDI unit in the rain) and wubber mounts as I recall too guys.

These things are going to go through the roof $$ as they are far scarcer than the 900/1000 and the motor is exotic.

H2 for sale here.. going for 8 large but looks complete..

http://www.bikesales.com.au/as/search/sd.do?recIndex=1&modelID=1981&makeID=42&page=0&selectedModelIndex=2&y=16&selectedMakeIndex=39&previousResultPerPage=20&currentPage=1&x=62

gillette made one 1 as well

well doesnt saddam scrub up alright