Rear wheel damper worn out?

1977 KZ1000LTD, How do you tell if the rear wheel damper is worn out? I can grab the rear sprocket and rotate it back and forth a little within the wheel hub. How much play is normal? Or none? I have the chain adjusted correctly but am feeling some drivetrain play at slow speeds, especially when coming off idle after a slow corner.

Are the ones from Z1E good to go if I do need one?

I would just replace it with a genuine Kawasaki damper. According to Kawasaki.com they are still available (see pic). Ronayers.com list them at $50.77. Ed

Good to know....I'll go for an OEM part. How do I know if mine is bad? The book says to check for excessive play. How much play is excessive? I wouldnt think there should be any play. My guess would be that the rubber damper would be snug in there. I just dont want to buy one only to find the new one exactly the same as the old one.

I'm about 99% sure mine is original so the age alone should make it time to buy a new one, but maybe not?

74ullc wrote: Good to know....I'll go for an OEM part. How do I know if mine is bad? The book says to check for excessive play. How much play is excessive? I wouldnt think there should be any play. My guess would be that the rubber damper would be snug in there. I just dont want to buy one only to find the new one exactly the same as the old one.

I'm about 99% sure mine is original so the age alone should make it time to buy a new one, but maybe not?

bump, I was wondering exactly the same thing...

74ullc wrote: Good to know....I'll go for an OEM part. How do I know if mine is bad? The book says to check for excessive play. How much play is excessive? I wouldnt think there should be any play. My guess would be that the rubber damper would be snug in there. I just dont want to buy one only to find the new one exactly the same as the old one.

I'm about 99% sure mine is original so the age alone should make it time to buy a new one, but maybe not?

I don't have my manual handy, but I don't think its expressed exactly - like the free play in the clutch lever is. If you can feel it clunk to and fro, its probably too worn. I think your instinct its right - if it's that old, a replacement is in order.

I never understood really why the damper was there and doubly never understood what harm there was if there was wear. Even my old original KZ650 with 170,000 miles (retired) has original damper and yes there is play, but who cares and what harm does it do in any way?

Remember that bike generates a hell of a lot more torque at the rear wheel than you could ever dream of by hand,if you can feel it move imagine what the motor does to it! :woohoo:

Not that Id reccomend this but I seem to remember seeing worse things done in emergengies! :sick: :woohoo:

wireman wrote: Remember that bike generates a hell of a lot more torque at the rear wheel than you could ever dream of by hand,if you can feel it move imagine what the motor does to it! :woohoo:

So when new there is no free play? I had my rear wheel off recently to check rear bearings. I was surprised when I tilted the wheel and the sprocket/hub/damper all fell free of the wheel. I would have expected the damper to be a little snug in there, like an engine mount or the rubber damper in an outboard prop.

I have been feeling some driveline backlash at very low speeds but attributed it to the carbs (rough coming off idle) or my not so great clutch work. I still think both of those things are not helping but now I think the damper is also part of the problem. I'm getting a chug chug chug feel when getting back onto the throttle after coasting thru a corner, a very slow speed corner, under 5 mph.

Also, I really need to get new mix screws! The engine stumbles and wants to stall coming off idle. I have one screw with a broken tip and the other three are bent and deformed. I'm hoping thats the only reason for that engine stumble.

Instead of silicone I could put rubber spacers in there to take up the slack. That would tell me how much of it is the damper without having to order one to find out.

The dampers are there to cushion the driveline from the forces as you go on and off throttle. The freeplay probably matter less than the hardening of the rubber in this regard, but the combination will definitely increase the shock loads going through the chain, first delivered by the rear sprocket, which again transfer the shock to the front sprocket that again takes it to the lay shaft that in its turn brings it over to the main shaft where it will reach the cushions in the clutch that will kill most of what wasn't already lost as heat through the driveline before it's delivered to the crank.

In reality, these items are pretty sturdy. But a worn damper in the rear wheel will increase wear in the chain/sprockets, gearbox and clutch shock absorbers. Whether it's enough to worry about is an entirely different question.