Kawi2strokes.com Forum

Hi everyone,
I am new to the Forum and I just became the 3rd owner of a 1972 H2 S/N H2F22310 / H2E22446. The 2nd owner bought it to restore and never got around to it so it sat in his garage for 10 years. As near as I can tell it hasn't run in decades. The engine was preserved and is in good condition, as is the bike. The 1st owner did the following mods to the engine back in 1978:
Raised exh port to 35mm from top of cylinder
Removed 3.5 mm from piston skirt (intake)
Milled heads .030 - Cut squish bands
New NOS crank
Champion L55G spark plugs

I did a compression check and it's really high - 179/174/174. In the maintenance records, the 1st owner recorded 155/155/155 after doing the mods. The higher compression might be just from the preservation fluid on the cylinder walls. My intention is to get the engine started and have a little fun with it before I disassemble the bike for restoration. (This will be my second H2 resto).
Can anyone tell me what to expect from the engine with these mods? Do the L55G plugs seem correct for heat range for a high compression engine? Any tips for the first start? Thinking I may start it on premix while I confirm the oil pump is operating correctly.

Thanks for any help with this!

Hello Goodwrench, welcome to the forum! I was in Morgantown several times back in my college days when a buddy went to school there while I was living in the DC area. My buddy and his roommates lived in Pierpont House, and they and their friends were known as The 5 O'Clock Club. That was quite an experience. I even rode my H2 there a couple times.

- You should do a leakdown test of the crank seals before you get very far along. They may be OK, but at almost 50 years old, they may not be.

- The old Denco porting specs you posted will reduce the bottom end torque significantly, and make it peakier with a bit more HP, assuming you also have 34mm carburetors.

- The compression will give you problems. You should get that down to the 155 level or below before you bother trying to ride it.

- The L55G plugs are for drag racing. I ran them for a while because the Denco specs for that porting recommended them. They're extremely cold and will give you lots of fouling problems. Stock plugs, NGK B9HS work very well for street use.

Running the bike as-is might not cause problems, or it might melt a piston from the high compression.

In case you haven't found the resource site: www.kawatriple.com

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If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

Hi Jim,
Thanks for the reply.
Pierpont House is still standing! I've been living in the Morgantown area (on Cheat Lake) for nearly 30 years now and I've seen a lot of change.
I forgot to mention that the bike had Denco Pipes on it when the second owner got it. He sold them and installed some nice stock mufflers so your identification of the Denco specs is spot on! The bike has the stock carbs and I plan to do the leak down check as you suggest. I share your concern about the compression!

I did this vid for guys like you with bike that have sat. And Jim is correct, that is way too much compression to run of gas. Have fun with the build.You might want to consider new pistons. as that much off the skirts causes a lot of reversion and loss of low end torque.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2KI-IzIh6I

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Twist the throttle, tilt the horizon, and have a great time. What triples are all about...........

I had heard Pierpont House was still there a few years ago, but it's nice to know it's still there now. I went to Cheat lake a couple times, once on the H2 with a hot chick in a bikini riding on the back, because she asked nicely for a ride there. Another was at night with a group of party nuts, partying. Have you ever come across the name "5 O'Clock Club"? I think there are still a few around Morgantown who recognize it.

I still have that H2, and I still ride it. It still has the same seat cover, too.

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If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

Thank you Ja-Moo!
I will check this for sure. My other bike is a 79 CBX and I am well versed on Hydrolock!
Just a quick question, can an H2 be started without a battery? I have one on order but in case I get anxious and want to start it, will it hurt anything if the battery isn't in it?

Haven't come across any 5 O'Clock club members Jim but I'll ask around and report back if I hear of any. Oh, and I'll bet that seat cover is on for life!

If it still has a stock CDI set, you can start it and run it some without a battery, but it's a bit hard on the CDI units because of some oddities of the permanent magnet alternator. The CDI units get higher voltages from the magneto coils than they're designed for. The manual mentions this.

A capacitor can be used in place of the battery for long term running. Information in on the resource site.

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If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

Just an update on my project.
I poked around in the crankcase in all three cylinders with a plastic tube looking for oil and didn't see anything on the tube when I pulled it out so......
I got the engine started yesterday. Only took about 6 or 8 kicks and it was running. I tried putting it in gear and the clutch is stuck. After running long enough to confirm the oil pump was working I shut it down. About 15 minutes later I had a 6" puddle of oil forming under the left cylinder. Oil was leaking out around the exhaust header. So, now I'm convinced that there is a lot of oil hiding down under the crank. Based on the fact that the clutch is stuck I'm going to scrap my idea of playing around with the engine and just go ahead with the full disassembly and crank rebuild. I'll keep you guys updated. The knowledge on this forum is amazing!

I have broken many clutches loose by putting the transmission in 1st gear, engine off, pulling clutch in, and mildly aggressive rocking bike back and forth. Only one of a great many of them didn't break loose. That one I had to take down and fix from it not being assembled correctly.