Motorcycle Repair: bike wont start!!, kawa z650, transistorized ignition

Question
hi wayne, i have recently bought a 1978 z650 in good condition apart from needing a good tune. The battery was already almost completely flat when i bought it so i topped it up with distilled water and tried to recharge it. I put it back in the bike, it still would not turn over using the electric start, but started with the kick. i switched on the headlights and the motor cut out and i have been unable to start it since!! The instrument cluster won't light up with the ignition on. Should i still be able to kick her over with out a battery? I've checked the fuse box and they are all fine. This is my first road bike, i'm used to moto cross which do not have an electrical system as complex!!! I was going to buy a new battery any how, but i didn't think that one is needed to kick start the bike. Any help would be much appreciated, and i was wondering if you could e-mail me any additional info to do with the basic electrical system, any thing that might help me to piece together solutions in the future! thanx

Answer
Richard,

-you need a fully charged good battery
in there to get spark even with kick-starting.

-These bikes used contact points up until
about 1981 I believe. That's when
the CDI arrived. Points need occasional
cleaning, setting or replacement to work well.

-Most road bikes use
a transistorized ignition now which
also needs a good battery to work.

Here is some more info:
http://www.kawa-z650.de/data/wiring/KZ650-B2,C2.jpg
http://www.kawa-z650.de/technik.shtml
http://www.jarlef.no/Kawasaki/Series/Z/650/z650.htm