Aussie, I agree that something is amiss if you're taking that many kicks to start. As RG suggested, using the electric for now (if available) might be the answer. I removed the electric on my '75 to save weight, and because it just sounded bad; don't mind kick starting at all unless something is adjusted so far off that it won't start ;-). Yeah, I wish more bikes came with kickstarters, too, though realistically with large high compression engines, it might be more work than it'd be worth. Any results yet?