Just turned 55 and my love of Vintage Japanese bikes has not faded. I sold Kawasakis in 1977 thru 1981 and also sold other brands as I worked for the top 3 shops in my hometown of Winnipeg.
I am restoring my personal 1978 Z1-R which I rode for 2 years before switching to a series of Suzukis.
Had sold the bike to a customer who became a good friend. He crashed the bike a few times and ended up parking in his parent garage where it sat ignored for years.
We'd lost track of one another and about 8 or 9 years ago we ran into one another and I found he still had the bike. It was a scraped up rusty mess and needed a new frame as it had been hit from the rear. Only nostalgia and the fact he still had the original exhaust in Mint condition sealed the deal (he hung a Kerker on it the day he bought it from me)
100 miles from here I found a basket case with a poker straight frame which I powder coated (along with a lot of the other black parts)
Having the 2nd bike and all those spares was a god-send. I then began scooping up all the NOS parts I could find. Needed all new body parts I located 2 sets of pre-owned stuff as virtually everything from the original bike was rusted or scraped beyond repair.
Had both sets prepped for paint and sold one set to help finance the project. A master painter did a 100% match (sadly, he's retired now) Had the top end done, clutch touched up and added a ton of new parts like mirrors, signals, pegs, sprockets, chain etc and it is now in final re-assembly and detailing stages. Hope to ride it this summer and begin work on my bone stock 1979 CBX 6 Cylinder.
Happy to have found this group. I've posted a plea for advice on the chassis forum.
Look forward to making new pals here!
Wayne in Winnipeg
1978 KZ1000 D1 (Z1R)
1979 KZ1000 A3 (MKII)
1979 Honda CBX (Candy Glory Red)
1980 Suzuki GS1100E (Silver)
1980 Suzuki GS1100E (Red)
1978 Yamaha XS1100
1982 Suzuki GSX1100S (Katana)
1984 Kawasaki KZ1100R (Silver)
2004 Honda Rune (Bloodstone Red)
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