81 GPz550 / ELR

PLUMMEN wrote:

did you need to change any mounts to make the motor fit?

Motor bolts in. They are pretty much the same motor. The finning on the head is different, and so are all the case covers, but the cases and mounting points are the same.

You're right, the 550 does look like the Z1R, with the same square tank style. Very clean and simple.

I don't want to burst your bubble, but you might want to look into replacing some of the original gaskets on that low mileage motor, before you start it up. Old seals and gaskets will seep, I have found out first hand, and not having to take that engine out to do it once it's in, might be something to think about.

-Head gasket, and side oval o-rings
-Valve cover gasket and cam end plugs(once you check the valve clearances, this will be buttoned up anyways)
-Oil pan gasket and o-rings(you can clean whatever is in the oil pan out, as time will have some kind of sludge in there)
-Left front trans cover gasket and both oil seals(this is a very common leak point)

These can be done with the engine still in the frame.

Just some advice here.

Project is looking good!!! I wish I could fab like some of you do, my race bike upgrade would be finished already. :S

Corey,
Thats good advice for sure, and I have given thought to it. I have had a few problems with that before on some of my other old Kaw's, in fact they pretty much all seep some oil in one place or another. The problem is that I have a problem; I can never put anything back together stock once it comes apart. I did plan to do a valve adjustment and retorque the head, so for an extra hour of work I guess that it would make sense to pull the head and do the head gasket at the same time, with no carbs or exhaust installed it will go quickly.

How is your racebike update coming ?

I've been doing a little work on my SM racebike project too, but it has been so cold here that it's just not enjoyable to deal with the cold garage (and not practical to heat it).

I have tried the retorquing thing, and it doesn't, or didn't work. Replace the gaskets, and be done with it. The places I've listed are where I've seen it happen on used engines, and ones with low mileage as well.

Yep, I think most of us can't leave well enough alone. It's bread into us.

Racebike won't have the EX650 changes I want before AFM Round 1 March 19-20 at Buttonwillow, so I'll buy a new set of Avon Race Rubber, Galfer Green Pads, finish the Tarozzi Universal Rearsets, rebuild the front calipers, and do the basic race prep stuff. I will be installing and degreeing the Megacycle Cams in the current 615 engine, then getting it dyno'ed again at MCE Racing. Might reinstall the stock fairing too.

Now back to the topic at hand.

mjg15 wrote:

Winter sucks !!

Took the words right out of my mouth / keyboard.

It's funny how a bike can look almost complete in a photo, but may only be 50% done time-wise. All the tiny details really suck up the time, with little apparent progress.

At least it's looking great!

mjg15 wrote:

and a gel battery (not taking any chances with my paintwork)

I'm in the same boat. I was taking out the battery for winter, and noticed this new battery was spitting up did some damage. So it's time to repaint the battery box again after 10 years.

But now I don't know what to go with. I've heard pros and cons about Sealed Lead Acid: Gel, and Absorbed Glass Mat. I was going to do a search and maybe start a new thread.

Have you picked out what battery you are going to use?

Lou,

I was considering a lithium polymer battery. You can replace a 10lb battery with one that weighs 1.25lb, and apparently has sufficient power. I have heard that they don't respond well to overcharging though. Do you know anything about them?

Heres a thread from the supermoto site: www.supermotojunkie.com/showthread.php?1...ight=lithium+polymer

You are right on about the small parts of the build taking a lot of time. So far I have about 100hrs into my bike, but I'm thinking that it will take double that to get where I need to be to finish. Thats a lot of hours in a COLD garage, so it will have to wait 4-6 weeks I'm afraid. Now that we have two feet of snow on the ground, I cant even move it into the basement for wiring unless I disassemble it.

Lookin great MJG15.....What exhaust will you be using if you dont mind me asking?

I dont think they make a kerker.

I will be using a Kerker street megaphone system.

You are right, they no longer produce them, but thru my hoarding skills I have managed to end up with 3 systems (including 2 nos) and several muffler sections.

I'd like to find a race megaphone system, but I haven't yet.

mjg15 wrote:

....sitting on it's own wheels/tires/suspension for the first time!

I'm glad that I was able to beat the cold weather and get pretty much all of the paint work done before winter.

Ahh it's the Z0.55R, this bike will draw some double takes.

For the record, I have AGM batteries in two bikes now, and I'm satisfied with the performance. They don't save any space or weight, but can sit for months with no charger, and not hardly lose any voltage. Very low internal impedance according to the sales info.

Any progress on this one mjg15 ?

This is one of my fave builds here.

Thanks,

I got sidetracked by selling a few bikes, one of which I ended up doing about 120 hrs work on. I wanted to get them sold early in the season, while the selling prices are the highest, so that became the priority.

Another GPz550 that I bought has a bunch of motor work, I may swap that motor for the stock ZR motor. The other motor has a big bore kit, cams, ported head, and Keihin cr29's. It looks like I may a have a bit of time next week to spend working on it, I'm hoping to get it done sometime in June. I have to do the electrics, fabricate brackets for the headlight and instruments, and few (dozen) other small details. I'd like have it ready in time to make it to the KZ1000R.com ride in Vermont on 6/11, but I'm not sure if I will be ready for that.

How's your 650 project coming along?