TOPIC:

such a cool bike!
nice work still looking great.

leon

Thanks Leon. Where have you been? Yup,getting it ready for the season again. Its all cleaned up and de-rusted. Very happy (and surprised) that it started up so easily the other day. I ordered some packing for the exhaust today and Ive been looking at the handlebars. The ones I have fitted are not so comfortable. Too wide I think. Also,I noticed that the left hand side is flexing, which cant be good. I have a couple of other sets downstairs,Ill try them out over the weekend. There are a few other small jobs I want to do this year but mainly I want to get out and do some riding.

still around,haven't posted much.
we are having a cold,wet, nasty winter here in oklahoma(no snow just the rest of the sh!t) and i don't have the central heat and air installed in my shop yet so we have been hibernating.
my Z1R has fresh rubber a charged battery and is ready to go,as soon as we get some decent weather:silly:

leon

Sorry to hear that Leon, were having great weather here these last couple of weeks. Having my lunch breaks outside in just a t-shirt last week!!. Today,working on the bike again (outside). I got the exhaust baffle packed. See here;
www.kzrider.com/forum/2-engine/610099-exhaustion

I also changed the bendy handlebars. I had a shorter steel chromed bar. About 70cm,compared to the 80cm bendy set. A bit of a tight squeeze getting everything fitted and re routing the cables to avoid having to shorten anything but what a difference it has made. The bike feels totally different. It feels quicker, more nimble, more responsive. I had a quick blast around the block and it felt like a different bike!

I haven't been on in while but man it was a great pleasure to see this bike finished. What a great looking beastie you have created. Nice work David.

Thanks Larriken, I also havent been on for a while and Ive hardly touched the bike all summer. My mind has been in other places and I bought an old XT 600e, with the aim of doing a bit of TETing next year. Ive been a bit occupied with getting that sorted;


We did have some nice weather here at the weekend so I rolled the Z out back of the house and gave it a good clean. I also made a list of all the odds and sods still to be done to finish it properly;
A proper battery strap ( Ive been using an old bicycle inner tube!)
2/ 45 degree plug caps ( I have 90 degrees on the outer cylinders and they stick out funny)
Engine paint. (the PJ1 didnt work out and lets the whole bike down)
Bars ( I changed the extra wide set as they were too flexible The only other set I had were too straight and hit the fork tops)
The Velcro holding the seat down is not working as it should,I have to sort that.
A set of decent nuts for the down pipes
and I need a cover for the clutch adjuster ( the bike came with a crappy homemade job)

So thats whats left to do. I did get another set of bars with a slight raise and a slight pull back. They seem to sit better on the risers and just about clear the fork tops. Theres also more room to tie the switch cabling up properly now. Of course,being a useless twat,I snapped the clutch lever mount as I was refitting it!!! So thats another thing for the list( I ordered a new one today). On top of that,as I drove off to collect the new bars, I forgot the back wheel was still chained up! So a big clunk and a sudden stop but thankfully the only damage I could see was the number plate neatly folded in half.
Thats it for now,Ill post any updates as they happen. Though it might take a while.

Time to sort out the clutch cable. I bought an original CSR cable which was way to long for the bike as it is now, so Ive been using a 2nd hand cable of unknown origin. Thought Id have another go at shortening the CSR cable.
So I measured up the original nipple,length/diameter ( I think 10mmx 6mm) I took 2 sraps of alu plate and drilled a 6mm hole all the way through the first and about 4mm into the 2nd. Bolted together,I was able to drill a 2mm hole perpendicular for the cable to rest in. Things were a bit tight so I drilled it out again to 2,5mm (which turned out to be a bit too big)

Some flux, a good bit of heat and some plumbers solder, an it came out like this

I was a bit too brutal seperating the plates

2nd attempt was better and then I went for the real thing. Go tstupid first though

The real thing

It came out pretty good,I think

and cleaned up well

A new cable perch to replace the old one that I snapped

and now I just have to road test it

Good engineering davido but a pur solder nipple (lead/tin mix) will not last long. You need a brass nipple you have to solder with the clutch wire.

www.bowdenzug24.com/en/product-category/...opes/solder-nipples/

I tried the brass nipple before,without success. This is a bit of an experiment (and I wouldnt try it on a brake cable), From what I understand, plumbers solder is a lot tougher than that used for electronics. ( a different mix?) I'll see how it goes in use and let you know.

We still use, for the most part, lead-based solder here in the U.S., so I have no personal experience with the types of solder available where you are. However, I am with Scirocco on this one. I can't imagine any soft solder joint being strong enough for this application.

If you are interested in some serious science on the matter, here is an article on the strength of some lead-free solder mixtures.

pdfs.semanticscholar.org/cb03/db20c4cb93...9231cd7ced0bee28.pdf

TexasKZ, I had a go at that article of yours and couldnt understand the half of it but I will bow to those with superior knowledge and keep the old spare cable on standby. Ive already cleaned it and oiled it,so its all ready for if the new one lets go.
I fitted the new one this weekend and went out for a run (it seems solid enough so far). The difference a new cable makes is amazing. The action is still a bit heavy but I imagine thats down to the new clutch springs I fitted. The nice thing is how smooth it all feels now and it slips into neutral with no problems.
So thats sorted now and the new bars are fitted and everything buttoned up at that end. The next project Ive been busy with is at the other end of the clutch cable. Ive been making a small cockpit fairing for the XT and had some polyester left over,so I though Id make a cover for the clutch adjuster;


I filled the bolt holes (that mount the adjuster mechanics from the inside of the cover) with candle wax , fitted an old bottle top over the adjuster well and 2 bolts for the plug to mount on. Then covered everything with vaseline.

Got it all sitting level,then filled it with polyester


Came out well