Z1OwnersClub GB

Hi men
I started the restoration of a Z1000ST a few months ago.
It's a bike that came from Holland and, as usual with all the bikes I buy, a wreck ...
This is how it was when I bought it a few years ago.

It was disassembled completely, the bolts and nuts were replated, the chromed parts rechromed.
Missing parts were bought allover Europe.
Remaining paint was stripped off from the frame and frame parts, the engine was taken apart and painted.
Worn or damaged engine parts were replaced.
In a few words: a lot of work has been done, a lot of work remains to be done.
Anyway, the rebuild has started and I plan to restore it to original specs. Afterwards it will be for sale.
I'm not going to describe the techniques I use, I allready did that in previous restoration topics.
I'll only show the progress with pictures and give some advice on the things to pay attention.
I invite all the ST owners (and the others too) to follow the restoration.
See you soon!
GrtZ
Philippe

Looking forward to it Philippe
cheers bill

Looking forward to it Philippe

Looking forward to it phillipe as usual. And I don’t have one

That sounds brilliant Phillipe, I look forward to the instalments

good luck

Hi folks
as announced a few weeks ago, here’s the first episode of the restoration of a Z1000ST E1.
As you could see in the first picture the bike was a wreck , with a lot of parts missing...visible and invisible.

I took the whole bike apart and when I started the disassembly of the engine there was an unpleasant surprise: the rotor and the starter clutch were missing.
That meant that I had to find a decent replacement.
I found one in France but I still have to go there, it ‘ll be in a few weeks, we’ll see.

When the whole bike was taken apart I started to make an inventory of the parts I had and what parts were missing.

All the parts were put into boxes and the stockpile on the attic of the workshop was searched through.


It turned out that the majority was available but as usual the search for missing parts commenced.
A decent original seat was found in Germany (Bike-Teile) as was a rear long mudguard (Ebay-kleinanzeigen).
A throttle cable bracket was found in Holland (thank you Ron!).

While hunting for parts I started to take the old paint off from the alloy parts.
The chromed parts and the bolts and nuts were taken to Classic Chrome in Manage (Belgium) to be rechromed and replated.
Since it was too cold to respray the steel parts I waited with those to remove the paint so they wouldn’t start to rust again.

As the weeks went by and the temperature started to rise, the moment to start painting the parts arrived.
Most of the alloy frame parts need a satin black paint and the work could start.
I waited to remove the old paint and rust from the steel parts just before painting them.
I put the parts in formic acid for a day or so and then I just flush them with hot water and soap.
After a quick drying with compressed air there’s almost no more work involved to paint them.
Prior to painting I attach pieces of welding electrodes to hang them on a drying rack to allow the paint to dry and the parts are degreased with acetone.
I use a black epoxy 2 component paint which gives a nice satin finish.
It takes a few hours to paint all the parts and you have to take care that you don’t miss a spot.
When all the parts are spray painted I take them one by one in the daylight and turn them over and over again. I’m always surprised how many spots I missed...but no panic. I just give them an extra coat of paint.

Then it’s time to remove the old paint from the frame. This is done with nylon brushes on a drilling tool and a circular sanding tool. I use paper with grain 80 and 120. The nylon brushes are from “Pferd” (Horse) they are red (compared with sanding paper they have a coarse of 120) and the thicker the bristles the better.
Don’t underestimate the importance of removing the old paint and the rust from the frame.
It can be done by sandblasting but I prefer to do it my way. It takes a few days and it’s a boring job but once finished you’re amazed with the results. When you take the time and the effort you can remove 99% of the old paint and rust.
The preparation of the parts is determining for the final result. Here again, before painting you have to degrease them with acetone!

When all the parts recieved a fresh coat of paint and when the paint is completely dry and hard it’s time to start the rebuild.

So far for this episode.
GrtZ
Philippe

Nice work Philippe and look forward to watching your build

Hi men
the next episode:

I start the rebuild by putting the shells of the tapered bearings in the headstock. I use a tube which has the correct diameter and a hammer. Before installing them I clean out the headstock tube and I put some grease in. When they’re seated correctly you can hear a clear sound when tapping gently on them with a hammer.
Now you can install the steering stem. Make sure that the lower tapered bearing seats on the lower part of the steering stem and that the dust shield is in place. The original Kawasaki lower bearing has a rubber dust shield attached to it. If you use an SSK901 bearing set you can use a self made dust shield. I use a piece of an old inner tube which I cut to the correct dimensions. It does the job !
When installing the upper bearing make sure there’s enough grease in it, the same thing goes for the lower bearing! You can even smear grease on the inner part of the steering stem itself, it doesn’t affect the steering capability .
When installing the steering stem nuts don’t over tighten them, you can always correct the tension afterwards.

Next I install the swing arm.
The holes in the frame are cleaned and paint is removed so the swing arm shafts can slide.
The place in the swing arm where the shells of the tapered bearings sit are treated the same way as the headstock and the shells are put in place by using the same method as mentioned above.
When installing the swing arm you must take care that there’s a space of 1,5 mm on the left hand side between the frame and the swing arm. I use a thickness gauge.
Don’t forget to put the dust shields in place and to put grease in the tapered bearings!
Start by smearing some grease in the frame holes, put the swing arm shafts through the frame and install them in the tapered bearings of the swing arm.
Make sure you keep the correct distance at the left hand side.
Screw the stoppers on the swing arm shafts and adjust those before attaching the stoppers to the frame with the 3 allen bolts.
Make sure that the pins of the swing arm shafts seat completely in the bearings and that the 1,5 mm play on the left hand side is maintained.
When all the parts are installed correctly and the swing arm can move freely up and down, check that there’s no lateral play.
When everything is correct, you can install the nuts on the swing arm shafts. All that is left to do is to put the rubber caps on the swing arm shafts.

Next step is the installment of the main stand. Now is the correct time to do it, you have plenty of room and you can still move and turn the frame over to reach all the spots you need to tighten the bolts and nuts and to install the spring.

So the main parts are now attached to the frame.
Now you have the choice to proceed with frame parts or to install the engine.
That depends on the state of the engine. When it’s finished, install it, if not, continue with the smaller frame parts.
I choose to install smaller parts and I started with the inner mudguard and afterwards the silencer of the air box.
That’s the part which sits the deepest in the frame. On top of the silencer is the kickstarter. Very easy to instal it now, there’s nothing in the way of it!

Above the silencer is the battery box.

Before installing the battery box, attach the IC igniter on the underside of it, that’s much easier before the battery box is installed in the frame You can also mount the starter solenoid before installing the battery box in the frame.
Don’t attach anything on the sides of the battery box before installing it in the frame, you’ll have to remove it because you won’t be able to put the battery box in place.
Before screwing in the bolts to hold the battery box, don’t forget to mount the helmet lock, it’s secured with the same bolts.

While working in the middle of the frame, mount the seat lock, the resistor, fuse box, flasher relay and the rear brake master cylinder.

At the front of the bike you can mount the front brake line splitter and the headlight adjusting bracket. There’s also enough room to mount the horn, there’s no front fork in the way!

I also decided to mount the frame rubbers. There’s a lot of them! Don’t forget to put the rubbers in the holes of the strengthening plate where the looms of the switchgear run through.

Put the washers behind the tank mounting rubbers and the rubbers themselves.and mount the large central tank damper rubber. You can also mount the five side panel rubbers in the frame, the sixth is located in the electric plate on the right hand side.

When we go to the rear of the bike, we can install the rear light and the indicators. The holder is attached with 3 rubbers to the frame and the rear light itself needs two rubber dampers.

A lot of different damper rubbers, mind that they all have their specific role to fulfill.
So that's it for today!
See you soon!
GrtZ
Philippe

As always top work Philippe and thank you for being so precise and informative. Makes me want to get an ST at some poine

Nice one Philippe, can’t wait to see home it progresses, I bet it won’t take 2 years like mine did.

Hi men
after one month it's about time to tell you about the progress I've made.
After mounting all these smaller parts I received new piston rings.
They come from Scheuerlein in Germany and are compatible with the original pistons.
The cylinder bores were measured and turned out to be within specs so the bores were honed.
The pistons themselves were measured too and were also within specs.
(thank you Frederic!)
It’s obvious to do the measuring before ordering new parts.
Anyway, I mounted the new piston rings and decided it was time to do some work on the engine.
The whole engine was taken apart, cleaned, degreased and several parts were repainted.
I use a paint kit from Restom,as usual, I’m very pleased with the results!
The lower engine was assembled, using new O-rings and a new timing chain and now it was time to mount the pistons. Always use new circlips to mount the pistons, don’t take a risk in reusing the old ones.

Don’t forget to mount the central rubber roller in the crankcase and to use new rubber dampers and a new gasket.

Also mount the timing chain guide in the cylinder block before mounting it on the crankcase!

I have the original Kawasaki piston ring compressor and when you use it, putting the pistons all at once in the barrel is a piece of cake. I use WD40 to mount them but you can also use engine oil .

When the engine is assembled at that stage I mount it in the frame.

It’s not that heavy and you have a lot of room to maneuver it around.
Protect the freshly painted frame tubes by putting isolation tubes around them in order to prevent scratches! Secure the isolation tubes to the frame with plastic straps.
Before installing the engine don’t forget to put the drive shaft in the swing arm! It only goes in from the front! If you forget that, you’ll have to either remove the engine or the swing arm...save yourself a lot of work!
Also put the protection rubber and the metal retaining strip on the front bevel gear case.
When the engine is in place, put the lower rear mounting bolt through the frame and the engine and secure it with a nut. You can mount the other bolts and plates now and finish the engine mounting.
The rest of the engine parts can be mounted while the engine is in the frame.
Now it’s time to connect the drive shaft to the front bevel gear case.
Turn the gear of the front bevel gear case until you see a little hole appear.
That’s the place where a tiny pin should come. The pin is 6 mm long and has a diameter of 4 mm.
Put copper grease on the gear, put the little pin in the hole and take the drive shaft.
In the drive shaft is also a little hole, align it with the pin, gently push the pin down a bit and slide the drive shaft over it. The little pin is pushed up by a leaf spring inside the gear of the front bevel gear case, into the hole of the drive shaft.
If this operation succeeds, the drive shaft is secured to the front bevel gear case.
Install the protection rubber between the front bevel gear case and the swing arm.
Now you can continue with the end bevel gear case.
Install the coupling on the propeller shaft and secure it with the circlip, don’t forget to put copper grease in the coupling!
Install the spring and finally the end bevel gear case.

More to come soon.
GrtZ
Philippe

Excellent work as always Sir..... Some inspiration for my own

Hi men!
It’s time to move on with the engine.
I could buy a cylinder head in Holland (thank you Piet!) and it received new valve stems (thank you Pieter!).
The valves were checked and grinded, the clearance of the shims was adjusted before the head was mounted on the engine.
I ordered new gaskets, oil seals and a variety of other parts at Classickawaparts in Holland (thank you Willem for the excellent service!)
When the cylinder bores were measured, the cylinder head was flattened so there were no issues afterwards (thank you again Frederic !)
After putting the camchain sprockets with new rubbers and the new cylinder head gaskets in place, the head was mounted and torcked up.
I always torck the nuts in two steps, the first time to 2,5 Kgm and the second time to 4 Kgm .
It’s important to do that in the correct order! The two little bolts on each side need 1,2 Kgm.
Then it is time to mount the camshafts.
It’s important to rise the number 1 and 4 pistons to the top and make sure the ignition timing mark is at “T” before pulling the camchain taut .
Start with the exhaust camshaft, make sure that the timing mark is at the correct place, install the camshaft caps and count 28 pins of the camchain. Adjust the intake camshaft and install those caps too. While doing this, check between each step that the ignition “T” mark didn’t move.
When this is done, install the top idler and the chain tensioner and turn the engine over by hand to make sure the timing is correct.
Do this a few times, it’s better to invest a little time and effort at this point than afterwards.
When all those things are done I mount the rev counter gear and guide and finally the camshaft cover.

And now you can move on with the components of the frame.
It doesn’t matter which part you install first.
I decided to lift the frame with the engine in it and put it on wooden beams.
Plenty of room under and around the “bike” to install the front fork.

The fork stanchions received new oil seals. The fork tubes were filled with SAE W15 fork oil.
After the fork was installed I mounted the lamp holders, the upper steering stem and the handlebar.
A new BT 45 Battleaxe tire was fitted on the front wheel.
Before putting the front wheel in the fork, I install the front mudguard. It’s easier to do this now than after the front wheel is in place, you have easy access to the four bolts that holds the front mudguard.
The rechromed front mudguard received a coating inside in order to prevent rust.
The brakes and the brake linings were installed, the front master cylinder found it’s final destination on the handlebar and brake fluid was applied. The whole front brake system was bled and it worked very well.

The rear wheel also received a BT 45 Battleaxe tire and was mounted.
Before I forget: when you mount the tires yourself don’t install the disc rotors before installing the tires, do it afterwards. Avoid the risk of damaging the disc rotors! Those become hard to find.
The rear wheel was installed before the rear dampers, by doing that you have more room to maneuver it around!
The rear dampers came from Holland: Hagon dampers manufactured in the UK!
Black bodies with black springs so they look very much like the original dampers.

The rear brake system was mounted, bled and adjusted. Another step was taken in the completion of the bike.
The old lady was back on her wheels!

More to come soon.
GrtZ
Philippe

Hello men
It took a while but here's the next episode.
I decided to mount the electrical components, the main and rear loom, the switches, the ignition lock and the counters, the ignition coils and to make the connections in order to check the “nerve system”...the one on the bike... and mine!



I used a battery of another bike to get some juice in the electrical circuit.
A turn of the key and … it’s alive! ... a little bit.
The neutral indicator light didn’t came on, the right indicator idiot light didn’t work,the headlamp didn’t work, the starter button did nothing and the horn stayed silent…
OK what now ?
It turned out that the idiot lights didn’t work because there was a fault in the wiring of the whole thing, I changed it with a spare one and all the idiot lights worked.
Two problems solved at once.
I turned my attention to the headlamp, the lamp itself was OK so I looked at the connecting blocks...those were OK . Next step: do I get current at the lamp socket…yes.
After another check it turned out to be a broken earth contact in the socket . I changed it by a good one and there was light! Another problem solved.
The starter button was next. Was it the starter solenoid? the wiring? the button itself?
The starter solenoid was bridged and it functioned. Next step: the wiring loom. All connections were checked, the starter button received current but didn’t pass it on…
Off with the right hand switch, complete dismantling and ...yes, a rusty spring.
Rust acts as an isolator. The starter button was taken apart and I removed the rust from the spring . After the switch was reassembled and mounted on the handlebar the starter engine came to life. Victory! Another problem solved!
Now it was time to check the horn. I changed the one that was mounted on the bike with a spare one and pushed the button...silence.
I checked the current on the wires. The brown wire was alive, the black/white stayed dead when I pushed the horn button.
Off with the left hand switch block, after taking it apart and cleaning the horn contact, reassembly, placing it back on the handlebar(to obtain a negative ground), pushing the horn button...nothing.
I ended up by changing the complete interior of the switch block.
It worked! The horn didn’t stay silent anymore but now the pass light switch didn’t work.
Disassembly of the switch, cleaning the contact of the pass switch, reassembly, mounting the switch back on the handlebar and... YES!
Finally the nerve system of the bike didn’t put my nerve system to the test anymore.
All this took me several days because I’m not very good with electricity.
I already made sure that the wiring loom was repaired and that all the connectors were clean and I still had to spend several days to make all the items work and function properly.
So never mind when you’re restoring a bike and the electrics don’t work at once, you’re not alone, patience, trial and error will lead you to find the solution.


The old lady is back on her wheels, the engine is in, the electric components work…
It’s time to get her dressed but before she can wear her clothes they need to be resprayed.
I decided to make a few sets, a green, a black and a red one.
I have the paint for the green and for the black set. The red paint must be mixed and that will take a bit of time so I decided to start with the green paint set.
I have three sets of body parts and as usual they’re in a bad shape, repainted, dents in the fuel tank, rust…
Time for the sanding paper and the nylon brushes and to start removing the old paint, come on !!!






It took some work and time but now she’s a proud lady, look how nice she looks with the freshly resprayed body parts. Only the green one so far, the black body set is on it’s way.
The red one will come later.

See you next time!
GrtZ
Philippe

as always a very impressive right up and really good work

I am still getting my space sorted out so i can start sorting my bikes out, that work thing keeps getting in the way