Z650 / 1100

[Bevelhead]

Plan A to fix the swing arm pivot on the frame failed. Used a length of 20mm steel bar and a big hammer to tweak the frame straight. Had zero effect on the frame.. we did a good job on bracing it.

But we did manage to bend the 20mm steel bar

Plan B was attempted today with success. I used a 20mm flap wheel in my hand drill to carefully alter one of the pivot holes to allow the spindle to line up. Took over an hour of slow work and careful checking, but it worked and the spindle is still a good fit in the frame.

Got confirmation today that the exhaust I ordered will arrive on Monday, never seen one in real life, only in pics, so hope I like it on the bike.

[Bevelhead]

The Delkavic black ceramic 4-1 exhaust system I ordered ages ago finally arrived. Was probably stuck in the Suez canal for a few weeks.

Looks really nice, but cant fit it yet as the bike is still sitting on its sump.

Front forks have gone off to be rebuilt with new seals, and the fork lowers are to be powder coated satin black by Triple S.

Finally got around to making up the dyna ignition leads, bit tricky as there isn't much room between the coils and the cam cover, but got there in the end.

[Bevelhead]

Decided the billet yokes would look better finished satin black rather than polished. But first had to carefully round off all the sharp edges and corners, as paint doesn't adhere too well on such sharp edges. Slow, tedious work using a small hand file followed by wet n dry sandpaper. That done, sprayed them with etch primer followed by satin black 'tough' paint. Don't know how durable it'll be in use, but can always get them hard anodised in the future if its a problem.

[Bevelhead]

Yokes fitted, and finally finished the wheels, now with the front R6 discs fitted. Will go and get a new tyre on Monday for the front. The forks are still away being rebuilt, so have to wait a bit longer to get the bike on its wheels, when I can see how the exhaust looks on the bike.

[Bevelhead]

With a new homemade spindle I could finally fit the rear end, though the bearing kit I bought for the swingarm didn't include any spacers, so need to find or buy whatever is required. Life would be easier if I could lift the bike off the ground, and onto a bike lift, but nearly put my back out trying on my own, so it can stay on its sump for now.

Made a start on the foot controls, chain drilled the mounts from 10mm alloy plate, test fit on the frame, showed I'd made another mistake. The brackets put the foot pegs 40mm lower than the standard position, so the gearchange side will need to be remade, while the brake side can be saved I think.

With the 43mm R6 forks off being rebuilt, I dug out an old pair of ZRX stanchions to try out the head light mounts. We weren't sure how big to make them, so they turned out to be way too long. So need to cut them back to bring the headlight back much closer to the headstock.

[Bevelhead]

Shortened the headlamp brackets, which let me try a test fit of the R90S fairing.. it'll need a few mm cutting off at the lower edges where it just hits the tank on full lock. The bars in the pic are set wrong, they need rotating back, so they wont touch the fairing.

The instrument pod.. tacho/speedo/idiot lights arrived, along with the handlebar switches from Motogadget, which work well with the M-Unit. Finally went for something I've not tried before.. the speed sensor for the speedo works via GPS. No need for any wires/magnets on the front wheel.

Next job is to make a mount for the speedo/tacho and work out how to mount the fairing.

[Bevelhead]

The rear sets are almost finished, now need to decide on their finish.. probably going to have them hard anodised satin black..









While later, a side stand finally arrived in the post.. and I wasn't too surprised when it caused a problem with the gearchange lever.. The side stand will have to be modified.

[Bevelhead]

The front end is finally on the bike, though its sitting too low, so the forks have to be pushed through the top yoke too far. Bit dodgy trying to raise it on me own, as its still too low to let me use my bike lift.

Also the speedo mount is almost done, just need to shape its lower edge to follow the top yoke, then paint it satin black to match the yokes.

Made a couple of stainless spacers to fit the swing arm to the frame, though they are too thick and need to be machined down on my mates lathe. Already done that once, still not quite right. Its tricky to measure what needs to be removed, so taking off a mm each time. Hope to get the bike on its wheels for the first time today..

[Bevelhead]

Finally the bike is on its wheels at last.. tomorrow will test fit the exhaust if I have time..

[Bevelhead]

Got the seat back, this time upholstered the correct way around.. Also finished painting the front headlight brackets and polished and fitted the foot controls. Will have the pegs hard anodised at some point, not sure if the levers and hangers will be left polished or anodised black too. Next task is to fit the carbs and exhaust, then work out how to mount the BMW R90S replica fairing. Once that's done, will have to tackle the wiring, and send the bodywork off for paint. But first need to decide what the paint colour/scheme will be..

[Bevelhead]

With a few more small parts delivered today, I could fit the Mikuni RS34 carbs.. which went on no problem, though I will make a small support bracket to help take their weight, as with no air box, they are only supported by the inlet rubbers.

Next I fitted the exhaust cylinder head studs, again no problem, followed by the 4 down pipes and 4-1 collector, which also went on the bike with no problems..

However, once fitted, it was soon clear I had yet another problem, a big problem.. The exhaust was made to fit a GPz1100B1, same as the engine in my bike. But the rear wheel and swing arm are obviously wider than that of an early 80's B1.

However, I didn't expect the difference to be so apparent, as the collector pipe into the silencer is far too close to the swing arm. There's no way the silencer can be fitted. Also the foot controls are in the way too.. though I want to raise them up anyway, so the kickstand clears the gearchange lever.

And things were going so well... sigh.

[Bevelhead]

I reluctantly decided that the 4-1 collector of the Delkevic would have to be cut in half and extended by approx 2 inches to allow enough clearance for the silencer. My local welder did the deed, and luckily had an off cut of 2 1/2 inch stainless tubing which was just the right size. I had him fully weld the inner joint but tack weld the outer, that way it will be easy to rejig it if it turns out to be too long or not quite right.

Once I'm happy with the result. I'll take the 4-1 collector to Cam Coat, who can reapply the ceramic
finish.

I may also decide to change the 4-1 outlet, so the silencer is angled up a bit more. Not sure yet. The foot controls are also being raised, by making new hangers.. again.

In the pic the exhaust is hanging down too low as its not being supported..

[Bevelhead]

Pic below shows how the pipe will look when supported, not sure if it needs to be angled higher..

Will also cut off 40mm from the 4-1 collector, to shorten the look of the silencer, as it seems a little long to me.

[Bevelhead]

Fitted the unfinished footrest hangers to check clearance with the exhaust, before the 4-1 collector is welded up for good, while its been shortened by 30mm. Everything is ok, except the hangers are now much longer, and much more ugly. They need shaping and made to look as small as possible, before they will be hard anodised black.

Also with the bike outside now, I could take a few pics of the cockpit fairing held in place, and now I'm having second thoughts. It looks a little too big, and will look even bigger once the large screen is fitted. Might just leave it off for now. The fairing from a Z900rs cafe would work well I think, but OE is far too expensive, and not found any replicas on the aftermarket yet.

Bodywork is due to go off for paint next month, so need to crack on and make a start on the wiring, and order the master cylinders for the front brake / clutch.

[Mathh]

really like the fairing.. maybe shorten the rearward pointing parts on the top ( and the windscreen)? Looks a bit like the fairing of the R90S..