Daves 73 Z1 Project

[ollie]

Dave that frame looks great ,good to know there are some good firms out there who take pride in what they do .Your wheel spokes will be fine judging by the look of them and i'm sure Gez had his re-zinced no problem .That wiring will be brittle anyway ,so wise choice in putting a new loom on .
well done fella its coming along nicely

[DaveZ1]

Cheers Ollie , still got that spare set of spokes off my Z1A put aside for you mate but I will have them blasted and cleaned up first to make sure they're OK for you.

[ollie]

Thanks Dave i might have a few bolts if you need some .Let me know and i will have a dig around .

[wilsonsjw11]

Dave
Good choice on the paint rather than powder coat
Regards
Steve

[pertonpc]

Great work so far Dave.

Keep the photos coming.

I have nothing to rebuild at the moment so it is nice to see what you are up to.

I think we are all expecting a belter to emerge from this process judging by your last effort

from Mark

[Steve Tate]

Impressive Dave!. Give me a yell when you have time and you can pop across and check out the Z1B's. The Z1 and KZ1000A have arrived as well.

Cheers

Steve

[wilsonsjw11]

Dave
Is the paint a 2 pack type or a thin blow over of cellulose as original
Powder coat has no home on these early bikes.
Regards
Steve

[DaveZ1]

It's two pack Steve, the original one coat cellulose and no primer makes me wonder how these frames stand the test of time so well, so hopefully this finish will last another 40 years

Tatie, I will ring you in the next day or two and arrange to pop over this weekend? Can't wait to see the collection
cheers Dave.

[Z1B]

Looking good so far, what was the original frame paint, was it cell or enamel I want to paint mine as I dont like the way the plastic obliterates the numbers, do your frame numbers look crisp with the 2 pack.

[DaveZ1]

I believe the original paint was a dusting of cellulose without any undercoat!
Amazing the frames last so long really. The two pack is applied on top of primer and is a bit more generous so the frame number
is still perfectly readable but its evident that the paint is a bit thicker.
I will be posting some more photos shortly because I am about ready to start the re-assembly process once I get all of the Zinc plating stuff
back from a local electroplaters that I am trying out....
Watch this space......

[Strebe]

Dave, it all looks really good so far - I can't wait for the next set of photos.
You say that you warmed the Simoniz paint before applying it - how hot did you get it? Also, did you spray this paint directly onto the bare metal or did you use a primer of some kind? I'd been planning to use an etching primer.
I've got a few unused cans of PJI but from your reports I'd be better off flgging them on eBay and buying the Simoniz paint - or would you use PJI if you had it?
Thanks!

[DaveZ1]

Strebe, The Simoniz Tough Satin Black I used for the engine was recomended on this forum as a very next best thing to the PJ1.
But as you know its like rockin horse s**t to get hold of unless you got more money than sense so the Simoniz got the nod,
as for the "warmup" method, this also came from a recomendation from a club member on the project forums.
I just stood the can in a basin of fairly warm water (not boiling) for a few minutes before applying.
I have used it cold before and to be honest didnt see much difference but I suppose if its warmed it figures that it
should dry a little quicker and therefore less time between coats?
For the engine I applied three good coats at about twenty to thirty minutes apart, then after a couple of days into an oven
for about an hour at 100 degrees.
Heres a pic of the finished engine block, head and rocker cover all prepped and ready for re-build when I get the pesky zinc back







Rear wheel hub with bearings removed ready for clean up then polish and new bearings




Does anyone Know what these numbers are all about? 48 4 - 9 I have seen simmilar numbers printed inside various covers before.



I will be cracking on polishing my engine outer cases while I await the rezincing so hopefully I will have a complete engine to show for my efforts soon

[malmojoe]

Hello Dave, vbery nice project, going very well. The printed numbers are the date codes for those parts. Your hub was made on 9th April 1973.
You can read all about the various date codes used here
http://www.freewebs.com/750rs/datecodes.htm

[Z1B]

Thanks for that reply, am taking notes of all paints and finish obtained

[irhobotolo]

Great stuff. Watching with interest. I presume that the footboards will be retained on the bike when finished.