Weekly Update - Bucket List Bike V2

So that FZR I posted about? Guy sold it out from under me. Even after we had a meeting set up where I would get the bike. Some people just have no moral standards I guess.

Anyway. Onto a bucket list bike. An all original Yamaha FZ600.

The FZ600 was Yamaha's first attempt at a full blown "race replica." Hate it or love it - the FZ600 had the tech which led to the R6 and R1. A buyer could take the blinkers off and show up to a race track and blend right in.

First introduced in 1986, the FZ600 took the motorcycle world by storm. Many magazines tested it. One such magazine wrote that a professional rider made a better lap time on a showroom stock FZ than his competition (AMA I think) FJ600. That's a testament to how much of an improvement the FZ was over the FJ series.

A couple years after it's introduction, Honda entered the 600CC race replica market. The CBR600 of 1987 completely upstaged the little FZ600. Honda managed to squeeze around 85HP from a water cooled 600CC motor while Yamaha had a paltry 58HP from an air cooled motor. They both crossed the scales at ~200KG.

Having owned both a Honda CBR600F1 and a Yamaha FZ600 - the only one I regret selling is the FZ. You can look on your local Craigslist and see 4-5 Honda CBR600F1s listed for various prices in various conditions. But you will rarely see a Yamaha FZ600 listed in ANY condition. If one comes up in my travels that is original paint, I intend on buying it and hanging onto it.

Until next time,
See you on the road!

Wow, it's been a while!

So since I last wrote, I was still waiting on parts from Triumph to put the motor back together.
They finally came in. Only took 2 months!

I was able to take the sprag apart and repair it using a spring sourced from a VW 02J Output Flange Seal. I cut a small amount off the spring and Loctited it together. I then reassembled the sprag and put it back in the bottom end of the engine.

Next was installing the transmission. This part was tricky. I had to clean all of the sealing surfaces and lay down a bead of bearing locking compound to keep the transmission bearings in the case.

After, I had to make absolutely certain the transmission was in neutral before I could mount the other half of the case. Before acually placing the lower case onto the upper, a fat (well not really) bead of silicone sealant was needed. I messed it up once so I enlisted the help of a friend to do it for me. I then coated the main bearings in oil and we lowered the case onto the rest of the engine.

Next came the torque sequence. Hand tighten the bottom bolts, flip it over, hand tighten the top bolts, flip it over, torque bottom bolts, flip it over, torque top bolts. That was where I stopped. I want to give the sealant a couple days to set up in the sub-perfect temperatures.

Some time this weekend I will install the oil pan and related items.


Then put it back in the bike!


In other news: No recent acquisitions. But I am trying to aquire this:

 

 

It's a 1988 Yamaha FZR400. The seller is the 2nd owner and it has 18,000 miles on it.
The engin is out because something broke in the transmission so he sourced another engine with a good trans but bad top end, low compression apparently. He was going to have a shop mash them together to make one good motor but has no time.

Aside from a Yoshimura exhaust, polished frame and red windscreen, it's pretty original. I'll have to strip the paint off the subframe though. Maybe scotchbrite the frame in order to knock down the shinyness. All in all, I'm pretty excited to ride another 400cc bike.

Until next time,
See you on the road!

Waiting for parts sucks! & Digression

I don't understand why it takes so long to get parts.  I placed an order with bikebandit on the 4th. Status is still "In Progress."

What gives? I have the engine all apart. I've fixed the bad sprag unit. What a silly design! It seems Triumph cheaped out on the spring that holds the innards together. A minuscule savings ends up in so many issues on so many bikes. But I suppose it keeps the accountants happy.

I'd like to digress for a moment. I would very much like to own a Suzuki RF900R. They encompass the 90s all at once with "in your face" color options (a bright red, and a color scheme with purple) and some even had painted frames to match, comfortable ride and Ferrari Testarossa like side intake scoops. Just plain cool looking bikes.

As far as mechanicals go, the power plant is based on the legendary  GSX-R1100 motor albeit with modern liquid cooling. It's simple, robust and powerful (125hp) with a red line at a screaming 12,000RPM. The transmission is a 5 speed unit, which is taken part by part from the GSX-R1100 The engine was titled forward in the frame (much like an FZR) so as to create a low center of gravity.

Suzuki teamed up with Metzler Tire to create an RF900R that pumped out a spanking 146HP to break the 24 hour World Speed Record in the under 1000cc class. They succeeded and their amazing feat remains unbeaten to this day.

So 90s!

In conclusion, Suzuki nailed it and missed it at the same time. It was a far more capable motorcycle than the tea-pot Katana (Or the Kan-O-Tuna as they were called) by being lighter than a Katana 600. The RF had a steel frame which if it had been made out of aluminum would have actually been heavier - ironically, this gained nothing but ridicule from the magazine reviewers of the time who claimed a steel frame was "outdated." Again, this is ironic given that the Katana was built the same way since 1988.

The problem is Suzuki failed to really market the bike toward any specific audience and that left them with no real marketing plan. They stopped importing it after just 4 or so years which is really a shame - it offered race replica looks (arguably better than a Katana) with comfortable ergonomics. Had they put a little effort forth, they may have broken the sport-tourer market which is dominated by BMW and the Kawasaki Concourses.

Until next time.
See you on the road!

Triumph Progress

So I pulled the motor from the Daytona.

Then started the disassembly.

.
As you can see I pulled the clutch cover, ignition pick up cover and all the bolts.

Don't forget to number your bolts! The case bolts have to be removed in a certain order so as to not deform the half.

Next I have to tip the motor bottom up so I can remove the sump and the rest of the bolts.
Then the cases will come apart and I can get to the sprag!

Until next time.
See you on the road!

Crap! More Triumph Stuff

So I got the starter back in it and it cranks over.

While making a horrendous racket :(  This means the starter sprag is bad. 

These are the steps to get it to it; once the motor is out!

Triumph Tribulations

So I was able to get around to trouble shooting the Daytona.

First thing I did was pull the plugs.

Two out of three plugs looked like this. Leads me to believe the valve cover may be leaking a bit.
No big deal as it's an easy fix and relatively cheap - gasket is around $30.00.

Next issue was the starter. I put a fresh battery in it and still the solenoid only clicked. Hm.
I grabbed a multimeter and tested the solenoid. It was functioning properly. Then I tested for continuity  down to the starter lug. Success.

Tried jumping the starter directly. Nothing.

Pulled the starter out (a remarkably easy process I must say). Jumped the starter and nothing. Hit with a hammer. Nothing. Moved the gear by hand and jumped it. It spun. Very slowly. Then stopped.

Starter is dead. New one is here today and will be going in! Hopefully I can hear thing thing fire up.

Triumph in its typical state.

Recent Acquisitions & Sales

Hi.

I sold the Hayabusa for some quick cash. It will be missed.

No actually probably not.

So far I've managed to turn that cash into 3 motorcycles.

First one is a really beat up little Honda NT650 Hawk GT. These are interesting little bikes. They run a 650cc V-Twin coupled to a light weight frame and basic front suspension. The cool part is the rear - it rocks a single sided swing arm. Very Ducati like.  They were only sold for a couple years and they didn't really catch on.

It was so cheap it might as well have been free.


This one has seem much much better days. The tank rusted through so I tossed it and it's missing the radiator. How one loses a radiator I will never know. But I need to source one; I've already got a tank.


Next one is a 1997 Suzuki GSX-R600 SRAD. Saw this one up in Vermont for a good price. Has just 5,800 miles on it! Down side is the motor in it went kaput. When started it sounds like a box of rocks and burns oil like a freight train burns diesel. It's really too bad as it is a very clean, well kept bike. I've sourced a motor already which will be going in it next weekend.

Short video of how it sounds:

Ignore the classless "Panty Dropper" decal. This thing hasn't done that since 1997. The thing I like about this is it's 100% stock. Right down to the OEM windscreen and exhaust.


And finally is a 1996 Triumph Daytona Special III. I've wanted something European for a while because who doesn't like banging their head against a wall every now and again?

The Special III isn't just any old Daytona. No no. Triumph sent the motor to Cosworth (The people responsible for epic cars like the Mercedes 190E 16V and most notably, tuning Ford Escorts over seas.)

Here is a run down:

And here is the bike:

According to the internet, less than 200 were shipped stateside. Seller couldn't get it to start after letting it sit for a couple months so he was just looking to unload it. Seems the battery has gone flat. A quick fix I hope!!


& A parting shot.

Til next time.
See you on the road!