Now that 2023 is coming to an end, I decided to review what little work I’ve done on this project and make a plan to get more done in 2024. Through the year I’ve been doing major renovation work on my house and keeping all my vehicles maintained rather than Read more…
As I start my Cafe Racer build based on a 1977 z650B1 I discovered that most of the wheel bearings are the same as a classic “Zed”, but the sprocket carrier is different. This led me to start recording minor details like wheel bearing part numbers so I didn’t have Read more…
I decided to get stuck into this project again, I really want a cafe racer on the road and to achieve that, I need to do some fabrication and source lots of parts. The bonus is that I can have some pictures for my next book (more on that below). Read more…
With the weather getting slightly warmer and other activities outside of bikes still on hold thanks to Covid-19, I’ve decided to just drop ALL other activities and just focus on finishing bikes for the foreseeable future. With new found focus, September is going to be a busy month starting with Read more…
The world is in chaos, Covid-19 is killing sick people left right and centre and almost everyone has been told to self-isolate. This of course means you can spend some quality time with the one you love (to ride)… your motorcycle(s). In my case I’ve noticed my 1994 zx-9r is Read more…
It must be great doing bike Maintenance ever six months, but when you have a couple of bikes on the road then every month becomes Maintenance Month! During November and December the zx9r’s have been getting the bulk of love with maintenance and a small collection of new parts. Last Read more…
The year is nearly at an end and its time for an update. November has seen me purchase some larger jets for the z650 and put the carburetors back together. While I was at it one of my ZX9R’s picked up a constant miss-fire issue and a strip down revealed Read more…
Motorcycle electrical system are generally considered a black art by most riders. Although fairly robust, when they do fail the charging and ignition systems present the most headache and generally rate at the top of most forum questions (next to “what oil should I use?”). Types of Charging systems Although Read more…
Fork seal replacement is one of those jobs where the right tools and a bit of know how will result in a stress free maintenance task being completed within next to no time. In fact fork seals are so easy to replace that most of your time will be taken Read more…
When production started in 1977 of the Kawasaki z650 B1 model, I doubt the Kawasaki engineers had any idea that 40 years later these bikes would still be on the road and highly sought after! But after a few decades various mechanical systems on the z650 start to show their Read more…