Z1OwnersClub GB

well luckily, i did update this project on another forum. so i will slowly copy and paste it on here.

it was started on the 112th of october 2010.

codename "new york steak"

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well, i have finally decided to go ahead with my next project. its been in the planning stages now for the best part of a year. building "yakamahuki" was great. it got me back into the streetfighter fold but it only took around 4 months to build upto the paint stage and apart from a few modifications, it wasn`t much different from rebuilding a standard bike. the front end was bought as it was. just needed a stem swap. the rear wheel just bolted straight in. the frame was standard apart from lopping off the subby and making 4 brackets which took about 2 hours to do. the rest was bling. dont get me wrong, i fucking love that bike and have covered nearly 4000 reliable miles since it went on the road for the first time in the middle of november 2009.

why the name "new york steak".

kawasaki set up shop in the states back in the 60`s and were developing a 750 4 for the usa market. they were pipped at the post by H**** when they brought out their cb750. the men at kwak decided to design and build a new bike with an engine upto 1200cc`s. they called it codename, "new york steak". the early prototypes were disguised as cb750`s. they developed their cb beating bike and gave it a 900cc engine. the z1 was born.

my build will look a bit like an early z1 but will have new technology. i bought a z900 frame back in june which has not been registered. it came with a zrx1200 swing arm and back wheel. a set of billet yokes and risers with zx10 forks and front wheel and a zed tank and duck tail. i paid not much more than 200 quid for it. the yokes have been bodged together though, so they may be slung out yet.

i must be honest, i still dont know whether to monoshock the frame or go for twin shocks. i`m not sure either on a radial front end or rwu forks for that real oldskool look. i have gained some inspiration from the japs. ac sanctuary, and bull dock have built some cool looking bikes.

so far, i have a z900 frame. a z1100 frame which i will be picking up from chunky in the next few weeks. these were beefed up in the right places. i probably will use bits from both frames. i also have a complete bandit 1200 which was bought as a non runner for 800 quid. its totally standard apart from can and blinkers. an hour later and it was purring like a kitten. a whole pile of bandit 600 bits "just in case" including a couple of frames. one of which will be chopped up if i go down the monoshock route.

i was contemplating taking "yak" off the road. breaking it and using the bits from that build to do my next project. trouble with that is if i dont get it done by next spring, then i aint got a ride. i have been lucky enough to find most of the bits i need now though, so it looks as if "yak" will be seeing another few thousand miles.

so, here`s the general plan.

z1100/z900 frame powder coated anthracite metal flake. the same as "yak"
z900 tank, side panels and duck tail.
unknown front end at this stage.
maybe zrx swing arm.
slingy or zrx back wheel.
bandit 1200 engine, carbs, ecu, loom, switch gear, etc.

at the moment, i am in love with pearl white wheels and body panels with focus rs ultimate green and anthracite. this is not 100% yet though.

as this is still in the planning stages, i dont have any piccys to show you except the z900 bits i already have and the bandit 1200.

this bike is stunning.

http://www.ac-sanctuary.co.jp/rcm/ga...094/index.html

this is pretty damn nice too

http://www.bulldock.jp/gtm/z1_2/013/

this is the only photo i have at this stage.

Welcome back Bondy, looking forward to the rest of T103

i have managed to find a few bits and pieces. i have picked up a set of ohlins upside down forks, ohlins rear twin shocks, brembo front calipers and brake and clutch master cylinders, a rear brembo caliper coming from the states and a nice pair of oz wheels. i nearly have the bits to start fiddling with. just need to get the z11 frame now.

well, the mrs brought the frame back from bristol on saturday. thanks for dropping it over chunky. i have put the 2 side by side and they look very similar, but the z1100 shafty frame is a bit fat. in hind sight, a z900 frame with v5 sold on ebay last week. it probably would have been easier. oh well, too late now.

head down, arse up and get started.

it needs some lyposuction. the seat rails are a lot lower too.

so, the first bits are,

cut off all the unwanted shit.
remove the frame reinforcings.
heat the side rails up and bend `em in a bit.
re-weld the reinforcing tubes in.
weld in some reinforcing plates between the v tubes.
cut out the old seat rails and weld in some new ones higher up.
a nip and tuck on the rear of the frame where the tail piece sits as its too wide at the moment.

i will then be ready to start fitting the other bits.

the z1100 frame had a shaft swing arm as standard, so there is plenty of room along the side for the chain run. i think i am going along the route of a xjr swing arm. aint too keen on the zrx12 one. it looks a bit spindley to me.

these are the wheels going on it. gonna be deep gloss black.

i reckon the back wheel would give me a bit of trouble with the z900 frame as its a 6" with a 190 fitted. that would then mean i would have to mod the frame anyway to allow for chain run. i have just been out and had a look again. i reckon it will be ok as i will only be heating one tube at a time. it also has loads of gussets around the headstock and tubes between the main frame rails. i have just received a set of luverly gixer though headers from cockney rick on oldskool. reckon they will look nice fitted. i have just "tweaked" them a bit. they should fit now

not much to report except i took delivery of an xjr 1300 swing arm today. it gave me a chance to see how things would fit together. i put the wheel assembly into the arm. there is about a 12mm gap betwen the forks, so thats a minor. the xjr arm has quite large slots. they are about 28mm and the spindle rides on the sliders. thats nice and easy. just bore out the slider holes to 25mm. new spindle and a couple of spacer bushes and job done.

now, here is where the fun begins. the oz rear wheel is set off centre by 6mm, so if you push the wheel assembly tight to the left, then the tyre runs central. the rsv arm must be offset for some reason. the main thing is the centre line of the tyre is in line with the centre of the frame. it dont matter shit about where the arm sits. it`ll have to slide to the left slightly to allow the tyre to sit dead central between the forward part of the fork arms. i can then measure the two bushes and get them made to suit. the bottom shock mounts are mounted way too far apart, so they need cutting off and can then be re fixed where required. this is where i may need to fit them slightly offset. maybe upto a max of 6mm. this will look a bit odd to be honest. the points have been mounted slightly off anyway by about 2mm, so i reckon i can get away with about 3mm.

i was looking at the bikes built by sanctuary and bull dock and couldn`t work out what looked different about the shocks. then i noticed the shock mounts have been mounted further forward. this is a picture of a z900 frame i found on the net.

this will help with the ride height too. i can mount these where required. cut out the old ones further back and reinforce the frame rails. the engine mounts look easy enough to sort out, so i will worry about that later.

i measured the rear sprocket offset on the rsv wheel. it is 112mm about the centre line of the tyre. the standard bandit 1200 wheel is 113mm. result. i just need to mount the engine 1mm over. perfect chain run.

this is still very much in the planning stage at the moment. i want to get it very clear in my head before i light the angle grinder up.

no more piccys at the moment. i have been working flat out at home finishing the loft conversion. aint had much time to get out there. i am hoping to start fettling this weekend.

i have got hold of some more bits ready for the build. picked up a pair of new oval k & n`s of eb*y. bought a replica z1 rear light and mount assembly. tail section and side panels. i am sending the tank away this week to these people. i have heard some good reports. reasonably priced too.

http://www.paint-strip.co.uk/strip_bike.html

i don`t need much more now. i am looking at the vapor speedo`s. they look much better than the acewell which i have fitted to "yak" i have the standard rsv speedo drive on the rear disc, so will do some research to see if i can use this with the new speedo. i possibly may need a kick stand as well. maybe adapt a bandit one to fit the frame. or chop the frame section out and change it. i picked up a 16 row cooler too for 32 quid. i have a 13 row on my bandit and aint had any issues with that as of yet. an-8 fitting too.

6 weeks have now passed since i last updated. to be honest, nothing has happened. i have had all the shitty bugs which make their rounds this time of year and i aint been bothered to do anything. i have however just picked up the little gem in the photo. the frame is a 76 z900 with the seat rails removed, but it will probably be an easier job to make a good frame from the 2 z900`s rather than faffing around with the z11 frame. it has a 77 z1000 engine fitted which runs. this will probably be sold on along with alot of the other bits. i have finally cleared out my garage and boxed up all my spares from the bandit strips. i can actually movre in there now. ready to start again. new year, new enthusiasm.

i`m in two minds still with the direction of the build. i love the way the bandit 12 delivers its power with loads of grunt upto 100. to be honest, i dont know much about the z1000 engines. what the power output is, torque, etc. i know they are tough lumps. it would be interesting to get to know the tunability of these. on the plus side, if i kept the zed lump then the ultra clean b12 lump would fetch good money. the zed lump has sheared the woodruff key on the starter side. when you try to spin the lump over, it loosens the 12mm bolt holding the rotor on.

maybe you lads can enlighten me on the tuning side. may sway my decision