The bike is a UK Z900A4 which I bought about 18 months ago, it was completely dismantled, quite literally it was boxes of nuts bolts and cogs.Anyway I spent about a year sourcing missing parts and renovating as much of the original as possible, my intention was to keep the bike as original looking as possible but to incorporate some (in my view) upgrades.
The work carried out has been:-
Paint:-
All black paint is new the frame and frame parts ie. battery box, brackets yokes etc. were finished in gloss black powder coat, the front calipers and all handlebar mounted items ie. m/cyl. switchgear etc. were finished in black satin and stove enamelled for a thinner finish this looks quite original and it makes the repainting of the switchgear lettering a lot easier.
Metal parts:-
All parts have been either rechromed, replated or if I had to renewed, i've probably changed 80% of the nuts,bolts and washers to stainless steel a lot of which i've turned myself on the lathe along with wheel spacers etc. the Kawasaki specific bolts have been rechromed or are new. With regards to the rechroming i'd like to mention that I had our very own Mikey do the pre chrome polishing and what a difference that made to the final finish, it's better to have it done by somebody you know can do it properly, so it's not just the bling he's good at.
Paintset:-
Well as I really like the Diamond Brown colour that was my initial intention for this bike, I spent a fair bit of time mixing the paint myself and although I got a pretty good match I decided to use one of the colours i'd mixed in the process which I thought looked stunning so it's more a case of 'along the lines of' my mate did the spraying and I applied the decals myself which were sourced from 'Image Works' it was the first time i'd tried this and it is not easy, it then went back for more lacquer and i'm absolutely made up with the finished product.
Wheels:-
The wheels are completely new, after careful consideration I opted for new D.I.D. rims laced with stainless steel butted spokes on polished hubs, and all the bearings seals and spacers are new as are the tyres (BT45's) and tubes, this was very expensive but the wheels are now superb. The lacing of the wheels was done by a specialist wheelbuilder from Portsmouth.
Brakes:-
Calipers stove enamelled and rebuilt with all new parts and seals, the lines are Goodridge stainless steel items with stainless banjos on alloy washers, you have to do what you can to stay alive! front discs are drilled, I do have the solid discs but opted for the drilled discs for safety and looks, M/cyl. fully refurbed and new shoes to the rear.
Clocks:-
I refurbed the clocks myself, stripped, cleaned and lubricated, the cases were finished in gloss black powder coat as was the headlamp shell, the clocks are not difficult to refurb at all in fact they are relatively easy they just need a little care and common sense, but it is very, very time consuming.
Seat:-
I stripped the seat and powdercoated the base and recovered with the existing cover and original foam as they were in good order.
Suspension:-
The original rear shocks were stripped and rechromed and the front forks were stripped and the stanchions sent of to Phillpotts for re-hard chroming, I also turned new internal bushes on the lathe.
Engine:-
The engine has been completely rebuilt, the cases, head and barrels were ultrasonically cleaned, all parts, shafts etc. inspected, new bearings and seals fitted, new clutch fitted using a roller pusher, barrels were great so only required a light hone and I fitted NOS. std. pistons, rings and wristpins. The camgear is all new ie. camchain, all idlers, idler shafts, tensioner and rubbers. All the valves are new Stainless steel items. Outer cases polished by Mikey.
Electrics:-
New main and rear loom fitted the rest refurbed. the ignition system is Dyna S through Dyna coils and leads.
Carbs:-
I stripped the carbs and had the bodies ultrasonically cleaned, I also had the small parts and shafts re zincplated, I then rebuilt them on new Keyster service kits to standard specification and refitted using new air box rubbers and clamps.
The rest:-
Again everything else has been either refurbed or if not good enough renewed. Tsubaki chain fitted and new sprockets, at the moment I have fitted an original Harris pipe I had but this will be sold along with all my spare parts that I have refurbed at the same time as doing the ones for the bike, proceeds towards a new 4 into 4, and the eagle eyed may notice a couple of things like i'm waiting for the carb overflow rubbers and a pair of new throttle cables.
Also for any rivet counters out there, every original item that isn't on the bike has been kept and packed away in my garage.And by the way after priming the carbs she started third kick.
Finally I would like to thank the following:-
Z1 Enterprises for parts and service.
Z Power for parts and service.
Debben Performance for parts service and invaluable advice.
Mikey for the polishing.
All members that have helped with parts. Hobbo, Scott, Al Marshall
Image Works for decals and great service.
Trestan Finishers Southampton, for powder coat and stove enamelling.
R Halfacre Portsmouth, wheelbuilder.
Solent Electro platers, Southampton.
Christ I hope the pictures work after all this typing.
