Polishing Turds.

[lonesome]

I love these bikes, you know that, but there’s a problem with love – you feel the need to care for the object of your desire, whether it drinks lead-free or Leibfraumilch. In my case that object is Dougy T,’s ex and to be frank she has lacked the necessary TLC for far too long. I’m not exactly rolling in cash, so she’ll have to make do with what I can spare, when I can spare it. Some of her was quite literally rotten like the back mudguard and shocks, but thankfully KK kame up trumps, as he so often does, and supplied through various means at very reasonable rates some nice new shockers and a pretty decent mudguard to go with some chunky 2:2 pipes and a rack/cissy bar that was a steal off e*ay I’d found earlier. It’s been great weather lately so now was the time to get down and dirty. On they all went.

First off is strip all the bodywork and plastic. When your love stands naked before you is the time when you really know if she’s a dog or Madonna. Guess which mine is? Actually, half and half. Engine and running gear, terrific, spot-on. Sounds sweet, idles easily with everything balanced and takes off like a whippet on her 16-tooth sprocket.

Everything else, not so great. This really is a running barn find. Where there is still paint on the frame, is’s flaking, rusty and just kind of grey. Most of the wiring has been ‘repaired’ by messrs Bodgit & Scarper. I had to drill out the seat lock. Everything, everywhere is rusted, most of the plastic is broken in some way, and just look at the seat 🙁 (Actually that’s mostly been caused by my extremely lardy arse crushing the life out of it).

[img width=800]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/hkBfjpiXlAL10bfCkU1hzlWVGUVLc2lm-xF08MkGG5OgpDq9O87A6JZzW_NIoIN5ZZFtbpYinrZLiVvpFv1H7v11OeMrob3JPR3B5ixmPERuwPvpIYMNXrBzw_FvOfLHCkbNl-QMOn1uVtz9rfnrNBUkhU7-MBExW-SrIXgPUQwfT-Yng63WzForh2VBY8KnuOe-IFsQy-sTxPcBL8Gwk6zOVR2kOTqGCRszKzHa-LlwxLLkNNHKIHwKBE9804qGFfjPR5OsdhssKJ02sYsQztQOpVnrOC61aBWgchqLylZReKprTvg29SG8FQxtdyO59n28TPcmFn8ggl3lx7j8dQXrutHYnGi3ujoaGj0UUsuBT6X0XawtNlgc08JzlRK2smQ6FiL-ny3cfYS-qbHa15FqFOM53sI2h5L4xn2uzr4HIzPA6B_0V3-Wlc2LCskKtWZaIu2mh25SVLOqU56WapyCEM72igMe_EE0PGg171_10q2mXvxel92mIamPLdpuqDJq3z_uKU4GdkylAaOglAxgw1m2u4YN5qNi3lLm2g=w1232-h924-no[/img]
Thing is, when you’re fitting new stuff you have no choice but to clean the thing in a desperate hope that it’ll live up to the new bits. It won’t. What you end up with is shiny chrome amongst very clean rust. The gleaming springs do nothing but show up the rusted spokes and swing arm, the rack just highlights the seat. Mind you at least I now have working suspension.

[img width=600]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/EqjZF0_lPQb-FlM7au8j0ohWKP75qDi-slRfvv-rbSl6arS7Hs45NN_DQCIzBIdBxajKALs4Fyxeqgor6l7Rn9Kmew1wNsJjEJ0Yi-LaGoM_9VR28vuc222C7imXKwQD188gKDM9sPG7OefjzIJmA-3fWNzcxnhKikZI-plKCiQaO9fwGvqe_7oi-IIaIz2-L9K3DLY7UlGke1lFetuWvsjsCy1lHJgxpEp93U_WD7YFbrWhLjhpmyGlo0PaFNJAi6V373n5r-tw2Cz37rzms_AMw3I2WwCNEqu9EL3epUFWkalbsIdViPr3f2C_-iIR9Xr7TfePDiT_NCH9NxwsbyFwXPjnexu00C6_DFPlVDO4kWn8utAFyUCQy0XYQyOt498yfI7l7M2IP1k0XtPpVFYGTAsDdREWE8vf5zC6OcseW5z1chEGEgBo-VTljMjZ8d0tmeltu9jKhcJPhqmFn7MIQAKcC3J_Lk6JFt-o2IjldIloEwn5Fcb8OZxajP8KIA3L_ZX8jeCExE5rKLfL51V1VWh3jbYNPG9qvgZLvA=w1232-h924-no[/img]
Another problem with these things is that we have to start fitting stuff that will ‘probably do’. The pies are in that category. They fit well enough, they sound nice, but look at the photo. Wherever they came from, they were never meant to allow for the Brunelliasn excesses of the Z750 centrestand. The footpeg butts against the underneath and left about 5 degrees of lean before I beat #OOPS# out of the silencer to .. um .. relieve it. See pic, admire the pure artistry. It still has clearance problems, compounded by the new shocks being 10mm shorter than the old ones, ‘tho I reckon the new ones are right, now the wheel doesn’t drag the ground on the stand.

[img width=800]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_AwATSW4u7jBtuCCWjMGcYH35Hz0iLglgbT9L4PncLl5iBxIQITr5RhdQO9Gk5UWyMzmWTh-KMY1UXtc4NIu9kEBPfaV0Q0pk0dKxTNm2FYL6gx3NT2e-_vMSFU8m7AN-lSNzHNNQD68jWS_j5t1ccEd10_hxiVLrOYQc5_ASR3omsh8ItMcmROcYW12AzqxB1M3pN_-Y-BJ8aFzdrz62ExKb7wPEAr2Xkl5i4PgbmTw6G_G5gnDQ0eD4t-dugcjmCu4nNTOcfiLadPzP6spAKxQggQ6n9LTqSfieT6w1KFZblL_FaDBVkCwnzeLtq4-Bf4sCN8Qsah_P3QOZ9esCgX1-n5faoxm_0fg705IXReIF7Ha1p2hujqOh1U3tjYSm9Y5qbyUC_tdslxuP6_F3w3nwlTKwwg8VEHFwRQmhavI2EXFsEwwEtQe5-7mHayKJG4Pljcwof9m7YNqc3KY9KVYFnEVWfd9CF3FfPneHmGz3CZkJvvsiN0lKdwFX7HDWPtv30z_saichF6uo1jNnHWXbIZyUYuOOriCvPxDlg=w1232-h924-no[/img]

But anyway here she is, Loud and Proud. This is the classic ebay pic, it gets so much worse the nearer you get. I’m going to persevere with it, eventually she’ll be a rose, not a rustbucket.

[img width=600]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/hqXrWXrkmBZtB8GV_27Md60KSNqOvmoPUDqMY1NldoHR93gqBQFEGME_yUjQFaNWJPgXOcsY98RxQCsveVk9vKSwcCJEX9pgrXeCIvF1HmhlrxjooG5SlobsA5ZuYX0sV__I2dAYWUpZQyiOamu8psAElP1FE1Utekzi76pHSYoIZL-TnPpgXN0Ob7kw61ufhpnNHgVfx7OICO3oSuvz5Z2VXm9kQ8reMWMKOGnmjDvq6-mpbLOBlXh_dcsU2aVgiZl3CGIpzCWrU3jBiAMF88xMLJq7IjT1F2QGGw2CWx2RF31ZdCGvTctXPqziltbU9AyhKpiXxeL_LEUn7Wpe62yNWMOoIVt2fN8vHppAobrhKcKwRdG-N2fgvrDr5Bxqjec5FSKoA1fvJTGX_1ptPJc3Kx_vJERWFH8va_Va66JwPAM9HHLcvc1KjERmNrtc9Xkd-dtIA0b2S8NF90Klr7QDG2tNiQjdo6HjbTRMdZvo-3MhjJw7l85I_Pc7-QnGqB4RkN-l9Xlh33l6HhzW5ikvc2PzjFUv_nkuIEvJJA=w693-h924-no[/img]

[Kaptainkwak]

Polishing Turds has always been a tough job Lonesome but it is a skill that several of us are becoming Masters at. Maybe we should include this new found skill on our CV’s?

I must say the addition of the items has made quite a difference to your ‘Turd’ both functionally and cosmetically. Keep up the progress sir and shout if you need anything else. If I haven’t got it I will try and source it.

KK

[philpassingham]

Didn’t you check these things out before buying

[lonesome]

I also got some engine bars, but they were missing half the fittings, and parts were so rusty they’d actually make it worse. Have you got any experience of seat recovering, is it the sort of thing a beginner with no patience could do?

Actually I’m quite pleased with her now, but really need to find a way to stop it grounding when I want to play with the traffic on roundabouts.

[philpassingham]

Made some seat covers a few years ago,will look if I still have the template

[lonesome]

There’s a bit of a postscript to this story. Since I put the shocks on the bike has become almost uncontrollable, with a really nervous front end and the back end kicking and slipping. Never known anything like it. It’s bound to be something I’ve done, so I’ll investigate and get back.

[AERIAL0]

the joy of purchasing a turd is to bring it back to its former glory and takes time and money. And plenty of patience’s while trying to source the spares. Managed to bring mine back with a low budget and though not show condition, its a bike to ride everyday.
Have a telephone number of a guy who restored my seat who lives up North. Not cheap but a good job with new foam, cover and all trims.
All the best in your restoration.

[Michael]

Hi Lonesome,

one of our german Z750Twin guys restored this B.
He is experienced with restoring bikes but this is his first Kawasaki 750 Twin he ever did:

Good luck !

[philpassingham]

Tony archer in Huddersfield is good for seat renovation

[lonesome]

Thanks for that Michael. That’s exactly what I’m aiming at. There may be an alternate universe in which I achieve it, but it almost certainly won’t be this one 🙁

[AtLarge]

Nothing wrong with turd polishing. Anything worth having is worth working hard for. Keep at it Lonesome.

[Tango]

FB_IMG_1437994536990.jpg

Got mine to a usable state!

[Author]

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