Kawasaki 250 F11B - dads old bike

Spent a couple of hours today making some progress.


Through the week the hex bolts arrived and so did the headlight brackets so that was exciting, hex screws fit perfect and are specific for the F11B which makes life easy, cheap american dollar is a bonus in buying currently also as basically all parts are US located.







So today i had a go at one of the front forks, cleaned it down, went over it all by hand with 320 grit then 800 grit paper, then gave her a polish with drill attachment and then hand with microfibre cloth, result came out ok, i will go over it with some lighter grade paper ending in like a 1500 or something which should take out some slight swirls visible up close. Vast improvement over the stock dirty look.






then cleaned the front guard and gave it a quick going over with some 320 grit, also cleaned the underside which is perfect paint wise (black) and wont need a respray which is great. The rear tail though i might do top and bottom in the silver as the inner guard at rear protects most of it anyway.





All poweder coating is complete so i will prob get that first thing tomorrow morning....its great the place opens at 7am so doesnt effect getting to work ontime etc.


im enjoying the build throughly so far and not minding the fact it may be many months until able to be ridden......i need to get my license first anyway

quick update, i picked up all my parts from the powder coater, very happy with the results esp the choice for satin (30%) gloss, its not too out there and saying look at me im shiny, but enough to show its all 100% perfect and new looking.


So frame and swingarm are living inside now out of the way due to space in garage and not wanting to knock them over onto concrete floor etc.


The rest are boxed up wrapped in towels awaiting reinstall in time.


Made one final purchase before stopping on the buying of bits and pieces for a while as i have ran out of cash the last of my "car/bike parts" cash stash has dwindled down so now i can only spend what I allow myself and the missus to have as our weekly "kitty" of cash whilst rest goes towards house / holiday savings.


Most of what i need to do now anyway just involves cleaning, cleaning, more cleaning and sanding / painting / polishing of various parts which should take me the next few weekends of spare time.


Final part i did grab was a NOS original factory option classifies as the "offroad" optional front fork brace. One came up on ebay, incl postage from US only $25 AU dollars so thought i would grab it as i like how it looks and should shine up ok.

dude, everything is looking sweet!
i can't believe you got your uncle on the job for them seats too. that's just fantastic. it really looks awesome.
i'm not looking forward to forking out for a new seat, thats for sure!

how much did it end up costing you to sand blast and PC all your parts?

cheers for the feedback mate.


sandblasting and powder coating cost $345 including GST


i thought that was pretty good especially for the number of parts done


i didnt really have the time or will power to get everything prepped to the level it would need to paint and the best painting efforts i have are rattle can


this did use up most of my current budget for the bike but its all done now and awesome looking which has given me the time to do all the stuff i can do and get the build completed quicker.

jaderd said:

cheers for the feedback mate.


sandblasting and powder coating cost $345 including GST


i thought that was pretty good especially for the number of parts done


i didnt really have the time or will power to get everything prepped to the level it would need to paint and the best painting efforts i have are rattle can


this did use up most of my current budget for the bike but its all done now and awesome looking which has given me the time to do all the stuff i can do and get the build completed quicker.

Click to expand...

I totally agree. I hardly have time as it is with all my uni work but unfortunately my budget is a 'pay as you go' system, so getting where I really want to be is up to how much cash and time I can make over the holidays.

The cost of your sandblast and powdercoat is very reasonable. I live in Sydney and have looked up a few places but the quotes all vary and I'll ultimately have to bring in the items to get a accurate figure. At least I can use your cost as a guideline though. Thanks once again.

Looking forward to seeing it all done mate. If you don't mind I'll drop in from time to time and ask some quick Q's as a lot of the work I'll be doing will be similar resto's as yours.

Good luck with all.

didnt get to touch the bike over the weekend as had wifes sisters 21st and mothers day on sunday where i cooked up a feast for the mother in law.


today was a successful day though...more cash spent lol.


my exhaust has surface rust all over it really and the rust in the u bend is all the way through producing a fair few pin holes which basically means the 180 degree bend needs replacing.


Contacted 3 motorcycle repair places in melb and they all told me the same place for exhaust repairs so must be the go to company. Quoted $25 for the bend (obviously mandrel) which is fair then 2 hrs labour with bike to ensure pefrect fitment etc @ $75 an hour so $175 total


kept hunting on ebay and found the best condition stock exhaust yet and i won the bid with the only bid at $22 US dollars and $92 US for postage so around $110 AU dollars deliverd to my door


very happy, had a few email chats with the seller prior to bidding to gain postage cost, didnt expect to get it for 22$ which was a bonus.


pics below....looks to me as if its NOS been sitting in shed really as no dints scratches or rust at all!!!
Doesnt contain baffle though i have that already, looking forward to its arrival

Did a quick hour tonight in garage,


had a look at the gasket set i bought in nov 2008 to see if it was a full kit...which to my surprise it was which is great, i got it for $30 in 08.


took the right case off, everything looks so clean and new in there...the goodness of oil i guess.


will pull clutch apart as pretty sure plates are stuck as clutch wouldnt work when running......is there a way to check without undoing all the bolts etc ?


started degreasing the engine case.


might be a stupid question, i couldnt see in the workshop manual having a quick flick through, how do i remove the tacho cable fully out so that i can sand and polish easier ?


any info would be great


cheers


- yesterday my sticker arrived ready for tank.
- and also my off road brace arrive, gave it a quick 5 min polish with California custom polish it came up pretty good from one once over....i think ill light sand it before next polish.

jaderd said:

will pull clutch apart as pretty sure plates are stuck as clutch wouldnt work when running......is there a way to check without undoing all the bolts etc ?


might be a stupid question, i couldnt see in the workshop manual having a quick flick through, how do i remove the tacho cable fully out so that i can sand and polish easier ?

Click to expand...

Undo the 5 bolts on the clutch hub and the plates will all slide out. Then you can degrease them. Take note of how they sit in the basket and re-assemble as per the manual. Make sure you oil the plates before you put them back in.
Be careful tightening the bolts back up - best to use a torque wrench for that (you can bust the clutch hub quite easily if you over tighten them).

As for the tach cable, there should be a circlip just inside the case housing that holds the drive in. Show us a pic and we should be able to tell you for sure.

Cheers for info mate, much appreciated.


as for tacho cable i really should have just though about it, ofcourse its the same as the instrument ent where the cable becomes square in shape and just pushed in, just need to spray a little WD40 in there to loosed it up and it slid straight out, made sanding and polishing case alot easier.


Sanded and polished rights case, came up ok, still not happy with it, i think i might go back at it with some 800 grit as there are still some "deeper" blemishes by the look, then hit it with some 1200 then polish and should get better result.


took left case off, cant believe how clean inside....from what i can see the electrical side of it seems clean and new looking so not sure ill bother getting a closer look at it at the moment.


Now im really contemplating as to whether i should take the head off etc...mainly for the purpose of painting, it would be alot easier and i could clean up the head studs better etc.


What are ppls thoughts....engine only has 9,000km on it, though im in no rush to get it back together (starting winter in oz so garage time is preferred over riding time) so maybe worth while pulling it down and inspecting / changing what needs to be.


Sprocket teeth appear to be fairly worn out, reccomend changing ? or are they designed with the slight hook shape ? i didnt think they were.


Thanks in advance for any advice.... also anyone know what the scratches would be from on the points case cover if thats what its called & also the 3 drill holes that go in a few mm (havent looked in workshop manual yet, prob explained in there)

Almost shot beer out of my mouth there! yes you need new sprockets, front and rear. I dont think Ive ever seen something that far gone. But as you said you dont have a bike licence/experiance so how were you to know!! ;D Looks like things are coming along nicely, Im not sure whats going on with the scratches in there but It would definatly be worth looking into further. Im digging this build.

Cheers mate, thanks for feedback, figured The sprocket looked way to odd to be normal. As for scratches I'm not sure, depending on how close case sits when installed it could has even been dirt / grit over time causing them ? I think I'll get a torque wrench soon so I can do take things apart and back together properly. Just glad all points etc look new an not rusted Luke I've seen on many build threads

definatly a decent torque wrench is key. Thats some pretty nasty scoring for some dirt that should hav never gotten in there, especially considering the low miles on it. Take care with it and it shall take care of you!!!!

yeah will do,


not sure what could score it like that....i know the bike came in crate to mildura then was put together by local bike shop in mildura in 75....maybe didnt take care of it during the put together process....seems pretty unlikely though

A lot of those scratches on the flywheel don't look like they occurred on the bike. Looks like a 2nd hand one that's been kicked around the garage floor / in a parts bin before being put on your bike.


And the 3 drill holes are what they do to balance the flywheel.


And that sprocket has been turned around at some point too. Kinda makes me think this bike isn't as low mileage as you've been told

Cheers for feedback mate, although I can guarantee it's mileage, been owned by my dad from new, ridden in 80's then shed not started ten years then I got it our in 96, sprocket wear I guarantee is my ignorance as a kid doing 3000km or so around our vineyard over 5 years with no real maintenance other than oils.... Never checked chain tensions or rear wheel alignment etc.

Scratches may be what I thought then.... Kicks across floor during install etc

Cheers

hey jadred, looking good man. if you need to borrow a torque wrench for a weekend let me know, i have big and small that cover everything you'll need. i work in richmond if that makes it any easier.

cheers
julian

Cheers mate, I'll keep that in mind, I work in hawthorn east so close by n uncle lives on bridge road near punt road so am often around the area. I need to get myself a few mote parts like torque wrench vernier calipers etc.... All takes cash lol slowly getting everything I want

nice update for ya.


exhaust arrived from Sidney Montana USA.


i swear its been sitting on a shelf for 35 yrs....swear its lucky to have had a years use!!, has a tag on it stating 75 F11B so must have been in storage


$22 for it......$90 postage so still cheap around $110 AU


came within 7 days no dings, rust or anything at all really, basically pristine, a lot better than what i expected, im now a very happy man.


Look a new Edge Trimmer

nice to see a 2 stroke getting sorted out, ill know when your on the road at least as i ride down from craigieburn, just need took look for all the pale blue smoke LOL......

Ha, sure will mate...looks like you have a few bikes on the go.