Brodie's W800

Brodie that is a looker for sure man.. exhaust sounds and looks great... reminds me of headers from a Vincent
 
Mate that's a great looking ride, the custom touches make the already good-looking stock W800 even sweeter. In fact I think it's one of the best looking neo-cafes out there. I'd rather this than the Kawa Z900rs or any of the Triumphs any day. Lush backdrop too
 
Thanks everyone, it is such a nice bike to ride as well. The exhaust came out exactly how I wanted it. Glad I went to a pro for it.
 
Hi Brodie,

Nice mods on your Kawasaki!
I have the 2014 W800 and I’ve just ordered a pair of bar end mirrors.
Is there any chance you can exchange some tips on how to install them? Seems pretty hard as I don’t see any clear bolts or Alan key points at the end of the handles.

Cheers, regards from Amsterdam, Netherlands,
Michiel
 
Hoi Michiel,

I decided to change the bars on my W800 to a set of light weight alloy bars. The bar end mirrors I used have expanding sleeves to hold them in place. Push them into the bar and tighten the bolt to lock them in place.

Here is a run down of how to change the bars.

1. Lift the rubber boot on both mirrors and remove them.
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2. Remove both bolts on the left and right lever clamps.
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3. Remove both screws under the left and right controls and remove the controls.
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4. Remove both grips from the bars.

5. Remove the 4 bolts holding the bars in place.
IMG_20181003_102819.jpg

6. Mark a spot on the new bars to drill to align the controls.
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7. Reverse above steps to fit new bars.

8. Slide bar end mirrors into the bars and tighten bolt to expand the spacer/sleeve to hold them in place.
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9. Enjoy your new bars and mirrors.
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Hope that helps some what Michiel.

Let me know if you need more details.
 
Thanks for the extensive reply!
Does this mean I have to install new bars to be able to fit bar end mirrors?
I was planning to just insert them in my stock bars, however I don’t see any clear way to fit them.. as there are no contra weights at the end of the handles.
Here’s a pic of the mirrors I bought btw!

cheers,
Michiel
 

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No problem.

I can't remember if the stock bars are open at the ends or not. I do know they have solid pieces inside them to stop vibrations.
You should be able to fit those mirrors provided there is enough space inside the bar.
The ends of the grips will need to be cut to allow the mirrors to slide into the bars.

Check out this video by DCC on how to fit bar ends.
 
Been a while since an update. Finally got around to changing the front indicators out for the lighter ones I picked up at least 6 months ago.
I had the apprentice fitter at work spin up a few spacers to give the new micro indicators a bit better aesthetics. Thought a stainless spacer would look better than the stock steel plate.
These are at least twice as bright as the old indicators and half the weight. Shaving a few grams.

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The old bar end style. Worked well but were hard to see due to low brightness.

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The new Mirco indicators. Fits more with my idea of a "classic" didn't "need" indicators in the 50s and 60s.
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Decent brightness compared to the others I had.
Still not as useful as usual indicators but I wanted them to blend in and go unnoticed until they were lit up.
 
Well work has picked up again and my work/life balance has become a work/sleep type deal.
Due to the extra OT I have been doing I was able to place an order for the seat I have been after for a while from Omega Racer who have all sorts of goodies for the W series.
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I have asked for white stitching to keep with the Black/White and Gold styling of the bike.
Should be about a month between manufacturing and postage.
Hopefully there is a weight loss or no increase.
 
Just spoke with Markus at Omega Racer who has let me know the seat is in production. Should only be 2 or 3 more weeks before it arrives at my door.
 
The new seat has just arrived in Sydney.
Took over 7 weeks from ordering to be made and posted.
Looking forwards very much to it arriving some time next week.
 
Not a perfect fit but it is very close. Just the metal seat pan being slightly out of shape. Won't take much to get back into good fitment.

Overall I am happy with it.
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That looks so much like a motorcycle. Simple, intentional. Yet with modern engineering and electrics!

Now, about the grind marks on the center stand....
 
Really, really like the new seat. As it has a more modern, sleek tail I think it makes the rear fender and tail light assembly look pretty big. For what it's worth - which isn't a whole lot of much, granted - I think a shorter fender with a smaller taillight assembly, (maybe something like this aftermarket one for an XSR900 - https://www.padgettsmotorcycles.com/product/genuine-yamaha-xsr900-led-vintechtail-light/) - would look awesome.

Great looking bike man.
 
It's a personal thing, but to me small round lamps look like they came from pre WW2 bikes so the style isn't always a good match to the bike. That's always an issue with updating or back dating parts. Admittedly that bike is retro styled so it can probably get away with it.

Good point about the rear fender but Brodie may have a problem with ADR (Australian Design Rules) compliance depending on what the local cops are like. I think that rear fenders are supposed to end in line with or behind a vertical line drawn behind the rear tyre and I don't remember how far down they had to come. That's for new bikes of course but I have heard that cops in QLD can be a PIA about no stock looking bikes. Not sure if that's true because I never lived up there.

Brodie: That bike looks really sharp.
 
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