So last weekend I picked up and upgrade from my gsx250f. It's a 2004 Kawasaki Vulcan 1600. I was looking at bikes on gumtree in my local area and came across two that interested me. This bike and a vfr800. Both were in my budget and most importantly (to me) they are both fuel injected bikes. I'm so sick of fiddling with carbs! Long story short, the vfr owner wasn't able to let me see the bike for a while due to him being away, so I went and looked at the Kawasaki. First thought: it's massive. He started the bike and the sound through the aftermarket pipes made me tingle a little. It's got that classic vtwin grumble but not obnoxiously loud. I decided it was probably too big for me and walked away. But a few hours later the new bike bug had me and I sent him an offer on the bike which he accepted pretty swiftly (makes me wonder how low I could have got it for). I got the bike very cheap IMO. but there are reasons it was cheap. 1: high k's 2: the bike has been dropped. I knew before seeing it that it had been dropped, and expected the condition to be far worse than the gumtree pictures showed. But despite being crashed into a roundabout, the bike is in pretty good nic! A couple of busted blinkers: Missing board and peg the shifter side: A scuff on the tank: And what caused it all; the rear calliper. According to the owner, the rear caliper bolts had worked themselves loose and fallen out, causing the caliper to move into the wheel and lock everything up. And that's all! For the price I thought this would be an easy fix and an enjoyable ride for the Mrs to sit on the back. So I showed up with the cash and a trailer, and brought the big bike home. The bloke also threw in a bunch of bits he had in the shed, including new blinkers. Within a few hours of having the bike home, I set to work getting the blinkers swapped over. The rear was easy, new lens. The fronts were all smashed up, so I set to work installing the aftermarket CheapOair ones the bloke gave me. A little fiddly and required some modification to fit but they work nicely and will be replaced later on anyway. The important thing is they are working so the bike can be ridden. This thread will be updated as I fix things and start to mod the bike to suit me better. I already have a few plans in mind for how this bike will end up. I know it's not a 250, but I like the community on here so thought I'd share the build with you all. Stay tuned!
Nice, although crusiers are not my cup of tea. Put a sticker over the tank scrape, fix the caliper and your away. Enjoy.
When u replace the caliper bolts put a bit of blue thread locker on them ... might be those rumbling pipes have vibrated them out ...
They will definitely be getting some Loctite on them when the new bolts arrive. New footboards arrived today so I'll put them on tomorrow.
My new (second hand) floorboards arrived yesterday and I didn't want to waste any time getting them on. Front was very straightforward. Undo old busted bracket, put on new. New board with my little helper: The rears however were a nightmare. I bought a set of rear boards rather than pegs because I figured the more comfortable the other half is, the more time she'll spend on the bike with me. The new boards came mounted on nice brackets in much better shape than mine. So I tried to undo the brackets on the bike and start swapping bits over. First problem; stripped out an Allen head fastener. Awesome. So I got out the drill and ezy-outs, no luck. Decided to leave it be while I collected my emotions, and moved on to the other side. Second problem; the nut welded inside the frame is no longer welded there, and the bolt just spins. Awesome. So on to plan B. Leave the old hangers on and just swap the pegs over. Third problem; Completely different hangers. You can see in this pic, the old peg on the right, and the new board still on its mount. Notice how nice and flush the board sits in that mount The boards slipped into the old hangers just fine, but I am concerned about two things. 1: the massive difference in diameter of the fasteners, And 2: the board does not sit firmly in there, its not the same tight fit. But they are on and tightened up. I put my full weight on them (north of 100kg) and they felt solid. At some stage I will try to get the old frames swapped over, but this will have to do for now. Stay tuned for more.
Get some heat onto the bolt's to help break and rust bond or Loctite, put some trans fluid on them as they cool off, that penetrate's thread's the best
Problem is the nuts are welded inside the frame, so I can't actually get to them to do anything without cutting the frame open. The only source of heat I have is a heat gun. Would that be enough? not sure how I'll fix it just yet.
Heat up the head of the bolt' it expand's quicker than the welded nut so break's the bond of rust etc I used one of these to heat up my Disc rotor bolt's to take them off when i was painting my wheel's etc Bought it on sale for $6, https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/sca-sca-gas-torch---pencil-butane/286613.html I also have a Hot Devil Butane torch which does the same thing
Bit of an update. Bike has been back together for a while. It rides great. I have bled all the hydraulic systems and swapped over the clutch master for a decent used one. I still need to sand and paint the bodywork, but other than that there are no more bits to replace from the crash. Things I need to do in the future: Rebuild forks (feels like a little play in the bushes) Bodywork New plugs Install led fog lights and turn signals I bought for it I think that's about it. Pretty happy with the bike but I do miss my little 250. Spotted a cheap gsf250 on gumtree that might be worth looking at for a side project.