“New.” Coming out of ‘retirement?’

I don't know of a specific 1st gen SV650 thread but there is tons of info on here (from the earlier years). There are still a few actively racing them as well. I also just picked up a dedicated track 1st gen after having owned many of them back in the early 2000's.

There should be at least a few 1st gens at the Nelson Ledges round at the end of the month.

 

Don't be afraid to hit up the SVRiders forum with questions as well. Plenty of good folks and knowledge over there if you look for it.
Also good source for parts (new & used aftermarket as well as used factory parts).

 

if i can get mine running next weekend, that would be really good progress...

i am hesitant to disassemble the carbs and risk making things worse, or not having all the rubber bits to properly reassemble things.

 

Thanks for reminding me this site exists.

after some hesitation, i rolled the dice and bought a closeout Yonny Hernandez replica. Figured a $100 gamble is no big deal when brake pads and tires are more than that every few weekends.

LS2 Arrow. It is nice. It’s a snug medium, but i haven’t cut my hair in 4 months, so... anyway, the build date is 8/2016, so race legal for another 12 months.

$300+ helmet (and it feels like a more expensive lid) for $113 shipped.

 

What's up with the SV? Not running?

 

waiting on parts. I drained the gas tank and the oil, but don’t want to refill either until i confirm the new oil filter fits correctly. I also don’t have a battery to crank it yet.

I removed the tack and airbox, and quickly decided “fuck this...” on the carb clean. I’m sure i will end up cleaning and/or rebuilding the carbs next week, but for now i will try to start it with just fresh fluids.

brake pads, GSXR 1000 MC, and 5.1 brake fluid are on the work bench.

body work is removed, and will be sprayed for novice plates, but I’m not fixing it up or removing many of the old stickers. It will look okay, if you don’t look too closely.

i have to flush coolant, but need the bike running to do that fully. Water wetter is also on the bench.

biggest progress has been figuring out how the prior owners rigged up their “sub frame” and seat pan. I added a piece of steel to support rider weight. Need the battery to confirm where all the electrics will fit. Fingers crossed.

gonna go see if there are more packages on the porch. The last one was a new trampoline mat, which will actually take away from wrenching time to set up.

 

Coolant is out. Water wetter is in.

accidentally won an R6 Brembo MC on eBay. That’s installed and functioning, though doesn’t feel as firm as i would expect or like.

wheels are off to get tires mounted at PIRC tomorrow. I won’t be racing, but my wheels are making the trip so i don’t have to do an early-morning tire change in a few weeks.

Any advice on firming up the brake lever is appreciated. No bubbles in the bleed tubes. Kind of at a loss, and trying not to just keep pumping more fluid through the system and into my catch can...

 

Sound like it is coming along well. Are you planning to race at Nelson in a few weeks?

I'm just putting the a paint job on my repaired bodywork and also wiring up the tach on the laptimer since I have no instrument cluster.

 

Is there a bleed on the MC you might have missed? There's always the trick of tying the brake lever back overnight and seeing if that helps get the bubbles out.

 

Rode yesterday, and brakes worked well. Honestly, they bit too well, and caught me out a few times. Too used to grabbing a fist-full of XR100 drums...

ultimately, i was very pleased with how i progressed and got back up to speed throughout the day, but made a dumb mistake and threw it away in the grass in the final session. My decision making is not up to the pace of my riding yet, and i let ambition get the best of me.

nothing broken that can’t be fixed, but i undid a fair amount of the work i put in last month, and threw away a new helmet. All in a day’s work :P

fiancé stopwatch times me in the 1:23’s in intermediate group traffic. I’m not sure i ever got a full lap of free track, but no excuses. I’d like to be in the mid teens before i grid up again.

suspension was wallowing through the turns. Rear felt like the shock was “pumping” with even the smallest body shift or throttle input. Gotta get that figured out too, but putting the bike back together will be the priority...

so i messed up in a somewhat costly manner, but all i really have to show for it is a banged up right knee, and an excuse to properly strip the bike down this winter. Coulda been worse.

really overall pleased that i got so close to my prior form within a day. Just gotta calm down and focus on reinforcing fundamentals, rather than trying to pass “I” group heroes on middleweight and heavyweight bikes.

 

Glad to hear the brakes worked well even though they feel 'different'.

 

I’m having to re-learn to squeeze rather than grab.