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? Should I part it out or finish building it? Mutant Mod'd 1990 ZX7

Discussion in 'General' started by Schump, Mar 23, 2007.

?

Should I finish my project ZX7 or part it out?

  1. Finish it up, it's worth more in one piece!

    30.8%
  2. Part it out, loose some money, but such is life..you need to find a real job Dave!!!

    15.4%
  3. Put it back together as a track bike, no need for lights and such.

    30.8%
  4. Write a summary of your "question"

    23.1%
  1. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    Have a decent question for all...
    I have a 1990 ZX7 i bought from my friend for cheap 5 years ago. it only has 4000 miles on it. It needed bodywork and a seat when I got it.
    The next afternoon, I was looking for a sandwich in the seat of my truck, racing to blacksburg for a job interview on I-66...I looked up, headed into a ditch/embankment about 65mph...OH SHIT!!!
    grabbed the wheel, over corrected, fish tailed 4 or 5 times, then trailer came off, ZX7 went towards dirt to the left (it was on left side of trailer) GS was in right lane, trailer somewherez in between, I had to put Sluggo the Mule in 4 Dubyah Dee to get out of the left embankment, facing traffic...thank God not ONE scratch on my truck or me...can't say the same about the 2 rail trailer or 2 bikes on top.
    trailer was totally totalled
    1983 GS550E (my 1st bike) also totally totalled. Cut off steering stem and kept title and rims and brakes, tossed the rest.
    The 1990 ZX7 was a lot better looking.
    ok, so the forks were bent and subframe bent.
    I bought a set of 2005 ZX636 forks to put on her, have already made a spacer and fitted the stock steering stem into the 636 lower triple clamp.
    I have machined my own upper triple clamp, but it's not done yet.
    In fact, I want to redo it ($32 worth of billet-mcmaster)
    I have the radial mount calipers and f master.
    Bike has a fox twin clicker remote resevoir on it, vance & hines exhaust.
    I also have 2 RC30 uppers of which I could install one, as well as the mold for them.
    I have the RC45 Beasley tail section from my hawk and the solo subframe from it that could be mounted to the ZX7, or i could make another one.
    For the track, Bike would need a bellypan, and choke cable.
    Also, front wheel bearings so they'll fit 636 f axle and 1990 rim bearing race O.D.
    (Luckily, all kawis seem to have the same rotor offset, or at least a 636 has the same as a vintage ZX7)

    Street parts needed would be head and tail lights, I have plenty of spare blinkers in the basement.
    I also need to make some clip ons ($60 worth of material, I have the handlebars I never mounted on my hawk)

    So my question is this:
    Should I finish putting her back together and sell her whole or just part her out?
    She frustrates me a bit cause I never even got to ride her, but such is life.
    I am done riding so I don't want to keep it...broke my damned leg again...3rd time is the charm! last oct 1st...on a dirty bike.
    That and my pops has DEMANDED that all motorcycle and parts/paraphanalia/race leathers/clothing/magazines/etc. be evacutad from the house by monday or he's calling a tow truck to haul the bike away.
    if it matters, a 5x10 storage is $45/month.
    I think I could have it done in a month, and some of the parts i have aren't worth my time it takes to list and sell and pack and ship, a few are, but time is money...
    Thanks kids,
    Schump
     
  2. JamesG

    JamesG Architeuthis dux

    You won't get very much for a 17 year old crashed and mutilated bike.

    Break it down and part it out on feeBay. Might even buy you some time with your old man if you tell him you are auctioning it all off ASAP...
     
  3. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    I was hoping $1500 from my old landlord that is currently bikeless.
    you are probably right.
    i just have to take a loss prob.
    i just thought the motor and frame would be worth a lot more with the trick suspension attached?
    Unfortunately, I broke my damned left leg for the 3rd time 5 months ago, and he's been nagging me for a while, gave me an extension as I hauled my too rotted to rustore again '73 914 2.0 down to my buddy's race shop a couple weeks ago, but don't think he'll budge on the monday deadline...ugh!
    thanks tho...
    I need to buy some land out by Slummit Pond so I can build a house/garage!!!
    Besides, i'm sick of suburbia and everyone chasing the $$$ here.
    and how much traffic IS there in Summit Point???....xcept at track entrance on race weekends :D :D but that traffic is GOOD traffic!
    of course i did rebuild/clean out carbs and she sounds good!
     
  4. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    SUMMARY!-in response to the all mighty Papa...

    Yes, I had diahrea of the hands again...sorry.

    I have a 1990 ZX7 involved in a trailer accident.
    (Luckily I bought her w/o bodywork, except it came w/ both side fairings under the seat. it was, however, missing the seat itself.)
    It has a nice Fox twin clicker remote resevoir shock already on it.
    I have a set of 2005 ZX636 front forks, and calipers already, original front rim is straight. (rotor backspace is same on both models, would need to purchase 2 bearings and make spacers. already have extra spacer stock.)


    So, should I part it out here/freebay or keep working on it and finish it and sell it as a running, ridable bike?


    *have installed steering stem into 636 lower triple. still need to make upper triple on bridgeport. (5-6 hrs?...1st one took a lot longer, I am out of practice and it's ugly.)
    *Need new steering bearings, some nuts (lost in garage!...$60 cost)
    *I recently cleaned out carbs and she sounds nice.
    *Needs clip ons. Mtrl cost $62, have alum. handlebars already. (4hrs machine time for me.)


    Other Parts I have:
    ------------------------------
    -RC45 tail section from my hawk & alum. solo sub frame to match it, can be installed instead of heavy bent factory sub frame.
    -RC30 upper gel coated, no paint. Unused.

    My friend Kyle, who I bought the bike from, said I shouldn't waste my time, I should spend it trying to find a job! I hear what he's saying...but can't decide???
    Same friend bought a new house w/ 2 car garage.
    No dice. 1/2 house is full of new drywall, construction workers using garage as workshop, aka I need to fork over $45/month for a 5x10 storage spot. Hopefully not more than 1 or 2 months...
     
  5. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    no one else has an opinion of the 8,000,000 WERA memburz?...should I post pix?

    OK,
    now anyone else have any ideas here?
    I know I need to spend my time finding a decent job until I go back to Virginia Tech and finish up my mechanical engineering degree...hopefully next fall or if not next spring, but what do y'all think I should do with my Zed Ex Siete'?
    I dunno why but I hate parting stuff out. It's not fair to the bike cause she only got to enjoy 4000 miles of corners thus far. Of course I did just start parting out my former daily driver of 6 years....but for other reasons (Factory Rust!) That was my German Mr. 2 aka 914 2.0
    Hey, at least the parts have gone up in value as it's sat in my driveway!...should have invested in a car cover though.

    Well, if you want, I could post a few pix of the beast up here.
    time to call storage places and get some grub...:Pop:
     
  6. Mongo

    Mongo Administrator

    I vote you use fewer words and you might get more response....
     
  7. Don_728

    Don_728 The dog made me do it!

    I like pie.
     
  8. samizx7

    samizx7 Well-Known Member

    part here out on ebay. you might make more then 1300 dollar , i parted out my 94 and i made more then if i sold it as one. try
    redmonkey.com/7r.or kawiforums.com

    good luck
     
  9. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm k Mr. Mackey...

    Mongo who?
    10/4 Sami.
    would take ~same time 2 finish as 2 part out...
    but -$60 for bearings/nutz
    -$32 billet upper triple material.
    -$60 for clip on materials
    -Not as much fun to part out than to build mutant mod vintage legal beast
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    but... ++++ cash in bank account...granted tax return was sweeeet this year, but i could always use more cash...need GT3/4 turbo and S&S collector for '88 Jetta GLi, and A3 bottom end (factory forged)...akak 93-97.
    thanx 4 thu help.
    (a new record of brevity for Schump??? :eek: :up:)

    :beer:
     
  10. Jester13

    Jester13 Zombo in '08!

    i like lamp.


    Any parts you can't use i'll pay shipping to my house, I can find a use for them.
     
  11. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    lamp?:Poke:
    both sweet looking round headlights were kaBOOOM'd...aka wrapped around steering stem.
    they even had custom mounted gauged installed in the middle!
    tach is still kosher...
    speedo has broken tabz, no glass, think coolant gauge is the same...
    tail light got smooshed too...have connectors for it, that's it...
    late
     
  12. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    Bump-condensed version as requested!

    bump.
    for all those that voted "fewer words you novelist!"

    Bike is 1990 ZX7 with ~3600 miles involved in trailer accident.
    Engine runs well
    Forks are from 2005 ZX636
    No seat or bodywork, except side covers under seat (luckily bought w/o bodywork)

    Should I part it out or put it back together? I am a machinist and can make my own upper triple clamp, etc.
     
  13. JamesG

    JamesG Architeuthis dux

    Are you waiting for the response you want to hear?
     
  14. G Dawg

    G Dawg Broken Member

    If you part is out, like REAL soon, I can use some parts, such as exhaust,fuel tank, clip-ons.
    Got a 97 in the shop, that's getting a face lift.
     
  15. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    maybe
    i just wonder if anyone wants or needs a 17 year old engine or swing arm or wheels and stuff.
    i have no idea.
    i'd rather not toss the big parts, would rather try and get some cash out of them.

    G Dawg-
    the fuel tank has a tank slapper on the left but i'll attach a few pix.
    I have both clip ons, but i'll have to make a trip to my storage unit tomorrow with a notepad and my camera to do a full inventory. i measured the OEM clipon in toolbox, however. It is 43mm.
    The exhaust is Vance & Hines. has a bit of surface rust, but the biggest bummer is at some point in the past 5 years, i didn't jack it up properly by building a cradle for the frame, so the bottom 2 tubes of the header are flattened. still has decent volume inside, but the bottom tubes look like D's instead of O's. The header is 2 pieces, the primaries from the port to the 4-1 collector, and a steel tube from the collector to the muffler. It is actually 1 piece, tube and muffler.
    I'm assuming you need the OEM clipons, I have an extra set of tubular aluminum ones from my hawk if anyone needs those. The OEM ones have solid gold anodized aluminum handles and the cast clip ons that mount to the factory forks. The thing is, in 1991 the ZX7 got the upside down forks, mine is the last year of the standard forks, both of which have been tossed (both pretty noodled) i'll go measure the clip on i have at my house soon.

    I will work on posting pix and prices tomorrow here and on 2 other suggested sites, if I'm still left w/ a bunch of parts, I guess ebay will have to suck my blood and take their percentage, and I imagine I should start the bidding price above $0.01 as someone told me a buyer "stole" a R6 motor off ebay for $12!
     

    Attached Files:

  16. Brian129

    Brian129 Too many projects

    so you are cutting your own triples on a mill?

    someone told me that the hole for the forks was not a round hole with just a slot, it was actually an oblong hole. Is that what you are doing, or are you using a round hole(or are they really just round normally)?

    and how in the world are you doing all that on a mill, or do you have a special tool for cutting the big holes? its not CNC is it?
     
  17. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    Brian,
    I made an aluminum spacer out of bar stock on my friend's Smithy mill/lathe machine using the lathe. I pressed the spacer into the factory lower triple clamp of the forks. Then, i pressed the 1990 steering stem into that spacer so it will mount the new forks on the old frame. there is a lip on the bottom of the stem and i used whatever flavor of loctite makes sure things NEVER come apart. It was a pretty good press fit anyhow.
    I made the upper triple clamp myself out of billet aluminum on the mill. Not a CNC. I measured the lower triple several different places on the same hole, and the holes for the forks were circular. they might become a bit oblong when you tighten the bolts to pinch the forks inside, but it's a pretty good tight fit w/o tightening the bolts, so i think the holes are circular. it took forever and a day to make the holes. friends didn't have a 50mm end mill so i had to use a special tool that mounts a lathe bit in the head of the mill which you can adjust the diameter it cuts by turning an allen screw. These can only take off a little at a time (i think i was getting 0.030" per pass?), so it was a looooong process. somewhere in the middle of my sleep deprived all nighter i mismeasured the 0 coordinate for the billet plate. it also sucked that the table didn't go far enough in one direction, so i had to make two holes, then unclamp the billet off the table and flip it over, and re zero it. Probably due to the fact that i didn't get any sleep till saturday afternoon at 2pm, i managed to make the last hole a little under 1/2" off to the north, aka 1 fork had another 1/2" of rake.
    so aside from brushing up on my machining skills and figuring out how to build the part, i wasted 14 hours and $32 worth of aluminum. granted, i wasn't machining the whole time, also helping my friend finish up installing the motor and lots of other stuff for a spec E30 BMW that was headed down to kershaw saturday afternoon for a NASA race. I also turned a few more threads on a '03-'04 axle so that it would work with my '05 triple clamp (05-06 forks are closer together.) that took a while to get the threading feed speed exactly the same as the thread pitch, and to engage the lathe bed at just the right time so the bit would end up cutting the middle of the thread. in the end, it worked so i made a 04 axle i got for free work with my 05 triple.
     

    Attached Files:

  18. Schump

    Schump Pimp w/a Slight Limp

    and the verdict is?

    OK,
    thus far, 8 people say put it back together, 3 say part it out, and 3 more say don't type so damned much!
    One person might want the rear shock. Someone else might want the 636 forks. No interest thus far in the rest.
    So, if you say i should put it back together, either street legal or a trackbike, know one thing. I broke my damned leg too many times and I've given up riding motorcycles. So the only reason to finish putting it back together would be to sell it.
    If anyone who said "put it back together" or ANYONE else is serious about wanting a cheap old track bike with sweeeet suspension, please reply here, pm me, email or call. I'm not going to leave it in one piece too much longer as my storage space is expensive.
    Thanks,
    Peg Leg
     

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