www.zxrworld.co.uk

Hey guys, Im picking up a 1990 ZXR next week which hasnt run for 4 years and I plan to strip it down and do a re-build only problem is I have no experience in engine refurbishment and while Im getting a lot of info from here I just wondered if there was anyone local to me who would like to teach or atleast guide me in the art of a total engine rebuild!?

I dont want to pay someone to do it unless I really really have to as I would like the satisfaction of knowing I got my hands dirty.....any advice would be most appreciated.

Thanks

Tom

Why are you rebuilding the engine? Do you know there is a problem with it? Just because a bike hasn't run for 4 years doesn't mean you need to totally strip the engine. A simple service will have it running fine if there was no problem when it was last run. I stored mine in a shed for 13 years and it started after a few minutes once it had been fully serviced and is still running now.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

And a total engine rebuild is not the sort of thing you want to be attempting without experience. It's not the sort of thing someone could teach you in one go, they'd be doing 90% of the work with you watching and nodding. And why would anyone want to rebuild someone else's engine for free

TIrpitz the bikes been standing for 4 years with the current owner and he said it sounded dog rough when it was ticking over.

It will probably start once I give it a good service, plugs, clean the cams etc but I want to learn, strip it down start a fresh so I know that everying is pukka if your with me.

WIth regards to getting someone to help/show me I never expected to get that help FOC, I could just send it off and pay a professional to recondition it but where is the fun in that as I wont learn from it.

I have an uncle who does this sort of thing all the time and has 3 bikes in his garage he is currently playing with however he lives just that tooo far away for me to learn from him.

I'm with tirpitz unless there is real good reason to do a full rebuild than I wouldn't bother.


What sort of milage is on the engine ? What do you plan to use it for ?

Crank, gearbox oil pump are all prety tough

Perhaps a top end rebuild would be justified new can chain etc etc freshen the valve seats that sort of thing but a full rebuild.............. no


the fact that it was "running rough" is more likely to be carb issues or electrical issues



A bloody good service and get it running right job done easy really

Sounding rough when ticking over is most likely a carb balancing issue, which doesn't require a strip down. Give it a service and set it all up and see what it sounds like. If it's running fine there is no reason to take it to bits.

There's no reason to clean the cams. They don't need cleaning.

Think about what you're asking. A full engine rebuild for the home mechanic is something which will take weeks, if not months, of hours here and there as other commitments allow. You're asking someone to give up loads of this time, which will require co-ordinating the times when you are both available (which will make the job even longer). Even if you do pay someone, the amount of time they will need to give up will run you up a bill of £100s if you give them a resonable amount of money for the time / travelling involved. And for what - so you can strip an engine down basically out of interest, as you have no reason to believe there is a fault which requires rectification.

I'm not having a pop at you here, just trying to get you to look at things from the other person's perspective, as well as think carefully about why you are even going down this road. There is a world of difference between doing a full restoration on a bike which needs it and just taking something to bits unnecessarily. Most people doing restos do what is required and if the engine is sound they leave it alone.

You will get plenty of help on here to fix faults and guide you through making repairs. Some people may even have time to help you with a tricky bit or provide a tool. But realistically no-one has the time or inclination to help you take an engine to bits for the sake of it.

If you want to learn generally about working on engines then consider enrolling on a night class on motorcycle mechanics.

I am only exploring the art of the possible, I havent picked the bike up yet so am just being hypothetical.

This bike is going to be a project for me and help me learn, I am not adverse to getting my hands dirty and by no means a complete idiot when it comes to doing 'mechanic' jobs etc so I thought it was about time I jumped on the bike wagon and got myself a project as I have time and space to do so. After all I have my daily rider so its not as if I need this one on the road for any reason other than to have a choice on which bike to take out.

i agree that if is sounding rough then at max its a top end rebuild and there is no point taking the whole lot apart, its got 30000km on the clocks and I wont know what else needs doing until I get the bike home but it would be nice to know that its been totally rebuilt and its nice and new if your with me?

I appreciate that in terms of asking for help and doing a full engine rebuild but I was mearly asking a question, I suppose I was hoping there would be someone about who actually likes helping others as I do and enjoys getting there hands dirty never mind!

I did my top end a while back and i really enjoyed it.
shims, port and polish,lapping the valves, HG change

learned a lot and it runs really sweet.

just take your time and double check everything.

Can only advice what I done with mine.

Bought as a non runner (stood 3yrs) , 1st day I removed airbox & carbs, opened up the float bowls on carbs and they were gummed up solid so gave them a cood cleaning.

Engine oil was clean so never bothered with that.

Put carbs on by themselves , sat with a jam jar of fuel and primed them up (used battery out of another bike) . Engine caught but by this time jar was empty so topped it up.

Choke on and press starter button and vroom - had to keep it above 2K , let it warm up and was still rough at idle ( carbs no where near clean enough) stopped and started it a few times.

I then knew all was OK with the engine so could happily rip the bike to bits knowing it was a working concern with no issues bar carbs. But before I fully stripped it down I did get a set of FCRs and bolted them on and had the bike idleing away no problem.

This meant that all the time , money and effort spent refreshing the bike was well spent.

I wouldn't tare a working engine down just for something to do or to gain knowledge - go to your local scrappy and pick up a heavily crashed damaged unit and learn from it ! You f*** that up you've lost nothing , screw up your working engine and you'll be butt kicking yourself for eternity !!

An engine is an engine so can be any make ( some exceptions like Ducatis) and 1~6 cyclinder.

I did however service my engine ie: Check valve timing / check adjust shims / new oil & filter / new plugs

Best of luck on either way you go.

MM!

Darkstar wrote:I did my top end a while back and i really enjoyed it.
shims, port and polish,lapping the valves, HG change

learned a lot and it runs really sweet.

just take your time and double check everything.

Except that he's not asking about a top end refresh (which may be necessary) and which is indeed within the capabilities of most home mechanics, but rather he intends doing a complete engine rebuild, i.e everything in bits, crankcases split etc. Which is a different scale of job.