My names Bleary (Had you not have guessed), I've been on here for quite some time but never posted. I'm 24 and live in West Sussex, UK. I have owned my ZXR400 H since August 2008. However the journey hasn't been so pretty unfortunately..
At the time I was very Naïve towards what I was buying, and don't get me wrong, I knew next to nothing about how a motorcycle really worked and what were "Bad signs". Had I'd know what I know now I'd have avoided this one like the plague.
Unsuprisingly after only 2 weeks the bike broke down.. The bike had left me skint from buying it I had no cash to have it repaired, so decided to chuck it in the back of my garage and moved onto another.. More reliable machine after I got some money behind me. In 2013, she got wheeled out of the garage and saw true daylight for the first time in half a decade. Since the breakdown, I had become a fully qualified motorcycle mechanic and actually now work in a spares dealership.
It was swiftly fixed and MOT'ed. To my delight of course I rode it around until it failed on an MOT on numerous things last year. Back to essentially square one.. What's more, is before the MOT came about I had noticed a lack of power, overheating and there was no signs of a head gasket replacement. Due to work, Again, the bike sat Idle for months... Unknowing to myself with a blown head gasket predominantly on Cyl: 3. Coolant had clearly been leaking through into the barrel, and rust was rife on the piston head, and surrounding area. I'm even worse off now than when I started off..
I currently have the engine itself undergoing a rebuild at the garage I rent with a friend. And really just hoping for the best right now. If it comes to purchasing a new engine I'll do it. But if I can salvage the one I already have I'll be chuffed. So far the main damage is in the barrels, but we'll see.
During the time I find a solution, the bikes being stripped and rebuild, cleaning off the frame, crap paintjobs from the past, sorting wiring problems, and generally making what's still intact look better, more respectable and hopefully in the end, rust free!
Anyway, rant over. I look forward to speaking with like-minded people on here, taking others advice and if I can help others in any way I do hope I can!
Friendly criticism is always welcome with me!
Cheers!
Bleary.
