1984 Katana 7/11

[dorkburger]

I'd call that more then a little win. Big time good.

[pete]

Well... I can't argue with that

Forgot to mention I got a call from the crankshaft guy yesterday and it should be ready next week. Pretty excited about that!

[greg78gs750]

looks good, pete, love watching the progress on this!

[pete]

Cheers Greg! While there's still much to do it's at least starting to feel like it's all coming together now.

[pete]

I got the crankcases painted today; primer, satin black, and clear.

Just need to take extra care with them until I can get the engine fired up to cure the paint fully.

Untitled by starpoint73, on Flickr

Untitled by starpoint73, on Flickr

Untitled by starpoint73, on Flickr

I also got the front wheel and one fork leg off ready to sort out the leaky anti dive block off plates. I'll get that sorted during the week.

I've got to re-paint the front wheel spacers as well, looks like I needed to use self etching primer as the paint and primer peeled off together during removal today. Bugger!

[Sam 78 GS750]

Hey Pete, since you have them in pieces any reason why you're not curing on your kitchen oven..? The top crank top half might not fit with the studs still on though...

[pete]

Just the one reason... I value my marriage

Well there is a second reason... not keen on stinking the house and oven out either...

When I did the 450 cases I used our old BBQ to cure them and some paint on the brake caliper but I reckon the gas interfered with the caliper paint so I'm not keen to try that again either.

The cases aren't going to move around much, basically straight into the stand that's bolted to the workbench and then from there they'll be straight into the rolling frame. I'm thinking I'll put masking tape over the engine mounting areas before it goes in the stand though just to be sure of no scratching, and I have some concrete expansion foam to wrap the frame in before it goes in there also.

[pete]

Nothing really photo worthy but I got the front axle spacers sanded back ready to paint tomorrow after work, and I got the anti dive block off gaskets replaced with threebond also. As it turns out I suspect I could've simply given the bolts a tweak to tighten them up and fix the weep... they seemed a bit loose when I undid them. Oh well, it's done now!

[pete]

I got the front axle spacers re-painted after work so I should be able to put the front wheel back on tonight.

Untitled by starpoint73, on Flickr

I also got the forks back together after sorting the leaky anti dive plates, had to add an extra 140mL of oil all up! I guess they were leaking a lot longer than I realised while the Kat was out beside the shed under the cover and I never noticed.

It's also time for me to take stock of what's left to do and buy so I can try to figure a realistic time of when I'll be done. Will try to do that this week.

[hillsy]

Just a tip on painting small parts like that - if you heat up the part with a heat gun before you spray it will flash dry the initial coats and produce a better finish.

Obviously only good for metal bits

[Arronduke]

Pete your bike looks so good, all I can say is you have to be so proud of what you have done, your painting skills have left me thinking I can do this but the work involved is huge and scares me. Which means the head nod to you is even greater. Impressed. I want to take on a painting job but now I understand whats involved and why it costs so much to have it done.
Long story short I cant wait to see the motor in this thing. The colour scheme was so so to me but you have pulled it off. Looks assume. i have learned so much!

[pete]

Haha cheers Hillsy! Promise not to try it on plastic Never heard that tip before though so I'll have to give it a shot on the chain guard I reckon.

Cheers Arron, appreciate the compliments! This is only my second paint job, and it's only turned out this well thanks to guys like Larry and Daryl who so kindly provide advice and guidance to a complete amateur like me. It does seem daunting up front, but provided you're prepared to take the time to prep everything properly, it's actually achievable to get a half decent job. You definitely get an appreciation for why the pro's charge what they do though!

Got any pic's of that 1230 Kat?

I got the front end reassembled tonight so I could grab the front engine mount bolt back out of the frame and get the top crankcase mounted in the engine stand.

I'm all set to get the bottom case sorted except I ran out of thread locker putting the anti dive block off plates back on the forks, so I'll have to rectify that tomorrow. Can't even put the splash plates or cam chain guide holder in yet. I also need to get the shift drum bearings in the freezer before I install them too.

Anyone got any tips on installing the rather fragile right hand shift drum bearing? I don't think drifting it in will be a smart idea, thinking using something threaded to pull it in like the swingarm bearings will be more appropriate. I might have missed something in the manual but I didn't see how to install it in there.

Untitled by starpoint73, on Flickr

And this is as assembled as I can get right now, just the drive shaft in place. I've at least got the crankshaft locating dowels in ready for it, hopefully he calls tomorrow so I can pick it up on my day off on Friday.

Untitled by starpoint73, on Flickr

[nvr2old]

Thanks again for the acknowledgement, Pete. It's been a pleasure watching and advising whenever I could. My work here is done... Now I can enjoy the engine build/reassembly process and learn from you.

[pete]

Credit where credit's due Larry

Hopefully the engine goes together smoothly, although could be a little slow as I wait for the funds to build up again. I should have everything for the bottom end at least once the crank is back and 2nd gear is sorted.

[pete]

Following some tips, I froze the two shift drum bearings when I got home from work yesterday and last night broke out the heat gun and heated up the case, but I think not quite enough.

The left hand shift drum bearing needed some drifting in but that was ok as it's not so fragile and I didn't have to use much effort.

The right side dropped in but only a couple of mm's before it got stuck, but I wasn't even thinking about trying to drift that the rest of the way! I managed to gently get it back out without damage, so I need to give that another shot yet. It's back in the freezer and next time I'll heat even more.

I've also got a piece of steel and a piece of timber with a bolt and the old bearing that I can use to pull it in if it's still a tight fit. The old bearing should protect it from damage I hope, although hopefully I'll get the case hot enough this time I won't need it.

I'm also picking the crankshaft up today!