Kawasaki Z250A Scorpion...
Great piece of work from Steve on the brake discs of the Z250.
The Z250 Twin was very much 'of its time', designed, back in 1975 specifically for the U.K market, where riding a 250cc motorcycle was permitted on L plates until you passed your test.
The discs on this model were in an appalling state; rusty and corroded. Steve has worked out the rust and uneven surfaces and spray painted the middle. They now look like new!
Similarly, the bolts holding in the discs were rusty.
Having worked on the discs and brought new life to them, it would not be appropriate to reatach them back onto the bike with rusty bolts, and so these were placed in the vice, cleaned and a heavy duty PU lacquer was used, to give them a really impressive finish.
Meanwhile, Graham was putting the carbs back together on the Z250. As he was doing this, he noticed that two plastic bungs that block off the holes giving access to the idle jets were missing. The absence of the bungs meant that fuel could have been drawn into the idle jets through the openings that should have been blocked by the bungs, instead of reaching the jets through other jets and a series of small drillings. The result would probably be poor idling and low speed running. Luckily a pair of bungs were found in one of the boxes of bits we have in the workshop. Luckily, because it appears you can't buy them from Kawasaki anymore. To complete the picture: - The carbs are now ready for re-installation If we can fabricate a fuel level gauge it might be a worthwhile exercise to check the fuel level in each carburettor before they are re-fitted as there isn't a figure published for the float height. Graham removed the rusty looking starter motor and with the help of the grinder mounted wire wheel , a cloth and some Solvol Autosol metal polish, was able to get a half decent finish on the motor. To help keep it looking good, Steve is going to lacquer it and also polish and lacquer the aluminium oil breather that fits on top of the crankcase behind the starter motor.
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| Z250 Brake Discs repainted by Steve W 18/05/24 |
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| Various Z250 bolts lacquered by Steve W 18/05/24. |
Ducati 250 Mk 3D 1973
This is the Mark 3D, fitted with desmodromic valves. ("A system where the valves are positively closed by extra lobes on the cam and levers rather than by more conventional springs", Camaron 2014). This 1973 model combines the Mark 3 and Desmo models, hence '3D'! However, there were two other market names for the bike; the 'Mark 3 Tourer' and the 'Mark 3 Special'.
Back in 1968, Ducati had introduced new engines to the 250 and 350 cc road bikes based on the racing engine. They were known as 'wide case' engines due to the wider rear mountings.
This bike was owned by Jon's late twin brother and has always been a treasured possession. The aim is to take the bits stored following the 'take apart and clean' stage of the project, and now put them back together into a classic racing machine that will compete at Tonfanau Race Course, as part of the annual classic motorcycle race events that take place on this exciting circuit.
"Tonfanau race circuit is one mile in length, with a width of 22' 6'' and is run in a clock-wise direction. From the start line there is a short straight followed by a very fast sweeping right hander. This leads into a long, fast up-hill section with a steady left into a very tight hairpin bend. From the hairpin exit there is a slight left leading on to 'farm straight' - the highest point of the circuit. This leads into a continuous right that consists of three apexes, followed by a long downhill straight. This brings us to the last corner on the circuit 'paddock bend'. This is a slow 30 mph bend that proves very popular with the spectators because of the elevated viewing area. After approximately 100 yards you are returned to the start line."
Work is ongoing, with a
major piece of steel bending on display at the May 18th workshop
session. Keiran had kindly left two hefty steel bars in the workshop
by the Ducati 250 bench, so that strong-arm tactics could be deployed
in brute-forcing the bending of the footpeg so that the rear-set gear
changing linkage could be fitted in place.
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| Ducati 250 Cylinder/Cylinder Head 18/05/24 |
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| Ducati 250 Footpegs and levers 18/05/24 |
KTM LC8 engined V-Twin
Jo brought her KTM into
the workshop on Saturday 18th May.
KTM build incredibly
light, yet strong - versatile bikes. They celebrated their 19th Dakar
Rally title last year, with Kevin Benavides in the saddle. A great
win for him, and a showcase for KTM technology, in one of the worlds'
most grueling and iconic
off-road events.
Jo's bike has a LC8
V-Twin engine. This engine has been the driving force behind KTM's
most impressive models. It has 180hp and more than 140Nm of torque.
Unfortunately, Jo had
dropped the bike, and its immaculate front and rear fairing had
suffered. Using one of the clubs
abrasive cleaning creams , Jo slowly and gently rubbed the damaged
area to remove excessive burs. The result was a much smoother finish,
with further ideas as to adding pin striping in line with classic KTM
colours. Nice!
Did you know: KTM
stands for Kronreif Trunkenpolz Mattighofen. Mr Kronreif and TMr
runkenpolz were the two gents that founded the KTM factory in
Mattighofen Austria in 1934!
