paging zxr400 owners

What are standard suspension settings, front and rear for zxr400L

Googling got me

"With most bikes you should aim for 25-35mm sag front and 10-15mm
rear, but as grey imports are a bit softly sprung anyway, try to
achieve a little less than this, say 20-25 front and 5-10 rear."

which seemed a little vague.

Prepare yourself for numpty spannering questions as more bits come
off.

Don't they look pretty naked.

 

<g>

 

Have you tried looking and/or asking here:

http://www.zxr400.co.uk/modules.php?name=Web_Links

http://www.400greybike.co.uk/index.asp

There is a bloke in Southport who is highly recommended for setting
suspension up to suit the rider, costs IRO ?40. If you're popping up
North sometime soon it might be worth taking a small detour.

Just wait until you try to find the camchain tensioner...

You think so?

--
Lesley
CBR600FW
SBS#11 (with oak-leaf cluster)
BOTAFOT#101A UKRMHRC#12
BONY#54P BOB#18
Real burds don't take hormones, they rage naturally

 

<snip>

Just taking a look through the 400 grey bike forum, someone there has a
site that contains info on maintenance and the full service manuals,
apparently. Look at:

http://wwr.dyndns.org

--
Lesley
CBR600FW
SBS#11 (with oak-leaf cluster)
BOTAFOT#101A UKRMHRC#12
BONY#54P BOB#18
Real burds don't take hormones, they rage naturally

 

afaiui, there are no "standard" suspension settings, because
there are no standard riders or standard roads. Factory settings
try and be all things to all people. The best thing to do is
what Lozzo did a couple of days ago; go for a ride with some
tools, adjust things and see what happens...

Done anything with the downpipes yet?

Are you still talking about the bike?

 

Cheers for info Lesley. Loads of useful stuff that will keep me busy
for a long time.

I'm looking forward to setting the valve clearances. With suitable
hand holding.

Yes - sort of bolshy and mean.

 

Yep, got some old but unholed ones from ebay, they are off being
blasted as I type, picking them up at 4pm, sparaying with exhaust
paint tonight then fitting tomorrow morning.

Have also had it in bits, cleaned air filter, spark plugs, new oil
filter, changed oil.

Adjusting chain (this will be last time before new chain and
sprockets) and fiddling with brakes later.

Also getting new indicator for the front right hand side as gaffa tape
went south and it cracked.

The various loose bits of paint on fairings have peeled off at mumble
speeds, so getting those bits tarted up is on the list.

Say a big thanks to Claire, I love it.

mainly

 

Blimey. When you said you'd start spannering it, I didn't
think you'd that much that quickly. Good luck getting the
exhaust on; that was a pig of a job on the turbo (but it
had the extra weight of, erm, the turbo! hanging about
as well).

You'd be doing the valves next...

Shall do.

heh.

 

Throw it at a dealer for this.

Seriously.

 

Throw me the large wodge of money they will want.

Seriously.

 

Ginge wrote

No you fucking don't.


Well not if you do this bit first:-

 

Won't, but here's an example horror story, involving people who should
know what they are doing...

http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=1g1820g.c3xtoq1oy5cxgN%
25chateau.murrayNOSPAM%40dsl.pipex.com&output=gplain

Also bear in mind that to do the valve clearances you need a whole load
of shims, which in turn involves f*cking about getting thicker or
thinner shims from the dealer, having taken the old ones out and
measured them, then worked out what you need to replace with..

 

Lozzo wrote

That is just taking the piss. Not necessarily by the dealer you
understand. It may well take them a couple of hours even without
undressing the bike first. I mean the designers at the factory.

The nice part about shimmed valve thingies.

 

steve auvache says...

It is still a job for a more experienced mechanic or a professional. I
absolutely fucking hate doing valve shims, especially on bikes like
ZXR400s where they sit under the buckets and not on top. On these bikes
you have to take the cams out to do it. Bikes like ZZR11s aren't as bad
because you only have to shove the rocker arm to the side against the
holding spring to get the shim out, but they are still a right royal
PITA to do. I have deliberately resisted buying a suitable micrometer so
I won't have to do it again, I always had to borrow one before.

Let me put it this way, I will be dropping my bike into a dealer with no
body panels on it next time I have to get valve clearances done. I was
quoted 100 quid to have the T/ace ones done by our local Yamaha dealer
if the bike was already stripped down. Luckily they don't need doing for
a fair few thousand miles yet.

 

You should really fit some new exhaust gaskets (usually copper rings,
tho sometimes aluminium/abstetos/something else, that fit twixt
exhaust headers and cylinder head). Otherwise it's liable to bang and
pop on the overun.

Good show.

Did you get my email ?

 

Get some experienced hands to hold. It's quite a job.

 

steve auvache says...

Not really, they are designed to be as reliable as possible and when
you're designing a small engine that revs to about 15,000 revs you can't
risk it spitting a shim out. Sticking the shims under the bucket makes
perfect sense. I think 100 quid for 2 hours labour is reasonable,
especially when it's to do a job I detest doing.

I can't understand why a large capacity 16 valve Kawasaki can't have the
same service interval on valve clearances as a 20 valve Yamaha. Kawasaki
say 8,000 miles, yet the Yamaha only needs them doing every 25,000.

 

I fully intend to.

So I've heard.

 

Jointing compound.

I would claim all my own work but I'd get a spanking

<thinks>

It was all my own work.

This brake cleaner stuff is good isn't it. Especially in the garage

It made me feel nauseous - though that may also be the brake cleaner.

 

And Suzuki sit on the fence with 15k on the GSXRs.