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FZR400 winter overhaul
- Thread starter Brian P
- Start date
Coronavirus too-much-time-on-my-hands update.
All of my FZR400 spare parts acquired through 23 years of racing these bikes have been randomly jammed into the crawl space under the front stairs in the house for years, because sorting through it all would be a daunting and time-consuming task. Well ... I've suddenly found myself with more time than I know what to do with. A few days ago, I dragged ALL of the random boxes of parts out, spread them out on the floor and the workbench. I bought some stacking storage totes from Canadian Tire and organised them. Tote #1 has all of the internal engine parts. Tote #2 has suspension, brakes, and cooling system parts. Tote #3 has fuel and air intake parts. Tote #4 has levers, handlebars, footpegs, and engine case covers. Tote #5 has electrical and lighting parts. Tote #6 has small bodywork and frame parts. Not in totes: The original bodywork from both bikes and one half-decent salvageable set of fiberglass bodywork, plus two subframes, a brand-new-in-bag front fairing bracket, two OEM exhaust systems, two aftermarket exhaust systems. Crashed and mangled race bodywork is going away. Engine covers that have a hole worn through them are going away. A set of crankcases with a huge crack in them (someone crashed a bike at Bogie and I bought what was left of the engine to grab the internals) is being stripped of everything that could potentially be useful and is going away.
I found some stuff that I didn't know I had, including two almost-mint NRC engine covers. I gave those a coat of silver paint yesterday (they'll oxidize and look ugly otherwise) and installed them today, to replace the mildly rashed covers that were on the bike. I also took the clutch cover off and installed carefully-selected washers to reduce the clutch spring preload a bit (clutch actuation is way too heavy). And, the thing that made the biggest difference, I took apart the clutch perch and cleaned and lubricated the pivot for the handle, and lubricated the cable, and took the bike for a little test-ride. Much better.
I have a spare bone-stock engine that has been raced twice since being put together from spare parts, in 2013. The only thing wrong with it is that the crankshaft end seal inside the alternator weeps oil. A spare brand-new seal has been taped to the cylinder head as a reminder that I have to replace that seal someday in order to have a 100% good spare engine. That might happen at some point in the next few days.
If anyone needs a radiator for a FZR400, I have FOUR spares!
All of my FZR400 spare parts acquired through 23 years of racing these bikes have been randomly jammed into the crawl space under the front stairs in the house for years, because sorting through it all would be a daunting and time-consuming task. Well ... I've suddenly found myself with more time than I know what to do with. A few days ago, I dragged ALL of the random boxes of parts out, spread them out on the floor and the workbench. I bought some stacking storage totes from Canadian Tire and organised them. Tote #1 has all of the internal engine parts. Tote #2 has suspension, brakes, and cooling system parts. Tote #3 has fuel and air intake parts. Tote #4 has levers, handlebars, footpegs, and engine case covers. Tote #5 has electrical and lighting parts. Tote #6 has small bodywork and frame parts. Not in totes: The original bodywork from both bikes and one half-decent salvageable set of fiberglass bodywork, plus two subframes, a brand-new-in-bag front fairing bracket, two OEM exhaust systems, two aftermarket exhaust systems. Crashed and mangled race bodywork is going away. Engine covers that have a hole worn through them are going away. A set of crankcases with a huge crack in them (someone crashed a bike at Bogie and I bought what was left of the engine to grab the internals) is being stripped of everything that could potentially be useful and is going away.
I found some stuff that I didn't know I had, including two almost-mint NRC engine covers. I gave those a coat of silver paint yesterday (they'll oxidize and look ugly otherwise) and installed them today, to replace the mildly rashed covers that were on the bike. I also took the clutch cover off and installed carefully-selected washers to reduce the clutch spring preload a bit (clutch actuation is way too heavy). And, the thing that made the biggest difference, I took apart the clutch perch and cleaned and lubricated the pivot for the handle, and lubricated the cable, and took the bike for a little test-ride. Much better.
I have a spare bone-stock engine that has been raced twice since being put together from spare parts, in 2013. The only thing wrong with it is that the crankshaft end seal inside the alternator weeps oil. A spare brand-new seal has been taped to the cylinder head as a reminder that I have to replace that seal someday in order to have a 100% good spare engine. That might happen at some point in the next few days.
If anyone needs a radiator for a FZR400, I have FOUR spares!
Riceburner
Well-known member
Would be tempting to put my YZF600R engine into a FZR400 frame.....
Which regulator and lithium battery did you go with?
I'm going to finally try and finish up my FZR this winter and may go for lithium as well... Last time I tried to finish the project I had a new AGM in there and it's since died because of my neglect ...
The place is still in business doing the same thing!
Caution, if you want to put this in the OEM location, you'll have to spend some time trimming the fins down. (Doesn't impair function, though obviously it'll void warranty!)
Any LiFePO battery with a battery-post arrangement that you can live with, will work. They all want the same charging voltage.
Caution, if you want to put this in the OEM location, you'll have to spend some time trimming the fins down. (Doesn't impair function, though obviously it'll void warranty!)
Any LiFePO battery with a battery-post arrangement that you can live with, will work. They all want the same charging voltage.
Wow! Was the cost much less when you got it?
Which kit did you go with or did go with only regulator?
The investment is much more than originally expected.
Motorcycles ain't cheap.
You can find that reg used, almost every bike manufacturer uses it. There are now two models, I don't remember the part numbers, but there is a pre Fukushima and post Fukushima (the company that makes the mosfets got washed away in the tsunami) part number. For our purposes they are functionally identical
You can get the install "kit" off Amazon cheap, it's a Triumph part... BUT beware when buying the reg, the internet is filled with knock offs that don't work
IIRC the cheapest OEM is off a CanAm and it's about $250 CDN
I don't recall them being close to that back when I bought mine. Still ... 11 seasons on, and no charging issues. I wouldn't doubt that a knockoff can be obtained much cheaper. What's that worth if it strands you on the side of the road? And then you get to do it again. Bear in mind that the stock FZR voltage regulator ... ain't wonderful. I've got a small stack of them which don't work.
If you opt to buy a used regulator, don't forget that you'll need the harness connector also.
If you opt to buy a used regulator, don't forget that you'll need the harness connector also.
Brian: I gotta ask: Why aren't you running dead loss?
That Shindengen Series RR is a god send, I use it on anything and everything. It'll do 1,2 or 3 phase, the new one is stronger than any motorcycle charging system I have found. If it has a shunt regulator, this reg/rec will work
That Shindengen Series RR is a god send, I use it on anything and everything. It'll do 1,2 or 3 phase, the new one is stronger than any motorcycle charging system I have found. If it has a shunt regulator, this reg/rec will work
He retired his FZR race bike. The FZR he uses is on the street.
Noted and yeah I won't buy knock offs. Found a used regulator off a 2012 Yamaha for $50 that I'll probably grab.
Don't see to see any harness though using the keywords 'harness' or 'wiring'. Is there another specific term that would help?
I bought a bunch of 'em off Aliexpress for $5 each
The trouble is probably that the connector is integrated into the bike's OEM wiring harness, making it hard to find out exactly what connector is needed. Buy complete kit including that connector and wiring = "make problem go away". If I were to do it again, I'd try harder to find a place to install the regulator on the bike that didn't require trimming the fins.
And yes, street bike, although I ran the same one on the race bike. Having a functional charging system means one less thing to worry about between sessions, and facilitates using the bike in an endurance race.
There is a Triumph "repair kit" that is just the pig tails
Do you have any extra generator/crankcase/clutch covers for sale, in particular NRC stuff?
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