What did I do to my fj today?

[flips]

Scratched a few things of the to do list..

I bought an after market starter motor rebuild kit off eBay a few months ago as the starter has been struggling to turn the engine over for a long while..The old bearings were a bit hard to remove but not to bad.I found the aftermarket plate that holds the brushes and springs was a poor fit ( the insulator on the positive side between the brush plate and the brush/spring holder was poorly shaped and was interfering with the winding tail) with the  so I stuffed around with a file and made it fit properly.Proud of my modification I went to install the brush terminal screw and it promptly stripped the thread on the newly modified plate. .I fitted the new brushes ( the old brushes were completely stuffed) to the original plate and binned the new one.I cleaned up the commutator with some fine wet & dry and re- assembled with the nice new orings and reinstalled on the bike.cool.
Next the carbs.They had not been serviced for about 5 years so...pulled them out...stripped them down,,thoroughly cleaned then reassembled... adjusted float levels and put back on the bike.Started her up using make shift petrol tank...(rebuilt starter motor turned over like a champ...should have done it years ago... ) and then synchronised the carbs...they were way out!.Now happy with the carbs I thought a spark plug clean and re-gap was in order.Once that was done,put it all back together and went for a test ride.I think my fj loves me again....I still cant get the stupid grin off my face... .Cant wait till the weekend
Still on the list....HID headlight...new front disks....four pot calipers...fix oil leak on sump...bigger oil cooler...etc...etc.........

[Arnie]

Congratulations. :-)  Gudonya!!
Now that you have it running a BUNCH better, maybe its time to look at some of the other frequently overlooked maintainence items.
Things like changing fork oil, brake, and clutch fluid. 
You might even want to replace the brake lines that are way way past their use by date if original with a set of SS Braided lines.  This will improve your brake feel and power much more than new calipers and pads.
Don't forget a nice L O U D horn to try and get through to the thick Sydney drivers.
And, of course, all the other items on your round toit list.

Cheers,
Arnie

[flips]

Congratulations. :-)  Gudonya!!
Now that you have it running a BUNCH better, maybe its time to look at some of the other frequently overlooked maintainence items.
Things like changing fork oil, brake, and clutch fluid. 
You might even want to replace the brake lines that are way way past their use by date if original with a set of SS Braided lines.  This will improve your brake feel and power much more than new calipers and pads.
Don't forget a nice L O U D horn to try and get through to the thick Sydney drivers.
And, of course, all the other items on your round toit list.

Cheers,
Arnie

Hi Arnie
I'm fully with you on the thick Sydney drivers even though when I'm not riding I am one lol
Hidden under the front faring on my 86 is a set of twin air horns which are satisfyingly LOUD!.I installed them a few years ago after being cut off by some moron.I almost look forward to some idiot doing something stoopid so I can blast them with the horns!.I particularly enjoy their reaction,jump in the seat....slight screech of tyres as the get back in their own f'n lane and the ashen panicked "I think I need to change my undie's" look on their face as the look around for the truck they though they narrowly avoided as I cruise past giving them the bird!
I rebuilt the forks late last year,slides,seals and heavier for oil (50/50 10 & 15w fork oil) which was a great improvement.I think the heavy oil actually makes the much maligned anti dive work sort of...or maybe its just the increased damping...dunno.At the same replaced the bearings in the rear suspension linkages & swing arm.I have also have done the SS brake lines a long while ago along with fjr1300 brake & clutch m/c's.Again great improvements.As a general rule I like to change the fluids yearly.
The next thing I would like to try is a set of 89 fzr400rr four pot front calipers on the front which i saw here....
http://www.fjmods.btinternet.co.uk/BrakeUpgrades.htm#Anchor96821
I eventually found a set on eBay from an 89 fzr400rr which will bolt on to the fj anti dive forks (note- not all fzr400 calipers will bolt on,I know because Initially I got a set from an 87 model which do not ).
The problem I found is the fzr calipers were designed for solid discs and with the new set of pads I got,with the pistons fully in the gap for the disc is about 6.5mm.My ventilated fj disc's are 7.5mm.I will either have to find thinner pads,make the ones I have thinner or get some after market thinner disc's
Any way...better go do some work.
Cheers & ride safe!
Jeff

[Arnie]

Flips,

Even if the FZ400 calipers fit the mount ears on the A-D forks, will they be the correct distance from the axle for your smaller dia disks?
I'm pretty sure those are the same design calipers that the late '89+ bikes came with.  The magazine tests didn't show any improvement in stopping distance over the 2pot calipers, though the 'feel' may be improved.
Can you remove the anti-squeal shim between the piston  and the pad to give you some slight extra space for the ventilated disk?

Cheers,
Arnie

[flips]

Hi Arnie

From what I could find out on 89 fzr400rr spec's the disc diameters are the same even though they run a 17 inch front wheel.

http://www.fzr400.com/specs.htm

Comparing the surface area of the fzr & fj pads,they pretty much match exactly.Only the locating pins differ fzr-1,fj- 2.I already removed the anti squeal shims.
I'm thinking I might see If I take 2mm off each pad on my old mans milling machine and give that whirl.

Cheers

Jeff.

[MyOwnFJ1200]

i took it down to have a broken exhaust stud extracted