Been busy with the bike ...

[md86]

Okay , I have a list of things I'd like to do to the bike (don't we all ) , so I finally got around to doing some more of it . A week ago I pulled off my exhaust to repack it and TRY to paint it while I was at it . Spent probably 6-8 hours just trying to knock the rust off . Got most of it , but eventually got tired of messing with it and went ahead and sprayed it with some hi-temp header paint (good to 1500 degrees) . Can still see some rust under it , but not much . And no smoke from the pipes , and after 200 miles , it seems to be working just fine . Repacking wasn't terrible , but getting the can apart was a biatch . However , bike is sounding quite different . Quiter and deeper , I guess . Throttle also seems snappier . Went for a good long ride yesterday , and it kinda feels like I got a bit more power , too . Tosses me back in the seat more than it used to , anyway .
Also put on my Speedbleeders and changed the brake fluid . The old stuff was nasty ! Kinda brownish-purple color . Replaced it with some Valvoline stuff that's clear (bonus) and has a boiling point of 500 degrees . Thing stops a bit better now . Brakes bite harder than before with less lever travel . Those bleeders are quite nifty , too . Nice .
Just in case some of you were thinking about this stuff , I think it's worth it . Didn't cost much more than $20 for all the parts . And the brake thing took less than 2 hours .

[SweetLou]

So now you can stop faster when there is paint in the road!

[md86]

As long as I SEE the paint and try to avoid it , then yes , I COULD , in theory , stop faster .
prick

[Yellow]

Funny, I did similar stuff yesterday - that being painting the exhaust and repacking the muffler... We used a wire-brush on a electric drill to get rid of the rust, and put on 3-4 coats of black high-temp paint. Interesting to see how it'll hold up.

I wasn't initially going to repack the muffler, but when I took it off for the painting, I noticed that the glass fiber in it was black, vitrous and really nasty - so I got a bit carried away and tore it out. I was going to repack it with some rock-wool that were laying around, but then this neighbour dropped by and said it'd be a baaad idea (catching fire and whatnot - after some thinking I don't see how that would be possible though)... he said he always used steel wool (but that does burn, doesn't it?). I didn't have enough steel wool around to pack it full, so I just put in some and only riveted four holes to be able to make it home from where I work on the bike (the bike being my only transport). It is freaking loud, and a bit raspy now I will try around with some more wool later this week if I find the time... If it's not sounding the way I want I'll pick up some real glassfiber stuff at the dealer.

While the headers were off I took the opportunity to get rid of the Fram oil filter I unknowningly put on in September, and change my oil to Castrol GPS 10w40 (JASO-MA). The bike seems to respond better on throttle and shift easier, but that's probably a placebo effect...

I also verified my brake discs to see if they were warped and surely enough one of them is slightly off Enough to let the brakes pulse slightly, especially at low speeds. So then I tried two used discs I bought on eBay, and they were even worse The guy I bought them from are getting an angry email...

[SweetLou]

Hey Yellow, I can use a vaction to Europe. If you pay for me to come to Europe, I will kick that guys arse for you!!!

[Yellow]

Thanks for offer Lou, I think it'll be cheaper to buy some high-end aftermarket discs though

When I asked him he was like - "they are in perfect condition". I did buy them several months ago though, just never got around to mount them. Hope I'll be able to get hold of him. My bad I didn't try them out straight away.

It was difficult to tell by the eye, it was first when I mounted them that I noticed they were bad... I'm not buying any used brake discs from unknown sources in the future, that's for sure.

[SweetLou]

Thanks for offer Lou, I think it'll be cheaper to buy some high-end aftermarket discs though

Sure, get my hope up. Here I was looking forward to eating ships with mayo, and beer anywhere I go.

[WildKat]

What made it so difficult to get the can apart to repack it? Thanks for the info

[md86]

What made it so difficult to get the can apart to repack it? Thanks for the info

Dunno why it was being so stubborn really , but I can guess . It'd be my guess that it was probably NEVER done before , so the combination of time and elements (dirt/corrosion maybe) made it more stubborn . Plus there's a bit or rash on it , so THAT probably didn't help matters any . I actually called Yoshi to see if there was a "trick" I was missing , and they just said that sometimes they don't like to come apart , and to hit it harder !

[katana_j]

Hey yellow,I like those rims on your kat,Are those rims only available on katana's sold in europe,Or are they from and earlier GSXR?