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17" conversion

M

mcnpenfold

Bicycle
I've looked on the tech page, I found a ZX600D 93 Wheel assy for just under $100 for the front. I'm not thrilled about having to take the rear to a machinist for the rear, so that's going to get put off as long as possible. I'm having problems finding the ZX600D "Speedometer gear drive", which is the only thing holding me back from pulling the trigger. Does it go by another name?
 
Mitchell,
The machining of the mean streak rear wheel is pretty straight forward. Don't get all worked up over it. BTDT.
Matt
 
Cost $175 to have the rear wheel machine work done about a month ago.  I plead ignorant as to that being reasonable or not.  Nothing is cheap anymore.
 
It takes me about 30 minutes to machine a Meanstreak. I am in Houston.  Charge you $50.
 
Might as well take PBfoot up on that offer since a machinist who hasn't done it before will be looking for $200+

Even with shipping, you won't find cheaper.
 
Gotta find me a mean streak wheel now. Houston is only like 2 and a half hours down 45 for me too. Guess I'm putting off rubbers until I get the 17" conversion done for sure now. Thanks a lot guys, you make owning a C10 a lot less intimidating with the availability of parts dwindling.
 
You're right, it looks like 1292F is the temp I need to aim for, and 1112F is all my heat gun will impart into it. I suppose a butane torch would suffice.
 
connie_rider said:
I think I recall that someone moved the rear brake over. (Instead of machining the rear wheel).
(But everyone knows my memory sux)

See if you can find that mod.

PS: Is this the part you need?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/88-93-1988-1993-KAWASAKI-ZX600-SPEEDOMETER-DRIVE-ZZRM2-/301374331259?hash=item462b4f597b:g:MeQAAOSwF1dUUpDJ&vxp=mtr

I typed in ZX600 93 speedometer
Found a lot of the drives...

Ride safe, Ted
Click to expand...

I actually did the 17" rear Mean Streak wheel, and I used everything from the Mean Streak... and here's what I did!
I used my Sherline mini mill to take off just enough of the outer face of the caliper bracket, to fit the width of the swingarm. It was that simple, and I gained a two pot caliper, and a larger rotor... now the rest of the story.
The Mean Streak caliper will hit the right bag if you do not 'clock' it behind the rotor at about 8:30-8:45 on the 'clock'. I took the extra caliper stay I purchased on eBay for insurance, and cut the ends off and welded a longer piece of 1/2" stainless sch.40 pipe in place of the solid bar that was original, lengthening it to move the caliper into position behind the rotor. I also cut the inner ear off the caliper side of the stay bracket, to clear the rotor,  IIRC. It wasn't hard, and gave me the choice of returning everything to stock if needed. I really didn't want to weld a tube to the top of the swingarm to bolt the caliper bracket from the Mean Streak to it, as some have done on this forum, and my setup looks good, has a near 90deg. angle between the caliper and the stay, so all is well!  I have put around 7500 miles on the setup, with a Conti Motion set of tires, and the rear is a 170/60-17, fits well and rides real nice. The tire lowered the rear by about 1/2" or more, and I like the way it handles. Hope this helps!
Charlie
 
McnPenfold and his Tx Connie said:
said in the tech page that the mean streak rotor can me machined down (280mm I think) and work
Click to expand...

you are correct. you might consider which would be less costly.  either way, you definitely need a 280.  I have not done what yamahawk did, but had seen his posts on it.  seems a viable option.

also, to counter the slightly shorter height due to the wheel replacement, consider getting a used C14 shock to put on the rear.  it or a ZZR1200 have worked for others.  i used the ZZR on mine, but it is a bit soft for aggressive riding and two up.  it's ok, but the C14 would probably be a better bet based on my experience.
 
Pbfoot said:
It takes me about 30 minutes to machine a Meanstreak. I am in Houston.  Charge you $50.
Click to expand...

Pbfoot did mine, and turned it around crazy quick.  It would've been a deal at at twice the price.
 
PM me if you decide to do the machining on the wheel. I don't usually turn down rotors but I guess I could cnc mill it.
 
Pbfoot said:
PM me if you decide to do the machining on the wheel. I don't usually turn down rotors but I guess I could cnc mill it.
Click to expand...

For one to do the 17" conversion as I described is very easy, but it requires some manual labor to shorten the spacer and grind off the aluminum plate, so one must be careful not to over do it. For what you charge for the machine work, would make it a no brainier for me, and I would even bring the beer.
JD     
 
JDM said:
Pbfoot said:
PM me if you decide to do the machining on the wheel. I don't usually turn down rotors but I guess I could cnc mill it.
Click to expand...

For one to do the 17" conversion as I described is very easy, but it requires some manual labor to shorten the spacer and grind off the aluminum plate, so one must be careful not to over do it. For what you charge for the machine work, would make it a no brainier for me, and I would even bring the beer.
JD   
Click to expand...
I may try your setup. I like the idea of the 2 piston rear caliper. Already machined a brake caliper bracket down.
 
@ SportRider: I have access to a brake lathe to machine the rotor down to 280mm. As far as the suspension goes, wouldn't the back be sitting higher (depending on tire size) because I'm going up 1" in the rear and down 1" in the front?

@ TheDude: Appreciate you giving Pbfoot an endorsement. I look forward to meeting my first fellow CoG member.

@ JDM: TY for linking the bracket modification post. I feel like I'd be insulting Pbfoot if I turned down his generous offer now though. I also don't want to mess around with brake mounting parts too much, I want to upgrade the calipers in the future.

@PBFoot: I have access to a lathe big enough to do the brake rotors, but not a wheel. I wouldn't have expected you to do both. I will send you a message as soon as I have the wheel, and get to personally inspect it for damage, then we can figure out a date/time.
 
you are definitely going to change your handling dynamics, so check wheel sizes as you replace things.  there are some things you can do with the front end, particularly replacing the stock bars with something customized to attach to the top triple clamp with risers.  that allows you to raise the triples on the forks to adjust the front end for the change in the wheel.  in the rear, there are less options to offset the wheel height changes.  I had replaced the entire front end with the ZRX1100, so mine is different than what you are doing.  try the front replacement without any other changes though, to see how you like the feel.  you can adjust it from there to make it the way you want it.
 
The original owner put Heli bars on. They're great, I have them set pretty wide for low speed maneuvers right now, but I'm guessing going down to a 17" in the front will make parking lot turns easier still. Anything in particular I should take into consideration when adjusting them? Or just get them somewhere comfortable and easy to control? The front shocks are set with almost no preload right now, bumps that bottomed out my grom and some 250s that I've ridden didn't startle the Connie, however I've been feeling she's much more susceptible to angled grooves / ridges in the road, some of which I never even noticed on the grom. My front tire is pretty V Shaped compared to the U shape on the grom, so I attribute most of that to having tires that don't fit my riding style. Now, I haven't ridden the connie without the warped front rotor yet, so I have yet to feel what normal dive feels like and adjust for that.
 
McnPenfold and his Tx Connie said:
@ SportRider: I have access to a brake lathe to machine the rotor down to 280mm. As far as the suspension goes, wouldn't the back be sitting higher (depending on tire size) because I'm going up 1" in the rear and down 1" in the front?

@ TheDude: Appreciate you giving Pbfoot an endorsement. I look forward to meeting my first fellow CoG member.

@ JDM: TY for linking the bracket modification post. I feel like I'd be insulting Pbfoot if I turned down his generous offer now though. I also don't want to mess around with brake mounting parts too much, I want to upgrade the calipers in the future.

@PBFoot: I have access to a lathe big enough to do the brake rotors, but not a wheel. I wouldn't have expected you to do both. I will send you a message as soon as I have the wheel, and get to personally inspect it for damage, then we can figure out a date/time.
Click to expand...
No skin off my back if you want to go JDM's route. Offer is still open. If you run the 160/70 the bike will sit higher, if you run the 170/60 the bike will sit lower. RPM is slightly lower with the 160/70 and higher with the 170/60.
 
I have had no problems using all the stock Mean Streak rear wheel hardware. If you lengthen the rear brake stay from the Connie, it will bolt right up with about 5/32 or 3/16" taken off the outer side of the Mean Streak caliper bracket. Then just cut the inner ear off the rear 'U' of the lengthened Connie brake stay, and use the proper size bolt for the Mean Streak caliper threaded hole. If you find the write up I did earlier last year on it, there are pictures showing what I did.
You do not have to mess with machining the rear wheel, changing rotors, machining rotors, or anything else. Just narrow the caliper bracket, lengthen the Connie stay, and cut the inner ear off the rear of the stay. It bolts right up!
.... you DO have to measure and see where the caliper will sit to clear the rear right saddlebag, then custom fab a length of 1/2" pipe to fit, and weld the stay ends on the new pipe. That was the biggest part of the whole job!
Charlie
 
Appreciate the input Yamahawk, but I don't have access to tools I can use here to modify parts precisely enough for me to be comfortable with it. Most of my equipment is pneumatic, but I don't have a compressor, and wouldn't be able to hook up a compressor powerful enough at my home to run most of my pneumatic fabrication tools. If an afternoon, $50 and a case of beer gets that wheel modified so I can put decent rubber on my bike, I'm sold.
 
Hey, no problem, there is more than one way to skin the old cat hehe... I picked up a set of Hell Bars for a pretty good price last summer, and I really like them. I am going to pair them up with the riser extension that came on my 06 Connie, next spring, as I need longer brake lines to add the riser, and will do all that when I get the braided steel lines done. Have a great Thanksgiving!
Charlie
 
To the OP, I don't know if you've found a speedo drive yet, but just wanted to let you know that the Concours drive will work, but the speedo will not be as accurate as with the ZX6 unit.  The one that Ted linked to looks correct, but what is important is the gear ratio of drive.  The only difference between the Concours drive and the ZX6D drive is the number of teeth on the larger gear.  The gear itself can be swapped and can be had for about $21.00 new.

Otherwise it sounds like your well on your way with some help from some great people  :great:

Hope that helps.
 
I'm in the SF bay area, which is known for high prices.  I found a wheel machine shop that had a wheel lathe.  They only charged $50. 

All the regular machine shops would have to put it on a table and setup the cut in the CAD software, so it would have cost hundreds due to the time required.  The key is finding a shop that makes/repairs alloy wheels and has a lathe.
 
Thanks for the info GF-in-CA. I was a little concerned that the width of the speedo was different or something. I'll just use a gps app on my phone until I get sick of it.
 


[/quote]  I like the idea of the 2 piston rear caliper. Already machined a brake caliper bracket down.
[/quote]

I have been doing two pot rear brakes for several years now. My bike has a rear two pot from a 900 Vulcan. I have also done at least a dozen of the conversions of the stock 2 pot C-10 front calipers to fit the rear.
 
  I like the idea of the 2 piston rear caliper. Already machined a brake caliper bracket down.
[/quote]

I have been doing two pot rear brakes for several years now. My bike has a rear two pot from a 900 Vulcan. I have also done at least a dozen of the conversions of the stock 2 pot C-10 front calipers to fit the rear.
[/quote] Can you post a how to for the 900 Vulcan rear, please?
 

I have been doing two pot rear brakes for several years now. My bike has a rear two pot from a 900 Vulcan. I have also done at least a dozen of the conversions of the stock 2 pot C-10 front calipers to fit the rear.

[/quote] Can you post a how to for the 900 Vulcan rear, please?

[/quote]
I will need to take a picture of the rear caliper bracket but basically it requires welding a small tab onto the bottom of the existing
caliper bracket, then drilling and tapping one 10mm X .125 hole to line up with the stock Connie mounting link (the one that comes off of the rear axle). This is how I converted the stock Connie front calipers to fit the rear also. When folks removed there stock front brakes to do 4 pot conversions I would modify one of their old front brake calipers to fit the rear. The stock Connie front brake calipers are 2 pots (one small and one large) but they work great on the back also. I got the two pot rear brake conversion idea from T-Cro several years ago. 
 
hehe, I just leave a lot of air in the rear brakes so they don't affect much.  Those things are dangerous ya know.  :-\
 
Rev Ryder said:
hehe, I just leave a lot of air in the rear brakes so they don't affect much.  Those things are dangerous ya know.  :-\
Click to expand...

Rev you sound like the Nascar guys at Daytona when they back off the brake pads from the rotor so it doesn't slow the
car down during qualifying.
 
The Concours' rear brake is a problem in my world.  I basically neuter it so that it cannot be locked up no matter what.  It really isn;t all that helpful except at walking speeds anyway. IMHO that is.  So yeah.  Whatsa behinda me isa notta important.    ;D
 
Rev Ryder said:
"The Concours' rear brake is a problem in my world.  I basically neuter it so that it cannot be locked up no matter what". 
Click to expand...

That is one advantage I have found with the 2 pot brakes on the rear. I get much more consistent braking with less input.
The darn thing was always so easy to locking up with the single pot stock brake caliper. Of course this is just the rantings
of a non-papered engineer so what do I know.
 
Jim Snyder said:
Rev Ryder said:
"The Concours' rear brake is a problem in my world.  I basically neuter it so that it cannot be locked up no matter what". 
Click to expand...

That is one advantage I have found with the 2 pot brakes on the rear. I get much more consistent braking with less input.
The darn thing was always so easy to locking up with the single pot stock brake caliper. Of course this is just the rantings
of a non-papered engineer so what do I know.
Click to expand...
I feel ya bro. Not sure wat the 2 pots are like, but going to the 17 inch rear and slightly shorter tire makes  accidental over-brake/lockup even worse.  Leaving a little air in gives a very puny rear brake, but insures against lockup.  I don't feel I need a rear brake anyway, but it still lets me hit it in a panic and not scratch my helmet new Klim Carbon Helmet.  :rotflmao: 
 
I put an EBC organic pad on the back (kevlar I'm sure), FA85 is the part number I think. I like it because at low speeds it won't heat up fast enough to lock up the rear unless you just stomp on it, but at high speeds it gives you a second of safety before it really starts biting. I have been practicing my emergency maneuvers on the bike since it's new to me, and I can feel the braking feedback from the rear progressively get harder the longer I keep pressure on it, and I can modulate the pressure exactly where I want it after it starts heating up. I'm not super confident on the bike yet, but I have much more confidence in my swerving maneuvers with these over the sintered pads which could lock up on me a lot easier. I haven't installed the 17" rear yet as my tire still has about 70% tread and 3 years left on it, so I can't comment on the difference in performance there.

Once they're hot, they'll bite like a crocodile though.
 
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