XS GP4 build

tmatter

XS400 Enthusiast
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Elkton, VA
Well I guess it's about time I posted something on here. It's only been 6 years since I've done anything and I am hoping that posting progress and checking in on other builds will help keep me moving. I started tearing into my first bike about 9 years ago after wrestling with wether or not one could cut a perfectly fine stock bike. Especially if it was their first Street bike. My conclusion was YES of course you can. As long as it's bad ass when done. So I started cutting. I cleaned up the wiring harness, installed clip-ons with a TTR-125 throttle tube and cable to simplify the controls. Installed a couple of micro toggles in the top of the head light and started compiling modern parts as I could over the years. R6 LED tail light, gsxr brakes and rear spring. Not necessarily going to use them but when the parts are free, you take the parts. In the past couple of months I have decided to change directions from hybrid new/old style cafe bike for something a little different. I'm going to build an XS400 based TZ750 clone. I figure with the bike a 78 the first year Kenny won why not? I've always loved the classic yellow bumble bee paint scheme of the old gp bikes. So thats the direction I've headed. One of the big challenges is going to be the tank. I've decided to shape and build my own. I'm going to try to keep this updated as things take shape but will be using my cell phone only as I find getting behind a computer tends to be a big disctraction and often very expensive. Here are a few pics thus far. This is the state the bikes been in the last 6 years or so.
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Shaping the tank for something more modern as a place holder until I get the TZ fairings in and do the final shaping. I didn't like the width at first so I added to it.
 

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Ordered new tires and went a half inch wider with some nice Avon's for a more road race look.
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Also while traveling for work found three stands for $55 on Craigslist so I scooped those up for the shop.
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Took the wheels home and took the tires off with a tire iron and three pieces of an old gain laundry detergent bottle. Didn't leave a scratch on the rims.
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took off the rotors and sprocket and taped up the bearings to prep for sandblasting. I plan on painting the wheels gold like Roberts 78 TZ.
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when done I want them to look similar to this..
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Spectra,

That's the hope. If I keep updating this thread it should give me some boot in the pants to keep me moving. I dropped the wheels off for sandblasting and they should be done this week. Tonight I need to weld up a leak in my diesel van and check with a screwy low voltage issue with the alternator. The bike is at the shop at work so it becomes a pain some nights when I don't want to stay at work any longer than I have to. Or is it more of a pain to leave and go home where I don't have nice tools and a clean place to work? I can never remember. :umm:But if you keep on me and if I continue to draw inspiration from your projects I'm sure I can get this thing wrapped up this winter. Between the project and the normal routine maintenance on my daily riders I have no shortage of things to work on that's for sure.
 
Here's a few shots of what the project was going to be before the changes.
My minimalist switch and warning lights.
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And the rear hoop made from an old bicycle frame that was to house the newish R6 LED tail light.
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Spectra,

That's the hope. If I keep updating this thread it should give me some boot in the pants to keep me moving. I dropped the wheels off for sandblasting and they should be done this week. Tonight I need to weld up a leak in my diesel van and check with a screwy low voltage issue with the alternator. The bike is at the shop at work so it becomes a pain some nights when I don't want to stay at work any longer than I have to. Or is it more of a pain to leave and go home where I don't have nice tools and a clean place to work? I can never remember. :umm:But if you keep on me and if I continue to draw inspiration from your projects I'm sure I can get this thing wrapped up this winter. Between the project and the normal routine maintenance on my daily riders I have no shortage of things to work on that's for sure.

Just keep at it...............my issue is I want to go home where I don't have the tools :laugh2: but it works better that way........I am at work 10 plus hours a day and that is just enough for me.......I gave up working on cars......so I bought the 400 ;)
 
Fresh out of the blasting cabinet.
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I also picked up the paint to get them looking the way I want. I was looking at Eastwood vintage racing wheel gold but they've discontinued it. Found a few other options but decided on the Duplicolor due to it's availability and cost. I've seen a few other projects of others using it primarily on car wheels. If I do the prep work right they should turn out pretty nice. They may not be the proper hue but they should be darn close. I am

going to use high temp. Primer especially for the center of the brake rotors.
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Although I'm not sure if I should make the center of the rotors black to match the calipers using high temp paint for that as well, or if I should just use the same gold I'm using on the wheels. I'm leaning on black like they were when stock. Too much gold and it will look like the bike Trump built. ( I hope that doesn't violate the no politics rules)
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I'm leaving in the morning for a father son campout this weekend and I have to pack tonight and straighten up around the house before I leave so I guess these wheels will have to wait until next week. UNLESS,...I take them with me. :sneaky:
 
Back from three days without a cellphone. Today I did out from all my missed messages and things I need to tends to and hopefully tonight I can get some primer on those rims. Also, I can start awaiting other small stuff I'll need like gasket set, carb rebuild kit, maybe order some of the fairings so I can continue on the tank lines.
 
Had a great father son campout that my church hosts every year. We had between 45-50 father's, son's, and grandfather's there this year. I got my wheels back from bead blasting last Thursday and I've been itching to make some progress with them. My short term goal is to get my wheels and tires all set up so they are ready to go. Then I'll mount them. I think seeing the bike in that state will really motivate me to keep making good progress.

So today I masked the rotors for high temp primer and paint and I did all my final prep for the wheels for their primer and paint coats.

I didn't have flexible masking tape so I had to improvise.
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All ready to go.
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Here's the results with the Duplicolor high temp primer and paint.
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With the rotors done I moved on to the wheels. The wheel on the left has it's first coat of primer. The wheel on the right is totally raw. Bead blasting left a great uniform finish. A local company did that for me. Big thanks to Shenandoah machine shop in Shenandoah Va. It's not something they do regularly but I know one of the owners and he enjoys bikes so he helped me out. Now I owe him some cold beers.
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Here's a nice sneak peek of the Duplicolor gold wheel paint.
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And here's the front all painted up sitting next to the fully primed rear. I am very happy with the results so far.
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My phone was dying so I didn't get a picture of both wheels painted before I went home. So you'll have to wait until I get them mounted to see how they turned out. I think they are going to look great and I was happy with the progress. Now I can't wait to try to mount the tires without dinging the paint. I have a trick I learned that I can't wait to try I'll document the process to share if it works. And for anyone who's curious I will be running tubes on these rims as they are not design to be run tubeless. That's all for now. Catch you guys next time.
 
Paint booth and your using a rattle can o_O they look great though!

Good to hear the weekend was a good time!
 
Yeah the booth is in a wood shop the guns are all air assist airless systems that spray lacquer. I'd have to invest in some guns to do it the right way. So for now, rattle cans it is.

You would be surprised what you find at Harbor freight :D I think I got a gun there years ago...........and yes I mean years ago at least 15........HVLP gun and have sprayed gel coat on the boat, paint on cars and also paint on doors for the house.......Best 30 bucks I have spent in years ;)
 
Ordered some stainless nuts for the sprocket today. Also had to use a thread file to touch up one of the studs in the rear wheel.

Still need to order the new chain and sprockets. Also, have to find my spoons to fit the new rubber on the rims. I think my wife "put them away" for me after I used them on my son's KLX.

Quick survey........I want to use paint markers to dress up the tires. What color do I do? White, yellow (to match the completed bike), or gold (to match the rims)?

I think I'll start with white. If that doesn't look good the white base will make yellow pop! And if it still doesn't feel right I can try gold.

Well I may have solved the paint markers riddle.
 
Sorry for the long delay. I was starting to think it might be years again until I could get back to it. I had been traveling for work but should stay home now for the rest of September so maybe I'll get something done. Let's see what's new.....picked up some new tools for the build. Well technically, for many future projects and maintenance.
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you have until the bottom of the post to guess what that is.

My new stainless sprocket nuts came it. Not quite sure if they'll work as they are a bit larger than the stock ones.
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I also decided that I wanted to safety wire the brake disk bolts because I love the way safety wired stuff looks and I figured it would make for a nice GP touch. Speaking of which,....anyone see Rossi broke his leg again?:yikes:
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Drilling the tiny holes for the safety wire was lots of fun. I was able to drill all the holes and only broke one bit. But my Dremel was hot by the time I got done. I still plan on cleaning the bolts up a bit to remove the corrosion and get some shine back.
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Since I have been focused on the wheels I figured I better get a balancer since I plan on mounting all my own rubber from here forward.........
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It's a cheap one from harbor freight but with a little mods it can be made to be much better. Besides, it's 1000% better than the one I had.
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I also grabbed the paint markers for the tires decided against the gold but White and yellow are still in the running.
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And lastly I decided to step up my shop game because squatting to work sucks. So I picked up a lift from Harbor Freight as well. It was on sale for $289!! I couldn't pass that up. I also bought a little tire roller stand for cleaning and lubing my chains.
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And before I hear it from anyone,...I know, I know. I really shouldn't have the bike on the stands up on the table without strapping it down. I couldn't contain my excitement. I had to see how it looked.

What's next?.. I still need to finish cleaning up some old brackets on the frame and then I can clean that up. But my next big step is the fairings. They will dictate the overall look of things so I want to wait until I get those before I proceed too far.
Where to locate the pegs?
Do I relocate the shock mounts to get the right stance?
The finalized shape of the tank, etc. There are smaller things I can work on but I really want to get that bodywork here and installed to go from there.
Hopefully this weekend I can get my tires mounted and balanced and possibly back on the bike just to so how it looks. Maybe if I spent as much time working as I spent documenting and posting I'd be done?
I appreciate everyone's input and the other threads here. It's all very motivation and distracting at the same time. In a good way.
 
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