Riding old dungers ........fast!

Put good tyres on it and it will weave down the straights let alone through the corners hemi. They braced those frames when they raced em and they still flexed. Small tube, thin walls and no knowledge except how to make powerful motors.

Hmmm, sounds like most of the Valiants I have owned....

Great fun in a straight line though.


I dunno it's just I have fallen in love with the sound of those tripples, ever since whoever it was posted up the links. Funny thing is, it is the idle which sounds the most full on. Ah well back to the R1 for me. Oh and maybe something else to race but that will have to wait until I know if I can afford it.....

Holy thread revival....!!!

I love my old bikes much more. It forces me to ride with good 'discipline' and not throw it around recklessly like on a nimble ZX6R.

Hence I think I ride quicker and safer. Can't even remember running wide which I used to do on new bikes!

It forces me to ride with good 'discipline' and not throw it around recklessly like on a nimble ZX6R.

Yes, you have to be smoother and think even further ahead.

But we would ride the feckin things until they were bucking and kicking and wobbling all over the place. The frames would flex, as would the forks and swingarm. It was a fairly wobbly old piece of kit to go fast on. But go fast we did.

Maybe I am just getting older, or maybe it's the speeds at which modern bikes start to get wobbly like that, But I am finding less and less opportunities on the road to get anywhere near making my 9 start to get wiggly! And even on the track once they start getting like that I start toning things down to a more managable level!

This is what I love about my old bikes! Even the gpz900 is too fast for me as it is steady as rock. But my 82 gpz750 would wobble at mere 90-100kph coming out of corners in the spurs. Guess which one I take out more these days??

My zx6r and then R6 would do 200kph like nothing. It's good but not good if you know what I mean

geez seeing this old thread brings back some memories old bikes - how good are they ?

At the moment I am riding the 'winter' bike - an old GPz1000RX. Has good tyres fitted and with only 43k genuine on the clock - it still goes OK for what it is......an old dunger. At least it has a good motor in it - the grand-daddy motor for the ZRX 1100/1200

I find it interesting that my air cooled 82 GPZ750 motor spins much more "freely" above 7-8k compared to GPZ900R

Unfortunately I have never ridden a brand new, factory GPZ900R so I don't know how it should be. I watched few youtube videos to compare. I changed the airbox and carbs from A2 model as I thought the restriction on the A7 caused it. Improved a bit but still does not give you that "zzzziiiing" of the GPZ750

The 900 had been sitting for 5yrs when I bought it.... any thoughts?

the old GPz900's should sing through to 9-10k without too many issues? May need valve clearances done and a carb balance - that always makes then run better. Also - if the cam-chain is the OEM one - changing that and fitting a manual CCT can often get the engine working a lot crisper

Thanks, I'll check the valve clearance as the warmer weather sets in. I "felt" it's more mechanical rather than fuel/sparks. Because it does get there but not as rapid... Yes I've balanced the carbs as well both on the original carbs and replacement.

Also planning to get one of those ape manual tensioner. But the stock one does seem to do its job. The engine is quiet.

the old GPz900's should sing through to 9-10k without too many issues? May need valve clearances done and a carb balance - that always makes then run better. Also - if the cam-chain is the OEM one - changing that and fitting a manual CCT can often get the engine working a lot crisper

Are you saying don't buy another OEM chain? Mine has the original chain at 168000km AFAIK. Changed the tensioner for a KLR650 (IIRC) one in 1998.

the old GPz900's should sing through to 9-10k without too many issues? May need valve clearances done and a carb balance - that always makes then run better. Also - if the cam-chain is the OEM one - changing that and fitting a manual CCT can often get the engine working a lot crisper

Are you saying don't buy another OEM chain? Mine has the original chain at 168000km AFAIK. Changed the tensioner for a KLR650 (IIRC) one in 1998.

no mate I just meant replace with a new OEM cam chain.

One other thing worth checking out on the old 9's - if you have the time and inclination and the tools - is the restriction in the exhaust section of the cylinder head. Old mate at work was telling me today that when his 900R head was off for some work - they noticed the restrictive profile of the exhaust port. Opened it up with some port work - and he reckons it absolutely flew after that work.....

Ta mate! Might be why the RX1000 had hand polished exhaust ports!

Well this afternoon I took out the carbs and start with the 'basic'... found teared membrane when inspecting under the light.

So I took out the spare carb and proceeded to replace it.. guess what another hole... so in fact I had 2 set of carbs with holes in them.

Swap out the rubber accordingly and will test tomorrow

The gpz900r screams to redline now that it's running 4 cylinders



Black r6 was too greedy with the throttle and written off few bends forward