Rebuilding a ZX9 - Can you get reco motors??

I am thinking of rebuilding the motor in my 1994 ZX9 and am looking for tips
from anyone who has rebuilt one of these motors before.

I would also like to know what price I can expect to pay for a changeover
reco motor for this bike? Do they exist?

Also, while I am rebuilding the bottom end, what should I have done to the
cylinder head? I dont want to change it too much from stock so I was
thinking of getting it crack tested and the deck checked as well as new
springs and valves as required.

What do you guys think?

BTW, its done 46000Kms ( going by the speedo )

--
Brenton Spear
Email: brenton dot spear at defconsystems dot com
Web: www.HostingLegends.com
Projectors: www.ProjectorSpecifications.com
Radio Control Trading: www.RCTradingPost.com

 

Ha ha; that typo makes it look like your bike has only done 46,000km!!
Is it actually 146,000 or 246,000 (or 460,000?)?
Clem

 

It is only 46,000 Kms, not a typo.

--
Brenton Spear
Email: brenton dot spear at defconsystems dot com
Web: www.HostingLegends.com
Projectors: www.ProjectorSpecifications.com
Radio Control Trading: www.RCTradingPost.com

 

Carbs balanced? Plugs fresh? Air filter clean? Valve clearances correct? Is
it making any horrible rattling sounds?

If the answer is yes to all of those, then consider getting it looked at and
make sure the rattle isn't just from the alternator chain tensioner getting
confused. Mine used to make a sound which people scared me with by telling
me it sounds like an awful case of piston slap. I took it to a surly-arse
mechanic who used to race B-Nines (talk about pushing shit uphill with a
pitchfork), he cocked one ear to it, pulled the clutch out to get at the
alternator chain, pushed the tensioner back onto it with his finger,
reassembled, and that made the noise go away.

Where are they? That motor has some rubber high-pressure oil lines; one up
the left side, feeding the cams from the oil cooler down on the cases,
another across the front of the cases, behind the headers... the heat does
cook the rubber and the lines can fail where they're crimped into the
banjos. The cam-feed one started to do just that on my Nine while I had it.
A $25 replacement from a wrecker fixed it.

Half a day to pull the motor out, a day to pull it all down, a day to
measure up and line up new bits to replace all worn bits, a day to put it
all back together, and another half a day to put it back in the bike and get
it running right again. ~30 hours in labour alone, and at $60/hour (more if
it's a rocket scientist tuner bloke), plus parts, don't expect much change
out of $2500. That way you'll be poor in both time and money...

 

Carbs balanced? Plugs fresh? Air filter clean? Valve clearances correct?

I will be balancing the carbs soon.
The valve clearances havent been checked. Do you have to take the motor out
for this?

Plugs, air cleaner, fuel lines & filter have been replaced.
I pulled down the carbs and cleaned all the shit out of them and reset the
needles to what they were before. I think that these are not setup
correctly.

Not really.

I may just get someone to have a look at the carb setup and see if it is
just a tuning issue.

One annoying thing it does is not turn over sometimes due to an electrical
fault. If I screw the collar that is sitting on the handle bar around that
houses the starter button that sometimes fixes it.

Brenton

 

Nope. In principle, all you have to remove to get at the cams is the tank,
airbox, ignition coils and leads, and cam cover. In reality, you'll need
some access, so you'll be pulling off the carbs, the fairing, as well as
unbolting the radiator and letting it dangle down by its hoses.

Sounds like it might've spent some months at a stretch sitting in a shed,
not being ridden. You wouldn't really expect crud to form in the floatbowls
in a newish bike that gets ridden regularly.

Then it probably doesn't need a rebuild. You still haven't said where these
oil leaks are coming from... also, does the bike burn oil between changes?

Whichever way, you're a long way from having a rebuild as your only
choice...

That's why you shouldn't switch your bike off with the killswitch, but with
the key.

 

Sounds like it might've spent some months at a stretch sitting in a shed,

Its a '94 model (B) so not too new

I have only had the bike for about 3000kms and I havent changed the oil in
that time. I think this weekend I will do that.

I cant remember where exactly the oil leak was but I think it was at the
front of the engine near where the header pipes go into the head.

Brenton

 

Wow - Someone wants to rebuild one out of choice!!

If you are going to rebuild one of these - How far do you want to go?
There are many things you can do to make them faster - but you also want
reliability. I went for the reliability side of thigs the last time the
SK900 was rebuilt ( not by choice )
If the motor is going to be stripped down - then be prepared for a hefty
bill at the end of it all !
Rings - Rings -Rings - These motors love rings - put new ones in - check the
valve clearances.

Have the Crank balanced & put new crank bearings in while your there.

Check the gearbox - Most of all look at the carbies - they wear out too!

You will find that alot of parts can be sourced for the ZXR750JKLM series,
The 750 has a better gearbox though.

Put a factory pro shift kit in it as well

That should see a $2k vanish quite quickly

Daron

 

There is two oil cooler lines about there
When you drop the oil - put new gaskets in

 

"Brenton Spear" wrote

Why are you rebuilding it then? My Guzzi was just getting bedded in
then. Got really good at 100,000.

Theo

 

I put sand on it.

 

[Big beery snort through the nostrils]
I'm listening to Roger Waters talk about Syd Barrett at the moment (on DVD courtesy of Brisbane City Council
Libraries).
.......but I don't s'pose anyone cares....
Clem
(JB Hi Fi has Roger Waters' "In the Flesh" for $22... Is it worth it?)

 

A top end rebuild (valve stem seals, reground valve seats, new piston rings, cylender honing,
new tappets, new seals throughout for my EL250 (same motor as the GPX) cost me $420 in
labour (7hrs)Then there was the parts which brought it up to about 900 including towing to the
mechanics to do the work Mines a twin, not a four, and i only had the top end tweaked.
So yeah, 2500 sounds plausible.

Mike.S

 

Go to the auctions and buy a wrecked ZX9 from which to pinch the engine. I'll wager it works out cheaper than a rebuild even if you
do it yourself. Then you'll have 2 engines and a whole load of spares!

A '94 model may be hard to find though... I see lots of '98+ model ZX9s at auctions.

Jules

 

46,000 Kms on the Speedo!! FFWWOOAAAWWWW!!!! THAT"S FAST!!!!! What does the
Odometer read?

 

Shine on you crazy diamond!

Sounds like it.

 

Ha ha ha. Very funny.

-----sharks