An Extreme Makeover - GSX600F

This was most definitely an impulse buy and I was drawn by the colour. OK it's an old teapot but for it's age it's in pretty good nick and it certainly turns heads. When I first collected her the clutch was almost impossible to use and the drive train seemed a little "notchy". So I decided to investigate. The clutch cable had seized, the front sprocket had a tooth missing and two others were barely there. The rear chain didn't have teeth they were more like hooks. The clutch actuating mechanism's bearings were spread over the inside of the casing. A new cable and mechanism were ordered and also the standard sprockets. The poor little girl wasn't in the best of conditions and I knew I had to do some restoration work on her sooner rather than later. There was a lot of rust everywhere under her pink skirt. But all-in-all not to bad for an 18 year old bike. The tank had come apart at the seams so I had to get a new one. it cost me £25 from eBay. I shipped it to Derek who painted it for me. My aim is to make my lovely Pink bike a wheelie friendly machine so one tooth less on the front and three extra on the back should do nicely.

(Just click the image on the left to open a larger view in a new window)

Tank welfare	I thought she was using a lot of petrol. I could also smell petrol and was about to replace the tap until I saw the torrent of petrol dripping out...Poor Girl.
The raw material	There was only one thing for it, strip it down, wire brush all metal and then re-paint it with Hammerite.
Mid Frame Crisis	Oh dear, this needs a lot of work.
Crisis Over	A lot of work later and it's done.
The Other Side	A lot of work was needed on the otherside of the mid frame.
The Swingarm	I was expecting, bruised knuckles, cut fingers and broken nails. To my great surprise everything came off easily, nothing seized and the swingarm pivot bolts just slid out.
That's Better	Stripped, laid bare and covered with Hammerite. Should last a while now.
The Swingarm Done	Much wire brushing and cleaning then a fresh coat of Hammerite did the trick.
The RearShock	Really shocking this, it was in a terrible state. It had to be rebuilt.
Not shocking now	All the bearings were cleaned and some squishy grease squirted in. It looks nice now.
Another shocking view	This is another view of the swingarm assembly.
Tooth Less	One tooth less. I put a 13 tooth sprocket on the front. The original was 14.
Two more	Two more teeth on the back sprocket. This changed the final drive ratio from 3:29 to 3:70.
Swingarm	The swingarm is put back on together with the wheel and spruced up rear brake.
New Chain	A nice new chain was fitted.
Front End	The front forks were badly pitted so they were rubbed down and painted. I noticed there was a little leak in one of them so my friend Lozzo rebuilt them both for me and fitted new seals. Thanks you Lozzo.
Done n'dusted	All done now, just needs a MOT. Notice the front brakes? IT PASSED...