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Old 11-11-19, 11:52 AM   #1
Seeker
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Default Gloom and despondency

I've put my Kawasaki H1F up for sale. It was a bike I always wanted but bit by bit the joy of ownership has been eroded. I don't know if you've ever ordered something and it arrived broken, even when it's been repaired the "magic" has gone.
I ordered the bike in February with the understanding it would be delivered in late May, it finally arrived in August. I paid £8500.
It arrived with a broken rev counter, missing seat trim and difficult-to-open petrol cap and seat latch all of which was declared by Triplesworkshop and promised to be fixed. Before I had a chance to ride it, a wire fell off a coil and reduced it to 2 cylinders and the oil pump started leaking.


This was repaired quickly but a couple of days later it started leaking 2 stroke oil profusely (a 12 inch x 4 inch puddle overnight), it misfired with the turn signals on when slowing down (covered in a service bulletin and I fixed that), it was overcharging the battery (typical for a triple and I fitted a special regulator). The fuel tap started to leak as did the fuel pipes to the carbs, the gear lever fouled the generator cover, I couldn't adjust the brake lever to get my foot on it (not such a big deal but it meant moving the hub lever on its spline and to do that the centre exhaust has to be removed). The sight glass on the oil tank leaked.
It was returned to Triplesworkshop for the niggles to be ironed out. On its return, on the very first kick, the kickstarter didn't return - the spring had either snapped or gone weak, the oil pump was still leaking.


Triplesworkshop collected the bike to install a new spring (requiring engine out and cases split) and that was the last time I saw the bike, this was in late September. They also fitted a new oil pump (finally) which stopped the oil leaks, a little worrying was that it had been starving the middle cylinder of oil which was surprising since it was smoking heavily. The day it was supposed to be returned the centre exhaust split and we had to wait for a replacement (already on its way from the US) to arrive and be rechromed.
I stopped thinking about it but then realised I'd stopped thinking about it! I also realised I didn't really care if it ever came back. Neil at Triplesworkshop has never quibbled about fixing the multitude of issues and admitted I've been unlucky. Still, I know if it had come back I would never be able to trust it. The magic, by this time, had totally gone. I have ridden a grand total of 60 miles, never went above 5000 rpm so didn't experience the massive powerband kick that starts at 6000 rpm and I feel totally miserable.
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Last edited by Seeker; 11-11-19 at 11:53 AM.
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Old 11-11-19, 10:45 PM   #2
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Default Re: Gloom and despondency

Sorry to hear that, you've been very unlucky with it.
But to be honest once the thrill is gone, it's almost impossible to rekindle it ... I think you're right to put it up for sale. I know a guy who restored an RD500 to as-new cosmetic condition, but it also had dozens of niggles that meant he was spending 8 hours fettling / fixing for every hour of riding. His passion for it just bled away. If it doesn't make you feel good, you'll never enjoy owning it.
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Old 12-11-19, 07:18 AM   #3
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Default Re: Gloom and despondency

I feel your pain. Not easy, but tell yourself "nothing venutured, nothing gained". Without a working crystal ball you could not have guessed that you would get so many problems with the bike. In the great scheme of things, whilst annoying, it isn't that bad and hopefully retrievable financially. All the best.
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Old 12-11-19, 11:10 AM   #4
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Default Re: Gloom and despondency

Well I hope you get your money back at the very least. They do say you should never meet your heroes, we do tend to see older bikes and cars through rose tinted glasses and forget the problems - maybe it is something to do with recapturing our youth ? Modern bikes and cars are much better put together, start first push of the button and generally behave themselves, rather than being an ongoing project to keep them running.
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Old 12-11-19, 11:35 AM   #5
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Default Re: Gloom and despondency

Quote:
Originally Posted by SV650rules View Post
They do say you should never meet your heroes
Coincidentally, I have an H1F road test in Classic Motorcycle Mechanics that expresses that sentiment.

I'm not totally over owning a classic 2 stroke, once the smoke clears and the H1 is sold but I'll do it differently next time. I will buy a runner and then decide about refurbishing.
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Old 12-11-19, 03:03 PM   #6
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Default Re: Gloom and despondency

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Originally Posted by Seeker View Post
I will buy a runner and then decide about refurbishing.
For what it's worth, I think this is the best approach, although it's getting much harder to find good 70s 2-strokes, as they're mostly well over 40 years old.

When I bought my GT380 back in 1998, it was 'only' 22 years old so components like the nylon oil pipe 'spider' from the oil pump and the oil line check valves all still worked fine, and because the bike was used regularly, they continued to work.

Those parts are now totally unobtanium, and I see many posts on the Suzi forums about split lines, dying check valves etc which basically takes these bikes off the road.

Much as it pains me to say so, Yamahas are probably the easiest strokers to restore and get parts for. Their oil pump systems are simpler (and can easily be deleted without ill effect if you need to). It's much harder to do that on Suzis or Kawas.

A lot of the crank and gearbox bearings on Suzis and Kawas are now no longer made, along with rods and pistons - but you can get all of these for most Yam strokers from the 70s onward. Also the LC and YPVS motors were developed into the Banshee quad engines and there's a lot of common parts.
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