- Directional tyre fitted the wrong way around
- Im amazed that this has gone unnoticed as its pass at least two MoT's on this tyre. I can't believe i didn't notice though either. Anyway, i'll have to get the tyre changed around as the wheel is not reversible.
- Near side fork oil seal leaking
- Ive stripped down the shock and removed the seal. Replacement on order together with some fresh fork oil.
- Front and rear brake disk nuts loose
- Easily fixed but I'm miffed i missed this. I'll stick some loctite on them this time.
Oh the wow's of an old bike. I took a ride out with my son to Cheddar Gorge on Sunday but never made it as the battery died on me just outside the village. The bike basically stalled at low revs when I used brakes or indicators which could be caused by the drain on the battery from the lights causing a low spark. So, it sounds like the battery isn't being charged when the bike is running as id been on the bike for a good 45mins. Here's a video (not mine) on how to diagnose charging issues. Step 1 - Connect a DC Volt meter across the battery and check the voltage With the engine not running it should read over 12volts With the engine running (around 4k revs) the meter should read between 12 and 13 volts I found that my battery voltage didn't increase with the engine running and in fact reduced especially when the brakes or indicators were switched on. Symptomatic I guess of a failed regulator. Step 2 - Check and test Dynamo stator This can be checked at the connector rather than removing the stator case but I wanted to check the cables too. Checking from the plug is also using the wiring loom. The yellow cables all go to the Regulator/Rectifier. To test unplug the connector and check the resistance between each of the cables. The reading should be between 0.5 and 2ohms. Mine read 0.9ohms. Step 3- Check and test wiring loom The insulation on the wires shows some deterioration and has cracked near the case and could easily short to ground..which wouldn't be good. I used some heat shrink to repair the insulation and took the opportunity to also replace the connectors. Step 5 - Replace Regulator/Rectifier So my regulator/rectifier looked faulty so I replaced it. I also took the opportunity to replace the connector as it looked like the battery side (output) had melted at some point in the past and had been bypassed. Replacement Regulator/Rectifier
Interestingly the original part was SH230-12 0.1 where as the replacement is SH530-12 1.5. I haven't yet found what these reference numbers mean but replacing the unit seems to have done the trick as I now see the battery voltage increase with rev's.
Every Thursday night between May and September is Weston Bike Night. Its £1 to park up and gaze around at other bikes and all money goes to the poppy appeal.
Jerry emailed through some cracking photos of a trip he had with the Zed down to the South of France in 1982. I have posted then to a Past Times gallery of Photo's.
I had an email from Jerry Johnson who apparently is the chap who sold the bike to Phil back in 1984. Jerry tells me that he was the second owner and therefore Phil was third and that he had a great time with the bike and even toured down to the south of France visiting Nice and Cannes. Jerry knew Phil and its first owner Simon Leach through the fact they all worked at Rolls Royce in Patchway, Bristol.
I love getting more information on the bike's history and hopefully Jerry can dig out some photos of his time with the bike. Meanwhile she is running like a dream and I even found a break in the clouds on Mothers day and took a ride over to see my mum. Doesn't get much better .. I went out for a quick ride last night and so far so good she ran well. In fact she ran very well and id forgotten quite how lively she is. MoT next then ..
Believe it or not i am still chasing the running issue due to a complete lack of time over recent months. A recap on the issue as the symptoms seem to have changed: Cyliders 1 & 4 are running hotter than 2 & 3. The engine isnt running smooth and pops and misses when riding although doesn't when rev'd in neutral. After a few mins of running measuring the exhaust temperatures near the collets with a temperature gun (thanks for the pointer Taffus) 1 & 4 run at 140 deg 2 & 3 run at 30 deg I have ...
I think next is to check out the IC Igniter but am open to any other suggestions. **** Update 16th July 2015 ***** The compression tester arrived today so I ventured out into the garage. Results @ 20 C Cylinder 1 = 8 bar (112 PSI) Cylinder 2 = 7 bar (100 PSI) Cylinder 3 = 8 bar (112 PSI) Cylinder 4 = 7 bar (100 PSI) These are apparently ok. **** Update 18th July 2015 *****
**** Update 19th Jul 2015 **** Still wouldn't start even with a full charge on the battery. One of the suggestions through the Z1 Owners forum was to synchronise the throttle bodies. I don't have the gauges to do this properly but another post suggested a quick and dirty way was to prop open one butterfly with a small drill bit and then adjust the others using the same sized drill bit as the guide - this way they all open the same. So i removed the throttle body (getting to be a dab hand at that!!) and adjusted as required - which wasn't too much but never the same they did need changing. I also went through the motions of verifying that the ignition pickup coils were aligned when the cylinders were 'top dead centre' TDC. To do this I removed the spark plugs and then used a small bit of dowel down into the cylinder to gauge when the cylinders were at the top of their rotation. Obviously 1 & 4 are the same as are 2 & 3. When the cylinder was TDC i checked the alignment of the pickup to the center rotator. The plate did need a small amount of adjustment to correct the alignment. Finally I put everything back together ..and she still wouldn't run. I went back to basics and verified I had a spark on each plug then changed the plugs back to the original BR8ES plugs I was using right at the start...and she bloody started. Only running on two cylinders mind you but started all the same. So unless I'm going mad I have a bad set of plugs. The other set I have are B8ES so I don't really want to start mixing as they'll be mismatched and I'm not sure what results to expect let alone any impact. I suspect mixing plug types wouldn't be a good idea as there would be an unbalance in sparks delivered to each cylinder.
The plug with the 'R' has a 5k ohm resistor which acts as a noise suppressor for sensitive ECU's and that interference we used to hear when listening to AM radio when a bike went passed. Thats great but the downside is that it lowers the voltage and therefore you get a weaker spark at the plug. I therefore changed my plugs out to the non-resister type B8ES. With the BR8ES plugs fitted I saw cylinders 1 & 3 running warm and 2 & 4 cold. I draw therefore that the plugs in 1 & 3 are good. So I swapped plugs 1 & 4 and low and behold 4 started running hot and 1 cold ..which sort of proves the point. I won't have any time this week now so have ordered a set of B8ES plugs ready for next weekend. **** UPDATE 26th July 2015 **** She now starts and purrs . I just need it to dry up a bit outside so I can take her for a spin to confirm she runs ok under load. I managed to clear out a few issues along the way but having just gone right back to basics I appear to have found two faulty spark plugs - WTF! Replacing them with a brand new set has done the final trick. Yes, i did swap plugs around but i think the other issues were masking visibility of a plug issue. Injectors tested and cleaned - They weren't balanced and one was pretty ropey. I found some on that popular trading site but when tested I only managed to salvage 2 out of the 4 but I finally had a balanced set and a spare. Coils and wiring - one of the HT leads had been making contact with the engine and had some heat damage so i replaced it. Also, stripped down and cleaned the low tension side connectors as they were looking a little tarnished. Throttle Valve butterfies - Adjusted (sync'd) but only using the 'drill bit method'. I'll revisit this when i get some gauges. They were slightly out .. Cylinder compression test - As advised I tested this, which came out ok. Pulse pickup sensors out of alignment. Cleaned and resistance tested both cold and under heat. So it looks like the 'C' and 'F' may just be some date or batch reference rather than a change of spec. I had all 8 of the injectors tested and it looks like 1 of my originals was bad while 3 of the ebay purchased ones aren't looking too good either. The 4 underperforming injectors are going back on the machine to see if they can be recovered but its not looking too promising. I have a set of 4 now though that I can put on the H and hopefully get back on the road.
25/5/2015 - UPDATE: Injectors appear ok but she continues to sound lumpy. The exhaust pipe connected to cylinder 2 is much hotter than the others so ill investigate this further .. Coil Wiring |
AuthorShaun Chivers. Archives
August 2016
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