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ZX600c 1989 Stormtrooper Build

4K views 16 replies 5 participants last post by  metalpeddler88 
#1 ·
So I picked up my first bike a few weeks back now. I posted about it in the noob section a while ago. I enjoy doing build threads cuz they keep me motivated so here goes

Picked it up on a tuesday night at 8pm and paid 360$ for it. Rode it home (first time on a bike bigger than a 80cc lol) and instantly fell in love. PO said the head gasket was good but after a few days of riding I decided to do a compression test and got a whopping 5psi in cylinder 4. Off came the head right away. After a bit of cleaning and inspection I decided to order a new used head from ebay. Found one for 75$ that supposedly ;) had 19k on it. Head came in the mail last night and looks to be pretty damn straight with no stuck valves.

Somewhere in there I went nuts and probably spent around 800$ on parts. Ordered:
-Clymer manual
-head gasket
-exhaust gasket
-spark plugs
-new oil/filter
-pod style air filters
-carb rejet/rebuild kit
-LED headlights/steel for custom bezel
-all parts to repair my choke and hand controls (was a manual bicycle wire style choke lol)
-breathers for PCV and crankcase
-new battery
-heavy duty cooling system flush fluid for rust


Almost all of it has arrived so almost time for reassembly. Yesterday I re-jetted the carb for the first time (fingers crossed its good enough). Today ill be block sanding the new head... Going to take the head and as many parts I can into work to use the parts washer tomorrow.

Excited to get started on this thing! Think I'm going for a one-off streetfighter Stormtrooper look. Not going to start with any aesthetics until I get the bike clean and running great. Only time I ever got to ride it was was on three cylinders lol.

Now for a few pics so you know the piece of junk I'm working with

Night I brought it home:



Took the front end off to see if I could make any kind of headlight mount that would look good with stock gauges


Didn't like it at all so off came the gauges. Going to go with the Vapor gauge system eventually. Then grabbed these lights that will end up somewhere around here...


Some point the head came off. Pistons dont look terrible so I'm not going to mess with them


New head came so started cleaning


Pile of parts


Lastly the rear fairing ive been eyeing



Going to make a run to the stores and get materials for the head...
Hopefully will get that resurfaced and then i'll be off to my first MSF course tonight!
 
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#5 ·
Haven't had much time to work on the bike... Did resurface the head and slapped that on. Also finished off the Carb! Deciding if I want to RTV the oil pan on or actually order the gasket. Don't really want to wait for the gasket...

I think I'll have more time this week to get it running!
 
#6 ·
Well I threw the head on tonight and worked on getting the cams back in. Realized the junkyard that sent me new head sent me two #6 camshaft caps -_-
Hoping it'll be alright... Pretty mad though.

Thought I had it all together but must've got timing wrong. felt it not want to turn... I said **** it and turned out the lights. I'll give it another shot in a day or two
 
#7 ·
Well made at least 6 attempt at getting the timing right... I'm turning the crankshaft by hand and once it gets one time around at TDC again it binds up and won't turn anymore. Not just compression resistance :/ reset the cams so many times I lost count.

So I spent the last hour dressing everything else up so its ready to run once timings correct. Just got to finish painting the exhaust tomorrow and then only thing left will be to fill up fluids and put valve cover back on.

Asked a buddy to come help with the cam setup later this week. Have pretty good amount of faith in him.

Really sick of this engine bullshit... Just want to get back to the fun stuff.
 
#9 ·
Cutting the mufflers in half will likely need carb rejetting, unless it was running rich (with extra fuel) before the muffler change.


Changing the air filter to more free flowing and changing the airbox are even more likely to need carb rejetting afterwards.
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#11 ·
Well I figured out the timing issue, since I was putting a new used head on I hadn't backed off the nuts for the valve guides... Was just enough off to restrict it.

Loosened them all up and got it right first try! Adjusted the valve spacing then put the bike back together. Filled up all the fluids and started it up... started the third time on the starter but the idles way too high. Prolly at around 8000 RPM high.

Figure the issues somewhere in the carb since I just retted it. Will look into it more tomorrow.
 
#12 ·
Since you already rejetted for intake air changes, the jetting might still be close enough for exhaust changes- only 1 way to find out.

I would check the adjustment for the throttle cables first- both where they attach to the carbs and for the knob that turns by hand for the pull cable.
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#14 · (Edited)
Success!!!

Got the bike running pretty well tonight! Took it all back apart and put it back together. Have a hunch that it was the idle mixture screws but cant tell for sure. Hopefully this weekend ill find time to tune the Carbs. Got a few new leaks out of the transmission and forks though so seals are on their way.

After my riding course tonight I ordered the trailtech Vapor gauge system so now starts the fun stuff! Stay tuned!
 
#15 ·
So I finished my riding class yesterday! Waiting on certificate in the mail then I will go get my permit.

Tried to go on a ride with a few friends yesterday but engine started having major trouble. It felt like the power would drop and come back at random... My buddy thought it meant the carbs weren't jetted correctly but I was almost certain carbs weren't the issue since I had ridden it last week with no problems... Pulling plug wires and checked compression on cylinders... all cylinders over 150psi so no problem there. However, when I pulled the cylinder two spark plug I realized the old plug seal was attached to the plug along with the new. The old seal must have been in the head still when I installed plugs.


Slapped it all back together and hoped it would work. Didn't
Checked spark and realized cylinders 2&3 weren't sparking consistently. So checked pos/ground to the coil and found them pretty loose. Squeezed female ends with pliers and reinstalled: seems to be fixed!

Because of all the engine trouble I didn't have time to get to installing the headlights/gauges so hopefully I have time this week.

Here's how she sits now when I rode to school this morning:
 
#16 ·
Very bad news. Oil and water are mixing again. Even after I just did a head gasket and new head...

I'm stumped. I though the water pump looked pretty good so didn't think that could be the problem.
So, if it isn't the water pump what could it be? Wouldn't it have to be a hole in the block spilling coolant into the oil? How screwed am I
 
#17 · (Edited)
On top of the motor, there are the two coolant connectors. I wonder if there is a crack around/inside that? Add some pressure to the coolant lines in the motor and see if the pressure drops. Or if you have the valve cover off, you may be able to visually inspect for coolant.
The other thing I would look at is the head bolts. Did you torque them down correctly in the right order? If not, it could be the gasket. One side of the head is tighter than the other.
It's just a thought, but I wish you luck! I've got a 1990 version, and in a similar situation. Just can't get it running right. :(
 
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