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FZ1 mod on a 1986 FJ1200

Started by racerman_27410, February 10, 2009, 03:34:47 PM

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racerman_27410

FZ1/FJ Forks and Swingarm Conversion by Frank Moore

I originally intended to modify my 86 FJ1200 using the tried and true YZF600 mods but was having trouble locating all the parts necessary to to do the conversion. One day I decided to visit my local bike salvage yard and actually bumped into a wrecked 2001 yamaha FZ1. Looking closely at the forks and swingarm I decided to attempt grafting them onto my bike.


Front Forks - " The more things change the more they stay the same" This is very simple process as all you need to do is mill 2mm from each of the four holes in the stock triple clamps and 2mm out of each handlebar. The stock parts are 41mm and the FZ1 forks are 43mm


comparison photos of the FZ1 and stock FJ triple clamps







the stock FJ triple (left) is actually beefier than the FZ1 unit so i used it   ;D




Voila`( yes its that easy) the front end just slips right in. Connect and bleed the brakes you are ready to ride ( almost ) here is the only downside to this conversion - you lose the speedo drive from the front wheel. I took care of this problem by installing an electronic unit from Acewell with the pickup on the front left brake caliper.





this serves as Speedometer,tach,fuel gauge,oil temp gauge,voltmeter,dual tripmeters,max speed average riding time etc etc   ;D

. One bonus of using the FZ1 front end is that the FZ1 top plate fits right onto the FJ allowing the use of Superbike style handlebars in any rise and bend you prefer. The stock FJ ignition switch fits right on to the FZ1 top plate even retaining the steering lock! I call this my touring setup and it takes less than an hour to swap from my stock bars to this more upright riding position.

FZ1 top plate




Front end complete







   

       
Swingarm and rear wheel - First I used the method Barry described in his Thunderace swingarm conversion, pressing in the bearings further into the FZ1 swingarm using a bolt, nut and flat washers to ride against the bearings. I used the stock FJ inner bushing to guide me as to how far to go ( approx 2.5mm off each side ). After pressing in the bearings I cut off the excess material with my all singing, all dancing Dremal tool. For assembly I re-used the stock FJ inner bushing, thrust washers and end caps along with the stock pivot bolt. No need to worry about centering the wheel in the swingarm as its aready done for you. Torque to spec.
Note :- This setup will not work with the stock exhaust as the meaty 5.5 inch rear wheel and swingarm are too wide and will hit the silencers. With my Supertrapp exhaust I simply rotated the S-pipe and put the mount on the outside of the passenger peg mount instead of the inside.
Mounting the swingarm was the easy part and the rest would have been even easier had I owned a later model FJ with the dogbone style shock linkage. As it was my 86 shock had an eye mount both top and bottom. My new setup was going to require a clevis stlye lower mount like the 89 and up FJ`s have . I wound up sourcing a shock and lower pivot from an 89 FJ. The dogbones I used are handmade adjustable units but as decribed elsewhere on this site its easy enough to make your own using flat plate.
       
One other problem concerned the rear brake light switch which was interfering with the swingarm during its stroke. I used a hydraulic banjo bolt brake pressure switch from Four strokes only -


Next we approach the drive chain. Being that the wheel is wider I sourced an offset countershaft sprocket originally for a Honda VF1000R (86-87 model ) the sprocket has an offset on both sides. I ground one side of the sprocket offset flush and fitted the sprocket onto the bike with the factory offset to the inside facing the engine. Stepping it out just the right amount.
This left just enough room to get the locking tab and nut on the shaft and it all lined up perfectly with the new rear sprocket. The FZ1 wheel comes with a 44 tooth sprocket and with my use of a 18 tooth countershaft sprocket managed to keep gearing basically the same as the stock 17/41. Remember the rule one tooth on the front = three on the rear.


rear end complete







There you have it; this conversion netted me an impressive 20.1 lb reduction in unsprung weight and improved handling in spite of lengthening the bikes wheelbase by 1.5 inches. By raising the rear ride height I altered rake from the stock 27.5 to 24.5 and trail from 5.5 to 3.5 inches. Handling is very precise now with great turn in and feedback from the front wheel thankfully the tendancy to stand up under braking is MIA. and I can shop for tires to my hearts content.
The brakes are very progressive especially the rear which combined with the stock FJ master cylinder resists locking and has better feel than any rear brake I`ve ever used. The front brakes are equally impressive with the FZ1 master cylinder.They give good feel and serious power. Enough to lift the rear wheel of the old girl and put me on the windscreen  ;D

My favorite has to be the modern meaty 180/55-17 rear tire. It really brings the bikes proportions more in line with modern motorcycles as well as offering greater tire selection and traction for the torquey grunt of the FJ. I wanted to try and keep the bike as stock looking as possible,with modern suspension, brakes and wheels.   8)




ogmudbone

sweet! thanks for the write up and the great pics


Ogmudbone
What do you want to do with your life? I wanna rock!!!

Mark Olson

Mark O.
86 fj1200
sac ca.

                           " Get off your ass and Ride"

karstenp

Amazing Frank...... seeing what you have done makes me want to shake out the cobwebs and wake up the mod bug.....
92 FJ1200 - Ontario, Canada
07 FJR
IBA #411

racerman_27410

Quote from: karstenp on February 12, 2009, 06:59:56 PM
Amazing Frank...... seeing what you have done makes me want to shake out the cobwebs and wake up the mod bug.....


it's easy..... just get some parts and then make them fit  ;D


KOokaloo!

Frank

Davetammy

Frankie baby,you are an inspiration!!!That is a sweet little m/cycle.And that was probably the easiest and best explanation for those mods that I have heard so far.Thanks mate,Dave. :)
FJ1200/92 Hayabusa1300/2007

Yamifj1200

Quote from: Davetammy on February 12, 2009, 09:19:15 PM
Frankie baby,you are an inspiration!!!That is a sweet little m/cycle.And that was probably the easiest and best explanation for those mods that I have heard so far.Thanks mate,Dave. :)


It also works pretty good on a late model,,,



Eric M


http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=14833.0


"All unattended children will be served an espresso and given a puppy"

tqmx1

Frank your next mod is a 02 or later R1 wheel in your FZ1 swing arm (It fits with not much modding) Look in the FZ1 web site it's all there.

Kim ;D

Harvy

Dave, as EricM said........you will see it in a couple of weeks on mine.

Harvy
FJZ1 1200 - It'll do me just fine.
Timing has much to do with the success of a rain dance.

Davetammy

FJ1200/92 Hayabusa1300/2007

markfjer

hi Frank

got to ask did you get things like the fuel gauge/rev counter to work ok???

any "big" problems with the clocks???

Regards Mark

racerman_27410

Quote from: markfjer on March 08, 2009, 01:50:45 PM
hi Frank

got to ask did you get things like the fuel gauge/rev counter to work ok???

any "big" problems with the clocks???

Regards Mark


Mark,

yes you do lose the speedo drive with the FZ1 conversion but all the other gauges work just as factory.... i took care of the speedometer situation by installing one of these very nice units...




it has a tach, oil temp, fuel gauge,voltmeter, dual trip meters, average riding time, average riding speed and max speed


KOokaloo!


Frank

markfjer

cheers frank

yep seen u had installed said item (and the reasons y)

just want to confirm that revs/gas etc was all ok as to me they seemed where u may have had problems

also the alignment of the speedo, any big problems??

cheers mark


Brook


racerman_27410

Quote from: markfjer on March 08, 2009, 03:51:31 PM
cheers frank

yep seen u had installed said item (and the reasons y)

just want to confirm that revs/gas etc was all ok as to me they seemed where u may have had problems

also the alignment of the speedo, any big problems??

cheers mark



Mark,

rev counter and gas gauge work just fine with the FZ1 mod...... nothing on the front or rear ends have anything to do with their operation...the front end only affects the speedometer as there is no place to connect the drive cable @ the wheel..... not sure what you mean by "the alignment of the speedo"

Kookaloo!   :wacko1: