TOPIC:

I totally rebuilt the tap actually, so there is definitely no dirt issue. The new o-ring I put is a bit oversized, and in general the tap was pretty tight from start. When things get got, the o-ring expands even by fraction and makes things really thin that's what it is. Before assembling I already filed the tap like Bucko did, so it can't be that in my case.

I will be switching my standard speedo to metric. It's all kilometers in Canada, having speedo and odometer in miles makes in not very convenient here. The needles were so brittle on the metric gauges they just broke off piece by piece. Not I need to remove the middle part stuck to the middle black disc. How do you remove it and how to attach the new needles? I don't want to force anything.

Managed to remove the old needles, and it looks like they had a couple of 'nipples' to prevent them from moving.
The replacements I got from Lare don't have them. Do you guy just used crazy glue?

A bit more about the start up. There is no doubt right now in my mind that the fully applied choke plunger draws too much fuel. The mix becomes too rich and that's where the smoke comes from. (I guess my color description of it has been kind of vague, due to no solid reference) As the engine becomes tight with mileage, now it doesn't like the plungers only position and I smell gasoline. Push the choke just a bit down to get a bit of air in, voila and no smoke of course. So, my conclusion is eventually the vacuum mode will be removed as it's most likely not a thing for new engines. Well, at least not fro this one!

Funny how the engine braking in works in stages. It reaches a certain plateau, stays there for a while, then there is a sudden shift a couple floor up and stays on another plateau for a while again. Today I've noticed this regarding the response and gear changing. Pulling in the clutch is easier as well. The only thing that doesn't change at all are the front brakes. They are rock solid! I wish there was more travel on the lever. I guess my rebuilding job was too good, haha At one point I will definitely look into adjustable lever.

40 miles to go and I will reach the 500 mile first stage braking in period recommended by Kawasaki. I will cross it tomorrow

Got things sorted out with Laurie, and with super glues, the needles will bond well with the orange left over cut off studs left behind. As plastic bonds well to plastic, plus the bonding to the center black disc. A note of caution, for the record, don't try to remove those discs. Just use a scalpel like blade to cut off the old needles. By experimenting, I found the center not being bonded. Best what worked for me was a very narrowly pointed tip of an Exacto blade. It went easily underneath the mid section, then pushing to one side cut through releasing one end, then reversed cut through the 'stud' and release the other end. The old needle came off. Next to find a good glue and the speedo will be assembled back together and mounted on the bike - after the brake in phase. I am going to rewind the odometer as well, to have it reflect on the real mileage and match the original odometer. Do I just connect an electric drill to it? Not feeling bad about this at all, since everything about this bike, my bike!!! hahahah is well documented. No cheating! I think my bike is very unique in comparison to some shady deals because the whole process from start to the finish, and where it's now, is very easily traced and described.

More riding tomorrow!

StanG wrote: Managed to remove the old needles, and it looks like they had a couple of 'nipples' to prevent them from moving.
The replacements I got from Lare don't have them. Do you guy just used crazy glue?

First, I'll start by saying I haven't done this ( needle replacement) job before so take what I have to say with a grain of salt.

What I know about speedo and tach clocks.
There's alway a small amount of tension on the clock spring when the needle sits at the needle stop pin. If you look at your picture and draw a line through the 2 needle tits, you can see that the line will fall below the needle stop pin. If you glue the new needle on the disc with the needle against the stop pin, the indicated rpm will be off because the preload will not be on the clock spring. Just be careful.

Odometers don't like to be "spun" with a drill. The gear pack is too sloppy and I've heard that it's possible to break one of the teeth off of a gear or one of the teeth off of a counter disc. It's better to just pull off the drive gear on the odometer shaft just enough to disengage the gear pack and then rotate the clock dials with your fingers.
Speedo drive cables might spin at 200 rpm. Ramping the speedo head up to 1800 rpm with a drill and then odometer gears will make a hell of a noise. This you can trust me on I've done it for a few moments and then decided to "change my ways"

Stan why do you want to change the mileage?
Despite the rebuild work and now brilliant condition, I think it's nice to see a well-engineered machine proudly showing it's mileage, which makes it's great appearance tell an all the more interesting story.

Regarding the 'legals' and perception issue I guess that's personal preference. Here in the UK I'd certainly prefer to see the real mileage on a rebuild and with anything of value it's normal practice to check the vehicle history to confirm this.

What's the records culture like in your part of the world?