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Dear all,

Just joined the forum today as I'm looking to get myself a Z1300 so any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm looking for one that requires a bit of work as I enjoy the restoration side as well as riding. I've got 3 other bikes which keep me busy in the summer but as my little GT380 is nearing completion I need another project.

I live in Prescot near Liverpool. My other two bikes are a Suzuki GT750A, which I restored about 5 years ago, and a Yamaha FJR1300.

Regards

Martin

Welcome to the Forum Martin. I see you have a couple of treasures now. Interesting picks. A water buffalo and the baby air cooled. Nice.

You might want to have a read through the "Dave's Tech Article" under the Buildblog tab. Lots of good info there. Good luck with your shopping.

Hi Martin welcome to the forum
Those GT750 Suzukis are a great bike, I had one from the first release till 1979 when I bought my Z1300A1.
I am often hearing reference now to GT750A but mine was the very first model and was designated a J with the K,L, and M the next 3 models which had a front disc brake. All the time I was working for Suzuki in the mid 70s I never heard them referred to as an A Model and Suzuki always referred to them as I have said previously in all the manuals and parts books. Can you enlighten me where the A designation comes from, it may be that they were designated differently in other countries.

Hi Kawboy and RickG,

Thanks for the welcome. Not sure about other countries but in the UK we had the J,K,L,M,A and B. Check out this site for further information. www.suzukicycles.org/GT-series/GT750.shtml
Been looking through the site tonight and some really interesting stuff. Going to see a guy with a KZ1300A4 tomorrow so might own one if its the right bike.

Regards

Martin

Thanks Martin that explains quite a bit. From what I can work out the A & B never made it to Australia but I had stopped working at Suzuki and defected to Honda Australia after some short stints in various Honda Dealers around Queensland. I may have thought that the A & B were the later M models as there doesn't seem to be much between them.
My GT750J was the green one and I always wish I had been able to keep it but after a work related accident left me short of cash I sold it.

Hi Mizz and welcome to the forum. I am just up the road from you in sunny Scotland, parts for a Z1300 are very expensive here in the UK and to import them from the US will attract import duties so the cost of renovation can quickly spiral. My tuppence worth is to buy the most complete and running bike you can afford, paying extra for a complete bike will save you cash in the long run. I would be scared to count up what I have spent on mine. That said, it's positively the best bike I have ever owned and it sounds fantastic when I wind it on down the motorway. Park it anywhere and there is always someone looking longingly at it when you return. Not everyone likes them though, my next door neighbour was looking at mine and he said "it's a big ugly beast isn't it" but he rides a Suzuki Hayabusa, so what does he know?
This site is an invaluable source of information on these bikes so don't be shy to ask questions.