History
Purchased in Apr 2020 in Pakenham, this bike came as a rolling frame with the engine unbolted and resting in the frame, and a milk crate of bits. This baby Katana looked almost complete and the previous owner said he’d bought it from an auction and that he was assured that it did run. His intention was to change the motor for a 350 two-stroke that he had lying around. I am glad he decided to sell it before going any further.
The baby Katana was last registered in 2011 (as removed from the windshield.
Now registered on club plates as of 16 Sep 21.
Work done
- Reinstalled the motor
- Installed used airbox and new intake boots (both sourced from Japan). An airbox came with the bike but its a mystery what bike it’s for (see FZR250).
- Bled front and rear brakes.
- Added decals to engine.
- End cap for the muffler. Quick respray of the exhaust.
- Added genuine chain guard (and fixed a broken bracket).
- New battery
- Cleaned carbies and added sealant to the float bowl gaskets. They were really cracked and broken in places. New seals ordered from Japan.
- Fixed a coolant leak. The pipe coming out the front of the block was really corroded. Replaced with new part and new seal.
- Replaced CDI. Installed new spark plug wires and caps.
- Added original tool kit
- Recovered the seat.
- Indicators replaced with mini versions
- Adjusted carb needles back to factory spec.
The bike now starts consistently and has great power to redline.
Work to do
- Fork seals and new fork oil. I suspect the oil level is really low.
First start. The motor was going – look!
The bike then sprung a coolant leak out of the pipe in the front of the head and now won’t start.