My step up from a 250. 1990 ZZR600, anyone else out there!?

[zeocen]

Well, I finally got myself a new bike in preparation for my full, a magnificently maintained 1990 ZZR600!

Of course, not having my full yet (can go for it any time after the 4th of Oct, 5 days and counting!) I haven't taken it out yet, but if I had, I would imagine it would go something like this:

This bike is completely me. It's amazing, the comfort, the seating position, the power and weight.. it's so familiar but so, so powerful. I feel like a newbie all over again, I can't wait to get it out onto the open road twisties. I am literally in Kawasaki heaven right now, this is *THE* bike that made me love sport/tours motorcycles to begin with, and now I have one. Same year, same model. Stoked.

Anywho, so with a few days to bide my time, starting her up and hearing her purr (or, roar as the case may be) I've been wondering.. I don't see many other ZZR600 owners around. I see many ZX6R's but I assume they're late models. Would anyone be able to head me in a direction where I would be able to find parts/accessories for such a bike? I'm looking at a double bubble screen to begin with - nothing performance enhancing, I have enough power for now, just more in the way of comfort. Custom seat etc..

Thanks!

From a very happy zeo.

PICS !

[zeocen]

Oh, also.. the bloke who had the bike strictly toured on it.. and not very far mind you. But as you can tell from the chicken strips they were fairly timid rides, will this make the wheels a tad 'square', or will they still be fine for cornering? The front is Michelin Pilot and rea is Michelin, uh, I forget. :P

[Minnie]

Cool bike Zeocen, well done:niceone:

[RC1]

nice looking bike you will enjoy the step up, Cajun on KB does customs seats i think send him a pm

[zeocen]

Cheers guys!
Had a superior blonde moment today, there's a switch on it that puts the bike lights on high, low or off, when the bike is on, but not running. I accidently clicked it to "off" and wondered why my brake light wasn't going.

...after taking the ass of it apart and testing the bulbs I turned to the switch and thought "hmmm" ... flicked it to "park" and sure enough, everything came back to life.:Oops: There's a ZZR1100, and a GPX250 next to the 600 and neither of them had this feature, so that's my excuse for not knowing about it! :done:

Anyway, I'll be sure to PM the guy and query about a custom seat!

[Matt_TG]

Ooooh, very nice!!! Looks well maintained and in awesome nick. Loving the line-up in the third pic too :drool:

I bet the 4th Oct won't roll around quick enough. Have you taken it for a quick trip down the road, you know, to "keep the battery charged"?

[Donor]

You suck.

I hate you.

Nice bike though :niceone:

So uh... after the 5th of November, I guess you'll be wanting me to give my opinion on the handling and performance huh? :devil2:

[gsp0702]

Nice bike, if it hasnt been serviced in last 6000km's get the carbs balanced you'll be amazed at the difference. And with the forced air induction (ram air) they are a pretty rapid bike. Anyway good luck a nice bike and a good colour to.

[imdying]

will this make the wheels a tad 'square', or will they still be fine for cornering?Yes, but you might not notice (unless it weaves or such at high speecs. However, when you do get new tyres... you'll wonder how you ever road it with the old ones :) Think of it as a nice surprise for yourself at some stage :)

[White trash]

Cheers guys!
Had a superior blonde moment today, there's a switch on it that puts the bike lights on high, low or off, when the bike is on, but not running. I accidently clicked it to "off" and wondered why my brake light wasn't going.

...after taking the ass of it apart and testing the bulbs I turned to the switch and thought "hmmm" ... flicked it to "park" and sure enough, everything came back to life.:Oops: There's a ZZR1100, and a GPX250 next to the 600 and neither of them had this feature, so that's my excuse for not knowing about it! :done:

Anyway, I'll be sure to PM the guy and query about a custom seat!
Brake light should still opperate with the lights turned off. If it doesn't, something IS wrong.

[zeocen]

Brake light should still opperate with the lights turned off. If it doesn't, something IS wrong.

Well, when the brake is engaged the lights did work, but the rear light wasn't on 24/7. Sorry I should have worded it better.


Yes, but you might not notice (unless it weaves or such at high speecs. However, when you do get new tyres... you'll wonder how you ever road it with the old ones :) Think of it as a nice surprise for yourself at some stage :)

Thanks for the info! I have actually tried taking my hands off the bars at about ~60kmph ... it started to tank slap. This would happen on my 250 as well, until I got some decent tyres on.. once I had put new tyres on, the tank slappage was gone.. hmm, maybe before seats and windscreens I might be wise to look into new tyres first.


Nice bike, if it hasnt been serviced in last 6000km's get the carbs balanced you'll be amazed at the difference. And with the forced air induction (ram air) they are a pretty rapid bike. Anyway good luck a nice bike and a good colour to.

Thanks mate, it's an oldy but I love it :) Once I'm legal to take it to East City Motorcycles, I'm going to throw it at them and tell them to give it a spring clean top to bottom.

And Donor: Yeeeeeeaaahhhhhno. :P

[imdying]

Thanks for the info! I have actually tried taking my hands off the bars at about ~60kmph ... it started to tank slap. This would happen on my 250 as well, until I got some decent tyres on.. once I had put new tyres on, the tank slappage was gone.. hmm, maybe before seats and windscreens I might be wise to look into new tyres first.I wouldn't have thought that a relatively slow steering ZZR would slap at that speed even with totally worn tyres... you might want to look into that further (might just be tyres of course).

[Rosie]

Yay for having a new bike :clap:
Good luck for your full licence test!!

[Chisanga]

NIce bike Zeo - pity I won't be around to playtest it :)

And don't worry about your test... you'll cruise it.

[zeocen]

I wouldn't have thought that a relatively slow steering ZZR would slap at that speed even with totally worn tyres... you might want to look into that further (might just be tyres of course).

Well I did only try it once, so it might have just been just that time. But yeah, it's something I'm definitely going to look into. It looks great for it's age but it will need some TLC for it to be 100% perfect, which I intend to make it!

Thanks for all the advice so far guys, I would be a headless chicken without it!

[zeocen]

NIce bike Zeo - pity I won't be around to playtest it :)

And don't worry about your test... you'll cruise it.

Plenty of time for when you get back mate! I'll no doubt still be nana'ing it around by then :sweatdrop

[Zuki Bandit]

Nice bike dude, good onya!

[gijoe1313]

Figgers, after all that dalliance with other bikes ( a Ducati, a CBR ... ) he finally comes back to his one true love! :love: :slap:

Sheesh! Good on ya for finally finding the bike that is for you! :msn-wink: So, when do we get to ride it down to Wellington to see how truly comfortable it is (Sports Tourer yak yak yak!)

Hmmm... now where did I put that L plate so I can surreptiously put it back on! :devil2:

[scracha]

Very nice. They were called ZX6R's stateside and Kawasaki made these bikes for years so you can get loadsa bits for them. Faster than a similarly aged FZR600, RF600 or CBR600 too. They get about 50mpg (dunno what that is in litres and km but it's a lot) too. Second gear goes on them and they suffer from carb icing (probably not a problem in New Zealand but if yours does I found adding Silkolene FST fuel additive worked nicely).

[howdamnhard]

Nice bike and good luck with your test on the 4 Oct.Mines on the 9 Oct but it will be sometime before I can afford something bigger.:niceone:

[arj127]

good choice of bike my friend. I bought a ZZR600 before i got my full licence as i was getting into trouble trying to keep my speed up cornering on the 250 that i had. The 600 cured those problems immediately, could go slower in and nail it coming out of a corner. Some friends of mine, one on a GSXR1000 and the other a Fireblade at the time were blown away by the fact that they could never shake me. I had the bike up to 255 and backed off, it was still going. I must say i really enjoyed this bike, and was seriously contemplating buying another after having a break from ten years of mx. These bikes are fast, and ultra comfortable. You have chosen an awesome bike, i hope it gives you as much pleasure as mine did.

[arj127]

here are some pics of my old bike

[zeocen]

Well, as with all old bikes.. there comes problems. I've got my first, I'm pretty desperate to have her running again, if only to get her to East City for a full tune up

[zeocen]

Crisis averted !