My 1983 XJ900 restoration is finally finished - Pic heavy

[Alive]

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7rS64zKT20[/YOUTUBE]

[riffer]

Oh boy wait until Frosty finds this thread...

Beautiful work there Alive - the blue powdercoated frame in particular is a nice touch.

Is there a story behind the restoration? It'd be nice to hear it.

[Edbear]

Very nice, mate! How's she ride?

[Deviant Esq]

Excellent work and attention to detail there mate, looks beaut! And yeah that blue powerdercoat looks the bizzo... but nice and understated at the same time. Pearler, thanks for sharing.

[Alive]

I know Tony... He went this funny shade of green when I told him I had bought it almost 6 months ago lol

Yes there is an interesting story behind it....

Guy bought it from new in 83-84 and rode it a little until he got a new job that came with a company car, at which point he left it on the weather side of his carport.

Everytime his brother in-law called around to see him he would ask about the bike. The owner would then decide to run it up the road and back just to make sure it was still going.

So over the next 15-20 years it basically sat in the weather and didn't get used, I know this because it hasn't been registered since 1986.

At some point the owner must have decided to strip it down for a tidyup... Which he never did. So oneday (probably around 2004) the brother in-law was asking about the bike, next thing it's in his garage in boxes.

Over the next 3 years the brother in-law 80% restored the bike (including the funky pearl blue painted frame). Then he found some huge american pickup and decided he wanted the room in his garage more than he wanted the 900 so he stuck it on Trademe with a $1000 buy now.

I get up one morning and look at my saved searches emails and there it is... used the buy now about 5 minutes later. My mate and I did a 6 hr return drive in to the deep Waikato to pick it up about a week later.

Got it back to my place and found it needed:
New tank
New front and rear brakes
Tyres
Carbs fitted
Plastic repairs
Tank painted and some touchup paint
Exhaust fixed and mufflers replaced
Handlebars assembled
Battery
Fusebox replacement
and a few other small jobs...

So 3-4k and 6 months later here she is

[Alive]

Very nice, mate! How's she ride?

Rides like a cut cat... Really hates doing 50... purrs like a kitten at 100-120 and still has plenty of throttle after that.

It will run better when I get the carbs sorted properly... Running a little rich and drinking gas like water at the moment.

[Alive]

Think I better give Dave and Karen at Reflection Motorcycle Refinishers a plug for their top job on the tank

A little pricey, but well worth it

[dogsnbikes]

Thats just sooooooooo awesome well done and many years of happy riding and ownership ............just dont let it go back to Japan

[Alive]

Thats just sooooooooo awesome well done and many years of happy riding and ownership ............just dont let it go back to Japan

She is staying right where she is

Only has 14k kms on the clock so has many many years of riding left in her and at this point in time I plan on being the rider/mechanic/maintenance man for a number of them

[T.W.R]

Great Job

The venerable XJ9, a classic UJM

[Bonez]

She is staying right where she is

Only has 14k kms on the clock so has many many years of riding left in her and at this point in time I plan on being the rider/mechanic/maintenance man for a number of them

Good job. Well done. Nice to see another '80s UJM strutting it's stuff .

[Alive]

Can someone please explain what a UJM is?

Cheers

[riffer]

Universal Japanese Machine.

As in the archetypal naked bike.

[Alive]

Cheers Riffer

[psyguy]

well done, mate!

i find it an inspiration for my gs850 restoration going on at the moment
http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...ad.php?t=46404

nice history to the bike, too!