Working on the Bike Again

[cyphron]

Greetings

I recently decided to improve some minor issues on my NTV, such as :

- Replace all the 4 aftermarket indicators with 4 original ones;

- Replace the headlight mounting frame, since the one I got had been welded in the past and it was struggling to hold the headlight still when things got windy... Too much wobbling ...

- Replace the Speedo Cable, since the old one was damaged on the exterior coating;

- Replace a slightly bent handlebar;

- Replace both twist grips, since both of them were too old and showing noticeable signs of wear, making them 'ugly' to the eye;

So .... A lot of work ...







Since I had to strip all the front, I disassembled the clocks to clean them inside and paint the back cover in black, since the plastic was becoming slightly burned by the sun.





I bought a brand new headlight mounting frame I found on eBay for 33£. (Already fitted on the first picture)

As you can see above, the welding was pretty noticeable on the old headlight mounting frame . The indicators were adapted by me some time ago, from a Yamaha R6.



These are the replacement indicators I got from german eBay for 20£. Still missing the rear left one but, already sent an e-mail to the guy from otterparts.nl to see if he can sell me a used one he has and send it to Portugal. The grips came from eBay too, for 6£.





Removing the throttle and choke cables from the left and right handlebar switch gears without removing them from the engine, is a real pain in the arse...

I know I have some more hours of work around the NTV, but it is always a pleasure to work on it ;D.

[McF]

Your bike was looking great before, with attention to detail like this it will be better than it left the factory soon!

Just to keep your "to do list" active, those front forks are looking ready for a bit of the "RJ treatment" to clean off the lacquer, polish out the corrosion and have them gleaming in the Portugese sunshine.

[rj2para (Bisto)]

Cyphron,

"
Removing the throttle and choke cables from the left and right handlebar switch gears without removing them from the engine, is a real pain in the arse...
"

I have to agree, I had the same problem. I thought it was just me. Thanks for sharing.

As Mcf says the fork legs are well worth a polish.

[cyphron]

Oct 21, 2010 22:04:00 GMT 1 rj2para (Bisto) said:

As Mcf says the fork legs are well worth a polish.

I agree with that. Do you have good suggestions on how to polish them ? I read somewere that someone here has done it in the past, so it would be usefull to know the procedures :-)

[rj2para (Bisto)]

I initially used wet and drill then tried drill mounted buffers with cutting cream.

Have to say I would get some cutting compound a rag and you finger and take your time. Comes up quite quickly and its easy to stay on top off.

I have known other people get then out and on the bench for a polish. Mine shine more on the front and sides as the backside is still lacquered.

Depends how far you want to go. I like my bike can look the best it can, for a bike I use every day without aiming for showroom condition.

[rj2para (Bisto)]

I just found this looking for seat pictures. So I thought it was worth another post.

It's an old shot but it gives you an idea of the result you could get, with not much effort.

[McF]

'tis a sight of great beauty RJ - I'm sure this will get cyphron active

[cyphron]

Oct 28, 2010 9:32:26 GMT 1 McF said:

'tis a sight of great beauty RJ - I'm sure this will get cyphron active

You are right McF... You are Right ...

Maybe next week I will be doing some polishing work on her ... ;D

[cyphron]

We have a hell of a rainy day today, so I decided to start a polishing job on the aunTy ...

I started to do the job on both front forks, on the exhaust and then on the rims.



As some of you may remember, the exhaust installed on my bike had an old big yellow 'Arrow' sticker which I decided to remove ... While I was removing it, look what I found ...



The exhaust is not an 'Arrow' one. It is from Suzuki instead. I guess the previous owner tried to hide the Suzuki logo to prevent someone to make funny of him ... To me its better without the sticker, even with the Suzuki logo on it. It does not bother me. I wonder which Suzuki model this exhaust was supposed to fit ... It seems very simillar to the Suzuki GS500 original exhaust.



I also installed both original front indicators I bought from eBay and did a small paint job on the clock assembly cover. Much better now. Shinny as new.
I am still waiting for a rear left indicator and a handlebar I bought from otterparts.nl.



Now the forks :





They need another pass but they are already looking much better than before.

What do you think about the horns ?



When all the stuff is finished I will post aditional pictures.

[rj2para (Bisto)]

Gets my vote

Keep up the good work.

No rush, take it slow and enjoy the process; life is too short to rush a good thing.

[McF]

Soon cyphron there won't be anything left to do - your aNTy will be showroom perfect.

It's looking great - good job, well done

PS - if you fancy spending a few hours on one of mine