CBR900RRT 1996 rebuild

[sickpup]

The next bike to rebuild is an old 1996 Fireblade RRT which has a lot of problems.
I've owned it for maybe 23 years and as a few people have seen, it never had an easy life.

1st problem is a huge dent in the right hand frame spar so the frame needs replacing. Common problem on blades up until 99, if you had an accident you dented the frame as the handlebars hit it.
If you are going to the effort of changing a frame you may as well change every single bearing which soon adds up

2nd problem is the crankcases are broken where the front sprocket cover bolts on. The metal is massively corroded and it just fell apart so not really suitable for welding. A complete engine rebuild is on the cards.

3rd problem is the bodywork is shot. The 99 and earlier blades used very thin bodywork and in my experience it is rare for it to not fracture from age and vibration.

So there isn't much good with this bike, everything is shot but it is a good base and the sub frame is straight.
I already have a frame, a set of crankcases, 17" front wheel and new bodywork or at least most of it. It will need a new rear shock, maybe new fork stanchions, definitely the intricate Honda bar ends and bar weights but other than nuts and bolts not much else hopefully.

The special tools needed to remove the engine from the frame have been bought from https://gbmotorcycleproducts.com/ again. £30 for the 3 tools needed.

Body work was ordered from Aliexpress and came without Customs charges so cost £281.26 all in.

Replacement frame was £165.

17" front wheel with discs was £60.

A lot of parts for this bike are no longer available so I've been buying up odd parts for a few years so it should hopefully turn out nice.

Picture will come eventually...

[Easy-X]

tl;dr "I have a subframe and part of an engine"

Best of luck!
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Royal Enfield Continental GT 535, Husqvarna Vitpilen 401, Yamaha XSR700, Honda Rebel, Yamaha DT175, Suzuki SV650 (loan) Fazer 600, Keeway Superlight 125, 50cc turd scooter

[Minty]

Looking forward to this with much want. I have the RRV and would love to have the energy to do some spannering to it.
____________________
My fingers smell of your mum.

[sickpup]

There are a lot of parts that are no longer available for these bikes and haven't been available for over a decade. This is the joy of playing with 30 year old bikes. The rest seem to be massively overpriced.

You can no longer get either of the front cowl/fairing supports, the main one or the mirror mount one. I imported the last new mirror mount one I saw from the US last year. Never managed to find after market ones.

The infill panels for the front cowl to frame are NLA in Europe but the right can be purchased, again, in the USA. These are often shown in the Chinese fairing kits but generally aren't included.
The fairing inners or middle cowl inners again, no longer available but these are generally included in the Chinese fairing kits.
You may as well assume that any body part you want is NLA so better to buy a Chinese fairing kit and replace the whole thing.

On all the Fireblades up until 1997 the fork knuckles are a push fit into the fork tubes. If you use the bike when there is salt on the roads you will often get corrosion between the tubes and knuckles which split, parts no longer available of course so you have to buy 2nd hand forks and rebuild. The RRT and RRV are different to earlier Fireblades so these are relatively rare.

Fastners cost a fortune on these early bikes and you will need a lot of them. The plastic trim clips are between £3.50-£5 each and you will need 20+ of them so look for after market ones on ebay.
Speedy Fastners (clicky) on Ebay do a Dzus 1/4 turn kit and all the required mushroom headed bolts in stainless so you can fit the fairing as Honda designed it.

All the coolant hoses will need replacement. Again take a look at Ebay, don't buy Honda just buy Silicone aftermarket. AS3 do a set for £80 or Samco for £180.
The radiator will likely need replacing, they are available aftermarket for around £120.

As I will be changing crankcases some engine parts will be needed. These are expensive in the UK and Europe so I will be looking at buying from the US and Japan. I haven't used them yet but Webike Japan have very good pricing compared to the UK even when you factor in the import duties. Items I've looked at including odd sized bearings, crank and main bearing you will pay less than 50% including postage and duties.
As an example, a set of standard piston rings in the UK is £84.86 inc vat, Webike they are £21.39+postage and duties so the savings can really add up.

Always look on Aliexpress for odd parts like indicators. Most of the suppliers on Ebay buy from Aliexpress and add a huge mark up, I did when I sold bike parts online years ago. You will often recognise the parts and the photos if you take a look.
As an example a front indicator on Ebay is £20+, from Aliexpress its about £8.

Don't be afraid to buy complete assemblies to get what you need.
I need the bar end weight set ups for both bars. New these are about £80 per bar all in but you can often buy the handlebars 2nd hand with these already fitted for £30-£40 from Ebay.

[sickpup]

I've realised I'm rambling a bit in these posts but I'm using it to get my thoughts down on paper.

Spent the last couple of days reading up on the SC33 Fireblades which were the 96-99 models and had a few surprises.
Each year had small engine differences, the 96-97 engines are much the same but are different to the 98-99 engines. The barrels are apparently a different material so use different pistons and rings, the genuine Honda pistons and rings are now unobtainable although Fowlers offer an alternative. Fisty also managed to find some pattern rings but I am wary of those as they claim to be for 96-99.

A few years back I managed to get hold of a set of cases with pistons which I now know to be from a 98 RRW so thought I better take a look at them and see how the rings are.
The No.2 cylinder does have some marks on it, I'm in two minds over them, you can neither feel them with a finger or finger nail so they should be ok and may come out with a hone.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/files/20241008_221433.jpg

An easy way to check piston rings it to put then in the top of the bore and square them to the bore using an upside down piston

https://www.bikechatforums.com/files/20241008_194918.jpg

and measuring the gap the gap between the ring ends.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/files/20241008_194837.jpg

These look OK and were slightly bigger than a Rizla packet but will need measuring properly. Its a bit pointless measuring until the bores have been honed.

If the worst comes to the worst I can get a JE Pistons +1mm big bore kit which takes the engine out to I believe 945cc. I'd rather not do this, it's £650 just for the pistons but at least I have options. It also raises the compression from 11:1 to 12:1 which isn't ideal as I want to skim the head and the block to make sure they are flat. This would mean checking the clearances once assembled and likely using the largest valve shim gaps just to make sure there is no coming together of the valves, pistons and head.

[Easy-X]

[sickpup]

[stinkwheel]

[sickpup]

[stinkwheel]

There are some that are close enough. I THINK it was these ones I used on the VFR, that or the 6mm ones, it was a while ago. I got them from the TMS counter.
https://vehicleclips.co.uk/collections/push-fit-plastic-fasteners/products/8mm-plastic-push-fit-rivet-for-vauxhall-wheel-arch-linings-bumpers-1719245
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[sickpup]

So you might be wondering, 'Why no photos of the bike?'. Well, I haven't seen it in a couple of years, it's at the bottom of the garden where I left it 6 or 7 years ago when the crankcases fell apart and the ivy has claimed it so it needs digging out.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/files/20241010_173640.jpg

That's after removing most of the ivy, it was about 18" higher than the tank and you couldn't see the bike at all. Doesn't look like a problem to me

[P.]

Oh.

Following with interest and faith.

[Minty]

Holy fucking shitballs.
____________________
My fingers smell of your mum.

[jeremyr62]

Tragic. Arguably, one of the most important motorbikes ever made treated like that. I hope you have a good reason.
On the resto, I would suggest that’s just a parts bike now.

[sickpup]

[temeluchus]

[Robby]

Some people swear by using ACF-50 a bike cover to protect a bike from the elements. This is a new approach, using ivy and time.

[to v or not to v]

[Paddy Blake]

I'll have to follow this. It will be interesting.
I would guess you can't get a new wire loom for it.

Would a wire loom from a modern model match up even
If you have to change the end connectors. If you get me.

[sickpup]

It's unlikely a wiring loom off another bike would be compatible without major work but the loom is something I'm not worried about.

Being a 1996 model the wiring loom is very simple. No HISS to worry about, no relays except the starter relay and simple Hitachi block connectors. The worst comes to the worst I pin the loom to a board, strip of the loom wrap and duplicate it.

Nothing on this bike is daunting, every thing is simple because it's before the popularity of LCD displays, Canbus, Fi or anything else that makes things difficult for the home mechanic.

[stinkwheel]

First motorcycle in history to be restored using a strimmer.
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[Minty]

Have you gone like for like in terms of the paint scheme and the Chinese fairings?
____________________
My fingers smell of your mum.

[Robby]

[Hetzer]

[sickpup]