Kawasaki Zephyr 1100 Special

Kawasaki Zephyr 1100 Special - Featured in 'Practical Sportsbikes'

Also as featured at 'The Bike Shed'

Full build photo journal on the ZephyrZone website.

Approx. 25-30kg lighter than stock.

Rebuilt - from the ground up. Every fixing is new stainless.

Frame - Standard but reworked. 3 coats stove enamel. New head bearings. New swingarm bearings.

Engine - Standard spec internals. Stripped, stove enamelled and rebuilt by specialist using new rings, bearings, bushes, seals. New sprockets front and rear. New chain.

Carbs - Rebuilt standard with custom intake stacks. Jetted and dyno by BSD Performance in Peterborough.

Pipes - By Competition Fabrications with Danmoto end can.

Now 96bhp at rear wheel - approx. 20bhp over standard.

Front - 955i forks/yokes. Aprilia RSV wheel. Triumph recon calipers. Stainless hose. Forks lengthened and black nitrided with new progressive internals.

Rear - CB1300 swingarm. Aprilia RSV wheel. Custom Hyperpro shocks. Custom sprocket and Brembo rear brake caliper/master cylinder with braided hose.

Controls - Brembo radial clutch and brake master cylinders (19mm). R1 throttle assembly.

Electrics - Standard reworked loom with R1 switchgear. Reworked instruments. Digital speedo. Halo headlamp.

New - Lightweight rearsets. Curved oil cooler. Bars. R1 throttle and lots more from Japan.

Painted - By Ty Lawler at Pageant Paint. Remodeled seat with new upholstery.

Over 450 hrs to build (18 months).

Runs sweet, sounds deep and handles extremely well.

The mileage when purchased for the project was just over 23,000 miles. The engine was stripped for paint, so everything was checked and anything worn was replaced: bearings, bushes, rings, gaskets, etc., by Paul Curtis of Laverda engine fame. This engine was kept standard internally and is now better than new, and after BSD Performance tuned and dyno'd the carb setup, she shows 96bhp at the back wheel. This was not built for silly engine performance that ruins reliability, but for a modest increase in performance from free-breathing carbs and exhaust, and the best handling/weight possible.

This bike is immaculate and has done less than 900 miles since the build. Tyres still like new. The test was the Mallory Festival of 1000 Bikes in 2013 after the run-in period. She was much admired and ran perfectly. Even Jamie Whitham and Neil Hodgson loved her. They signed the track photo for me.

Currently SORN but run and moved every fortnight - will tax for 6 months.

A very reluctant sale to fund new build.

This is advertised elsewhere, so if the right buyer comes along, it will be withdrawn.