thanetman Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Morning men and ladies; I've been offered a 1992 xj900f for £300 by a friend of mine as a first big bike for when I pass my test as I'm still on a cbt. Sadly it's in bits at the moment as he was stripping it down to have the frame powder coated then he had heart problems so never got put back together although it was in daily use until then. So questions are would it make an ok first big bike, is it easy to handle and quite docile in slow traffic and anything I should watch out for or upgrade (brakes etc) when putting it back together? Timbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slice Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Hi and welcome to the YOC First big bike and it's a 900, wow !, well the 900 is a pretty docile beast but like all of them it will hurt you if you forget that it's capable of over 120MPH, slow speeds are easy on it as it's just an upgrade to the 750s, heavy of course so be aware that even in slow traffic you will need space to stop, brakes are ok on most of them more to do with what pads you use rather than trying to upgrade them just for the sake of it, should cruise at a steady 80+ on the m/ways and will be fun round the twisty bit's but it's built as a long legged cruiser really so don't expect blistering acceleration or wheelies out of it, tho it can do that if your dumb enough to go down that road. Just treat it like any bike really don't thrash the shit out of it and it will last for years and servicing it regularly will make it a joy to own. Loads of them out there so spares are cheap good fuel mileage and lots of low down torque make it a good all round bike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewElvisFan Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Hi and welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thanetman Posted September 26, 2014 Author Share Posted September 26, 2014 Cheers Slice - I'll be taking it very easy, If I wanted to be like all the other nutters around here I'd have got a cheapo Fireblade ;-) Seriously, around here the dual carriageways start about 3 miles out of town then this dual carriageway/motorways all the way to London about 75 miles away and Dover which is about 20 miles away which is why this bike would suit me. We do have something called the Wingham bends locally for twisty roads but that is really for modern 600's and below as they are lots of hairpin bends which are hard enough on my 125 cruiser to navigate around much over 30mph. My little cruiser weighs in at 140kg so that's not light in the slightest! What pads would you recommend for the brakes? I'll stick a pic up of it before it was dismembered. Hasn't been run for about 2 years but the owner has been a mechanic for over 40 years so he'll assist with the hard parts - I've just got to do the lifting parts! One reason for choosing it is that they seem to live forever. Timbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slice Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Brembo or EBC are supposed to be good but watch out for foreign counterfeits that are out there, sort of made from the fluff you find under the bed ! Other than that it's a case of what you can afford, remember your life depends on them so buy cheap get a bed booked in your local hospital. Buy from a reputable dealer NOT ebay or some such as you don't know were they come from or who made them plus you can take them back if they are shit. Also remember to bed them in before you cane them, like most things if you treat them properly they will treat you the same, check your discs for crack or rough spot before you put the brake pads in and make sure that there are no leaks in the hydraulics and use good quality fluid as well, cheap stuff will boil if your heavy on the brakes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thanetman Posted September 26, 2014 Author Share Posted September 26, 2014 Cheers I'll do all that when I get the bike The profile pic is off the bike before it was dismembered. Should be good when back together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sacha Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 Welcome aboard and congrats on your first big bike... just barely got my first big bike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackhat250 Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 Hi tim " good choice,,, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thanetman Posted September 30, 2014 Author Share Posted September 30, 2014 Cheers people. There'll be pics up of when it's back together and running Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thanetman Posted October 11, 2014 Author Share Posted October 11, 2014 Daft question - once the bike is stripped down to literally just the frame can it be lifted up by one person? I'm looking to get it powder coated but I'll need to chuck the frame in the back of my car to transport it so was wondering how heavy it actually is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meatloaf Posted October 11, 2014 Share Posted October 11, 2014 Greetings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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