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FZ1inTX

FZ1inTX

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Inspired by SoCalFZRider over at FZ1OA, I decided to chop up the rear fender much like he did. I'm still working on it but I didn't want to do part two last night as it was getting late and I wanted the bike back together in case I could ride today. (Not! Damned rain!)

I started by removing the rear fender then separating the plastic from the metal bracket. I mounted just the metal back on the bike and eyed where I wanted to cut. Since I do not have a welder, I knew I had to cut and overlap the metal so I could drill and bolt it. I chose my spot and marked it, removed the bracket then cut it into the three pieces. Drilled two holes per side and bolted them overlapped. This knocked almost 4" off the length. After I bolted it. I put the metal and plastic back together as best I could and marked the new "TOP" for the plastic. I took the hacksaw to it and cut on the line. I had to get creative and cut in and around the top to fit the bracket with the welded on cap nuts. Here are the before and after shots along with a underside shot so you can see the overlap and bolts.

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Based on what I've learned from SoCalFZRider, I am going to remove the rear reflector under the plate light, take off the plate bracket and turn it upside down then mount it where the reflector was directly under the plate light. While there, I'll cut off nearly all the plastic around that area and shorten the tail of the metal bracket by another 4" or so, right up where it bends to create the tab behind the existing plate. :D
 
It's not as clean as an actual FE Kit but it will suffice until I've finished getting my own created and cut over at the CNC shop. Besides, it was FREE!
 
The new look. Me likey!

Here's the finished product and how it will stay until I either design my own or buy something down the road.

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Me likey too! Very nice job. I commend you on doing it that way. It just goes to show that you don't have to go crazy spending all that loot to get the same effect. It's nice and clean back there. Just as good as an expensive FE kit, IMHO.
 
FZ1riderNY said:
Me likey too! Very nice job. I commend you on doing it that way. It just goes to show that you don't have to go crazy spending all that loot to get the same effect. It's nice and clean back there. Just as good as an expensive FE kit, IMHO.
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Thanks! He did such a great job that I just had to try it, especially since I really can't do a lot of modding on it this year. I figured that if it came out that bad, it wasn't much money to buy the stock metal and plastic brackets at Ron Ayer to put it back. Overall, I am almost happy enough to not want to do any other kit... maybe just a couple sets of Watsen flushies and call it complete!

BTW, I ended up not turning the license plate bracket upside down. I found that it reversed the angle of the plate to almost vertical, so I mounted it as high as possible where the stock reflector used to be and it gives the plate the proper angle. I was a bit worried about the proximity of the plate to the wheel at full compression of the shock in a deep corner. ;)
 
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Doesn't the rear have 5" of travel? You appear to have a bit more than that from the license. The mod looks great and I think that Yamaha makes such an hidieous rear on purpose to force one to become creative or spend more money.

Keep up the good work!

Adam
 
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BroHay said:
Doesn't the rear have 5\\" of travel? You appear to have a bit more than that from the license. The mod looks great and I think that Yamaha makes such an hidieous rear on purpose.

Keep up the good work!

Adam
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Yes, it does and after toying with different arrangements of all the parts to come up with the final one, a couple configs were curiously close (in my opinion, in relation to the tire travel) or the angles came out all wrong. In order to keep the LEOs happy, I wanted some tilt to the plate but not enough to raise their hackles and stop me. Technically, I can say it is an all stock fender at this point.... until they ask me if it was modified anyway! :D

Yamaha makes them "functional" and for what they are designed to do, they do it very well. They just happen to be 100% ugly. I think that is why they put so little into the design of them, because they know it's the 1st thing to hit the landfill. :Rockon:

BTW, her FZ6R is next. Same procedure as it is almost the same tail. But, I'm going to buy a small welder first to do mine right, then do hers properly the first time. This took three separate mod times but I only removed it twice. Today, it remained mounted while I made the final mods.

The best part? After making it shorter and twice as thick, it is so much more sturdy with less wobble and vibration. BONUS! :thewave:
 
So practice on yours to get it right? (....b/c if you don't, and it does not turn out as well, you'll never hear the end of it!)

BroHay
 
BroHay said:
So practice on yours to get it right? (....b/c if you don't, and it does not turn out as well, you'll never hear the end of it!)

BroHay
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Oh... you know it! ;) I think I have her talked into a welder... small 110 mig unit (no gas) that will do all this light duty stuff. Sweet!
 
I like your mod FZ1inNH and I think I will do the same.

Is it possible to disconnect all cables and remove the whole fender assembly from the bike?

Edit: Reason I asked is that it would be easier if I could take the whole thang back to my kitchen table. ;)
 
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It is, but then you will be left without rear signals, unless you decide to go for an integrated brake/signal.

You would be able to do so by buying an aftermarket kit, or using a trailer kit from UHaul to make one side of the bulbs act as a signal. Aftermarket would give you a yellow signal, where as te UHaul, with the aid of a dual filament bulb (if not there) would give you only a red indicators.

I tried this on my Gen I, to eliminate the amber signals that I mounted to my rear cowl, b/c the previous owner had made intergrated signals with the UHaul option, but could never get it to work. Reason I abandoned it the first time was b/c the flash rate was too fast and visibility was not too great.

Adam
 
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mikeswe said:
I like your mod FZ1inNH and I think I will do the same.

Is it possible to disconnect all cables and remove the whole fender assembly from the bike?

Edit: Reason I asked is that it would be easier if I could take the whole thang back to my kitchen table. ;)
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Yes, it wasn't easy to get them out but a little patience and you can fish them all out of the tail after unplugging them. I did just that and tore it all down to individual parts. After fabbing the metal bracket to the desired length, I put the plastic back on and whatever was above the top plate, I cut off. Once satisfied, I mounted it all back up, fished the connections back into the tail and pulled in the slack and reconnected it all.

What helped was to pry/pop the two plastic rivets (carefully) that hold the rear of the tool caddy down under the seat. Once those are out, you can squeeze the tool caddy and lift the rear of it above the tail bracket. This allows you to easily trace and remove the wiring without cutting... Easy to put them back too! The GEN II is this way, unsure about a GEN I.

Here's a pic of the area. The two red circles are the plastic rivets. If you slip a small flathead under them and gently pry, the center pin pops up and you can remove these. The red arrows point to all the bolts you need to remove. The two small ones in front are holding a relay that hides the right blinker and plate light connections. The green areas are the connections and you can see the gray left blinker in this shot. Last, the yellow marks are the areas that you want to gently pry up over the bracket that they are under to give you clearance.

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Thank you very much for the info! I think I'll do it next week. This is a good compromise I think, I don't mind having a bit of fender and license plate sticking out in the back, it protects from dirt spray.
 
Finished the mod now, and I'm satisfied with the result, kind of like "straight out of the factory" look. I'm going to cut off that bit of fender sticking out under the license plate.

The proper way to remove those plastic pop fasterners is to press down on the middle pin until i "clicks down" about 2-3mm, and then pry up the fastener with a flat screwdriver. To remount, push up the middle pin to its top position, mount the fastener, and then push down on the middle pin until it is flush with the surface.
 
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Awesome Mike! Thanks for the tip on the rivets too. I had no idea they went both directions. :D Have you thought about moving the plate bracket up to there the reflector is?

Sweden makes some big plates! ;)

BTW, the company I work for is own by a Lady in Sweden... Mrs. Antonia Johnson. :) She's an incredible owner and does very well by us!
 
FZ1inNH said:
Awesome Mike! Thanks for the tip on the rivets too. I had no idea they went both directions. :D Have you thought about moving the plate bracket up to there the reflector is?

Sweden makes some big plates! ;)

BTW, the company I work for is own by a Lady in Sweden... Mrs. Antonia Johnson. :) She's an incredible owner and does very well by us!
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Yes maybe I do it later, this is OK for now. Many sportbike riders put the "mini" plates (illegal) on but that only give the Police an excuse to stop you (though most cops don't care).

Antonia, is that the one who puts "Ax:son" in the middle of her name? I bet she rules with an iron rod. :D
 
Antonia Johnson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia is the Lady. Let's suffice to say that when we do well, she's very "Thankful" to her employees.

Mini? Do they hack the original plate in some fashion? ;) Yeah, moving it up another inch or two and cutting off some of the plastic will help but I like that you took yours even a bit further than I did. Well done! If I get my hands on a welder, I intend to tuck it as far as the plate light will allow. ;)
 
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