Should I shouldn't I ?

[Par6]

Hi all newbie here, I've got the chance to buy a 98 fazer 600, 40,000 miles fairly good nick, needs downpipes, £800.
I've had bikes for the last 34 years and for the last 10 have been down the classic jap scene route having restored x7's rds h1s etc, but have got a bit fed up of it all recently with a few breakdowns on ride outs, Z750 b1 electrical problem, dt175 holed piston, etc, you get the gist.
So basically I just need something fastish, reliable and pleasing to the eye. I've had several "modern" bikes, GSXR 750, aprilia rsv, z750 05 plate, and they've all left me feeling a bit flat. I'm not a fan of faired bikes or twins but like the smoothness of an inline 4.
I have always thought the fazer would look cool without the fairing and just a single round headlamp ( not those twin light jobbies), anybody done this ?
I've read quite a few posts on this site and the general consensus seems to be, change the bars, fit a more free flowing air filter, fruitier can and rear shock upgrade and bobs yer uncle, yes/no ?
On the face of it the bike I'm thinking of buying looks like a lot of bike for the money, think I'll just go for it, any advice ?
Cheers.

[noggythenog]

Welcome Par6, it's a great bike & a great forum & lots of veteran owners on here who swear by them & have owned multiple  S after trying out other supposedly better bikes.they are pretty reliable bikes but still with a 98 it will be no spring chicken.those who do get unlucky seem to have problems with gearboxes jumping outta 2nd gear or developing hard to rectify stutters but they really are the minority.




Not sure about the one you are after, i mean prices really have hit rock bottom & a while back i was reading that pretty much any fazer was worth at least a grand (exceptions of course) but now theres regular sub 1k bikes, you sound more experienced than i am but be careful with so called bargains that when you add all their desirables up you can end up being quite pricey....in all honesty 300 more will prob see you with a much lower mileage & already fitted stainless pipes & decent can & a newer example if you wait for the right one to come along.putting your own downpipes on also means running the gauntlet with multiple snapped exhaust studs causing great pain & heartache but sounds like you dont mind getting stuck in.




& you've pretty much hit the nail on the head with the mods that are suitable.plus theres the upgrading the rear caliper to the 1000cc blue spot which is quite popular as standard ones need more regular maintaining & get crap easy.






Here's a shameful plug of my bike, the noggyfighter [size=78%] front headlight a bit tacky but slightly different from the single rounds that are kicking around, i got cheap second hand downpipes through here, k&n, renthal 758 bars, xt660 mirrors, simmi performance can, silicone rad hoses, couple bits of small bling, different aftermarket front fender...gives you an idea anyway....check out the "show me your fazer" thread on the 600 forum.[/size]

[noggythenog]

& here's a wee vid on a local road, getting to grips with my new camera, i mean you can see they are no slouches, front gets light under heavy acceleration in2nd 3rd & maybe 4th but remains controllable....any more power & it would always be wheel lifting time requiring backing off so i'd say it is useable power.




They need to be revved.




If im honest id maybe change a tooth on the sprockets for slightly more oomph, you can see 3rd gear roll on overtakes take a little while...it's a long gear, when i watch the vid i think to myself "could do with a little more acceleration in that gear there".




http://youtu.be/L-Kg2MZPxvQ

[Par6]

Thanks for the reply Noggy.
I've just been out for a little spin on the bike and was quite impressed with its turn of speed and the handling. A couple of things, there was a stutter similar to a big single or a twin when the revs were low and I was in too higher gear trying to pull away, maybe just the wrong gear for the speed but seeing as you mentioned a stutter This may be the same one ? Also after parking it up there was a small puddle of water coming from a drip out of the part where the can meets the link pipe ?
I got to thinking how much weight could be lost by the removal of several items. As I said if I was to buy the bike I would remove the fairing and fit a single round headlamp, I'd also change the exhaust, downpipes and can, remove the centre stand, change the bars for renthals, remove the rear mudguard to tidy the rear end up and fit smaller indicators. How much weight could this lose do you think ?
As you probably guessed I'm a tinkerer and don't do standard !

[noggythenog]

No worries...i gotta say i am a bike newbie...the fazer is my first...most of what i learn i get from here, theres so much knowledge.


Along the top of the site there's a button says search, you can search on anything such as the usual culprits "front sprocket nut upgrade" & stutter...or stuttering fazer, actually i think theres loads of stutter threads...most seem to get fixed but not before lots of trial & error & perhaps this is one of them where the owner hasnt managed to pin it down....id rather start off with a known standard...ie fully running & operational...i mean obviously it may need a carb balance but im pretty sure youd recognise that over something else....nicely balanced carbs should see the bike slowly but smoothely pull away in 6th gear without undue hesitation or juddering, ie easy to keep at 30 in 6th without snatchy judderyness....mine need doing now after a couple of years.


Being the time of year we are in plus what youve described then maybe the bikes been lying about for a while, dodgy fuel, needs a good thrashing etc but id still say wait for another one.




You'll get folk on here join up and 2 posts later they are flogging their bike... I wouldnt buy one of them....but now & again a long termer sells their beloved...they have a proven record on the forum for looking after their bike & it's history is pretty much trackable on the forum unless albeit they went back through thousands of posts to delete certain info.




For example, theres a lovely fox eye for sale in the for sale section, highish mileage but from what i can see it is a corker & has been well loved, the owner has moved up to the fazer thou & is still a member......prob a bit above the price range you are looking at plus youd be taking the fairing off....but you would get good money for a rare, pristine condition fox eye fairing unit and lights as they always get busted up plus folks like to do the fox eye upgrade.




I think the water from the exhaust is normal, if it's a standard can i think theres actually a small drain hole so it will just be condensation, ill need to take a look in the shed at my original.




Since removing my fairing & associated heavy items, heavy duty mirror attachments plus mirrors plus headlights ive lost quite a bit of weight...hard to say how much but the front end is much more noticeably lighter when gunning it.....quite considerable.....now to work on the owner weight loss.

[noggythenog]

Some exhaust holes.......or exit holes......theres no way of saying it without sounding rude

[noggythenog]

Look look




http://foc-u.co.uk/index.php/topic,11801.0.html

[noggythenog]

Or slightly more unknown.




http://foc-u.co.uk/index.php/topic,11648.0.html

[Andy FZS]

Cheers noggy what is your usual commission.
  Andy

[Par6]

Yeah I've seen the blue on on eBay, nice bike just a bit pricey for me at the moment, I need to sell a DT175mx that I've got to raise the funds.