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nab301 said :-
Glyn , well done on that find, XS 650 was aircooled so it's unlikely it was ever off one of them with a coolant temp gauge..
Nigel
09/09/2025 11:18:22 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Are you any good with digital clocks Glyn? PS I have a very low milage clock off a CBF125 if anyone requires one...
09/09/2025 12:59:04 UTC
Glyn said :-
Sorry Nigel I did'nt mean to mislead you there. The picture is of the XS650 speedo that I have modified and have now fitted in the TZR250 binacle next to the TZR Tacho and Temp guages. Digital speedo Edd? I've never worked on anything that new.
09/09/2025 15:25:56 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Aaaaah so the pictured collection of 3 clocks is TZR250 rev counter and temp gauge. The speedometer/odometer *might* be from the XS650.
09/09/2025 16:26:23 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
I think I want something just like that for my B'Zuki which has a horrible home made (not by me) bent bit of tin holding the instruments. May I ask what the diameter of the clocks is? I assume it would be similar for other Suzuki models.
Oh, whatever you do don't try to clean the odometer druns with brake cleaner. It melts the paint....
09/09/2025 17:01:32 UTC
Glyn said :-
The large speedo and rev counter have a body diameter of 84mm with the bezels being 98mm. The frame they’re in is a Yamaha TZR250 but I doubt you’ll find one of those for reasonable money Ian. May I suggest a DIY bent piece of tin.
I’ve got the Yamaha XS 650 Tachometer plus dual chrome body and warning lights on EBay (with the speedo missing) it’s a bit tatty but functional. Take a look and if you fancy it let me know. I can always take the Tachometer out and re-list it without the housings.
09/09/2025 19:00:11 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Item 267396315886 Glyn? I'm actually considering this one (link below) as it has a temperature gauge which would be nice - if frightening. It also has decent size neutral and indicator warning lights which are tiny on mine and in the rev counter so easy to miss. I could flog off the speedo and rev counter as I don't need them. I've just measured my clocks and they're more or less the same as yours at 85mm or so.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/127289425781...
10/09/2025 10:23:56 UTC
nab301 said :-
Glyn, thanks that makes sense , sorry if my reply (unintentionally) sounded sarcastic...(where's the smiley face emoji)
Nigel
10/09/2025 15:50:46 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
The horn on the B'Zuki is a really feeble squawky affair. I had a pair of high-lows on my Tiger 955i, operated via a relay and they were excellent. I was browsing ebay etc and came across these from Ali Express. £2.35 shipped! I ordered last Thursday and they arrived today. To all intents and purposes they're identical to ones on ebay for £15 or so. I've bench tested them and they work fine, so yet another job to keep me off the road.....
ps they seem to have gone up a bit but still cheap.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007168072321.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order...
10/09/2025 16:08:39 UTC
Glyn said :-
Crikey lads, there are some bargains there for sure. I would have given you the mounting bits Ian if you’d paid the postage but now feel embarrassed at offering you my old tat whilst the Suzuki item is only £27.
Buckle up folks, I’ve just bought a Goldwing trike( big project). Watch this space!
11/09/2025 07:50:00 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
I have to say I've occasionally browsed ebay and faceache looking at trikes. Some are absolutely grotesque but there are a few Wing based jobs that look great but not cheap. I envisage in the hopefully distant future when I can't even hold up my lightweight(?) bikes considering such a device - maybe paired with a step thru or similar for local hops.
I look forward to seeing your progress. Am I correct in thinking later Wings have a reverse facility?
11/09/2025 10:01:33 UTC
ROD¹ said :-
I believe that Goldwings have had a reverse gear for over 30 years. The 1500 definitely had a reverse gear in the 1990s.
11/09/2025 10:53:31 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
.... although I've always rather fancied a Norton Wasp scrambles outfit. Fitted with an electric start and a few breeze blocks to keep the chair wheel down on left handers it would make a pretty exciting road machine.
When I was riding in long-distance trials years ago there were a few of these in the mix. It was advisable to stay well clear of the back end when they took off on a loose surface......
11/09/2025 12:05:34 UTC
ROD¹ said :-
Alternatively you could look at the Italian wasp!
11/09/2025 19:27:58 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Oh No!
Browsing ebay, fb etc there are actually some quite tasty sidecar outfits around although none have the attitude of the Norton (or even the Yamaha sibling) Wasp. But I suspect my chances of finding one of them when eventually I want one are minimal.
12/09/2025 10:06:23 UTC
nab301 said :-
Looking forward to the Trike rebuild. Reverse gear using the starter motor.
Nigel
12/09/2025 14:08:13 UTC
Glyn said :-
Here’s the big bit. All the rest of the parts are in dozens of boxes. A sort of jigsaw without the picture on the box. It’s not been started for 3 years hence my decision to fit new cambelts as a start. However, I don’t collect it until Wednesday so will know a lot more after that. It’s the 1500, 6 cylinder. Same engine as in the mighty Valkori.
13/09/2025 09:07:03 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
That'll keep you busy for a while, I look forward to regular updates.
I mentioned that for the future I may be looking at a trike or even better a Norton Wasp. So what should come up on ebay? See below. However I have been rethinking and have now come to a tentative conclusion that a better option may be to fit a light sidecar to the B'Zuki. With 40-odd bhp it should handle the extra load OK especially as the chair will almost always be empty apart from a couple of sacks of sand to provide ballast. There's a trials chair on ebay for £400 - odd. However, it's much too early. Or is it..... Sourcing (and probably making) fittings will be the main difficulty/opportunity.
I do have experience with outfits having run a 16H Norton (500 sidevalve) with a pretty Watsonian Avon chair back in the early 1970s. I removed the sidecar after a fraught trip at christmastime back from Bishop Auckland to Brum in freezing fog. We stopped near Derby to try to thaw out and my wife flatly refused to get back in the sidecar. Eventually a passing lorry driver helped me persuade her it was her only option and she tearfully complied, never to get in it again.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/286815293103...
13/09/2025 10:27:51 UTC
Glyn said :-
I have a round trip of 360 miles to pick up the trike. The best courier quote was £500! So I measured a LWB transit 3 times to assure myself it would go in. However it would need that much space again for the boxes of bits plus 3 scaffold boards. Then I found this lurking in a friends yard. Long enough and wide enough for the trike plus its own loading ramp. A phone call later and it’s mine free for the day. The Transit has a tow bar. What was that I said about being a lucky guy?
14/09/2025 08:24:14 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
That's handy. I've occasionally hired trailers - there's a local place where they're about £50 / day - but often it's actually cheaper, and certainly less hassle, to trust one of the specialised movers. Their rates have gone up a lot recently, but the last bike I had delivered cost around £150. The disadvantage of course is possibly not seeing it before it arrives although I have been lucky in the past.
14/09/2025 10:18:43 UTC
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