GZ250 Cafe Conversion

[ruxpin76]

Well, I've finally done it.
I've probably bitten off a tough piece to chew, but I've been mulling over converting my beloved GZ into a cafe-styled "standard" instead of the cruiser that Suzuki intended. For a bit of background, I am a "reformed" mechanical engineer -- which means I switched majors to architecture when I got bored of calculus, but after completing most of my degree. As a consequence, I got a decent foundation of good design practice, structures, materials, and most importantly: machining and welding. I worked on the Formula SAE project at Pitt, giving me experience with fiberglass and more design, and I grew up racing kart-like vehicles, giving me more mechanical experience. That said, I plan to chronicle my conversion here in step-by-step detail, "simple" enough that the average knuckle-buster can follow along and attempt something similar. If it proves popular, I may produce some bolt-ons to make the job easier for the less mechanically inclined.

I'll catch up with the pics soon, but here's an outline of what I've done so far:

*PRIOR TO THIS PROJECT: did needle shim mod, added hi-flo filtro in place of stock, replaced gas tank.

in roughly chronological order:

*removed chrome covers from engine
*removed seat in normal fashion and removed latch from fender
*unbolted fuse block and relays from fender bracket
*removed tail and fender in one piece, disconnecting wires at their plugs and preserving parts
*removed battery wires from terminals and unstrapped battery, removing it.
*removed battery box
*unbolted airbox bootie and hoses from airbox
*removed airbox by sliding back into fender area (easy, and intact IF battery holder is removed!!!)
*clipped misc. ty-wraps holding wiring in original locations
*removed carb (disconnected throttle and choke cables and vacuum hoses) for jetting change
*removed gas tank for easier access

I have pics of most of this, step by step. The tools I've used so far: 10mm wrench, 10mm socket, 14mm (choke nut)
side-cutting pliers for ty-wrap removal, phillips screwdriver for clamp removal.

My digital cam is 14MP, so bear with me as I download and resize the pics to post. I'll be posting them here and on photobucket, so don't worry if you don't see 'em all here. Let me know if there's more that you want to see.

Tonight's to-do list: remove front fender, tape for trimming, trim, sand edges, reinstall.