27.
I had already previously moved the RF900’s thermostat but didn’t really write about it. Many people who choose to turn the RF900 into a street fighter don’t bother to move the thermostat from the mount point on the outside right hand side of the frame, which in my opinion looks nasty and a little lazy – other people have proved that it looks so much better moved under the tank. Moving the thermostat was probably the only thing that I succeeded to do during my first StreetFighter build attempt.
Some people say there isn’t enough room under the tank for the thermostat. I had made it work before (although it did rest a little on the breather case) and with this build and the new stick coils – (more on that in my next post) I had plenty of room to work with. I could even use the mount points from the old coils to make a proper bracket for the thermostat.
One thing you may have noticed is that I have changed the black end of the thermostat. The original RF900 thermostat has a right angled connector to connect the radiator. With the relocation and new bracket I found that this angle was too sharp to produce a nice flow to the radiator. So I used the straight connector from the GSXR1100 – which fit perfectly to the RF900 thermostat.
It seems that the pipe work for the new black end is a little smaller that the original part but I don’t think it will affect the cooling performance especial as in the UK the weather rarely gets very hot.
Cap needs painting
Overflow bottle. Always a good question - what to do with the overflow bottle on a street fighter? The RF900 overflow bottle was originally attached to the subframe under the big arse fairings. It is not the best looking part to come from a Suzuki.
Therefore, a new water bottle was needed. Found this one on eBay. Not sure it is perfect but will do for now.
Mounting point will most likely be near the radiator but will have to decide exactly where nearer the first run.
The newly painted engine will also need some pretty new water hoses, mostly for aesthetic reasons but the old hoses had a lot of crud in them and were pretty tired after being on the bike for 17 years.
New Clamps
Radiator needs some work… not sure what to do.
May look for a new one (saw one on eBay for an RF900 - £450!!!) or get it reconditioned as others have done on the rfownersclub. If it cleans up nicely I may be able to hide most of the broken fins with the new RF900 Radiator grill.
One thing you may have noticed is that I have changed the black end of the thermostat. The original RF900 thermostat has a right angled connector to connect the radiator. With the relocation and new bracket I found that this angle was too sharp to produce a nice flow to the radiator. So I used the straight connector from the GSXR1100 – which fit perfectly to the RF900 thermostat.
It seems that the pipe work for the new black end is a little smaller that the original part but I don’t think it will affect the cooling performance especial as in the UK the weather rarely gets very hot.
Cap needs painting
Overflow bottle. Always a good question - what to do with the overflow bottle on a street fighter? The RF900 overflow bottle was originally attached to the subframe under the big arse fairings. It is not the best looking part to come from a Suzuki.
Therefore, a new water bottle was needed. Found this one on eBay. Not sure it is perfect but will do for now.
Mounting point will most likely be near the radiator but will have to decide exactly where nearer the first run.
The newly painted engine will also need some pretty new water hoses, mostly for aesthetic reasons but the old hoses had a lot of crud in them and were pretty tired after being on the bike for 17 years.
New Clamps
Radiator needs some work… not sure what to do.
May look for a new one (saw one on eBay for an RF900 - £450!!!) or get it reconditioned as others have done on the rfownersclub. If it cleans up nicely I may be able to hide most of the broken fins with the new RF900 Radiator grill.