Featured 2006 Yellow Speed Four Tidy-up

I've just bought a 2006 Speed Four from a really nice bloke Liverpool way who isn't able to ride any more.
The bike has been stood for a while and is covered in cobwebs and surface grime.
First aim is to get it through the MOT on the 19th then I can set to cleaning it all up properly.

Things that need attention:

• Rear brake - when I looked at the bike prior to purchase I could see the back brake wasn't working. The pads were nowhere near the rear disc, and pressing the rear brake pedal caused no movement in the brake piston. Discovered last night that it is the brake line itself that is blocked. Looks like it has been subjected to excessive heat at some point as the black coating on the outside of the pipe appears to have melted slightly. Picked a used genuine rear line on ebay for £6.50... bargain! Also ordered some new stainless banjos and fresh crush washers.
• Front brake discs - loads of play in them, really 'rattly', I've posted a question in the technical area to see if this is normal
• Heated grips - the bike came with them, I hate them, they'll be going
• Lockset - the bike came with 3 keys.. unfortunately, 1 is for the ignition, 1 for the tank and 1 for the seat lock. Not the end of the world, just annoying. Have written I, T and S on the keys in permanent marker for now but will replace the lockset when one comes up at a decent price
• Other than that and general stuff like a bloody good wash, spraying connectors, bleeding brakes, oil and filter change etc.

Will add updates on here as things progress. Hopefully I won't discover any nightmares

Chris

 

Looks ok from a distance, but close up you can see it needs work... a bit like the owner

 

A great first ride out over to Skipton with friends yesterday.
The bike performed well apart from a few little niggles.
The ‘floating’ front discs have too much movement and are pushing the pistons back slightly in the caliper so I’m having to double pump the brakes to get full stopping power. I have some spare discs to put on that should solve that.
The flat spot 3-4k is awful for slow manoeuvres. I managed to pick up a power commander from a TT600 cheap on eBay, assuming it will work since it’s the same engine and the fitting instructions are identical for the TT600 and the S4. My local dyno place should hopefully be able to do me a custom map for it and dial it out
Other than that I’m super happy