Two's company!

The FZ motor has some company on Steve's work bench. Not only is my motor getting major works, but so is the new motor of my friend and co racer Phil. He has spent the last 2 seasons racing his Laverda 750 formula v-twin.
It is a lovely handling bike but unless you spend an absolute fortune on it, it is doomed to circulate somewhere near the back. As proven by the Alto Laverda team who have spent a real fortune on their bike. It did win last season and is a real marvel of engineering and dedication. It looks beautiful too!



Phil attempted to get the bike to perform better earlier in the season and spent a lot of time, effort and money re-working the engine only for it to self destruct in quite a spectacular manner. The inside of the motor looked like a scrap yard!

The Laverda has been really good to Phil over the years! Now she gets a well deserved rest....for a while anyway!



Phil hasn't been so good to the Laverda though! This was a big off at Dijon, France in 2005!

So he was left with a dilema. Spend shed loads more money on it or buy something that will make more financial sense as well as giving the owner a lot less hassle and be more competitive.
Phil is a die-hard v-twin fan but has managed to quell his lust for Italian exotica and run a Japanese four cylinder. So while the Laverda gets pushed to the back of the garage, along side the v-twin RSV Aprilia, Phil has very sensibly, in my opinion, got his hands on .....can you guess?.......... a rather messy Yamaha FZ 750!

And it does make sense. Cheap racing, relatively!

So over the course of the coming season I am going to try to keep up with the two of us and post what happens with Phil's FZ as well. I say try because I find it a lot of work to keep the blog going and get on with day to day life. I do enjoy it and the e-mails I get from folks saying how much they enjoy it makes it worthwhile taking the time to write. It also leaves a good record and is fun to get nostalgic over on occasions as my self and Phil did the other evening as we went over some of the early goings on last year. Anyway, back to the bikes....

Phil's brother Dave, had the FZ I am using laying around in his garden looking sorry for sometime. He donated the machine and came a couple of times to watch last year and really enjoyed himself. Then he came home from a stint away with another FZ in the back of his van and gave it to Phil. So the fun for Phil begins.

This FZ was really sad looking and it was decided that a total strip was in order. It actually looked like it had been dragged out of a river!

Ooooo....nasty!

Phil took to motor to uncle Steve for a total overhaul and to have the works done to it. So everything that mine is having, so is Phil's.
He has sourced a complete R6 front end, a new rear shock, and a FZR 400 swing arm. I think the body work is old 90's race kit and the frame has been blasted and primed. New adjustable yokes that will be made by Phil will replace the standard R6 items retaining the FZ steering stem.

Brings back memories!

Things are well on the way to turning the old Fat rusty girl into Project FZ750 racer MK2!
Time to get back to beavering in the shed.....