Playtime with a GSXR750 L2.

Thank F... goodness For Seven-Fifties!
They were all the rage in the '90's. World Superbikes kept them firmly in the minds of any pub road-racer. I was just starting out on the road, but wanted a blue ZXR750 with those Hoover tubes looking so bloody cool coming out of the tank. Ooh yeah. And let's not forget the rare RC30...
Local fast boys had GSXR750's and wheelied from the lights constantly, telling me about the gearbox rebuilds from continual wheelie abuse. It was music to my ears at that age! Yeah, there were 1100's, and the all new Fireblade, but it was the 750's that were racing round the track against 916 Ducatis. 

And then...
Everything changed. 600's got quicker, the R1 came along and annihilated the ageing 'blade. A few years later, Suzuki had a thou too and suddenly WSBK was destined for 1000cc fours as well as the V-twins. The midrange 750's started to die out - after all, they weren't wanted in terms of sales. The ZX7R hung in there for a while, but the only true sports bike to maintain that displacement was the GSXR, all those years after it's formidable launch in '85.

And what a good move by Suzuki. 
Yeah, thou's are great fun 'cause they're quick. But how much power can you actually make use of on the road? There was a time when a big bike was limited by its poor chassis. You might have horsepower, but you're going to die if you try to exploit it. Not so much nowadays. They let you get away with a lot, but also make you very lazy. Someone faster than you in a corner? Just open up on the straight and reel him back in. You end up riding around on quarter throttle thinking you're Troy Bayliss, while there's a 600 stuck up your chuffer trying to hurry you along in the corners!
Looking at the latest thou's now, I can't help thinking that all the electronic aids designed to make them faster/safer are dulling the basic virtues of riding. Launch control, traction control, wheelie control... strewth, what about my control?
Sure, gadgets are great, but go out there and get on a real bike for a bit. Give the brain something to do, you might actually enjoy it...

Untidy Wiring? Recovering Could Be The Answer.

You can put the insulation tape away too!
It maybe considered pedantic, considering the rest of the bike at the moment, but I didn't like the white, heat resistant (?) sheathing on the wiring from the signal generator. It was torn in places, fraying and looked scruffy - not really the look I was going for (for the wiring at least).
So, with a little bit of looking around on the dock of the eBay, I found some Techflex. A plastic braided sleeve which expands when you push it together so that you can get it over various looms, hoses or cables etc. When it goes back to its original length, it tightens back up and looks great. Worth a shot of anyone's money I thought.

Here's the old covering looking a bit dilapidated. I'd cleaned it up as best I could, but some things have their limits.