Is it sacrilege to nakedize my 93

[grumpy72]

Just got my blue and black 93. Never owned a voyager always wanted one. I owned a kz1000 and loved it. I like certain conveniences but after an ultra classic,11 goldwings, 8 ventures i am ready for lighter. The inner panels of my fairing are busted up. I took the outer covers off for now.will remove the busted stuff. I want the outer shell and a chopped windscreen.the giant tourpack is off not going back. I have no idea how to get cruise to work but would love that.one saddlebag is off but i have it.they are very heavy. I got a small tourpack off a scooter.its blue and black. I am anxious to get it strretable.the front brakes dont work.out of fluid. I bought a mighyvac. Have the dreaded fill and bleed to do. I want to replace all the fluids, flush radiator.the throttle cable is missing.i see 2 cables from handgrip.i figure one is cruise control.i have a lot to learn on this bike

[SgtSlag]

It is your bike.  You can do whatever you like with it.  There are various techniques for adding brake fluid:  Speed Bleeders, reverse bleeding, and others.

I've heard people say that stripping the Tupperware off of one of these bikes will turn it into a scream machine, but that does not appeal to me, personally.  If I wanted that sort of bike, I'd find one more suited to it, which did not require so much work.  I'm not into mod'ing bikes very much.  I would rather buy a bike of the style I want, and ride it.  I mod'ed my '79 Honda APJB for touring, but that consisted of adding things to it, not taking things away.  That was my missed opportunity from my youth.  I fell in love with the teardrop tank designs of the late 70's to 80's, but I was in Highschool until 1983.  Couldn't afford what I wanted, back then.  Bought my '79 in 2006, and I searched for the parts I wanted to make it more comfortable for two-up touring  (circled Lake Superior on it, two-up, in 2009 -- wouldn't trade that experience for anything...).  I added a few bits to my '83 Kawi 440LTD, to make it a more fun and comfortable town rider (added a Vetter QuickSilver fairing, and a modern trunk).  I've tinkered with adding a few doo-dad's to my '93 Voyager, but those were enhancements added to suit my touring desires.

I bought my '93 Voyager to enjoy as a touring bike.  That is what the majority of this forum's members bought their Voyagers for.  That is the main focus of this forum.  For that reason, you may not find a lot of enthusiasm for what you are doing with your bike.  Nothing wrong with what you are doing, it is just outside of the main interest of this forum.  Cheers!

[GrandpaDenny]

I'll second what SgtSlag just said. I guess if I wanted (and I do) something with the comfort of the Voyager (or close to it) but lighter and faster, I would go for a Concours 1000 (and I am saving my pennies for one - just saw one in Texas that has me drooling). If I wanted a similar bike without the bags and stuff, then we'd be in Ninja 1000 territory. They're all related. Considering all three are in similar price ranges, I would buy the one that fits the purpose I have in mind and go from there.

Like you, the Voyager is my dream bike; I have wanted one since I first saw one thirty years ago. I wanted to tour the country. I would never want anything else if I hadn't discovered the Concours 1000. More speed! Sheesh I get into enough trouble with the Voyager. A friend has a 1400 Concours and I don't like it. Sure it's a screaming rocket; he's got it tweaked a little and has hit 170 on the PA Turnpike with his wife on the back (she's even crazier than he!), but I find it very uncomfortable. A C10 might be just the ticket for me.

<shrug> I'll likely just stick with old Gertrude. She's done me just fine.

Oh, and one more thing about the folks with the C14 - we ride together, and Gertrude and I hang right with them in the mountains. I love telling this story: one day we were up in the mountains around Emporia, PA, and the road was awful, horrible, terrible, bad even. Carole was hanging on to the grab bars of the C14 for dear life and bouncing all over the place. I went around them drinking coffee.

[Nails]

I would rather buy a bike of the style I want, and ride it.

There's already a naked XII in this world. It's called a Bandit. I'd have to recommend selling your XII and just getting one of those -- save yourself a ton of grief.

I've modded the heck out of mine, but all true to a touring bike that's at home on the superslab as well as the twisties. It's one of the advantages of getting a cheap XII -- don't need to fret over just-so stock and aftermarket stuff. (Actually, I fret a bit too much over getting rid of all the golf-cart accents that come on stock XII. )

[grumpy72]

I have owned a bandit.good bike.i owned a gs1000 and 2 850 gs. One valkyrie. But i am 72. I want a lightweight touring bike. So much of the plastic was ruined on mine i dont feel bad about removing it.but the voyager engine, its low center of gravity are what i am looking for.its got 50,000 miles on it. I would post before and after pics but yall know the before appearance. I look forward to getting it roadworthy. My overflow tank, the one on the left rear side of the engine was full of dirty water. I dont know how hard it is to flush out but i will find out

[grumpy72]

The fairing was so busted up.the big outside panels with the signal lights are good but all the rest of the inner dashboard stuff is ruined. I just hope i can get all the lights and cruise control working. I am thinking these bikes are pretty fast.

[Nails]

I wonder how you'll cover the ugly guts.

I've seen XII stripped down, but still using lots of the original bodywork cut down. Looked like a lot of work but likely a nice commuter.

If the Bandit was too heavy, the XII is never gonna work. I believe the naked 1200 Bandits weighed less than 500 lbs. I would expect a stripped XII to come in at least 150 more than that.


I'm only 6 years behind you. When I get too old for this 800 lb beast, I'm looking into a mid-sized touring bike (lots to choose from). As an example, I bought a GL500 "Sushiguzzi" (in need of restoration), mostly for my daughter; but if it works for me I'll keep it. She'll get stuck with one of these dirt bikes and maybe eventually the XII -- if she wants it.

[GrandpaDenny]

I have owned a bandit.good bike.i owned a gs1000 and 2 850 gs. One valkyrie. But i am 72. I want a lightweight touring bike. So much of the plastic was ruined on mine i dont feel bad about removing it.but the voyager engine, its low center of gravity are what i am looking for.its got 50,000 miles on it. I would post before and after pics but yall know the before appearance. I look forward to getting it roadworthy. My overflow tank, the one on the left rear side of the engine was full of dirty water. I dont know how hard it is to flush out but i will find out

there is a hose behind the left side cover, below and a little aft of the coolant overflow tank. Loosen the clamp, slide it up the hose a bit, and pull the plug out. 'Twill go goooooosh with nasty stuff. Is that the "overflow tank" you're talking about? It's a drain tank, not an overflow tank. All the nasty stuff that gets blown back into the lower air box drains into that. Water, oil, general icky stuff. Don't bother flushing it. If all you had in it was water, you're fine. I always get water and some oil out of mine.

[GrandpaDenny]

The fairing was so busted up.the big outside panels with the signal lights are good but all the rest of the inner dashboard stuff is ruined. I just hope i can get all the lights and cruise control working. I am thinking these bikes are pretty fast.

That they are. I don't know where you're getting your ideas about the weights of the bags, though. They're ABS plastic and weight almost nothing. The top trunk with the backrest still on weighs less than five pounds. The luggage rack is probably two or three pounds. I'd say pulling all three backs and the framework off will save maybe 15-20 pounds. On an 800 pound bike that's negligible - a full tank of gas weighs twice that. By pulling the saddlebags off you won't have rear turn signals, and will have to rig something up.

But if you have the bike, sure why not play around with it. The best bike is whatever you're going to ride. I'm also of the "add more doo-dads" club - custom seat (although not made for me - it came off of another bike), Progressive fork springs, Progressive rear shocks, LED headlight, LED lights, LED driving/fog lights, heated grips, heated seat, bluetooth hub, USB ports, 12V ports, voltmeter, CB/Weather radio, heads-up display, GPS, radar detector, tri-band ham radio, and the all-important cup holder. Only thing I've removed is the cruise control switches on the false tank. Bypassed, so all I need to do is hit the switch on the handlebar. Got a nice big beautiful expandable tank bag, too.

Bikes are fun not only to ride, but to make fit us - to make just the way we want them. I paid $800 for Gertrude 2 1/2 years and 35000 miles ago. Repairs have consisted of a broken shifter linkage (right after I got her), blown out rear shocks (unmarked railroad crossing elevated way above the road in Georgia), and the choke cable. She was a mess when I got her, including missing some frame bolts.

[GrandpaDenny]

The fairing was so busted up.the big outside panels with the signal lights are good but all the rest of the inner dashboard stuff is ruined. I just hope i can get all the lights and cruise control working. I am thinking these bikes are pretty fast.

Somebody, I forget who, took one to a dragstrip last summer and clocked a 13.3 second quarter-mile. They definitely ain't no slouches. They have a lot of similarities with other Z-series Kawasakis - you can definitely see the family resemblenesses.

My club rides are usually a couple of late-model 1800 Gold Wings, some older 1800 Gold Wings, a Harley or three, sometimes some older 'Wings, and Gertrude. The front pack is usually the later Gold Wings and Gertrude, and everybody else trailing a ways back. Not all of our rides are like that, we have one or two ride leaders who like to get frisky.

[grumpy72]

I appreciate the responses. Heres my response. Thank you for the input on the overflow tank.whatever its called. I have a manual now. If a bandit is too heavy the voyager is much heavier comment: i owned one.a 600 bandit. It was too fast, too small, and has midmount pegs. The kawasaki concours pegs are too far back and the handlebars are too low. The trunk feels like it weighs 50 pounds.and its like a sail on a boat.they are convenient for storage but huge wind catcher and their weight is high in the air. The saddlebags are also heavy plus they have a heavyduty mounting system, plus the lids look like they need safety wires. Completely stock the bike weighs over 100 lbs less than the goldwings i owned. My bike has one big central tailight. The turn signals are in the saddlebags ? Ok. I will keep the bags.the busted up fairing is a problem.i know a nonrunner parts bike i could buy stuff off of, i dont care if the radio works. I do want the cruise control.the throttle cable- theres the 2 into one setup.the final one goes to the carb.mine is broke.the ball end that slides into the carb.where do yall buy parts? So i am going to change oil,filter ,get cable. Flush coolant,one piece of fuel line, and tires.then it will be good.at least the motor sounds ok.i love the exhausts.and the triple discs.that trunk and the afterthought speakers is the ugliest tourpack i have seen. I have 2 others better looking if i ever mount one. I appreciate the help.

[grumpy72]

Well i bought a goodlooking parts bike today.i thought.looked the same to me. Got it home.turns out its a fulldress kz1300 6 cylinder.its so clean i am going with it versus the voyager.i hope they are good as a voyager

[GrandpaDenny]

the 1300 is a totally different bike. If you think the 1200 is heavy... the 1300 is a couple of hundred pounds heaver than the 1200 (ok maybe 150). If you want to go fast in a straight line, you'll love the 1300, but if you want to maneuver you'll hate it.

[grumpy72]

Heres my plan. The 1200 is lighter. So many wires are disconnected it will take me a long time to figure out what goes where.if i could just get the headlight tailight brake light and license light to work i would be happy.i have a shop manual.not just a haynes or clymer.but the wiring diagram is a nightmare. I need a color coded one.the 1300 reminds me of the 4 1500 goldwings i have owned.great straightline bikes. Once i get all the 1200 weight off i doubt i will ride the other one and will sell it. But the 1300 appears to need routine maintenance and a battery.soething to ride whilei do the 1200.

[grumpy72]

I ggogled and found a post that says kawasaki wires are this color, yamaha this color, etc etc.that might be all i need to kknow

[GrandpaDenny]

https://www.amervoyassoc.org/Documents/ ... trical.gif

[grumpy72]

Bless you sir!!

[grumpy72]

Where did you find the color diagrams