Winds of change!

Kent-based CMM reader Stuart Gilbert loved a Z1, but couldn’t afford it, nor a Zephyr back in the 1990s – but then he could, and boy would his be a breath of fresh air!

- STUART GILBERT

I always fancied a Kawasaki Zephyr when they first came out in the early 1990s, which in turn began when I first saw a Z1, but couldn't afford either of them at the time when the bug had bitten…

Strangely, it was the 550 I thought was the best looking due to its close-pitch cylinder finning as opposed to the 750; the1100 had not been released at that point, so that was my only choice. Fast forward to 2013 and I saw by chance – an 1100 Zephyr for sale on eBay, which piqued my interest again. Also by now I was able to afford one.

So I started looking for an1100, which was now my preferred model.

Yes, it was a case of ‘ biggest is best’, and on balance it’s the better-looking model. Despite scouring every motorcycle media known to man I couldn’t find anything good enough – and not many were out there.

By the end of 2013 I got fed up with the search and forgot all about it, but come 2015 I came across the Japanese 'Sanctuary' website and that did it... Wow! Those bikes look awesome and I knew I had to build a bike along those lines. So the search began again in earnest, until I found a bike very poorly advertised on Gumtree. It just said 'Kawasaki Zephyr 1100' and a land-line number.

As bad as the advert was, this turned up a gem. It was a 1997 registered B1 with wire-spoked wheels, the vendor had owned it from new and it'd only done a genuine 5500 miles! What's more, the price was favourable, too!

The race was on to get the bike – but I had no van, no one to help and no trailer. I sorted a trailer locally, only to find it was overpriced and a deathtrap, as he’d built it himself! I’m stuck, so I pay the dosh and fix it up as best I can ready for the journey to Essex the next day.