Analysis & maintenance log: In a sense, the Bandit 1200 final edition is the K5! OEM parts to secure before discontinuation and the foundation tuning to ride the oil-cooled forever

Today’s musings (‘ω’)

I’m struggling hard with chicken keeping every day.
When I think first about “how to raise them easily and cleanly,” the worries really never end.
But they lay at a steady pace of three eggs a day, so for our household it’s almost too much production!
Even if a food shortage came, we could probably get through it…
But then a new problem pops up: “What will we feed the chickens then?” (laughs).

The recent theme is “the daytime rain problem.”
At night they’re in a cage, and on sunny days they roam free on the grass, but on rainy days they shelter quietly under the wood deck.
But having them sit directly on flat concrete isn’t good for their legs or hygiene.
Should I lay down easy-to-clean panels? Or set up a roost? …
After much deliberation, I decided to go with the latter: a [roost].

By the way, I avoid using “wood” as a material as much as possible.
Because their “droppings” get it incredibly dirty and soak right in…!
What’s easy to rinse quickly and clean is definitely [metal].
Adding grip and foot protection wrapping on top is the most efficient solution I’ve come to.

I’m sourcing materials now, so I’ll introduce it once it takes shape. …
Well, how many people are interested in a motorcycle shop’s chicken-keeping DIY is a mystery ( `ー´)ノ

Chiba relocation one-year anniversary inspection certificate entry limited quantity on sale now (*´ω｀*)

Mikuni negative-pressure final and strongest? BSR34

There’s a complaint that the upper RPM won’t pull, so I’ll do a light carburettor check.
It’s in quite a sharp condition…

Contrary to my expectation that it might be clogged…it’s clean.
Passages are fine, slide valve operation is fine.

One potential cause is ruled out.

While I had it off, I finished it with wet blasting (*´ω｀*)
Just the float chamber is sparkling!

The K1 and early models had a clip on this cap, but later models lost it.
Well, in fresh condition it doesn’t fly off.

This time it was pretty seized, so maybe the first time I’ve removed it…

With carburettor synchronization done too, the idle now has that proper four-cylinder “voom” sound.

Get stepped breather hoses early!

Suzuki OEM [13850-31F01] breather hose.
It’s still available from the maker right now!

It’s stepped—different sizes front and rear—and has complex curved molding, so
there’s no workaround; it’s a real pain to make. Grab one while you can.

You might think “I can just make it with straight hose and an off-the-shelf L-fitting,” but
when you add a fitting, the joint narrows the [inner diameter]. Same with fuel hose.
It won’t blow immediately, but it’s far from the original (OEM) venting and pressure control.

Breather hoses tend to get left hard and brittle from heat and blowby gas, so
check it now and swap in a fresh one for peace of mind ( `ー´)ノ

They managed to keep it connected and working somehow.
Now it’s clean and worry-free.

The end that goes into the engine is slightly larger.
Honestly…I wish they’d stop making stepped hoses…
The clip comes with it too, which is great.

Little details really boost the quality feel.
Just wrapping braided sleeve over it makes it resist dirt, resists chafing, and looks more refined.

Clean and tidy comes from steady attention to detail.

Secondary air pump hose is discontinued

I found something nice like this on Amazon.

Hose protection spring tube kink crush wear prevention (18mm inner diameter protection spring long)

It’s hard to find something where the inner and outer diameter and price all match up.
I bought it and it worked out great (*´ω｀*)If you want to prevent kinking, check it out.

I cut it in half and stretched it to twice the length I needed.
It’s a neat item and really flexible, which is great.

Thanks to this, the secondary air pump layout came out clean!
This spring is really handy, so if you’re having trouble with crushed hoses, take a look

It’s also perfect when the master cylinder hose might get slightly crushed like this.
I tested it with Gun-Kote coating. Perfect (*´ω｀*)

I found another handy little item.

Is this the real stock? Revived with Yoshimura ST-1

Just bolting on a cam makes it run so smoothly and pleasantly right away.

From a standstill launch to the pull up top, it’s just so smooth—the jerkiness vanishes and it becomes a different machine.
“The tach and speedo needles sync up and climb together” might be the best way to put it.
Stock, the RPM climbs first with a whine, and the speed lags a beat behind, giving it a sluggish feel.

This endless-horizon performance is sublime.
A half fairing with good wind protection, comfortable bar-handle ergonomics. When you feel this depth, you really understand why the Bandit 1200 had the longest sales run of any generation ( `ー´)ノ

Every detail is cleaner now, and it’s become your bike all over again.