Do you really want to know how fast you can go with a 250cc four stroke engine? Then go check out Dark Horse Racing 9623. This is the internet home to the Worlds Fastest 250 Ninja, as certified by the East Coast Timing Association. Be sure to watch the video of his 123 mph run. Go check it out here at this link!
Here I’m just going to let you follow along as I remove the fairings, fuel tank, and exhaust system from my 93 Kawasaki 250 Ninja. Although the title of this blog is Life on Two Wheels, the truth of the matter is that for last year & over half of this year a true story of my life would have been called life in hotel rooms and rental cars. While I was away I still managed to squeeze in some bicycling time, and I did try on the occasional weekend to take my motorcycle out for a spin but unfortunately never far or often enough, and it has developed some problems related to long term storage anyway. A couple of months ago I started a new job, moved back home and now am ready to get back down to the business of serious recreational motorcycling again.
’93 Ninja 250 Fresh out of the shop after restoration 4 years ago!
This bike still starts right up and once warmed up will zip from idle to redline with just a flick of the wrist, riding it at low speed or for a short distance no symptoms are discernible. If driven at highway speed for more than 3 or 4 miles it begins to spit and sputter and stops like it has run out of gas. So far I have done all of the easy and obvious things such as verify the gas cap & other fuel tank vents, made sure the fuel petcock was working, and that both the in tank and external fuel filters were clean. So now its time to pull the carbs back off and check everything out. Since I am tired of having to pull the exhaust system off every time I want to change the oil filter (and it got some holes in it now also), I am going to pull the Yoshimura 2 into 1 header and replace it with a pair of Emgo Dunstall replicas using some custom fabricated adapters welded to the end of some factory head pipes.
As you are following along please be aware that my cycle is not stock. It has a few aftermarket, modified or bespoke parts on it so even if you have the same make and model of motorcycle you may notice many substantial differences between mine and yours. Just remember modifications to your motorcycle are made at your own risk, some may be dangerous or illegal in some places, I am not a motorcycle engineer, nor do I play one on t.v. Use your best judgement,consult your doctor, shrink, & attorney, then get a permission slip from your mom before imitating any mods you see on this site, because I am only responsible for my own stupidity, not yours. Now that the disclaimers are out of the way , let’s get to work!
First pull the mirrors.
Ninja 250 mirror removal
Unbolt the lower fairing I like to start with the front center bolt first.
Ninja 250 lower fairing remove bolt
Additional screws indicated by arrows.
Time to get the upper fairing loose You will notice some very blotchy spots in the next photo. It is not paint damage. I discovered the hard way that if you are shall we say a larger boy, you should not take pictures of shiny very reflective surfaces while wearing nothing but a pair of shorts. The resulting images were distorted,and bizarrely pornographic looking, so I blotched them out.
There is an arrow pointing to some damage to the tank that is a direct result of the hygroscopic nature of this damn corn syrup that the government is forcing into our gasoline. I’ll fix it, line the tank and paint it again.
Ninja 250 upper fairing screws
Then unplug the turn signals.
Ninja250 turn signal wires
You could have taken the seat off as the first step but I’m doing it now, just turn the key and pop it loose.
Ninja 250 seat lock
The side covers have one screw each at the bottom as shown here.
After removing this the side cover should snap off, pull it loose from the front first.
Here it is with the side covers off
Ready to remove the tank now!
Remove the bolts
Ninja EX250 fuel tank bolts
and then disconnect the fuel & vacuum lines from the petcock
Ninja EX250 fuel petcock
Hey look! it is a naked Ninja, enjoy the view.
Now you know what a sportbike looks like with no clothes
I still have to loosen the radiator to remove the head pipes. The hoses can stay attached but all of the bolts indicated by the arrows have to be removed from both sides.
NInja 250 radiator & fairing brace
This will allow me to pull it forward to remove the exhaust system. It’s hard to see in this picture but after unbolting the flanges from the head remove the bolts attaching the pipes to the frame. This particular system is suspended from the drivers foot peg.
My soon to be former exhaust.
It is crazy but all of the preceding steps were necessary every time I wanted to change the oil filter, I loved the sound and performance of this system but due to the extra maintenance work and the damage it has suffered over the years (it was on the bike when my wife bought it for me) I decided to replace it.
Rusty pipe
Until next time,
Peace Y’all
I’ve been wanting one of these for a long time. For years I used a wooden table or a chain hoist to lift motorcycles up for repairs when I just could not bear to get down on the floor to work on them. As I’ve gotten older the combination of a weaker back and a fatter wallet has made this purchase a lot easier to justify. So when the September issue of my favorite motorcycle magazine arrived on my Kindle with a coupon to purchase this lift for $299 I bought a print copy ASAP & clipped the coupon.
Ironically enough it took me 2 weeks to purchase this from either of the 2 nearby Harbor Freight stores. Unfortunately this led to my first real negative experience with a company that I have enjoyed doing business with for years. Last Saturday I went to my closest store in Florence S.C. and they were out of stock, so I called the store in Dillon an hour drive from here and they were also out, but told me they were expecting a shipment on Thursday. Yesterday, I was in Florence and they were still out, so I called the Dillon store and gave them the item number and was informed they had some in stock. So I gassed up my van and rolled up the interstate to that store, imagine my shock when I handed the clerk my coupon and was told that they were out of stock. When I mentioned that I had just called and had been informed that they were in stock. Then she went back to the computer and “found” one for me. Probably just a human error but if you are using a coupon to buy one I would verify stock in your nearest store before driving very far to pick one up. Don’t mention the coupon until you get there.
The shipping guys helped me load it in my van with the forklift. This worked out for me okay but if I had to do it again I would have taken a trailer for easier loading and unloading. If you have a long bed pickup truck that’s the best thing to use.
lift in crate in my Astro van
Since the completed crate was far too large and heavy for my beautiful assistant and I to remove from the van I simply opened where it was and slid the contents out into the door of my barn.
motorcycle lift crate open
I am not going to do a step by step walk through of the assembly because in all honesty the instructions that come with it are perfectly adequate to help you get it together. I will touch on a couple of things that I think you should know about. First I got all of the parts laid out and read the instructions from beginning to end.
Harbor Freight Motorcycle Lift Table w/ parts & instructions
Harbor Freight Motorcycle Lift Table oil fill plug
One of the things that you are instructed to do is to check the level of oil in the lift cylinder. The fill plug is in the location shown in the picture below.
Be sure to use a decent grade of jack oil. If you do not have some at home go ahead and pick some up at Harbor Freight while you are there. The best way to fill a jack cylinder like this is with a squirt can. Mine turned out to need a pint of oil to fill it.
oil I used for my Harbor Freight Motorcycle Lift Table
The instructions seem to want you to install all of the parts and accessories before you check the oil and raise the lift. I personally installed the wheels, then filled up the jack and raised the table all the way up to install the wheel vise, tie downs, & the ramp. You should do whatever seems safest to you.
Installing accessories on my Harbor Freight Motorcycle Lift Table
Here it is altogether.
my fully assembled Harbor Freight Motorcycle Lift Table
After double checking the assembly of the table I lowered it back down and drove the Minimum Ninja up on it so that it could receive some long overdue TLC.
Look Y’all it’s the Minimum Ninja!
Yesterday after strapping the bike down I raised the table to its maximum height and left the motorcycle sitting on it with the safety bar properly installed. When I went back this afternoon it was still all the way up. A lot of people criticize the design of the wheel vise but I think that it is okay. Unlike the larger vises I am certain that one can perform most fork and front wheel service without removing it. When I was a dealership mechanic most of the time the wheel vises from our heavy duty air lifts spent most of their time lying under the workbenches because they got in the way. Plus my bike still has a centerstand 🙂
Kawasaki Ninja 250 on my Harbor Freight Motorcycle Lift Table
Don’t forget to recycle the crate! It actually has a couple of large pieces of usable plywood, I know that you can always find a use for a good piece of wood around the house or shop.
Recycle this crate you know you want to.
This will be a long term review. Over time I will publish new updates or simply update this post as I get some miles and years put on this thing.
As for the Minimum Ninja, it will receive its own pages here covering the updates and repairs as I make them.
Peace Y’all
This is the best forum that I never joined. I wanted to & I still may if there is ever time to add another distraction to my life. Even so the Ninja 250 wiki was all the information that I needed to make the upgrades to my favorite little motorcycle, so that it hauls my big old butt around at reasonable speeds with superior handling. If you are even thinking of getting a Ninja 250 you should visit this page. Sure I would have had no problems restoring mine from the cheap hunk of junk it was to the beauty you see in the picture above, but it was nice to find that someone else had done all of the homework and sorted out the sensible modifications that can be done to these little gems.
Sorry Hyosung and CBR250 fans but the little Ninja is THE 250!
The Interceptor
1984 VFR 1000
Should you happen to have one the old 80s 700-1100cc VFRs lying around taking up space in your garage and you really need to get rid of it let me know. I’m exactly the kind of masochist who would enjoy restoring one.
Welcome to the Asylum 