ManitobaSupermono

wee battery

2012-02-11T12:55:00.000-08:00

The lightweight racing battery from Racing Batteries (see link on right) arrived. As you can see, much smaller than stock. Also lighter -- using a digital scale from the school, it came in a 1080g -- just over a kilo. The stock battery was too heavy for the scale to read -- its max was 2kg. So it is quite a bit lighter than the stock ex650r battery.

A bit more work

2012-01-29T06:57:00.000-08:00

Some parts recently arrived for both the mono and the ex650 which has allowed me some time to tinker in the garage. I thought that while I was working on the clutch of the ex, installing the slipper mechanism, I should also upgrade the springs with heavy duty items from Barnett. Although they won't be seen outside the bike, the green springs and red caps lend a festive mood to the machine...

The lever guards arrived from Woodcraft -- see sponsor list to the right for the link to their site. As you can see from an earlier post, the purpose of these is to prevent unintended locking of the front brake due to incidental contact between bikes.

More evidence of why these guards are a good idea...

I plan on installing the clutch side guard on the brake side of the mono... once it warms up a bit and I have some decent grips to install on that bike. The plastic pieces of junk I have on there now will do nothing to prevent the blisters I got all of last year.

Speaking of the mono, the muffler I first purchased, an all-carbon m4 exhaust from an R1, proved to be in pretty poor condition -- not as light as you would think, and the area that clamps onto the tailpipe would not properly seal, causing a bit of an air leak... perhaps this was what was causing some of the backfire issue? Regarless, for $55 I got a slip on for a zx10 -- the tailpipe was put to use on the ex650 (see the scorpion exhaust experiment in earlier posts), and the exhaust can -- new -- was utilized on the mono. From what I understand, the aluminum construction is a better and more durable option to the thumping singles -- carbon cans suffer due to the thumping firing order (apparently).

As you can see, the rear master cylinder has been removed -- it came leaking, a rebuild kit for it is also leaking... so I need to solve that problem soon. I splurged on a mityvac brake bleeder on sale on ebay, so hopefully that will help both with this project and the many other times a season I bleed brakes!

A new Ducati

2012-01-14T10:26:00.000-08:00

A Tamiya kit, based on Roby Rolfo's MotoGp Ducati.

Lotsa decals on this one.

The Tamiya clear has a pearl effect -- the glisten spots can be seen in the paint.

Local shop now sells Tamiya paints -- nice to work with, expecially the spray paints. An M1 is in the works -- either Melandri or Checa, in preseason testing colors for something different.

Another new Sponsor!

2012-01-13T16:46:00.000-08:00

Racing Batteries has stepped forward to support Lucky Stroke Racing in 2012. They sell a line of lightweight batteries for powersports products.

From their website:

Your bike, kart or car is beautifully engineered with the latest technology, carefully crafted in aluminum, titanium and lightweight plastics, and is as light as the manufacturer can make it.

You’ve removed all unnecessary components, and replaced as much of the rest as you can with the lightest materials you can afford – titanium fasteners, carbon bits, titanium exhausts and so on.
You’d love carbon wheels, but the budget won’t quite stretch! But under your seat (or behind it, or under the hood) lurks a big chunk of lead/acid nastiness – technology invented in 1859!
Why are high tech light weight sports vehicles supplied with this heavy, stone age garbage? Simple – high tech batteries are too expensive for cheapskate OEM buyers! Your laptop, phone and I-pod all use lightweight, high performance batteries, so why shouldn’t your pride and joy? Using the latest in lightweight power technology (Lithium Ferrous Nano Phosphate if we're being technical), Racing Batteries have created a range of components for your track bike, kart or race car that will give you a massive weight saving.
Racing Batteries are made in the UK - designed using the latest CAD systems, CNC machined, assembled and 100% tested in a professional quality controlled environment.
All Racing Batteries are direct replacements for your existing Lead Acid battery - simply remove your old battery and replace it with a Racing Battery - no other modifications are required - and you look after it just like you would a Lead Acid unit.
If you're not after a direct replacement or you're doing some serious racing, contact us and we'll let you know what the lightest option is for your application.
And as well as being lighter, Racing Batteries are more powerful than lead acid batteries, so that your motor starts faster and more reliably.

The battery for the ex650r is the RB240400 model. At 2.4lbs, it is nearly 5 lbs lighter than the stock battery. And like most of these new batteries, they last even longer than lead acid versions. Even better, they are successful in the UK, sponsoring one of my heros, Mike Rutter.

The website for Racing Batteries is listed under the "sponsors" tab to the right. Check them out!

Sponsorship News!

2012-01-13T16:34:00.000-08:00

Woodcraft Technologies has once again agreed to support Lucky Stroke Racing for 2012. One of the new products I will be using are the "Lever Guards". Designed to prevent unintentional front brake application when contact is made with another bike in close quarters, they would also protect hands in the event of a crash. Here's a nasty example of what can happen:

650 exhaust finished

2012-01-06T14:48:00.000-08:00

This has come together quite nicely. After recieving the scorpion exhaust from Pop over the break (originally for a gixxer 1000), I set about lining things up. I actually tacked the muffler in place at home, and then got the master, Brent at Cycleboyz to tig-weld it to the "free" collector pipe I had lying around. The end result is what you see here.

Nice tight clearance with the swingarm...

The muffer also came with a nice chrome-plated clamp (which I used to connect the tailpipe to the header), and a stainless strap and rubber bracket bushing.

I welded two m10 shouldered nuts into the cut-off end of the seat frame mounts -- this provided a strong and secure way to mount the muffler bracket.

I'll remove the bracket and paint it with Hammerite paint, as per my usual procedure. Tubing is 3/4 x .065 4130 -- plenty sturdy enough!

If you ask me, it kinda looks like a moto2 exhaust, with the loooong muffler bracket...

a few updates

2011-12-29T13:41:00.000-08:00

Some time off over the Christmas break has allowed me to tick off a few boxes on the "to do" list. First the supermono -- I didn't like the location of the HRC overflow bottle. Noticing that a lot of racebikes have them mounted on the front fairing stay, I decided to do likewise. It was a nice treat to work with proper metal tools.

Kate works part time at a top-secret location. It was quiet over the break, so I snuck in and used a nice shear and break to create the bottle holder. I also used their drill press to make the litening holes in this aluminum sheet. Foam strips are stuck to the bottle to help secure it in place -- a zip tie will be the final step to secure the bottle properly. The extra bonus was working inside!

I also mocked up a crankcase vent system. It uses a combination of 3/8" (case) and 5/8" (cylinder head) spigots. Before I bought more expensive hose for the application, I tested it with some cheap hose from Canadian Tire. There is a brass T fitting hiding in the picture on the left.

This hose has spent its life sitting on a spool in a store, and combine that with the below zero temps, turned it into plastic. This vent filter will lay FLAT under the tail section, not sticking up like this. At least I have the correct lengths and it should all work. Proper hose for this application is inbound.

Also had a chance to visit MINUTE MUFFLER in Brandon. Good karma from these dudes. I bought a better FMF muffler from ebay to fit on the mono -- it came with a short section of stainless connector pipe in 2", with a section cut for clamping. However the muzzy header coming out from the collector is also 2". I took the header and the stainless collector piece to the guys there to see if they couldn't use their pipe expander to create a slip-fit onto the muzzy header. Hey presto, and its done. I even had a spare muffle clamp that will work -- you can see it just ahead of the oil drain bolt. Will need to do some more tweaking and fitting to get the scorpion muffler to work, but this also allows me to take the whole shebang off again and re-fit the muzzy muffler (seen dented on the floor from my crash) if it all proves to be useless. Best part is, they did it for free! Might stop by with some Tim's in the next few days to express my thanks...

bored

2011-12-18T20:51:00.000-08:00

Winter is no fun. Maybe I should get into snowmobiles or something. A trip to Canadian Tire to get a 17' ladder for 1/2 price found me picking up some striping tape...

Warmer than seasonal weather did see me put the bored throttle bodies back on the ex. Cover went back on, waiting for spring. That being said, I'll have some fun when the scorpion muffler is acquired from Dad -- have some neat ideas for that. Stay tuned...

bored

2011-12-17T09:33:00.000-08:00

The Throttle Bodies have returned:

This picture should give you a sense of the increase in bore diameter:

You can see the original subplate in place with the new gap around the outer diameter. Sub plates will be removed for this application (obviously).

Also I spend the winter watching racing videos, and they often come with crash footage. I'm not much of a crasher, but last season I raced without a chest protector -- the bks leathers I was using were too tight to include the full back protector and a chest guard as well. I sold the bks leathers, and picked up a set of Spyke titanium leathers for an amazing price... they may clash just a bit with the green and blue of the bikes, but the important thing is they are top of the line leathers and being one size larger, they allow me to use the pilot chest protector I got as a part of the sponsorship deal last year.

650 tweaking

2011-11-27T09:31:00.000-08:00

Had the rare opportunity of turning a profit on some eBay buying and selling. Bought a new scorpion exhaust system for a zx14 for $38, and flipped it for $300!!! This "found money" has freed up the dosh to send my throttle bodies down to Zoran at Twin Works Factory for some boring. With some dyno time, apparently it frees up 4-5 hp. I've actually got some dyno time coming to me, if a horsetrading plan with a fella in Winnipeg works out.

As well, some unseasonably warm weather allowed me to install the slipper clutch on the 650 without freezing to death. Aside from a stubborn cltuch nut (thankfully the impact wrench came in handy) a fairly simple install, despite the absolutely shite instructions. I believe this was due to the Japanese being translated to English. I'm sure I did it correctly, but I am going to call yoyodyne next week to make sure the plates are done correctly.

radiator work

2011-11-20T10:50:00.000-08:00

After many hours of online searching, comparing shapes of a million different rad hoses for a variety of bikes, I got a set of silicone hoses for a klx220 -- they appeared in the pictures to have the proper bends, so that I didn't have to use so many 90 degree adaptors -- the water flow would be smoother throughout the system. I also got another ex500 rad cap filler unit, and was able to attach it solidly to the frame with an aluminum bracket I fabricated. All the hoses clear the engine with room to spare, and the slicone construction is more durable and will hold up to more pressue.

There is still one 90 deg bend (centre of this photo) which attaches the silicone hose to the mito hose I need to use to make the mito rad work properly.

Notice too I am clamp-free -- silicone hoses require special clamps that have an inner sleeve -- prevents the notches in a typical rad hose clamp from tearing into the outer surface.

Some pukka race kit -- that is an actual HRC overflow bottle, zip-tied to an aluminum bracket I made. Sender for water temp guage can be seen in the background. Not much more to be done at this point. The new carb parts have come in, so I went with a much larger pilot jet to address the backfiring. Hopefully that takes care of it. I also bought a used air/fuel ratio meter. Came very cheap -- hopefully it still works. If it does its job, I will likely get a stainless bung welded to to the header in order to take some readings to set the machine up with some more accuracy.

winter is approaching...

2011-11-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

Life of a motorcycle roadracer in Canada. Step one, make sure your tire supply for next year is secured in a nice warm environment. Best to buy tires at the end of the season, as they are often cheaper. Next you need to find a spot so they don't get subjected to the -40 degree (celcius) temps we can get over the winter here on the prairies. Short of a heated garage, the downstairs exercize room will do nicely...

These include the 120/180 michelins that I am gonna try on the wider rear rim of the 650.
Next I took out the husky engine to give it a once over to eliminate any possibilities of the backfire at idle. Timing was correct, valve gap was checked and put to spec. With only .002" gap, I needed to buy a new feeler gauge. Nothing seemed drastically out, but it was piece of mind to set it again. Easy to do as well. TDC was found by removing the clutch cover and using the punch marks to set TDC. Gave me a chance to remove and clean the secondary metal screen filter buried into the case. Nice to see how clean that was. Will check valve gaps every time I clean that filter. Makes sense to do them at the same time.

Less than a block from where I work is a Husky dealer -- no bikes, but mowers and chainsaws, I checked to see if they could order in gaskets and filters, and with some digging on their part, they indicated they could. Cool, as I need a new water pump gasket after removing the head to check the timing mark on the camshaft sprocket. Got a couple of spares as well. Thus, everything now points to a larger pilot jet/richer idle circuit as the solution to the idle issues. Unfortunately, will be a long wait until I can start the bike again. Hopefully spring comes early!

On another note, the year-end awards were handed out a week or two ago. Was presented with this. A nice reward for the year. Ended the Thunderbike class in 5th.

mitovarna

2011-10-27T15:42:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of the bike running, with my audio commentary concerning what is apparently a lean condition evidenced by the backfire you hear. Like many things, the advice/suggestions to deal with the condition are often contradictory...

According to online forums, the backfire could be caused by a lean condition, or an exhaust leak. Of course, timing could be the culprit, which is evidenced by the very hot headers even at idle. However, many mx450 engines do this, so glowing headers do not necessarily mean a lean condition. There is no exhaust leak in the pipe, but the slip fit by the muffler is somewhat suspect, but that shouldn't cause the backfire alone. Finally, nonstandard pipe and carb is no help, so the baseline to start is nonexistent. Since the advent of fuel injection, no one stocks carb parts, so pilot jets will need to be ordered (already on the way...) The joys of building and fabricating!!! I'll get it figured. Over the winter I will likely drop the engine and do a full inspection -- valves, timing, filters, etc. Will have lots of time to do it!

RIP Marco

2011-10-23T20:09:00.000-07:00

mito details

2011-10-17T17:30:00.000-07:00

Some pics for your enjoyment. Waiting on a $9 part to check to see if I've got the cooling system fixed. Rad came from Germany quicker than a rad cap came from the US. Typical teutonic efficiency.

new clothes

2011-10-03T17:19:00.000-07:00

Had some time with an extended fall to get the new fairings mounted and painted. Clear coat applied over the top. Plain numbers for now... or in compliance with AMA rules...?

Also still working on the mitovarna. Since getting the completed exhaust back from cycleboyz, have gotten it running. Still facing a typical bugbear -- cooling. Seems to be a regular problem with most of my projects, save the klx400. The KTM rad sits too low, and my theory is that despite purging the system of air, I still had a vapour lock/cavitation issue. I have seen pictures of this exact frame and this exact engine, but the radiator used was a mito rad. A bit small, but it would be better than what appeared to be no water flow that I was experiencing to date. So, I will simply copy what apparently works, so a mito rad is on the way. Cycleworld did an article on a crf450 engined mito, with again some fancy plumbing but the mito rad as a base. I found a complete cooling system off of ebay Germany, so I will see if this works better. Hopefully it gets here soon, as I would like to put the mito to bed for the winter knowing that it runs (which it doesn) but that it is adequately cooled (not yet). I also tore the entire machine apart this past weekend, and rebuilt it wet -- using grease, etc on the bearing surfaces. Went together nicely, and I think the suspension as is is not a million miles off. Still need some minor parts -- a shipment of husky-specific stuff is on the way, a jet kit from thumpertalk, and some spacers to fit the r6 front caliper. Some brake hoses, and I welded up a tubing mount for the rear muffler. Not seen below due to it being painted. IF I get the mito rad to work, I will be a bit pissed, as the radiator flares on the sides of the fairing will be made redundant. Oh well... the bike still looks pretty cool.

Round 5 Report

2011-09-17T06:03:00.000-07:00

Weather was forecast to be beautiful all weekend, and the predictions turned out to be true. As an extra bonus, my folks were coming out to join me as well. Dad would be able to lend a hand in the pits, and while mom is definately not a race fan, they offered to let me sleep on the spare bed in the hotel in Gimli. So only 1 night of camping in the back of the car -- feeling like a factory racer!
As I had wrapped up the ULGP category already (I ended up winning by 15 points) I didn't bother bringing the tigcraft -- actually, most of it had been sold off by now (more $$$ to finish the husky). So only 3 races this weekend.
Practices
Practices went well -- the continued modifications/tweaking of the bike are making it more and more comfortable, which will always allow me to go faster with less drama. The rearsets were huge, as I was no longer griding my boots away; however the chin fairing was developing a sizeable hole on the right hand side due to turn 4. I guess I was getting the bike heeled 'reet over since the repaving smoothed out the entrance to that turn. Took a bit longer, but the low 1:06s did come, sadly no 1:05s.
Race 1: Cdn Thunder GP
Check out the video:

My apologies, I think I now can post 15min+ videos, but there was no need, I wasn't able to pass Jason at the end, so another fighting 5th.

Race 2: Cdn Thunder #2: 10 laps

I was most happy with this race, perhaps my favorite from all season. A bit of argy-bargy going into turn 1 on the first lap, but I was able to get into 4th and stay there, keep Wilson on his TZ in sight the whole race, and turn a series of 1:06 laps times -- finished 6 seconds out of 3rd, and 7 seconds ahead of the 5th place rider. A boring race, actually, but technically solid. Unfortunately, no video... some goofiness with the camera -- also affected race 3.

Race 3: Cdn Thunder #3: 10 laps

A weird race for me -- felt like I was going faster, but I couldn't get out of the 1:07s -- neither could Jason just ahead in 4th, but I couldn't get by him. A race pace similar to my pace in Race 2 would've secured another 4th, but I couldn't do it. 5th by 2 seconds, half a minute ahead of 6th. Not the greatest way to end the season, but I drove home with the realization that I have a lot of rooom to go faster, especially going into turn 1, where the most time is made up.

Overall, I finished the season in 5th place in Cdn Thunder. Not bad for my first season "back"... to start the "whine" flowing, the other bikes and riders ahead of me have either been at it for longer, or have obviously faster machines. Racing an essentially stock ex650 against a Buell 1200 or a GP 250 bike won't be easy by any stretch. Somehow, however, Doug's 650 is incredibly fast and he is a talented rider. To make things worse, Pete turned a 1:02 on the weekend on his Buell, which puts him in another postal code compared to my laptimes. I think my season-long dices with Jason, who you see a lot in my videos and his "pipe and dyno tune" SV show the parity between our bikes. Whine session over -- I'll get 'em next year!

Now what? The off season is upon us. Dad was kind enough to make another bike part delivery for me --- the 650 full fairing is now being test-fitted to the ex -- even coming from an identical bike, some modifications and tweaks need to be made. A slipper clutch is inbound, and perhaps some new rubber. One of my competitors tuned his sv up, and while it was a rocket, it also had a catastrophic failure in race 2 on Sunday -- as in, thanks for the oil pan, piece of case sitting in a bath of oil, style failure. Not interested in risking that -- so the exhaust experiement and perhaps a lightened flywheel will be the extent of the souping up this winter. That, and finishing off the Husky. Of course, I will keep you posted with updates and pictures...

Round 4 Pics

2011-09-01T15:11:00.000-07:00

Thanks, AJ!

Exhaust Questions

2011-08-28T06:12:00.000-07:00

Since I started to build supermonos I have been curious as to the science of 4-stroke exhaust tuning, especially now since compromises can be covered up with idealized jetting. However, in taking a look at the EX650 exhaust, it is so unlike anything I have seen before that Kawasaki either finally figured out how to properly create an exhaust, a "lightbulb moment" after 40 years of racing, or, more likely, it is a packaging or aesthetic compromise. Basically, the whole system appears far too short in length. The primary headers snake around a bit in order to find some length, and the old Leo Vince slip on system does a full 360 with the tailpipe in order to get some length...

Take a close look at this pic and you can see the tailpipe turning full circle!

In doing the reasearch, I stumbled across this website that is based on the famous tuner A. Graham Bell. http://www.mez.co.uk/mezporting/exhaust_length.html If you go there, you can plug in information about the characteristics of your engine (single to multi) which will then spit out the ideal header length and diameter; proper collector length; and the length of the tailpipe PRIOR to fitting a muffler or slip on. I punched in some scnearios and proofed it against Bell's book, and it did check out.

So, how did the EX650 do? After getting the BBDC and ATDC figures, and putting the idealized hp peak at the 9000 rpm mark here is what is suggested ( based on 1 of the 2 cylinders):

Header length: 27"
Header ID: 1.5"
Collector Length: 6"
Tailpipe Length: 18"
Tailpipe ID: 2"

Sounds pretty typical. I went out the to the EX and this is what I measured (based on the Muzzy exhaust system I currently have mounted:

Header length: 26.75" CLOSE!
Header ID: 1.5" (note this is the OD, but CLOSE again!)
Collector Lenght: 4" (a bit short)
Tailpipe ID: 2" (again, this is OD, but a negligable difference)
Tailpipe Length: 2" (YIKES that is short) -- that is the length of the tailpipe before it begins to expand into the megaphone exhaust.

As you can see, the exhaust is quite stubby; according to the tuning guru, I need an additional 16" of tailpipe, over 1', before the muffler should even be added. Makes for some interesting concepts for experimenting. Would it make a difference? Again, with proper tuning, it should. A smaller tri-oval muffler could be tucked away, mounted close behind the RHS peg for ground clearance. Perhaps a project for the winter? We'll see.

Round 4 Results

2011-08-26T11:56:00.000-07:00

Another decent weekend -- sorry no vids as the batteries died in the camera. AJ was out taking pics, so there should be his usual good stuff to come shortly.

Practices

Practice went well; interstingly, I went faster Saturday morning than I did all weekend (by fractions of seconds). Happily, I got into the 1:09s on the mono -- a 1:09.288 -- actually the 12-fastest bike out in that session -- not bad. It was a goal to get into the single digit times and I'm happy I did. Another goal I set for myself was to get into the 1:05 bracket on the 650 -- my onboard timer indicated a 1:05.988, but mylaps claims it was actually a 1:06.083.... next weekend, then. Most importantly, I could string together a series of 1:06s so that lowered my overall race distance time is much faster.

Race 1: Cdn Thunder GP: 15 laps

An eventful race: in 4th on lap 3, and 4th place rider goes down in turn 3. His bike started to spin, and I actually glanced off the front windscreen taking evasive action. Missed the rider and the bike itself, but had to take to the grass. Luckily the race was red-flagged, rider was OK. On the restart, got a great start and was in 3rd when Wilson went down behind me try to pass (he got a bad start). Left me alone in 3rd... part way through the remaining laps, my clutch cover guard fell off and smacked me in the leg -- I spent a few laps trying to figure out what happened and lost some time. However when I realized the issue wasn't major, I put my head down and consolidated my podium with a 10 second gap to 4th. Happy result!

Race 2: ULGP #1: 12 laps

Another uneventful race, except for the crazy wind. Blowing so hard that my lap times were negatively affected -- a huge headwind down the front straight, but I still beat the other experts, although the bloody rs250 got me again. 1st expert however.

Race 3: ULGP #2: 8 laps

Shortened due to horrible weather -- gale force winds and intermittent rain, no fun on slicks. My main competition for the title parked his slick-shod bike, so I went out, tiptoed around to 2nd place, and therefore locked up the ULGP expert championship with 1 round to spare. Mission accomplished. Hopefully the Husky is a match for the 250 two-strokes next year!

Race 4: Cdn Thunder #2: 10 laps

An awesome race against Jason. I feel really comfortable racing against him in close quarters -- ran 1:06s nearly the entire race, and actually turned faster lap times, but he just beat me for 4th by 0.230 of a second. Woulda loved to get that one on video -- will remember to check the batteries next round!

Race 5: Cdn Thunder #3: 10 laps

A poor race for me overall -- went wide around another rider, couldn't make the pass stick, and Jason got by both of us on the inside. Spent the remainder of the race trying to get by, but eventually gave up, lagged back, let the top novice racer by, and then tried to turn some quick laps in the end. Not happy with myself, but I need to remember that a stupid risky pass is not worth a $2 trophy.

Other news:

Here is a pic of the paintwork as it continues on the Husky:

Also, I am now convinced that the total lack of aerodymics is holding me back in a closly-matched class such as Canadian Thunder. Gary from BRPforum.com sold me a set of used bodywork, properly made by catalyst for the ex, and mimics the 636 fairing (even uses the 636 screen). Got the upper, lower, screen, and stay. Won't be here in time for the final round, but can spend the off-season mounting it and painting it to match.

The stainless J-bends came in and I dropped them off at Cycleboys -- just need the 2-1 piece and Brent can start fabricating.

waiting game begins

2011-08-15T10:23:00.000-07:00

The "Mitovarna" is off to cycleboyz to get the header fabricated. Doing some digging to get some of the stainless tubing -- a 1.38" j-bend in stainless is pretty rare, although I did find a 2-1 collector on ebay. Muzzys actually sells some tubing, so I might get in touch with them... although cycleboyz might also get what they need from their source. It gonna be weird to not have the bike to look at for awhile. Oh well, timing is OK as I'm back to work soon, and there are 2 more races to go, plus a mancation in the works, which will keep me busy.
On another note, tail section is painted with one coat of clear, so I'm waiting on getting the stripes (NRG signs, who did the Luckystroke logo) to have those done for me. Will apply to the tail and part of the tank, and then another coat of clear overtop. They are also coming up with some retro-styled numbers as well, in an odd size to fit the round plates I have painted on.
Race this weekend -- round 4. Will post results as soon as I can. Wish me luck!

exhaust, more paint, and a wee trick part

2011-08-12T08:43:00.000-07:00

Worked on getting the exhaust mounted up. I just need to put the muffler and tailpipe in situ, and then drop the whole shebang off at Cycleboyz so they can do the hard part -- fabricate the 2-1 header. Exhaust is an M4 off of ebay, for an R1. 80 bucks! Score!

Rear muffler hanger is a steel strap mockup, to be replaced with something much nicer in alloy when the time comes. Not bad for a full carbon muffler, and should be quieter considering the likely bark of the big single.

Tank now has 2 coats of clear. Tank protector is an old 916 carbon jobbie I had laying around. Not sure if it will stay, as it is 98% there in terms of "perfect" fitment, but it is designed for the larger, although similarly-shaped ducati tank.

Lower fairing. One coat of clear over the latex blue, and then the number plate was painted with krylon. Next chance I get I'll put the second coat of clear on...

I'd seen a few specials with these new motocross rear master cylinders -- with an integral rear reseviour, kinda looks pretty cool in my opinion. The mounting bolts won't line up with stock roadbike mounts, but since I am custom making my rearsets and m/c brackets, this should be simple. On another note, the rear lower mount requires an m8x1.25 rose joint. Unavailable in farmer-ville here -- standard threads only. However I took one I had lying around, I think from dad's old aircraft stock, drilled it out (originally 1/4 fine thread) and then tapped it for m8. Sorted!

more pics

2011-08-08T11:05:00.000-07:00

Homemade rear stand -- made with 2 rollerblade wheels, some scrap tubing, and my mig welder.

Rearsets -- a bit lighter with some 'oles in 'em!

Tank sticker on, need to wait for a better day weather-wise to lay on the second coat of clear.

mito updates

2011-08-07T16:01:00.000-07:00

Have spent some time over the break mounting up a few things. First, the radiator, from a KTM450 quad. A bit overkill, and a tad wide, but cheaper than custom, and it had the water inlet and outlets on the same side as the husky engine.

I was able to fabricate some rad mounts, and the engine mounts do double duty as radiator mounts as well... looks somewhat stock!

I was able to determine the position of the rad by securing it in the top mount, and then removing the tops of the forks and collapsing the sliders completely, ensuring I had "just enough" clearance under full braking.

I also got some spacers made up for the shock lower mount...

And made some rearset plates out of the alloy plate I got. There will be some more work done to the plates themselves, and different pegs and shifters will be utilized.

And because the weather is decent, and there is nothing else to do right now, I've done some paintwork. Using a simple latex-based rattlecan from Canadian Tire, only because the "Danube Blue" apes the Gulf Oil blue of the Lemans cars of the early 70s, with of course a coat of clear overtop. OK stuff to work with, and less toxic, but being water-based, I don't leave much time between finishing the color and adding the clear to seal it up.

Tank, with the first coat of clear. Will add a Gulf decal, and then put on a second, thicker coat.

Round 3 Report

2011-07-25T20:07:00.000-07:00

The forcast was a bit dodgy for the weekend, but like almost every weekend at Gimli, the forcasters can never get it right. This time, that was a good thing as they were calling for rain on Saturday, but it never came.

Saturday Practice

My goals for the weekend was simply improving my lap times. The frontrunners in both ULGP and Thunder were 1-2.5 seconds in front of me last round; if I could knock a second off of my best lap time on each bike, I would be closer to the front and continuing to push the limits of the bike and me. "Make haste slowly" is a good thing to remember, especially when this sport is just a hobby, is supposed to be for fun, and most of the time I need to go to work on Monday morning... even if I do get summers off. As usual, I started the weekend on the Supermono... for some reason my onboard lap timer was not working, but I was happy to see a string of 1:10s after the end of the first session. The traffic was light being the first practice of the day, and the track was in good shape. Just a little more from me and the bike, and I would get that elusive 1:09!

The second session saw me on the EX, and I was again pleased with a bunch of consistent low 1:07s and I even snuck in a 1:06 right at the end! I had already reached 1 goal of going faster than the last round. Again, not setting the world on fire, but I am still improving.

Race 1: Canadian Thunder GP (15 laps)

A good race overall. Doug, and Rod were off on their own at the front, and for awhile, my group of me, Mert, and Jason kept Wilson in sight until he pulled away. That left a 3-way battle for 4th. I was able to get by Jason and Mert overcooked turn one in lapped traffic, so I ended up prevailing this skirmish. On top of that, Rod pulled off as not to muck up the championship battle with the regulars, elevating me to 3rd. Not how I wanted to get my first Thunder podium in 4 years, but I'll take it regardless.

Race 2: ULGP #1 (12 laps)

The poor weather cut down on numbers overall in all classes, and ULGP was no different. Only 6 bikes took to the grid. A bit of a humdrum race; Mert's RGV was sick, so he was out on a GSXR400, which didn't handle very well. Lance then scampered off on his Aprilia, leaving me in 2nd overall, 1st expert. Did some 1:10s in the race, but the :09 I was looking for did not materialize. Damn!

Race 3: ULGP #2

A more interesting race as I was determined to throw down some fast laps and try to keep the rs250 behind me. And I did, for about half the race. I started to imagine hearing buzzing 2-strokes in my ears out of every corner, but no one has passed me in the turns all year on the Supermono -- on the straights, however... sure enough, on lap 6, Lance came streaking by on his bike and put some distance between us. Again, 1st in class, 2nd overall. I'm still leading the expert championship by a healthy margin... can't wait to get the Husky finished!!! I need more power!!!

Saturday night was not a good one. Started to feel horrible, the rain and wind came, and blew down the canopy. It was toast. I guess you get what you paid for, and it kept the sun off of me for 2.5 race weekends. I ended up crashing by about 8:30 pm -- not a good sign as that usually means a cold coming on. The weather actually blew over and it got decent again later that evening, but I was sawing logs by then. Much needed rest, I guess.

I was of course up like a box of birds by 6 am the next morning. This allowed me time to move my bike out from under the permanent concession stand (moved there in the pouring rain the night before), get the pit ready, and head out to breakfast with Doug, and back in plenty of time to get prepped for day 2. Practice was OK, but there were still damp spots around the track so I was being extra cautious, turning a couple of 1:07s each session.

Race 4: Canadian Thunder #2 (10 laps)

Still starting on the 6th spot on the grid, but hopefully I move up 1 place by next round. I'll let the video do the talking...

So somewhat happy with another 4th, but a fighting 4th at that... always fun to dice during a race, and Mert just barely beat me on his hot-rod 650... less that a second at the line.... 1 more lap???

Race 5: Canadian Thunder #3 (10 laps)

Once again, for your viewing pleasure:

In all, a positive weekend. I went faster on the EX, and of course, there is room for more improvement. The dyno work definately helped, as you can see me gaining on SVs somewhat in the video, and having similar horsepower is nice. With a month off between rounds, and lots of time to fettle with the bikes, it is sometime tough to acertain where the improvement came from -- the dyno, my new master cylinder, the new tires, even the duct tape to improve aerodynamics? Well, perhaps I can take some credit in that the rust is continuing to come off the rider somewhat, and I'm getting a bit better myself...

On the mito front, the rad is on, rearsets have been fabricated, and the front forks finally fitted (say that 5 times fast). Currenly doing some fibreglassing to allow more room for the radiators, and waiting for the muffler to come in so I can start mocking up the exhaust system. Pics to follow as soon as I get the camera back from Kate.

video of the work in progress

2011-07-08T12:42:00.001-07:00

some pics

2011-07-02T20:58:00.000-07:00

AJ Enns snapped some great pics at the last race weekend. Here a just a few...

Race Report: Round 2

2011-06-26T19:35:00.000-07:00

An up and down weekend, literally.

Saturday Practice

The day dawned warm and clear -- perfect conditions for racing. I took out the supermono for the first practice session, and actually turned some decent lap times, getting into the 1:10s -- that's 3 seconds faster than the last round. The proper race tires certainly had something to do with the increase in speed, as well, I assume, as the gearing changes and the suspension tweaking.
The second practice session was also a good one, out on the EX650 and running in the 1:07s, again much improved over last round, but still a few seconds per lap behind the top guys. The other issue would be my starting position, at the back of the experts due to missing 2 races on Sunday of Round 1.

Race 1: Canadian Thunder GP
I was able to video this race, and I will upload it shortly. Highlights for me was dicing with Jason (and getting by when he was balked by a lapped rider), and catching back up to Mert on his hot rod 650. Wasn't able to pass, but it was nice to see a rider come back to me over the course of a race. Ended up 5th overall, with several 1:07 laps; however Doug and Peter were on a different planet, turning times in the 1:04s -- got a ways to go then!

Race 2: ULWGP 1

A good race, led for awhile until the 2 strokes came by me -- Mert on the RGV, Lance on the Aprilia, and the 125 rider as well. However, we were essentially nose to tail the whole race, having the lead in sight at all times. I ended up 3rd overall, with the 125 going off-track. Mert got the expert win in 2nd overall, with the improving Lance 1st on the Aprilia. Not that far ahead, however!

Race 3: ULWGP 2

A better race for me, taking the lead and only losing at the end of the straight on lap 2 -- again the 250s have the legs on my bike (and at least 15 hp as well!) -- this time I stayed right on Mert's tail and capitalized coming out of turn 5 on the 2nd last lap. I tried to bury myself into the bike for the last 2 straights, expecting his machine to blow by me, but he never did. 2nd overall, 1st expert. Huzzah! Lance and the Aprilia took the win.

Sunday
Sunday practices were OK, considering the deluge that hit the track at about midnight Saturday. Tough to sleep in the back of a station wagon while it sounds like ball bearings are falling on your head. Luckily the rain stopped and I got some sleep. Lap times of others were a bit slower, while mine stayed the same... perhaps all the running has paid off!

Race 4: Canadian Thunder #2
This is a shorter 10-lap version of yesterday's 15-lapper. Another decent race, for at least 9 laps. In the 1:07 again, however a couple of riders behind me were motoring on their SVs, one guy tried a banzai move on the white flag lap going into turn 1; I just saw him out of my periphery, but I did have the position going into the turn. I leaned over and sure enough I felt a bang as his bike ran into the back of mine. I stayed upright for awhile, but went off track and crashed, flipping myself and the bike back onto the track when all was said and done. The race was red-flagged and deemed complete at 9 laps. The end result was a wrecked helmet (yes, the custom-painted one!), a broken footpeg, master cylidner, and swingarm spool mount, as well as a seriously dented tank and a mangled fairing. Sh!t. We were both Ok, or sort of, as me and the other rider got checked out by the ambulance crew. It turns out I was scored as 5th (at the end of 9 laps) -- a bit of justice as the crash was not my fault. The other rider apologized profusely and other witnesses agreed it was a dicey move. Racing incident.

Race 5: Canadian Thunder #3
Having gotten the green light by the paramedics, I set about preparing the mono for the last race, in order to "get back on the horse", and score some points. Turns out it was a good idea, as fatigue (I think), and attrition saw me finish that race unscathed in 4th! Still behind some of the novices (I started at the back of the novice grid in order to not get mugged going into turn 1), but I did pass some bigger bikes in the race, despite bringing a knife to a gunfight. My lap times were a bit slower than I thought (1:11s), but considering how the earlier part of the day went, it was OK.

Now I need to sort out some things -- mainly getting the swingarm repaired and fix the rearsets, tank, and fairing stay. Time for new tires, as I think these ones are shagged. I also plan to get the bike to a dyno to get properly mapped -- every other 650 is faster than it in a straight line, and trust me, I'm stretching the throttle cable! A bit more speed would be nice, although much of the potential for faster times is still within me, not the bike.

Thanks to Vince Ritcher for the pics.

front engine mounts

2011-06-20T12:18:00.000-07:00

Finished fabricating the front engine mounts, in steel. Might get them tig-welded at Cycleboys as there is a difference in wall thicknesses from the plate to the tubing. Also want to avoid distortion if at all possible.

That's 3/4" 4130 tubing, with some .090 steel plate.

Tubing ends left long to accomodate potential mounts for bodywork or radiator.

Fox shock off to Atom-Jet to get final machining done to fit in the frame.

Round 2 race next weekend. Wish me luck!

busy weekend

2011-06-12T16:00:00.000-07:00

Engine in the mito frame:

Front fairing installed, painted, clear coated, and numbers applied...

Steering damper -- advertised as an 03/04 zx6rr -- turned out to be from a zx600r... needed significant mods to fit to the triple, and then I had to fabricate a pin to weld to the frame. Used an M8 bolt, welded a nut into the frame, used another shouldered nut to hold it in place. Should work...

Back to Work

2011-06-05T07:16:00.000-07:00

Developing a more durable fairing stay for the rc8 upper fairing. All I ended up using was the alloy guage mounting plate from the vortex fairing stay. A bit weedy!

Clutch cable is annoying... stock, has a near 90-degree bend in it that seems to foul on one thing or another as the bars are turned one way or another. Will leave it for now...

Old MX innertube (punctured, never throw out anything!) is used to help mount the camera to the front stay. Complementary oval hole in upper fairing should give a nice clear portal for the camera apeture. Hammerite paint keeps the rust away.

Fitted a fox zx6r shock to the mito chassis. Adjustable for just about everything, plus length, is a cheaper option than the 600+ asked by maxton or nitron, plus shipping from the UK. No idea where I am at on spring rates, however. Also, upper clevis mount needs to be machined, and inserts modified or new ones made in order to properly fit in the frame rails. Hopefully I come out ahead with the machining required...

Some subframe modification/notching required to fit the shock and the remote resevoir and adjuster. Will clean up this area once the shock has been properly fitted. Note sharpie marker lines for a curved cut... sharp corners are stress inducers!

Round 1 Report

2011-06-03T20:57:00.000-07:00

The forcast for round 1 of the 2011 MRA season was not great -- rain, thundershowers, etc. The track is located near a HUGE body of water -- Lake Winnipeg, and so a condition known as "lake effect" can take over, creating a local microclimate. Weather forcasting is a guess at the best of times, but the Gimli area is anything but consistent. With an uncertain forecast in mind, I decided it wasn't smart to hit the track with both bikes set up with slicks. I swapped the supermono over to some leftover DOTs I had, and kept the slicks on the ex650. Should it start to rain, I could still use the supermono in the Cdn Thunder race and perhaps not look too foolish tiptoeing around on untreaded tires. As I will for the remainder of the season, I was going to run the supermono in Ultralightweight GP (ULGP), and the ex650 in Canadian Thunder. Due to another commitment on Sunday, I would only be able to race on Saturday.
PRACTICE
Saturday morning dawned clear but cold -- as in see your breath cold. I had set up the awning the night before, and got things situated so most of my time could be set up on bike and rider prep than anything else. I realized that morning that while I had been on bikes and had attended a few trackdays since, my last race was in May of 2007. I might be a bit rusty. We only had 2 practice sessions scheduled before any of the races, and I had 2 ULGP races and one Cdn Thunder race that day. With that in mind, I decided to go out on the supermono first, and then the ex650.

Practice nearly ended on lap 3 as I had a near-highside coming out of turn 9. The tires were not at all up to temps, and being street tires and with no warmers, I needed to be a tad more patient! The head referee and a few of the other riders pitted near that corner commented later on my "nice save" -- the reality being that I had little to do with the "save" other than to simply hold on. Sorta a, "Thanks God, I have control" moment once the occilations stopped and my feet went back on the pegs. I was out of the seat quite a bit -- so much so that I came down groin first on the tailsection, cracking it slightly -- and spoke in a higher pitch for awhile afterward. I came in to check if anything else had been damaged, or the tire was problematic, but nothing untoward was visible. I went back out for the remainder of the session and tried my best to relearn the track. My lap times posted were competitive, but I felt I had a lot more to come. The tires were a real drawback -- my counting on rain of course ensured the day was dry throughout -- shoulda left the slicks on!!!

The second session saw me out on the ex650 and having rode for 2 days at MAM only a month prior, the bike felt quite familiar, even with the new RC8 fairing quickly mounted up. I was soon within 2 seconds of the fastest guys in Thunder, so it was an enjoyable session that way. Another rider on a 600 caught me with his rear-mounted camera. I come into view at about 1:05, with the black leathers and grey fairing (unpainted) -- I keep up for about a lap, and then the power of the bike (and the other rider's talent) makes a difference.

Note that the video is entitled, "crash" -- watch it till the end and you'll see an sv650 rider go down.

With the 2 sessions done and me satisfied with how things were, it was time to race...

RACE 1: ULGP (12 LAPS)

Luck of the draw saw me gridded in the 3rd spot. This was the first ever ULGP race that the MRA has run, and I am going to take some credit for creating the class. 8 riders took to the grid, 4 experts and 4 notices. An interesting mix of bikes, as the experts had the oldest/least horsepower bikes, while the novices were all on newer and more powerful machinery. There were a few RZ350s, a GSXR400, and RGV250, a RS250 Aprilia, and a TZ125 GP bike, as well as my KLX400 powered Supermono... an eclectic mix, to say the least. The flag dropped and off I went with no expectations. Almost immediately the 125 leapt to the front and took off. A 2002 bike, it likely made similar hp to me, but with 50lbs less, and a good rider, with race slicks. No chance; that machine consistently lapped around 2 seconds a lap faster than everyone else. I was left to fight over 2nd place overall with Mert on his RGV250. He was much faster down the straights, but I was able to catch back up in the infield. A real ding-dong battle that lasted the entire 12 laps. I was able lead a few times across the finish line, but he would re-pass me before turn 1. Part way through the race I tucked my left hand behind me, trying to crawl under the paint to maintain as much speed as possible, to no avail. On the last lap, I again harried Mert right into the final corner, and was able to make a pass on the inside exiting the turn, stretching the throttle cable to the limit, I was able to cross the line in second place on track, and bizarrely, first expert overall as the tz125 rider was a novice. I'm calling it a 2nd place, but a podium on my first race bike, on a bike I engineerend and built much of myself was tremendously satisfying and somewhat emotional. I was "chuffed" to say the least.

RACE 2: ULGP#2 (12 LAPS)

This race was quite similar to the first, with some of the same protagonists. While I didn't get the holeshot, I made the pass for the lead going into turn 3 on the first lap, but surrendered the lead before the end of the first lap to the tz125. Didn't see Mert during this race, but again chased after another 250, this time the Aprilia. The accordion effect took over here again, but this time I wasn't able to succeed, crossing the line in 3rd on the track, but again first overall in expert. I am uploading video of this race; keep in mind it might be a bit boring, and being the first time mounted to the mono, the camera is strapped to the triple clamp -- a CMA sticker gets in the way, but again the drift camera worked well. Honestly, not a whole lot of action, aside from some passes and a bit of close proximity stuff. As well, youtube does not allow any more than 15 minutes of video, so the end of the flic is cropped off.

RACE 3: CANADIAN THUNDER GP (15 LAPS)

By now I was hoping my conditioning would be taking over and helping me out, until I realized I was one of a few who was on their third race of the day. For most of the thunderbikes, this was their first race, after quite a break from their second practice that morning. Being sure to swap over the transponder, I took to the grid, again in the 3rd spot (random draw). I knew the fast guys today would be Wilson on his TZ250, Doug on his ex650, and Pete on his Buell, with any number of other riders in the mix. My goal was for a top 6, considering the limited amount of time I had on this bike. After our warmup laps (again critical for me sans tire warmers) the flag dropped. I got a good start, but surrendered positions to Wilson, Doug, and Pete by the exit of turn 1. I was able to keep them in sight for 3 or so laps, but then lost sight of them slowly but surely afterwards. From then I wanted to consolidate my position and maintain 4th, which I was able to do so. A bit of a boring race, actually, aside from lapped traffic making for some interesting passing conditions. In the end, no argy-bargy, and no one else showed me a wheel. I was painfully consistent, all my laps falling within 1 second of each other, with a quickest in the 1:08s. Still quite a ways to go, but a goal to shoot for nonetheless. The onboard lap timer is critical, and gives me some real time feedback as to my technique.

All in all, a successful weekend's return to racing. A 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, with lots of ideas on how to go faster. The equipment held up, with some tweaks to be done to increase speed and improve handling. Points haven't been posted yet, but I assume I'm leading ULGP by a healthy stretch. Thunderbikes is another issue altogether, with a single 4th from 3 starts (not being there I DNS 2 races on Sunday), that championship may have already sailed. It is a long season however, and as I knock the rust off the old body here, I should only get quicker.

So will everyone else, however!

Going to spend some time this weekend going over the bikes and finalizing the RC8 fairing fitment to the ex650. Gearing changes and suspension adjustments to follow. Stay tuned!

helmet is back

2011-05-25T15:27:00.000-07:00

Here is my Bell Star helmet (snell 2010) as painted by Tagger Designs -- see the banner up top for the link. A take on Ben Spies' Texas/USA/USAF star helmet from last season.

RCAF Roundel

Backside of helmet with race number in "varsity style", and you can see "JS" in Celtic script on the sides.

Lucky Stroke!

Cool Maple Leaf hilights, eh?

A quality job!

Subframe done

2011-05-15T07:09:00.000-07:00

Finished the rear subframe yesterday. Built it out of 4130, and it is (as usual, for me) stouter than it needs to be. I based it on the dimensions of a RS125 rear subframe and tweaked it to work with the mito frame. I overbuilt it a bit as it is:
1. Carrying my lardy arse around
2. Will be used to house the battery and as much of the electrics as I can manage
3. Will be carrying a vibrating exhaust canister as well... aluminum would not last long!

Used a combination of 7/8" square, 5/8" round, and 3/4" round tubing.

Alloy plate is a pickup for the rear tank mount/hinge. There is actually a rubber strap and hook at the front.

Note that the rear wheel, swingarm linkage, and rotor/cush have also arrived. Excellent shape overall!

First race in 2weeks' time. Obviously this won't be ready. Temps decent today, plan on taking the two machines out to the test facility to try out the trailer mounting and of course, the bikes themselves.

Huskymito! Or Mitovarna

2011-05-09T15:49:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of the mito-husky project. Pieceing it together via parts off of eBay, but some fabircation work is also underway. In the process of building a rear subframe out of 4130, and in such a way that it is stout enough to be used as an exhaust mount as well. Also want to hang the battery and electical off the back end, under the seat hump.

Tank is tailor-made to fit the head of a big single underneath it.

Parts of the subframe only tacked of yet. Need to play with the tank angle somewhat as well. Might set it where it looks right, and then add spacers underneath if required. Been taking it slowly, as there is no rush at this point. Have decided to sleeve the engine case, rather than bore out the swingarm pivots. That way I can use as much stock mito stuff as I can.

Mancation

2011-04-21T09:09:00.001-07:00

One heck of a trip -- second time with Wilson and Doug to MAM, and although the supermono was quite fun last year, the long front straight was pretty tough on the wee bike, trying to keep up with everything else. So it was the 650 this time, and although it wasn't running quite perfectly, it was a blast. Got into the mid 1:48s,

which is OK I guess, but looking at the above video, and the later laps where I turned my fastest times, there is considerably more potential left in the bike to go much faster. As you can see above, the drift camera worked quite well. I was able to get quite a few videos of each sesson on the camera, and downloaded onto the PC.

As you can see, there was quite a few Canadians who made the trip down -- thanks to Rod from Freightliner MB for making up the shirts, and giving them away for free. What a solid dude. The fellow third from the right on the front row is AMA winner and top 10 superbike racer Chris Peris. He was at MAM to work with Rod on his race technique. Unfortunately I didn't get much schooling as both guys went by me so fast! There is some copius talent in an AMA pro -- pretty humbling, although Chris seemed really friendly when I spoke with him breifly.

Bummer for Wilson as his TZ broke, but Rod lent him his hot-rod 1080 SS, again as you can see by the video, his bike simply walks away from the 650 with ease. Doug had an eventful weekend as well, being run off the track, crashing into a brake marker, banging up his hand quite well yet keeping it all upright; during the last session his chain broke on top of it. A boring but uneventful ride home and back to work on Tuesday.

The fuel tank on the 650 was not venting at all, so I think that is why the bike wouldn't rev out. We'll see if repairing that takes care of that problem.

The mito frame and swingarm has shown up from Germany. A test-fit shows that the swingarm mates up perfectly to the engine (!) except for the 17mm - 14mm bolt size difference. The frame should be an OK fit as well, but I'm not 100% sure as I need to sort out the swingarm pivot first.

I've also designed a rear subframe in my head, and have ordered some 4130 from wicks to start fabricating that part. Pics of the huskymono to come...

Early alignment

2011-04-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

The new Husky engine is home, and looks to be in excellent shape, considering what I paid for it -- double the price, it still would have been a deal. I started the process of seeing how things line up with the engine and the swingarm. Not sure exactly what I'll use -- either the rg125 swingarm, or go with the mito swingarm. As you can see below, the Italian guy who did this conversion used both the mito frame and swingarm... so before I make any final decisions and start cutting metal, I did some test-fitting...
First off, the rs125 wheel fits almost perfectly in the swingarm -- just need to shave a couple of thou off each end of the wheel assy -- as in the spacers, and it will slide in perfectly. So, I knew if I could butt the cush drive against the inside edge of the swingarm, I could see if the sprockets line up.

I clamped a piece of aluminum angle against the rear sprocket to act as a straight edge (note the new trailer in the background -- happy birthday to me!).

The idea is to see how close the outside edge of the sprockets come in relation to each other -- of course I have the rear axle square in the dropouts as well.

Hmmm, I'd say that lines up pretty good, eh?

With this pic you can also see how well the swingarm fits vis a vis the rear engine case. I did actually shave a bit off of the inside of one of the arms, but it was only about half a millimeter. Almost "meant to be". However, I can't get ahead of myself. A few things to sort out...

1. The mito uses a 14mm swingarm pivot axle -- this is a 17mm -- depending on which swingarm I end up using might send me off in different directions... this swingarm seems to look good, but it would mean modifying the frame (and welding alu) to get it to work.

2. Obviously it is possible to get this engine to work with the mito swingarm, which will then work with the mito frame. However decent shock options are limited, and the 14mm axle might be an issue. Do I shim the engine case, or can I do some funky bearing swaps and get the 17 mm axle to work in the swingarm...? Which would then necessitate drilling out the frame.

More questions than answers at this point -- just need to be patient (not one of my strong suits) and wait for the mito frame to arrive.

The good news is, I got both the 650 and the 400 started and running this past weekend (even with the new carb for the mono), and the trip to Mid America is only 3 weeks away. Can't wait!!!!!!

getting miggy with it

2011-03-27T11:25:00.000-07:00

Wow, another weak Will Smith play on words. I'll stop, I promise. After googling the net to try to find information on simple frame jigs, I came across a design that uses a combination of rectangular and square steel tubes. Having some leftover 1x2 and 2x2 tubing in the rafters, I decided to give things a go. Here is the end result.

This is the "finished, now I have to shove it in the corner" phase. I was able to try out the mig welder I had lying in the corner of the shop. Actually did a decent job for only being a little 110 volt version. No gas, so I had to use flux-cored wire. I see why people use these mig machines, and it went quite quickly. More time to set up the tubing than to actually weld it. I still need to work on my technique. It now has me interested in setting it up with gas, and using it on thinner wall tubing... would for sure make tack-welding a million times simpler.

You can see the weld spatter, with is common when you weld without gas. Might price things out at the welding shop just to get an idea. Would need the bottle, a regulator, and the connecting hose...

I also was able to snag this from Germany. Its a mito frame, an evo model, and the seller was able to speak in englitsche, and able to ship to me for a reasonable amount. I plan on setting up the jig to work with the rs125 frame I got lent to me by Steven, and the mito frame pictured. Then I'll build up the mito using the 610 engine.

Staying with the 2-wheeled theme, I got my hands on a kona alu frame and project 2 fork... both for under 100 bucks. The frame also came with xt front and rear derailleurs, a nice seat and seatpost, and a set of bars. The steel barracuda mtb bike I had was nice, but at 16", too small for me. I decided to swap over the parts from the barracuda to make a simple town/commuter/pit bike. Leaving it as a 7-speed. I needed a new bottom bracket and chain, both of which required special tools to install. As well, I need a special steerer tube adapter to work with the stem. Should be a nice fun light bike. Shocked at how cheap bicycle parts are... a nice swich from mo'sicles! That's Kate's giant in the background.

something new

2011-03-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

Another bit of news on the supermono front -- a new engine!!! Kits to bump the drz to the north end of 50 hp will run me about 500 bucks. Beyond that is a stroker motor, split the case, etc etc, and then we're looking at at least 800 bones. Imagine my surprise when I stole this for $359, including wiring harness and digital tach:

Its a 2006 husqvarna 610sm engine. 50hp in base form, with 6 speeds. No dry sump. Requires a 41mm carb, but it looks like the rear mount and swingarm pivot is the 17mm I've been working with. Radiator might be a bit of a question mark, but anything's possible. Even saw a video of it running before the owner parted it out. The question is, what do I do with it? The way I see it I have a few options...

1. Put it in the current tigcraft frame. I think it would go with not too much work, but I still feel the wheelbase of that bike is a tad on the long side for a supermono. Would be the cheapest option, and while I'm fitting this engine, I could install the new tank, fit a different exhaust, swingarm, bodywork, etc, etc. Could have it running far sooner as well.
2. Use a 125 frame as a starting point. Someone has done this already. This is an example of the same engine installed in a cagiva mito frame. Non-existent in North America, but relatively plentiful in the UK. Several for sale on eBay all the time, just need to get it over here for me to use it. By these pics, it seems like the engine was meant for the frame!

Not sure what radiator is being used here. With just a bare frame, I can fit the mito tank I already have, incorporate the sturdier (but heavier) rg125 swingarm I've got waiting, use the rs125 wheels and forks from the current mono, as well as the bodywork. A more straightforward build.

I would make my own rear subframe in order to use the rs125 rear seat I have waiting for me in Fort Frances. The mito chassis is used by many supermono racers in the UK -- ktm and even jawa engines can be made to work with little effort. Haven't hefted one myself, but while it is alloy, the front headstock and rear swingarm areas are all cast, and appear to be quite heavy. I also wonder about the vibration and the aluminum chassis... cracking?

3. The next option is the clean sheet approach. While this is more effort, considering I have all the ancilliaries in place already (swingarm, wheels, engine, rear subframe, tank, etc), it might be the way to go. I've got quite a bit of 4130 left over, in the garage. The end result will be lighter, and I have plenty of inspiration to go by.

I even have an rs125 to orient a jig around (thanks Stephen!). I've started a jig just for fun in the garage, and will see how square I can get things set up. Aside from an old lathe bed that dad dropped off years ago, there isn't a flat surface in he entire garage. With that in mind I'm using it as a basis to create a simple two-channel jig. I'll use the rs125 frame as a starting point and see what kind of geometry I come up with. I think that frame is a bit too small for this engine, but extending the main frame by perhaps 1" should do the trick. With that in mind, I'll see what kind of response I get from people on eBay...

new developments

2011-03-12T07:04:00.000-08:00

Winter is holding on like grim death here. Still, no tsunamis, so I can't complain. A few bits of news. The FCR carb has a zillion overflow tubes that normally expel extra fuel onto the ground. Not a big deal on an mx track, but not ideal on the road. Further, raw fuel getting splashed around in the event of a crash could lead to fire -- hence supermoto race sanctioning bodies regulating an carb overflow catch can fitted to bikes. The real deals are bulky and can range up to over $100 for a bespoke item. A forum posting advised getting an radio controlled model fuel tank and adapting that. Sure enough, the local hobby stop had one on sale for 5 bucks. Easy peasy, sealed it up, and now just have to route the overflow lines into the tank. Neat solution!

I also made a proper shark guard for the underside of the supermono rear swingarm. Some aluminum sheet I had lying around worked a treat.
Have found another sponsor -- Tagger Designs (check the banner up top). They paint custom helmets. Considering my new Bell helmet last year was just plain white, I couldn't help myself. The end result should be a nice patriotic testament to Canada, my Irish heritage, and Lucky Stroke Racing. Stay tuned -- a total self-indulgent move, but with the sponsorship help and the Canadian dollar, now is the time to get it done!
The other thing in the works is a more protective upper fairing for the ex650. The superduke will work for now, but a sale on a vortex ex650 bracket ($50!) and some thinnin' about what might work with it could lead to a neat solution. Will let you know more when it comes together. Shovelled half a foot of snow yesterday, Daytona races on the tube today. Hard to believe we live on the same planet!

ex stuff

2011-02-26T14:40:00.000-08:00

A few things have arrived specifically for the 650, as well as a gadget/toy which can work on both. First up, a Cox radiator guard. Radiators have been damage more and more of late, especially at gimli. Considering the cost to replace, and the impossibility of a trackside repair, good insurance. Held on with zip ties, mine needs some tweaking to work properly.

I also tracked down a superduke touring screen -- a pretty popular mod with the superduke race series in Europe. Looks a bit funky, but it should be able to keep the breeze off of my face, somewhat.

Finally, I bought a Drift 170 sports video camera. About the length of your hand, it comes with a pile of attachments, USB cables, a few mounting options, a 2Gb card, and some batteries. Plan to mount it to the bike(s) to take some video of my adventures on the track. Should be cool. Only 2 months to the Mid-America trip, and WSBK rd 1 starts tommorow on the tube. That being said, -47 degrees celcius with the windchill yesterday morning. Yikes!

skins are in

2011-02-09T13:24:00.000-08:00

A big UPS box showed up recently. The ever-patient Kate signed for it and hauled it inside. Luckily it is nice and light, because it only contained the upper and lower RS125 fairings in the newer body style. Methinks this might require a new fairing stay, and definately a new screen. ebay.uk or AF1 are where these can be found -- the former a potential source, the latter a guaranteed one. AF1 will charge more as their parts are new.

These seem to be decent quality -- note the kevlar reinforcement around the mounting areas.

The upper came with bolt-on winglets -- in order to deflect air away from your hands. However, these have small gaps where they are bolted on, and so I think they might be aerodynamically "dirty". They are easily removed for comparison sake. What do you think? The RHS (facing camera) has the winglet removed; the opposite still has it bolted on -- I can't see air flowing through that gap or over the smiles smoothly at all!

Of course, the most difficult part of the process will be putting it all away until next fall. I've committed to leaving the supermono be this year in order to focus on the new carburetor, the front forks, the slick tires, and the LWGP class itself. The bodywork and new seat confirguration, as well as the reingineered rear shock will have to wait!

All quiet

2011-02-06T08:25:00.000-08:00

Not much going on at this end. For the 650, a new rear hugger has gone on the versys swingarm, in order to keep the crud and crap from fouling up the penske shock. Bought on eBay, came from Greece of all places. Black for now, will likely paint it the lurid key lime green when I get a chance/when the weather improves. Ranged between -41C and -1 in this past week alone. No wonder our roads are so poor -- that can't be good for the concrete. Back down to -20 this week.

As for the mono, I've modified the throttle cable -- basically shortened it, to work with the mono-size frame -- don't need the length that I used to have in it to fit on an mx-sized bike. Actually not that hard to do, as long as you have the correct tools, a bit of knowledge, and the right parts. Cable as a part of a kit I got from Venhill a few years ago, and motion pro sells cable ends you solder to the correct length.

Wow, that's exciting -- although if you've lived with mis-sized cables, I guess it is!

Regular solder and flux -- nipple is brass, and cable is... a different compound. I tried this on a non-venhill cable in the past, and the solder wouldn't tin up, no matter how much flux I used. Obviously the cable is a particular compound.

In other exciting news, I got a better fitting suit now that the teknic 48 was too large for me -- I was able to get a BKS in a size 46 for a good deal off of eBay. A better quality suit by all accounts, and coming from a British company, you'd think they would know a bit about motorcycle suits.

I'm also sourcing parts for the mkII build of the supermono (see earlier posts) -- to that end, I got a 900ss shock for $20, and a used subframe and rs125 seat unit for a good deal off of the usgpru forum. While the seat isn't the later model wasp-like design (what I currently have on the mono), it was in such nice shape and for such a great price I purchased it along with the subframe.

That's in excellent shape, less than 1/2 price of new.

Subframe for rs125.

It's been repaired, but for $50, even if it works as the basis for a jig for another one, it'll come in handy. Come to think of it, the owner is selling the frame and swingarm for really cheap prices as well....... NO!

And just to torment me with an idea of what you can do when you have access to a factory, excellent engines, a class to race it in, and the skills to execute, here are some pics of the factory KTM 690 supermonos a few employees threw together awhile ago...

Hmm.... mig welds?

planning and priorities

2011-01-25T19:47:00.000-08:00

February is upon us soon, and before I know it, April will be here and the trip to MAM with the boys. Next thing we'll know, the race season will be up and running. As such I've decided to put the MZ project aside for now and will be concentrating on making sure both bikes are ready for the season. The 'mono is still at school, with a number of things left to do to complete it -- again, lots of time remaining, but other things always get in the way of a plan not officially scheduled, and which always places second to the admin stuff I need to do first. What is left is basically reassembly, but I would like to make a proper throttle cable of normal length... but that's it. Those supplies should be here shortly and my student assistant should be able to lend a hand to get that job done.
In the interim, I've been coming up with 2011 and beyond plans for the mono -- the 650 will remain as is, and could eventually find its way back onto the street depending on how the supermono progresses. The next step is to address the aerodynamics and rear swingarm... this won't even take place until next off season, but I've been keeping an eye out for some deals, and mocking up/sketching out my vision in the meantime.

More modern and lighter rs125 bodywork has been found for a good deal. This is fibreglass, and should be half the weight of the OEM stuff I've been using currently. The gaping "intake hole to nowhere" on my current fairing can't be helping my cause, and so this stuff should be an improvement. I'll do some test fitting when I have the time this summer -- a new upper fairing stay may or may not be needed to work with this stuff.

A lot of my thinking about aerodynamics, specifically with the wee 400 came from this video -- an interesting study in drag...

The next project has to do with the rear swingarm. I've spent some time with the RG125 swingarm, removing unnecessary tabs and brackets, and getting atom-jet to modify it to work with the engine and the rear wheel. It's ready to go, all that is left is the fitting and alignment, and coming up with a side-mounted shock arrangement. Not unlike the ex650/versys, the idea is to use the "bow" in the swingarm as a mount for a cantilever shock mount, and then attach that to the frame. I'm thinking a 900ss shock would be a starting point. You've seen a pic of the ex, here's one of a home-made aluminum-swingarmed supermono...

Spring rates would be a wild guess to start. This would then result in a drastically different rear end to the bike, incorporating a different tank, different tank mount, different shock orientation, new subframe, a different seat, etc. etc.... that's all as long as the engine and bike in its current configuration is reasonable competitive in ULGP...
Carbon fibre wheels! Sheesh!

Here's the early vision, from my twisted mind. Photoshop lessons, anyone???

Old skool, analogue product development...

molds

2011-01-16T18:41:00.001-08:00

Need to make a mould to cover up the rearmost tank mount. Used a portion of a peanut butter jar (plastic), some mold release compound, 2-part fibreglass resin and hardner, and some cloth. Made a female mold first, and am now making a proper mold to attach to the seat unit. Will keep the mold as it will also make a nice "scoop"... for "whatever".

put down the torch and ride

2011-01-03T10:22:00.000-08:00

Over the past few years Wilson, Doug and I have been doing a bit of ice riding... I won't call it ice racing (yet) as we still go pretty slow, and I think only once did we have 3 serviceable bikes running at once. The winter does a number on machines normally designed to run above freezing, with my ttr being the most reticent to start and idle when it is far below zero. The good news is, keeping the 125 running at -15 degrees celcius is easy, you just pin it... and "pinning it" with 11 hp is not too dangerous! My ttr again was the only machine that would run properly this day, with Wilson borrowing it in the fall and doing some magic with the carburetor -- his bike, Doug's thump pitbike would only seem to run on choke, and only until his rear tire went flat. My tires have stayed airtight for a few years now, mainly due to running 3/8" koldkutters and lining the tire with a mountainbike tire between the maxxis and the tube. A pain to put on, but it seems to be working.

Of course, to "dress for success" in the cold Canadian winter requires some specialized equipment -- layers are good, lined coveralls are nice, with a neckroll, big boots, leather mitts/gauntlets, and definately a full-face helmet. Of course, said helmet needs the visor open at all times... see "frozen boogers" below...

As usual, Wilson did all the work as the track is actually a frozen slough near his place. The owner, who rides a Harley and is good friends with Wilson lets us out and ignores us while we make noise. On occasion he comes by and chats, shakes his head and says we're both crazy. With noses running due to the cold, and then freezing to our upper lips and chin, and even forming booger-based icicles on our helmet chinbars, he's probably right. In order to create the 5-turn masterpiece, Wilson went out with a snowblower and carved out a circuit on the frozen pond, cutting though several inches of snow with the consistency of concrete. Well, Estoril was booked this weekend, so we would make do with this! This is a pic of me taken by Wilson -- note the perfect form and massive speed. Better than playing MotoGp on the Wii.

This is a short video I took of Wilson early in the day. It will give you a sense of the incredible speed and massive talent he possesses. A little known fact is that Wilson raced dirt track in 1981. I was 10 years old at the time... as you can see, the passage of time has not dulled his sliding skills. How this transfers to racing a TZ250 remains to be seen.

Next we have a shorter video of me taken by Wilson. Hmmm, a bit sketchy -- I suppose I'm having a hard time coping with the horsepower of the bike. By the end of the session, we were both turning competitive laptimes (around the 25 second mark) but were getting tired and falling down a bit. The front tire was also starting to push quite a bit -- investigation showed the kold kutters on the left side of the tire were starting to pull out somewhat. With no dunlop tire technician on site, we decided to call it a day. Future plans are getting my 150 out on some proper tires for some more fun. What did YOU do yesterday?

BTW, it's -25 degrees celcius today -- that's -13 fahrenheit. Stay warm, I'm going out into the garage...

gettin' jiggy wit it

2011-01-01T14:35:00.000-08:00

My apologies to Wil Smith... spent some time coming up with some subframe options for the mz -- I was able to score a rear tail section from a TZ250, brand new, for $25... so with this back home I began to see how well it would mate to the KR1S/MZ subframe combination... not very well, unfortunately. So I removed the MZ subframe and decided to build one from scratch. I decided to use mild steel from Canadian Tire, as it is far cheaper than 4130 and if I screwed up or came up with another option, it wouldn't beak the bank. I quickly threw one idea together, welded things up quick with the intent of doing it again properly if it worked out OK. Looks OK, but things weren't properly square, and it turns out the seat height was too high for comfortable use by a short-arse like me...

You can also see the R6 forks and front wheel on in this shot... while the seat orientation looks OK, when you add in the height of a 160 rear tire, the seat height ends up being 34 inches -- taller than the ex650! So, the basic idea is sound, a combination of square and round 3/4" mild steel tubing will be used, and using the rough draft as a starting point, I began construction again, using a lot more attention to detail to make sure everything was properly square this time...

This is a little jig that I have plotted out using a large square and some scrap wood. The piece to the left has the attachment for the rear of the tank tacked into place. The longer piece to the right supports the seat section. Using a protractor, my tubing cutting jig, a bandsaw and a disc sander, I've got the first of two pieces (the diagonal one on top) set in place. I need to make a stop at Canadian tire for some more material, as well as the welding supply shop to refill the bottles. Dad said when he built his airplane, he essentially built it twice, as the first try for each part he made wasn't up to snuff. I hope I don't have to build everything twice as well, but subframes can be tricky, and I needed to see it in a draft form first before proceeding with the "final copy"...

And courtesy of Dave Pearce (Mr. Tigcraft) here is another piece of bike candy -- that's a KTM 690 engine, and a composite aluminum-chromoly frame. Don't drool on your keyboards, folks!

Happy new year, everyone!

tigcraft update

2010-12-19T10:26:00.001-08:00

Prepare to drool...

All forked up

2010-12-17T17:00:00.000-08:00

The box arrived from Traxxion Dynamics with my supermono forks inside. Knowledge and experience are wonderful things, but sometimes come at a cost. Considering what was done in terms of intellectual property and expertise, the cost was fair. What I discovered was reassuring, as the problem I had with the forks was legitimate, and the solution I paid for was the only one possible -- so I had correctly diagnosed the problem.
As I said in an earlier blog post, I suspected the fork springs as being too soft for me and the bike. There was some chatter out of corners, and the o-ring on the fork tube indicated that the forks were bottoming quite regularly, not under braking but under compression while cornering... not good. While an increase in oil level helped, it was a stop-gap. A book I recently bought about suspension tuning advocated treating spring rates independent from the damping process -- no amount of preload, compression/damping, or oil weight or level was going to adequately compensate for the wrong springs. I send the forks to traxxion to get an idea of the fork spring rate, and then if necessary install and set up the correct springs for my weight.
The information I got back was enlightening. The spring rates were a combo -- .55 in one fork, and .82 in another, for a combined weight of only .68. Most bikes come with between .80 and .90 springs installed, with over 1.00kg springs available in some cases. So stock, they were miles off. Traxxion changed the springs out to .80 in both, revavled the forks, and serviced the assembly as well. They were shipped back to me and they're ready to go back on the bike.
Bike Club reassembly will continue in the new year. The student and I re-checked the vavles and they are within spec, according to the manual. Really easy to do, actually, although if a valve is out, then changing the shim is a bit more complicated.
I'm getting some more responses from my sponsorship proposals, so I might get some additional product discounts and suppies for the season. I'll post more news soon.

Oh yeah, Dave Pearce has been regularly threatening my marriage with tempting photos of some of his cool projects, both current things and past gems...
This is a MUZ factory supermono that my frame was based on...as you can see, the spec sheet and running gear is a tad higher than my supermono...

That's a self-supporting carbon-fibre tail section, and dymag wheels...

Yamaha 660 engine, bored out to god knows what and making copious horsepower.

This might be the leap at Cadwell Park. Shipped to your door (in North America) for only 6500 pounds. Go to http://www.tigcraft.com/ for more information.

This is pretty cool as well -- Dave is developing a custom chassis around the Ninja 650 engine. Has an R6 rear swingarm, linkage, and shock. Appears to be stock airbox. Again, a CF tail section and light fuel cell and you'd have a bike to embarrass some 600cc racers!

And the other side -- some airbox tomfoolery possible -- check out the steering stem -- cut away, to perhaps allow a more direct ram air intake into the airbox???

new shoes

2010-12-13T18:01:00.000-08:00

It was time to get some proper race kit -- the boots I were using were nice, light street boots, but after reffing for 2 years I saw first hand how important proper gear is -- with the flag, you get to see all the crashes and the results, not just the ones that happen to you or the guy in the pit next to you. Roadracingworld.com does a great job of notifying privateers about sponsorship opportunities -- at my level the best I can hope for is a discount on parts -- I have never, nor will I likely ever get anything for free -- too old and slow for that. But a discount is a discount, and when I sent my resume off to pilotusa.com, it was with the hope that I could get a deal on boots. They came through. They distribute prexport boots to North America -- not a popular brand over here, but big in Europe, and these, the spada model, were the top of the line and highly rated. I got a killer deal on a new set, in the size and color I wanted. While I was at it I plumped for a chest protector as well, as more and more racers are racing with these in place under the leathers. Pretty pleased with the result:

Like all race gear, I hope I never have to use them. Better gloves are next. We'll see what I can find on eBay...

a few tweaks

2010-12-12T14:57:00.000-08:00

With the bike apart again (bike club 2010), it was time to make a few subtle modifications to the frame. Very simple, but knocked a pound or two off the overall weight. As the engine mounts didn't use them, and no kickstand will ever be used, the lower part of the frame rails were removed with my tubing cutter. Should also allow the fabrication of a slightly better gear change mechanism -- but that won't take place for awhile, until the engine is back in the frame.

You can also see how nicely a tubing cutter works -- a clean cut, with just a dressup with a file to get rid of any sharp edges. Now just need to find some rubber plugs to stick in the bottom.

You will also notice a different remote resevior -- from a fox shock fitted to a vfr 750. Checked the spring rates, and it should be in the ballpark for my bike's needs as well. Triple adjustable and rebuildable as well, whereas the stock 900rr model was a throwaway item... and based on the leaking seal, it was time to throw it away!
In other news, just waiting for the 28mm needle bearings to come in the mail. Atom-Jet will then bore the swingarm pivots to suit. As well, with the engine out and at school, its time to check the valves. Doubtful that they are out of spec, but while the engine wasn't run for long, it was run pretty hard. Will be interesting to see what comes up.

swingarm project

2010-12-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

I've never been 100% satisfied with the pegaso rear swingarm. After hours of research, I found that based on photos seen online, that a suzuki rg125 swingarm might work. Of course, those bikes were never imported to North America, so if I did find one for sale, it would be a bit of a leap of faith to order one and ship it here, in the hopes that it might work. Like most used parts in the UK, this came cheap -- 9 pounds. The shipping was a bit steep however.

As you can see, it is designed to pivot on the rear of the engine case. As well, it is set up for LHS drive chain, while the pegaso had to be "flipped" -- it also has a cool, GP-like banana arm style to the right -- intended for the expansion chamber to exit with some more room. Dimensionally, it is quite similar to the pegaso swingarm. However, in some key details it is different. It has also been nicely powdercoated, but that is wearing through in some areas, and modification will require it to be stripped anyway. And, while it has the look of an aluminum piece, it is actually steel. Oh well, that means I can do any of the cutting and welding needed on the arm itself.

The key work that needs to be done first involves skills and tools I don't have. First, the swingarm pivot axle needs to be bored out by 1 mm. In order to use the proper parts, I need to be able to press in a 28x22mm needle bearing. Currently it will accept a 27mm bearing. So the front part needs to be enlarged by 1mm overall. Secondly, in order to use the correct rear axle from the rs125 wheel, the wheel slot and the carrier needs to be bored out to 20mm. My hope is that this work can be properly done in the first place -- so its off to Atom-Jet tommorow just to see if it is possible. I really think it is, but it would require some creative jigging on the mill table for it to work.
Depending on how simply I can get this done, there is a slight possibility I can do this mod over this winter. Luckily, the pegaso swingarm is still "fine", and will be kept as the fallback solution in case I hit a roadblock with this project.

tanks again

2010-11-27T16:28:00.000-08:00

Supermono forks are on their way to traxxion dynamics for service. Got the KR1S tank in the mail last week, and spent some time today doing peliminary fitting. I think it is going to work OK -- need to take care of a few niggly things, like:

Need to determine the angle of the rear subframe - it does need to be jacked up somewhat, but I can't determine that angle until I have the wheels on -- need to set the seat height properly.

Petcock may not work in this location -- so I might have to move it somewhere else (slightly) -- it did come with the tank, so I'm currently soaking it in the same seafoam solution I used to clean up some carburetors. Will be a long wait until Christmas before any major work is done on this bike -- forks and front wheel is waiting there for me.

In other news, it looks like the local club has decided to add an ultralightweight superbike class -- so the 'mono has a class to race in. Will be a bit of an uphill battle against some of the bikes, but at least I don't have to line up against 1100cc Ducs and Buells!
Was able to source some Dunlop slicks for the 'mono -- the rare 155 width rears that were put on gp bikes. Used, on order to see how well they work. Got to be 100 times better than the Michelin street tires I have on there now! My worry is that the 160/165 michelins slicks will be too wide. Further, the stock, leaking, OEM rear 900ss shock is being replaced with a fox shock off of eBay. A longer term project will be fitting a RG125 rear swingarm, in aluminum, to the mono -- hopefully I can get that to work sometime soon (perhaps not this year!) That is coming from the UK, so it will get to me directly. The stuff for the mz is waiting for me at Pop's place.

Plug!

2010-11-22T12:53:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to make a willing post plug to the folks at Traxxion Dynamics. They rebuilt my EX650 rear shock, and did, by all accounts, an awesome job. While it will be months before I can test it out, one of their techs actually raced an EX before, and I think did some work with a Moto-ST team that raced in the states. They sent back the shock with a shock dyno chart (I have no idea what it means), and of course it is spotless. Spring rate was correct for my weight, and some revalving magic was done, as well as a recommended ride height setting.

Their website is: http://www.traxxion.com/

Give 'em a call. Friendly folks for sure. I plan to send my supermono forks to them as well. I need stiffer springs to suit my weight, and Mike and the gang think they can help. Worth it from my perspective. Sort the handling first, then spend money on the engine.

Forks

2010-11-21T13:19:00.000-08:00

I was able to research and find out the proper bearings that would work to convert the R6 forks (including triples) into the MZ skorpion frame. Ironically, the correct bearing set comes from a DRZ400! The ID or bore of the bearing is 30mm top and bottom, and the OD of the cup is 52mm. Not a common bearing, but a call to "All Balls" had me sorted out, and with the ordering information, I was able to get them from Transcanada within 2 days. Took me about 15 minutes to check to see everything fit properly.

These are tapered roller bearings, and also come with dust seals. I had already purchased a set of R6 forks and triples off of ebay for a good price. Rather than go with more expensive USD forks, I went with traditional RSU forks, that still have preload, rebound, and compression adjustment.

While they look a bit rough, the upper triple is straight and intact -- perhaps a coat of paint will help things along.

Installed -- the frame will require a minor modification -- there is a little tap that is supposed to act as a steering stop -- however, it isn't long enough to work with the Yamaha forks, so it will have to have some material welded to it to work properly so there is some steering lock.

At the other end, the DRZ400SM rear swingarm has also arrived and been installed. Need to find some axle sliders in order to set the rear wheel in place -- there are some on Ebay that also have provision for a slider/rear stand spool, which would solve two problems at once.

Waiting on the KR1S tank to arrive to set the angle of the rear subframe.

swingarm is on

2010-11-07T10:35:00.000-08:00

The Versys swingarm is on, just waiting for the rebuilt penske to come back from Traxxion Dynamics. Need to add a little clip to secure the brake hose, and then it is done. Chain to follow.

close shave

2010-10-31T09:53:00.000-07:00

The FCR parts from Sinceros Speed Works have come in. These are the jets, needles, and intake bell required to convert the 39mm carb originally off of a yzf426 to work with the DRZ -- essentially the same carb as sold on the E model DRZ, and also available as at kit for $500 or so. I spent considerably less; here's hoping it works as it should.

You can see that this carb has provision for a throttle position sensor, which I am told is not supposed to be hooked up -- makes sense, as the carb was originally from a Yamaha. Idle wheel can be seen to the lower left; red knob is for a hot start -- very important when MX'ers crash during a race and need to kick-start the bike in a hurry while warm. Black knob is the choke.

Like all MX throttle cables, what came with the bike is far too long. Will leave it as-is for now, and try to track down some brass ferrules in order to make a short cable of the proper length. Ran out of them with my earlier Venhill kit I got from the UK.

Only one cable is needed, as the return spring action of the slide is considerable. Not sure if I should bother covering the upper hole, as I don't intend to get a lot of dirt in there!

This is where the "close shave" comes in -- the lower bolt on the float chamber misses the frame tube by 1/2 a millimeter! The whole conversion would have been a big "fail" had my welding or the carburetor forging been microscopically different. Result! According to all the experts, this mod alone should be good for a couple of hp. Just need to get the jetting right for my application and altitude. Won't bother trying to run it till the spring, as it is below freezing regularly these days. Fettling on this bike is done for now.

Swarf and inspiration

2010-10-27T16:29:00.000-07:00

Atom-Jet is making me the two spacers, and so I attacked the rear subframe, cutting off about 5-6 lbs in the process. I shoulda done a before and after weigh-in. But here's where I'm at right now. I had some 3/4" 4130 left over, so I replaced the passenger area and luggage rack with just the cross-member seen at left.

A lot of time was spent with the angle grinder, first cutting off large chunks of metal and then grinding off the remains. There is more that could be done, but I wanted to stop here before I went any further. Depending on how the tank fits, I might need to adjust the angle of the subframe, or add supports to prop the seat section up a bit.

I've also been looking online for some inspiration -- some sort of neo-retro look for the bike. Over the course of the project, my ideas will likely morph and change, but here's a neat Hawk I found while researching fuel tanks.

I can see it has a 125 GP seat on a custom subframe, and the tank was molded from foam and wood -- not clear if it is covering an aluminum tank underneath... not keen on using a fibreglass tank on a streetbike.

Speaking of tanks, I think I found something that should work with my frame. As usual, its from a bike never imported official to North America... so I found it in Germany, sold to me by a Dutchman living there.

From a bike called a KR1S -- a 250cc 2-stroke that battled with RGV250s and RZ350s in Europe back in the 80s. A bit rough looking, but comes with a cap and petcock, and rubber bumpers for mounting. Hopefully it gets here in one piece and is suitable. The original tank is too small, ugly as sin, and wouldn't work with my oil in the frame idea...

another new project

2010-10-24T09:29:00.000-07:00

I'm addicted, I guess. Better than crack and only slightly less expensive. Embarking on another 'mono project -- this time, for the street. Plan on using the DRZ/KLX engine again, as I have a bare engine for mockup purposes, and a few spares and extra hardware that I can use... as well as experience with the engine.

As for the frame, I am starting with a Muz Skorpion frame that I got off of ebay. The Muz was normally powered by a Yamaha 660 single, so the smaller DRZ will fit in with no problem. I also got a subframe for the engine, but its about 10 lbs heavier than need be -- for a passenger, as well as to accomodate luggage and two exhaust pipes. No thanks. The angle grinder and cutting wheel will get some use.

I also found a DRZ rear swingarm for $14 -- this is the S version, so I want to find an SM for the final version -- a bit shorter, with proper streetbike axle blocks.

As for how the back end will be suspended, I'm thinking of going retro with twin rear shocks, or perhaps a single offset rear shock a la Norton rotary racer or ducati sport classic.

Allegedly a R6 front end bolts on fairly easily... I have acquired a set of 99-02 front forks (the RSU version), and a front wheel with twin discs for only $19 (the forks and triples were just over $100).

As for what the final "look" of the bike will be, I'm not 100% sure on that -- while a complete idea should be in place prior to the welding bottles being opened up, there are some mechanical things I need to develop or create, that I want to put into practice on this bike.

The first involves the oil tank. I need a minimum of 2 L of oil for the dry sump engine. What I would like to do is "hide" it, by incorporating it into the frame. The DRZ400 dirtbike did this with a rectangular downtube on the stock chassis.

You can see engine mounting tabs just aft of the steering head. The idea would be to use a 2.5" OD tube (with some jiggry-pokery to get the right volume) to mount to the front engine mount on the frame. One would bolt to the other, and then the proper fittings would allow the hollow front engine mount tube to act as a oil tank as well. The rad would mount to that, and etc, etc. Of course, before I do any of that, I need to mount the forks in place, and create a "rolling chassis" -- need to get the angle of the dangle of the rear swingarm, and finally determine how long the front engine mount will be. You can see some old 2.5" tubing in place for mock-up purposes already.

When dad delivered the frame and parts this past weekend, we also drilled out the frame engine/swingarm mount hole to 17mm -- even had a nice bolt at the right length hand I can use. As you can see in the pic, a few spacers need to be made to center the swingarm (and ergo, the engine) in the frame. I've got some nice aluminum alloy material to start with.

This can hopefully be an ongoing project to play with over the next few years... I'll keep everyone posted with updates as they come in.

Swingarm Swap

2010-10-10T07:52:00.000-07:00

Started the process yesterday to switch out the steel ex swingarm for that of the versys. Old rear swinger cam out fairly simply... and it looks like more of the parts are interchangable than originally planned, which will save me some money in the swap. Did some comparison of part numbers on Bikebandit.com, and I already have $60+ of reusable parts, in the form of spacers, oil seals, etc. I still need to order some items, but it will be far cheaper than I thought.

While I was at it, I also removed the front countershaft sprocket. I have a leftover racing chain with low miles that is slightly shorter than stock. My hope is to shorten the gearing for racing, but go to a 13-43, rather than the stock 15-46. The original chain had to be cut off anyway, so I went with a 520 set. For longer tracks, I will switch to a 14-43, essentially back to stock gearing, but with the smaller sprockets overall. Dad's bringing those in for me in a week or 2.

The bike is held up by a stand that I originally built to pass through a hollow rear axle -- this time, I just put a 3/4 inch tube through one of the hollow frame spars, and it lifts the back end up without using a rear stand.

The shock will also be sent out for a rebuild and revalve -- not sure whose weight it was set up for, and it is also weeping a bit around the seal.

Note how much more beefy the rear swingarm is from stock -- and its still 4 lbs lighter! Rear brake caliper hanger and caliper, along with the rear wheel spacers can be reused.

Weekend Education

2010-09-28T17:52:00.000-07:00

Picture it -- glorious +26 degree weather in late September. The weekend -- no work. A new bike to break in. Races being taped on the PVR... get out and enjoy the sunshine. Which I certainly did, until I was about 1 mile from home after a lovely 50 mile ride (restricted to 39mph according the max revs break in according to the manual). Me and the KLX are getting along famously. Light, easy, fun to ride even with 20 hp, and more fun to be had when I can open it up after break in. The supermoto tires mean that I can go through the 2 roundabouts in town without even braking, sticking my leg out with style.
On the way home Sunday, I approached the 2nd roundabout when a young kid in a Caddy pulled out in front of me -- he misjudged my speed (I wasn't/didn't need to slow down)... while he left me a bit of room I could work with, he then decided to stop dead... why, I don't know. My brake hand reacted faster than my left foot, and down I went in a lowside with a locked front brake. Like my roadracing crashes, things slowed down. I saw the rear bumper approaching my head as I slid along the ground; I enjoyed the painless sensation of my Sidi boots doing their job, protecting my left foot trapped under the bike; I immediately felt pain in my hip, but the numb type I generally associated with a hard bodycheck; worst of all, I could feel my light jacket rolling up my arm towards the elbow, leaving my forearm to make corrosive contact with the pavement. Then, silence.
I was conscious, did not hit my head, and I avoided the car. The klx was still put-putting while lying on top of me... although I was able to reach down and hit the kill switch with my right hand. The driver came out from his car, and a fella working on his yard also showed up. Yard guy picked up my bike, while caddy boy claimed it wasn't his fault (was it...?). He suggested we exchange information, but to what end? My bike was remarkably undamaged save for a few minor scrapes. My arm and knee were a bit of a mess, so with no information to exchange (single vehicle accident) he left. Yard guy stayed with me to make sure I was OK, looked at my forearm to ensure that there was no bones sticking out. I shook his hand, started up the bike, and went home for a date with the hydrogen peroxide and an old toothbrush. Thankfully Kate was not home yet and I could howl in privacy.

The worst of it, 2 days later...

I've been riding since 1997, and this is my first street crash. Ironically, I wasn't speeding, I was on the LEAST powerful bike I have ever ridden on the street, and I was a mile from home. It was a day I decided against my leather jacket... my choice. I did have a helmet on, I did avoid the other car, and I did avoid serious damage to the bike... my race-trained habit of "looking through the turn" avoided a more serious rear-end collision. My boots saved my feet -- had I been wearing sneakers, yikes!
2 days after, I am able to put things into perspective. This was a real wake-up call for me. This little bike was supposed to keep me out of trouble, and while it crashes about 1000 percent better than a sportbike, it can still be somewhat dangerous. What have I been reminded of:
1. Never, ever, ever trust other drivers!
2. Always wear proper protection -- where I was hurt the worst, I was the least protected. My bottom half was covered in jeans -- still some damage but minor. Had I had a leather jacket on, no injuries to the arm!
3. When in doubt, chicken out (on the street, at least) -- I had been through that roundabout many times before, much faster, but there was NO traffic -- much more margin of error.
4. My wife is a patient woman. She made the trip to the pharmacy for more supplies on Monday.

So no repairs to the KLX -- scratches have added character to both me and the bike. No missed work, although I am stiff and sore all over. Again, could have been much worse!
And I got back on the horse on Monday -- rode for an hour in the warm weather again -- with a leather jacket!
Dad, if you're reading this, don't tell mom! If she does see it, remind her that once again, RACING is safer than riding on the street! Keep the rubber side down, everyone!

Carb Diet

2010-09-22T19:55:00.000-07:00

The YZ427 carb showed up. In decent condition, but I soaked it in a product called "Seafoam" to help clean it up. That, and some work with an old toothbrush did a good job. Next step is to get the right jets for it -- Sinceros Speed Works to the rescue.

The wierd thing is, it looks as if this carb will fit under the tank?! I did need to adjust the underside with a brass hammer somewhat, but it now fits fine. Hmmm. I also intend to pressure test the tank again to make sure my welds are holding up.

Great Weekend

2010-09-18T09:26:00.000-07:00

Really enjoyed the last weekend of the season -- got the reffing done on Saturday with only one bad crash (rider is OK), and the hit the track on Sunday. Was happy with how the comfort level came back -- made some good passess, picked up speed pretty quickly, and also didn't surrender spots other than to bigger bikes on the straights. Even caught and out-dragged an SV650 -- of course, not in a race situation, but it seems that the bike has some decent speed compared to its competition, even with stock gearing. Was a very windy day, and the fairingless bike ran well. In fact, the mono, with its full fairing, was being tossed around quite a bit -- more likely due to its weight than anything else. Got to the point on the mono where I wasn't even braking for turn 1 -- just pop out of the bubble, downshift once, and hold on. Handled pretty good! Again, some chatter and sliding through turn five on the little bike. Not sure if that's due to the tires (the street-based 2CT michelins) or to the suspension. Need more time to sort it out. Did 4 sessions on the ex and 2 on the mono.

Had the bikes loaded on the trailer a few days prior -- school had started up and I was spending some long hours -- did not want to wait until Thursday night to load up, in case I was delayed...

Trailer held up OK, but I'm keeping a close eye on it -- its covered lots of miles over the past 11 years, and has hauled more than just bikes. Might be time to get something slightly bigger -- no extra room on the deck for anything!

No shots of me "in action" that I've seen, so I can show you tire wear -- fascinating!!! The michelin slicks were awesome! Not sure how old the tires were, and while they were sliding a bit out of turn 9 (asphalt, not concrete), everything was controllable. Nice wear pattern, no cold tearing despite the lack of tire warmers and the cold ambient temps.

Of course, for me to be battling at the front, I need to find 4 seconds somewhere...! Next year!

I wondered about the bellypan in right turns -- while it did touch down, it acted as a gauge (along with my knee) as to what the suspension was doing at the back. I need to get faster through turn 4 -- there is a bump right as you turn in that upsets the bike -- the bump carries across the entire width of the track, except for a 1' spot roughly 3' out from the inside. On a clean lap, you go for that spot -- otherwise, you grin and bear it. Pegs and levers were fine -- no contact.

So now its time to get the bikes ready for winter storage -- I've removed the Cool-Aid from the ex and replaced it with glycol -- gonna do the same with the mono, although its running straight water. Winter plans include a rear swingarm swap on the ex, and a shock rebuild/revalve -- the machine is running perfectly otherwise. I've built a stand that will hold up the rear of the bike while leaving the swingarm free to be removed. With the mono, my 1 gal alloy tank has arrived, as well as the carburetor. Gonna test fit the FCR, then clean it up and jet it for the DRZ. Mounting the tank will take some work, but I've got a few ideas. Off to get some pink foam insulation today. As usual, stay tuned.

no excuses

2010-09-05T07:30:00.000-07:00

For all intents and purposes, the ex is ready to roll... no comprimises with tires, exhaust, suspension, etc... all that is left is the fine tuning and me getting up to speed and to grips with it.

The Muzzy exhaust came in earlier this week, and was quite easy to install -- just headers and the muffler -- 5 bolts in total. Fired it up -- sounds pretty rorty... might be pushing the db levels at some tracks. When I went to mount the bellypan the headers and collector pipe (as short as it is) fouled on the pan. Spent another couple of hours cutting out a section of the bottom of the bellypan, and riviting in an aluminum relief panel. The end result is still oil tight and should work OK. The muffler fits well within the rear cutout and looks pretty stealthy.

Mom and Dad stopped in for a visit on their way west -- Dad played "mule" duty and hauled in some proper slicks (Michelin 250s from Motorace) as well as a few Versys parts for the swingarm conversion -- swingarm pivot axle and rear axle and adjusters, so that should help with finding the other hardware for installing the new rear end. The Michelins can be a PITA to install, especially if they've been stacked on their sides (like they all have), but with some massaging I was able to get the beads to seat.

As I said, mechanically, there should be no issues with the bike -- everything works, nothing is compromised, all that's left is optimizing things like the rear shock (it may not be set up for my weight), and getting used to the bike. I really hope the "experiment" that is the decision to go fairingless works out OK. The streetfighter look is not something I am really keen on as streetbikes, but I still wonder if a full fairing is necessary on a 65 hp bike -- it is the balance between aerodynamic streamlining and coefficient of drag. Short of a wind tunnel, I've go no way to prove my ideas. The truth will be in my right wrist, next weekend. The final round of the year is on the 11/12 weekend, and after my refereeing duties wrap up on Saturday, I plan to get in as many laps as I can on both bikes on alternating sessions on Sunday. Hopefully my improved fitness will allow me to ride all day.

On the 'mono front, one of my long-term goals has always been to fit a FCR carb to the engine. Google drz/klx400 and 39 FCR and you'll have hours of reading on the benefits of fitting this to the S/SM bikes (the E model got it stock). I am still certain the 40mmCV I have right now is an improvement over the 36mm carb that came standard.

I was able to source this item on eBay for a good price -- I've also found a reputable page describing some jetting settings. This is a popular carb, fitted to many models of MX bikes; therefore, aside from assuring its a 39mm, I will likely have to switch out some jets to get the carb to run properly.

Another fabricating problem is going to rear its head as well -- back in late 2008 when I was modifying the tank to work with this frame, the underside of the zzr250 tank was adapted to suit a CV carb. In general, these carbs are "shorter" from top to bottom and so I modified the tank to suit. A buddy of mine has a DRZ400 SM bike, and bought his own 39mm FCR. There are no clearance issues fitting this carb to the stock bike, but I noticed at the time that it appeared a FCR would not fit under the modified ZZR tank I built... so with all mods, there is often a carry on effect. This might mean a new tank!

ZZR250 tanks are a dime a dozen in the UK, but very rare in NA -- they were only sold in Canada... and, the only one I've seen in a year is stuck on eBay for a very high price -- fair enough, its new, but not what I need. Again, in the quest to "lose weight", I did some research:

1 gallon of fuel = 8.33 lbs!
So if you put 2 gallons of gas into your bike for a 15-30 mile sprint race, you are carrying around at least an extra 8 pounds of ballast.
Gimli sprints are even shorter, the tight track results in lower speeds, with less fuel demand
A KLX400 single gets "great" gas mileage!

So, likely any new tank would only require 1 gallon of volume -- I would just need to remember to keep the tank full... and save more weight!

The plan now is to find a decent quality 1 gallon fuel cell -- go kart racers have these in aluminum or even plastic. I'd prefer the alloy, but we'll see what I can find for a reasonable price. Mount it in a suitable location, and then cover up the sharp angles by gluing pink foam insulation to the tank, and then cutting, sanding, and shaping the big block into something resembling a fuel tank. The pink final copy is then covered with epoxy resin and fibreglass, sanded, and then painted like any regular tank. About the same work as modifying a stock steel tank, but with the anticipated result of a lighter tank (albeit with less volume).

Finally, on a sad note, many of you know Peter Lenz was killed at the Indy MotoGP. I have a very loose connection to the fellow -- I emailed and spoke with his dad awhile back when I bought some of his old bodywork -- the tail section on the 'mono was some of his old stuff. I bought it used with some crash damage, and I had to admit I was a bit jealous of the kid when I was prepping the piece for painting -- the underside of the tail section had a really neat professionally-made decal with his name, number, and a pile of sponsors. A real pain to remove! Looked pretty cool and I was jealous of the then 12-year old. His passing reminds me again how my life has been one big stroke of luck/Lucky Stroke in comparison. The only consolation is that he died doing what he loved to do, by no mistake on his own. Pretty cool legacy for a 13 year old.

Sorted!

2010-08-23T14:35:00.000-07:00

Took the ex out to the test facility yesterday. No definitive proof that what I'd done to the electronics since the last race weekend had solved the problem, so with hope in my heart I headed South with the bike on the trailer. I'd know if I'd fixed the issues within about 10 seconds of running the bike in. Up and down the runway once to warm it up. Come around for the first WFO run and.... whoa! (relatively speaking) -- she goes! The aggravating thing about this little-used runway is the layer of gravel on the tarmac. It got to the point where on the third accelleration test, the rear wheel was spinning up. And no FI light coming on and reverting the bike into "limp" mode. It runs as it shoud.

I also did my best to bed in the new brake pads, and suffice to say, it also stops quite well. I did a panic stop, locking up the front and compressing the forks fully in order to ensure the front fairing did not hit the front fender on full compression. I even found a relatively clean stretch of pavement to practice a few starts... hmm... getting a bit ahead of myself here!

So, aside from installing the Muzzy (on its way according to an email I got today), the tires, and the bellypan, the bike is race ready. All that's left is adjusting and tweaking some of the details, and perhaps fine-tuning the suspension at the back end.

This guy's coming for a visit in a few days...

Consolidation (sic?)

2010-08-21T19:02:00.000-07:00

For simplicity's sake, I've decided to combine all of my blogs back into this one. The supermono one is the most often visited, although lately, the least often updated. So, if you're here for ex650 news, great; if its RC51 info your after, well, look elsewhere.

New Bike: this is the 3rd bike in a year for me. From a 119 hp Italian exotic, to a rarer 130hp Japanese Superbike homologation special to.... wait for it.... a 20 hp supermoto. What the heck??? The reality is, both the RC51 and the 999 were ridden very little. I took meticulous care of them, putting in blood, sweat, tears and money, and loving life with them only when I was on a deserted highway breaking the speed limit... as in go to jail breaking the speed limit. I never put anyone other than myself at risk, and that would only be from an unforseen circumstance like a stoopid deer coming in for a close-up or something. I was at the point where I could likely calculate the cost per ride on the honda based on how little I was actually riding it. No big deal if we had bike insurance like the Brits or the Yanks... based on the information I've read, I could plate several bikes for less than what I am paying for one in Canada -- I'm nearly 40, no accidents, no tickets, no claims, etc, etc. Not the case here -- $1500 a year (for a maybe 5 month season) for the Honda. Yikes! It was not a bike to hop on and pop down to the shops for errands. It was not happy tootling along at 30 mph in traffic. Again, only at home doing extra-legal speeds, and even our highways leave a lot to be desired in terms of curves and surface integrity.

Enter the supermoto... Transcanada had a 2009 KLX250SF languishing on the floor for over a year. Gathering dust, the battery was even dead. Took it out for a spin in town and breifly on the highway, and had a smile on my face the whole time. 60mph feels like 100, and it is so light and fun, that even respecting the under 4000 rpm break in limit, it was a riot. Within 5 minutes the chicken strips on the tires on the Honda were gone on the Kawi. It also gets 70 mpg, and costs $500/year less to insure. Still far too expensive, but at least I can actually ride it regularly -- getting on a 1000 sportbike is an "event" -- getting on this is a quick turn of the key (after pulling the choke) let it get warm, and then whoo hoo!!! 20hp has never been so fun. A few of my riding buddies think I'm nuts, but I can't wait until it gets some mileage under its belt so I can really let it rip and unleash the ponies!!! 250cc... that's a small chocolate milk, kiddies!

The 650:

Magura radial master and 1.4 turn throttle.

Race fuel cap -- key will stay in the ingnition where it belongs!

Finally getting there -- after waiting 3 weeks in vain for EBC pads, Scotty ordered me SBS pads and they were here in 2 days. The zx10R master cylinder felt like crap, so I gambled and swapped the magura 16x18 from the mono (radial brake caliper needed for the brake lines I got) -- bled it and it finally has brakes the way it should. I put the stock er6 master on the mono, and while the 5/8 bore is a bit big, should work OK. Also got the proper front fairing mounted and painted. 1/4 turn throttle installed, so it should be good to go. Just need to get out to the airstrip and give both bikes a try -- to see if the 16T on the front of the mono is workable, and to make sure the idiot light (the FI light) does not come on on the 650 -- installed and checked all the tweaks I'd done, and found a few possible suspects, but also cleared the trouble codes from the computer. Just waiting on the Muzzy so I can install the bellypan and the bike will truly be "finished". You all have heard that before!

Bellypan -- brackets are in and installed, but this won't fit with my home-made pipe system...

On a personal note, I start back at work on the 23rd, getting ready for the first day of school. An ongoing project for me has been trying to get fitter for racing. Over the years since I last raced (dating back to 2007), my weight has creeped up to around 200 lbs. Not good when you are 5'8" or so. My muscular strength is as high as its ever been, but has been accompanied by some extra insulation. I described my physique as "oversquare" -- only engine builders got the joke -- everyone else thought I was just porky. Anyway, this summer has seen me do some diligent exercizing. Running every second day (between 4.2 and 4.9 miles, depending on the route I take), and hitting the bow-flex on the other days. I've also cut down on the brewskis, reduced my bread intake, and am taking the huge step of.... wait for it.... NOT eating peanut butter! This is huge as with most people, their body is 70% water... mine was about 68%, with 2% being PB. To date, after around 2 months or so, I'm "down" to 187, with 165-170 being the "ultimate" goal. Considering every 7lbs of static weight (as in my lardy butt on the bike) is equivalent to 1 hp, I could gain as much as 4-5 hp just by getting fit. A big deal when you are riding a supermono or small twin. When the cold winter comes, I intend to keep running, being sure to get the proper gear so I don't DIE in the -30 degrees celcius weather -- you imperial chaps look that up -- that' freaking cold, it is.... no idea what it is in Fahrenheit or Kelvin or whatever. This fitness craze has been inspired by my buddy Mike who cycled across Canada in 2008, and my other friend Greg, who is a week away from an Ironman -- as in the full monty... check out his blog here:

http://once-upon-a-bike.blogspot.com/

And for your entertainment, Brit supermono racer Mike Edwards travels 1500 miles or so to race a brand new, untested mono in the wet. Qualifies it in 4th or so, leads in the wet, and then crashes. No biggie, until another rider hits the downed machine and destroys it. Remember that when you see the acres of carbon fibre, and the amount of evident effort put into the bike. At least all the riders were OK!

Mid America Photos

2010-07-29T08:18:00.000-07:00

Some of the snaps from the Mancation...

Still finding my way around the track...

Head down, trying to keep that Triumph guy behind me...

Still tentative on the cornering front in the morning...

Getting there...

Inching closer... I could pass him in the infield, but the nearly 1-mile long front straight killed me...

By the end of the day, if I could get in front of him midway through the infield, I could keep him behind me for the duration of the setting. And yes, I did get my sliders down by the afternoon -- the camera dude just wasn't around to catch it...

Quiet

2010-07-18T06:49:00.000-07:00

Not a lot to report on the 'mono front. I put on a 16T front sprocket yesterday -- woulda liked it at Mid-America, but forgot it at home... should also help at Gimli -- hitting top gear long before turn 1. As well, the crack in the clutch cover was sweating a bit of oil -- very minor amounts, so I JB Welded it... we'll see if that does the trick.

new blog

2010-07-02T07:04:00.001-07:00

Head on over to: http://mbtwin.blogspot.com/ to keep track of my ninja 650 adventures...

New Steed

2010-06-29T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here are a few teaser pics of the bike, taken from the Crashedtoys website. It's in my garage, and already stripped down quite a bit. I'll start another blog on that machine shortly, and have a link to this and my RC51 site.

Low miles -- only 6176!!

Damage is almost purely cosmetic -- side fairings, tail, etc. Shift and brake pedals are dented as well.

This alternator cover is scratched up as well, but no oil leaks -- some paint will take care of it, if I even bother...

Considering the condition, and the price I got it for, I can't believe it was written off. I may keep track of the costs publicly, but for now, I can say that I got it for 1/10th the price new... do the math!

The plan it to try to get it on track as inexpensively as possible. Things like a decent shock and a USD front end will cost, as well as some machining work to the front wheel. However, I'm gonna avoid going the full-fairing direction and create a machine similar to this ER6n that was raced in Europe. I've already found cheaper options to the side fairings, the headlight/bikini fairing, and am angling for a bellypan I can modify to make oil-retaining. I'm also going to see if I can fabricate a home-grown slip-on, using the zx10 TwoBros muffler I had from the supermono. I've changed the oil and fired up the bike, and it seems to run nice, at least on the stand... stay tuned.

Hitting the big time

2010-06-23T19:08:00.000-07:00

So, Doug and Wilson and I went to Mid-America Motorplex. Makes my local look like a paved MX track. I wanna go back really bad! This is our pit, with the TPL transporter. Sunday was crap and wet, but I did get out once before packing it in. Saturday was too good to push it on Sunday and bring home a broken bike.

Here is a pic of a portion of the track. My camera has no hope of capturing the size -- long, with the top guys doing about 1 min 45 sec laps. Going slow and cautious on the 'mono, but still having an absolute blast, and pissing off guys on bigger bikes in the infield.

And I guess I have made the big time -- Performance Bikes Magazine printed a 1-page feature on the 'mono in the most recent issue. Feels pretty cool that they devoted an entire page to the project. Will likely get it scanned so I can post it proper. Will also buy a couple of copies of the magazine, and maybe get the page dry-mounted.

The big news is that I was able to score a more competitive LW bike off of an online auction called Crashedtoys. A 2008 EX650R -- or ER6F in Europe. It doesn't look like this right now, but I hope it will look something like this in the near future. Dad picked it up in Minneapolis for me, it runs, although it has a "junk" title -- hence the cheap price, and perfect for a racebike. Will have to start another blog!!!

updates

2010-06-06T10:10:00.000-07:00

Not a whole lot to report. Mid America is coming up on June 18-22 -- a real "mancation" planned with Wilson and Doug, who have both been there before. I can't wait -- only 2 weeks away. In the interim is the next MRA race. Will bring the mono in the hopes of doing a bit more testing and tuning. I did raise the forks up in the triple by 10mm to try to get some more weight over the front. Might have been a bit of overkill, but I can always halve that length if it is too skittery. I can also fit the steering dampener, which I will take with me.

I have also started another helmet-painting exercise. This time, I got a Roof Diversion helmet from the UK. Not many of these around these parts. It was in VG condition -- a display model, apparently. It is very light, and is quite an expensive helmet when bought new. This had a 2002 build date, so it is not legal for racing, so I was wanting a nice street helmet. It originally came in red, and looked like this:

What I plan on doing is painting it in Gulf Oil colours, orange stripe, with a dark blue pinstripe, on pale blue. The striping (I hope) is this pattern:

Here's where I'm at as of today -- tire bead breaker is acting as a helmet stand. Orange has been painted and masked, and now the blue pinstripe has been taped:

I'm simply using Testors plastic model paint at this point. Goes on fairly smooth, and the grey primer covered well over top of the stock red. The helmet itself was scuffed with a plastic scuff pad -- no abrasive sand paper needed! The last helmet I painted, I used auto-air. A very coarse paint that required layers and layers of clear, along with wet-sanding in between. I still plan on applying multiple coats of clear -- here's hoping less sanding is required to get a shiny finish. I have gulf oil stickers in hand (hopefully they are small enough not to be affected by the helmet's compound curves) as well as replacement "ROOF" decals on the way. Stay tuned.

Good Weekend

2010-05-19T17:44:00.000-07:00

A successful first round. The reffing went well, with only one spill on Saturday, and no crashes on Sunday. First time I can remember the ambulance sitting idling all weekend, with no red flags. Awesome. Also got out on the bike, courtesy of Rod at TPL racing http://tplracing.blogspot.com/ -- on Sunday am, he flagged the first trackday session so I could get out on the mono -- put in another 7-8 laps. Bike ran well, if not a little cool, and I think it was jetted too rich in the main -- wouldn't seem to pull to redline or the rev limiter. Had a 150 in, will go down to a 147.5 for the next try. Bike handles pretty good -- still need some seat time, but got my knee down! Pretty good considering the few laps I put in. No, I haven't carved off a few inches yet, but its a good sign. Gonna raise the forks up in the triples 5mm to get some more weight over the front. Not used to the "mass centralization" -- feels like the front isn't planted. The frame was origninally designed to work with tz250 forks, so perhaps these street forks, with more travel, are a bit too tall.

This is my final kick at the cat re tachometers. This is a SunTach -- claims to work with any ignition system, any combo of cylinders, any machine -- even a deisel. It appears to work as promised, with a shift light that can be set just under the 10000 rpm mark. Nice, small, simple to hook up. Had to add a hadlebar switch so it wouldn't constantly draw the battery voltage. Trying to make it idiot-proof; hence the reminder.
Oil changed from the Motul petro-based break in oil to Torco semi-synthetic. Might re-install the thermostat, as the bike peaked at 162 F after several laps on a hot day...

Dry Run

2010-05-11T15:20:00.000-07:00

Took the bike out to my top secret test facility this past Sunday, partly to ensure that everything still fit on the trailer as it should. It did. Only got one clean run at the strip as I was chasing some jetting gremlins. Was running without a filter, and the rear was throwing up a lot of small stones... was worried that the carb would swallow something. Got a filter sourced, so will do some more runs at Gimli to get the jetting finalized.

Scitsu tach was a bust -- wouldn't rev past 2000 rpm. Dammit! Will try something else, going sans tach for now...

another vid

2010-04-27T13:10:00.001-07:00

Rule Britannia

2010-04-25T21:16:00.000-07:00

After some trying, I couldn't get the AIM tach to read properly, nor could I figure out the lap time function... so I sold it to a cart racer. I think the wasted spark of the engine had the tach fooled. Regardless, with the sale of the mychron I had some coin for some other guages -- simpler, I hope.

This is a scitsu tach from the UK. Bought used off of eBay -- internal battery was shot, so I went to Prairie Battery and they are making me up a new one, to be housed externally -- the original was inside the bezel. The water temp guage is by KOSO -- a nice, simple unit that works perfectly.

Further on the electrical front, I got a custom mini battery from the 13x forums. Less than half the weight of the original, and even works better, apparently. Starts up the mono easy. Put in an aluminum heat sheild over the header to help protect it.

Hopefully the battery for the tach gets done in short order and I can test out the tach. Am also removing the thermostat from the cooling system, as per ATV racing mods.

Serviced the carb and found that a diaphram was stuck -- caused some serious popping on decelleration. The internet is a wonderful place for information! Also cleaned up the jets, and installed a 152.5 main, vs the 140 that I started with. Its getting harder and harder to find jets....

rad!

2010-04-11T11:05:00.000-07:00

Wow, that's a weak title. Anyway, courtesy of eBay, and dear ol' mom and dad, the following came on the bus today:

Almost twice as thick a core as the OEM rad (which had developed a pinhole leak). Should hold an extra 30% more coolant that the stock one. This one actually seems to fit better than the original!

And what seems like a fairly regular occurence, I sliced open my finger. Looks far worse than it is. I just can't seem to get used to using those "Mechanix" gloves that the Nascar boys do. Can't feel anything with them on.

Nothing new on the outside, but this fork had a bit of a leak since new. I replaced the seal, along with adding 20W oil to each fork. It seems to have really stiffened up the front -- the oil adding a bit of hydraulic assist to the spring. Will have to re-measure front sag when I can.

Hard Core Logo!

2010-04-04T15:51:00.000-07:00

(Obsure CanFilm Reference)

video of the bike running!

2010-03-31T15:33:00.001-07:00

stickers

2010-03-20T16:08:00.000-07:00

Got some decals in the mail -- the #91 (Haslam copy) that came in from the UK.

I made this on myself -- stands for "Beans' Racing Machines" -- inside/family joke.

Note the devil/halo juxtaposition.

The front -- green is light enough to contrast the black numbers for visibility.

The dash -- tach is getting a read, just need to set it right. Too cold today (and for the next week or so) to run the bike anyway. Just as well, the in-line fuel shut off valve is pooched. Need to come up with another fix...

In other news, am planning a trip down south to Mid-America Motorplex with Wilson and Doug in June. Should be a blast!

Bodywork (re) Painted

2010-03-17T18:02:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics:

I also took the time to do the first suspension measurements -- rear sag with the new shock.

I set up a handy-dandy measuring device, using one of the rear trailer stands, a piece of square tubing, and some welding rod.

I measured and marked some increments in inches and centemeters on the tubing, and then sat on the bike, seeing how far "down" the welding rod travelled from its starting point "x".

While in a racing tuck, I reached behind, and marked the extent of the downward travel (sag) of the welding rod "y", and then measured it. 1.5" -- which is right in the ballpark for rear sag measurement on a bike, in a street application. Considering the bumpiness of gimli, I might just leave it there for now. The ideal "race" setting is 1 to 1.25", so I can always increase the preload or get a stiffer rear spring if necessary.

It's Alive

2010-03-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

Some unseasonably warm weather allowed me to fire up the mono for the first time since the top end refresh/rebuild. Amazingly enough, it started up easily, and settled into a nice idle once the choke was removed. It seems that the off-idle throttle response is better than ever, perhaps due to the new cam profile. Regardless, this is just the first startup, and will need several more to properly seat the rings and make sure everything runs properly. The good news is, the engine is oil-tight. The not-so-good news is the rad has seemed to have developed a pinhole leak. So, I'm keeping my eye on eBay for a replacement. It will suit my needs for now on static running at idle. As for the sound, the bike roars! A real angry, but low, bark. I can only imagine how it will sound at full tilt!

With the tank off being painted, I had to figure a way to feed some fuel to the carbs. I cleaned out an old master cylinder resevoir, bolted it to the rear subframe, and ran some fuel hose to the float bowl -- hey presto, about 3-5 minutes of run time!

This is the rear seat in the uppermost position -- I think I might try it at its lower setting first. Seat foam was bought in bulk and the glued on with some 3M spray.

This is where the students and I signed our names to the tail section prior to the clearcoat. I've smudged out their names for their privacy.

Key Lime paint on front fender. I like it, and it makes a nice contrast with the blue of the front wheel.

2010-02-27T15:15:00.000-08:00

As promised, Cycleboyz were able to silver-solder a small barbed "stump" into the fitting that bolts to the engine. While I was there to pick it up, I also bought a nice hose clamp finisher, some 3/8 Gates oil hose, and 3 litres of Motul petroleum based oil.

Oil fitting picured in previous post is in the spares kit -- will see if this setup is oil-tight.

2010-02-23T18:54:00.000-08:00

Hand made is cool and all, but when it comes to a track bike, a "one-off", custom, or bespoke part doesn't do you any good when said part fails. The proddie bike guys and gals just buy 2 of things that are likely to need replacement -- 2 brake levers, 2 clutch levers, 2, etc.... In my case, there were two custom-made pieces (of what may become many) that I thought I should have spares for (and whose initial fabrication/design/concept I was pretty sure I could improve upon.

One was the splined shift shaft -- at first I put two ends on it, to reverse the shifting if needed or possible. In the end, traditional street style shifting was the only option. So version 2.0 would only need one arm facing down. Note relieved area for chain run.

This is the second version. It still needs to be painted (note the bit of rust on the inside of the tube. I'm happy with the design as it makes for a very sturdy, direct, and positive-feeling shift. It will also work with a 16T sprocket, but the 15 I have on leaves a bit more clearance.

This is the outlet for the oil feed. It works quite well, despite looking a bit rough. It is a metric tube size, so the compression fitting had to be custom-ordered, and you can see where the steel feed tube has a few marr marks from being bent (I heated it and filled it with sand to minimize a kink forming, however). I did buy a second DRZ400 feed line, and Cycleboys is going to silver solder a simple "stump" on the mount that has a barb on it for the appropriate hose. The 90 degree bend will be in the hose itself, but I hope it is not too sharp to starve oil flow. If version 2 works as well, I'll use it.

Version 1 of both parts will go in the spares kit, just in case. Paint work for the Key Lime Kawi is coming albeit slowly...

2010-02-14T14:01:00.000-08:00

Over time I've come up with a cheaper and simpler option than using dzus fasteners. It requires a riv-nut (either metric or SAE), some old bolts to match, some spring clips (in the 1/16 size) and some fender washers.

The riv nut is installed in the backing panel. Cut the head off of the bolt, and drill a 1/16 hole near the end, like you would for safety-wiring. Thread the headless bolt into the riv-nut to the appropriate depth, with the fender washer as a cushion. Insert the spring clip and secure it. Much quicker than bolts -- fairing panels can be "hung" in place on the "stumps" of the headless bolts, and then the washers and clips installed at once.

This is the busy rear subframe -- remote resevoir finally hung out of the way (note cut rubber tube as a cushion), crankcase breather filter. Remote resevoir has hi-and low-speed compression damping!

2010-02-06T15:24:00.000-08:00

Here we have some pictures of the upgraded front master cylinder -- this is the Magura master, with a proper stainless line heading down to the front caliper... had to buy the proper remote resevoir separately. That is a looong front brake lever as well.

Connected to this at the bottom. New lines, crush washers... speed bleeder really helped with bleeding the system. New pads installed during bike club as well.

This is the stainless exhaust bracket(s) I fabricated. Rubber bushing with some proper shouldered washers, and a locknut on the other side.

And this is a totally unrelated and gratuitous picture of me (#65) racing in 2006. My Ducati 900ss supersport bike. A sweet ride.

Living by the Kiss Principle

2010-02-01T18:06:00.000-08:00

No comments about being part of the Kiss Army or wearing face paint and silly boots...

Went through the original wiring loom and got rid of all the extraneous wiring -- for turn signals, handlebar switches, brake lights, headlights, etc. Hooked it up when done, and the engine cranks, so I'm assuming it is correct. Will have to wait a few months before I actually fire it up to run...

Far simpler than what I started with -- with a weight savings in the ounces.

Getting rid of the extra wiring also allowed me to simplify the connections in the cockpit. No auxiliary wiring and power to run a guage, a tach, a water temp gauge, no battery for a lap timer because...

I splurged for one of these -- a Mychon 3 gauge. It does a lot -- RPMs 9 (programmable to whatever range you want), temp gauge (EGT, CHT or water -- I'll choose the water), and a lap timer! Pretty cool, and all the data can be downloaded to your computer! Essentially 3 gauages in one, with data storage, for the price (used) of a decent tachometer. No farting around with power supply as well, 'cause it runs on a pair of AAA batteries! Kart racers have been using these for years, so it is ideal for single-cylinder engines. It is also idiot-proof, as it has an automatic-on feature (when the bike fires up), and shuts off after 10 minutes to save battery life.

In other news, the 'mono is back home -- I've made stainless muffler mounts with rubber bushings, modified the rs125 seat to work with the rear subframe, found a proper shock mount (borrowed a fork clamp), and will set about working on making new rad mounts. Paint will be applied to the new tail and fender shortly. With all my hemming and hawing, a TT racer said replica paint schemes on club racing bikes was "a tad wank"... and he's right. The bike is unique enough in its own right, might as well personalize it to my tastes, rather than ape a MotoGP bike. I doubt anyone would confuse me or the bike for being a GP machine anyway...

Lucky Stroke may reign again!

Bike Club Complete

2010-01-25T17:35:00.000-08:00

We did it -- over the course of a few after school sessions, we rebuilt the supermono!

What you can't see is the "keep door locked at all times" sign -- untold dollars of time, parts, and tools behind this door!

This is where we started on day 5... an electrical gremlin needed to be found (which I did by staying late on day 4), but you can see the tail securely in place, and the exhaust system mounted.

Rear view -- oil tank breather hose was later shortened and tucked under the tail. Still need to sort the remote reseviour on the shock.

RHS view -- rear brake clears the exhaust can. I searched the entire garage for an hour, going through many coffee cans worth of spare parts, just to find the little bracket that attaches the brake pedal to the threaded master cylinder rod. I KNEW I had one somewheres... never throw anything out!

LHS view. Muffler brackets are temporary -- gonna make something up in stainless steel, or perhaps aluminum, if I can source the right stuff. The picture immediately below it is the mega-expensive Yoshimura system that inspired it. Can't wait to hear it!

A bit less Carbon-fibre on my system...

Fairings on, ready to roll (not quite, but it looks good!)

Front view -- note fair trade coffee in the background. A student club sells it to the teachers and kids and sends the money to the local Marquis project...

A bit tidier, anyway... remote reseviour line for the shock is just a bit too short to neatly attach anywhere. Need to sort a solution somehow.

Cool Supermono Videos

2010-01-17T18:20:00.001-08:00

I found this trolling youtube. Home-made exotica!

Inspiration for my bike

for when I win the lottery...

Reassembly

2010-01-17T07:29:00.000-08:00

After the first two sessions of "Bike Club", the 'mono has begun to come together again. It's been a fun experience... some great questions from the kids, and a few funny stories as well. In some cases, it has been a lesson of "stop, take it all apart, and start again"... although the tendency to quit when it doesn't go right the first time has been apparent. Its stuff like this that teaches persistence... "nothing worth doing comes easy, right?"

Very quickly we got to this point, part way through the second bike club session. The lads did a lot of the work themselves, with some direction from me. You'll notice that the subframe has been cut down quite a bit -- this is to allow the RS125 tail to fit. As well, you can see the new Magura radial front master cylinder (16mm).

You can see me in the background attacking the tail section with a dremel. Again, one student was shocked that a new piece from a different bike didn't just slide into place. From my perspective, the 45 mins of measuring, cutting, and fitting (and re-fitting, and....) went surprisingly well!

Tail on the bike -- I think I'll be able to use a section of the ex250 seat pan to smooth the transition from the seat to the tank -- should look much better. This is when we quit on Friday -- around 5:15pm -- notice that it is already dark outside through the windows!

The other good thing a few extra sets of hands are helpful for is measuring. I had to custom-make a throttle cable, so I mated it to a Domino GP throttle, and then soldered on a new end (I bought a kit from the UK). For those that have done this before, the satisfaction of self-sufficiency is very.... satisfying. I made this! Here's hoping it holds together!

The kids are alright....

2010-01-12T17:17:00.000-08:00

I hope. I guess I am a closet power mech teacher... I've always wanted to get students involved in mechanics, either bike, car, lawnmower, whatever. So I've got a 3-week window where there is a spare classroom at school, and me and some interested students are going to rebuild the 'mono after school.

The bike got into its current state after I picked up the machine from Cycleboyz after the exhaust was fabricated. Looked awesome, will soon post a pic on the website itself, with it on the motorcycle. You can see it to the right of the fuel tank in the picture. Hopefully the kids won't see this and panic tommorow -- will see it as a jigsaw puzzle/mecchano set to put together.

When I re-did the valves, springs, and rings, I didn't have a new cam chain tensioner gasket on hand. I now have one (two, actually -- spares), and I thought I'd triple check the valve timing... I have nightmares of expensive valves hitting the piston. I did turn it over several times on the bench previously, but I just want to be sure... too much at stake!
Note unused "BFH" to the left...

Stainless steel lovliness -- quite light, and will look pretty cool! Ordered a new exhaust gasket from Scotty at Transcanada as well.

The plan is to take pics of the rebuild, and post the progress. Those who participate will sign the new RS125 tail section after I've painted it, but before it is clearcoated... their legacy!