N8ball - Just for Fun - Backwoods Bagger

#21
I ordered up a 22 mm mikuni, intake and filter yesterday. When it gets in I have some tuning to do. As soon as she's a runner I'll tear down for powder. I am the race director for an off road racing organization, and our first race of the year is may 10th. I gotta have her done so I have something cool to run around the pits.
 
#23
Tonight I mounted the tank, and rear fender. Even better-I got her fired up on the second pull. It caught me off guard and I almost fell over. Woot woot! The line out of the tank is larger than the line into the carb so I rigged up a little adapter from some air fittings. Don't worry its temporary. It started leaking so I cut it off after a few twists on the throttle. I need to cut the chain down, finish the header, get a new fuel line and she's a rider. Sorry my phone died as I got to my shop so no pics of today.

This is from a couple days ago. The mounts for the tank are not in the pic. The fender is only sitting the mount. Any body have any idea what the fender is? I found it in my shop which was an automotive shop that opened in 1914 and half the building is FULL, like hoarder style. The original family still owns it and it is all their stuff. A few cars, and shelves full of NOS car parts that go way back. 30's- 70's. They also got into service equipment and I think is off a brake lathe or a drill press. No idea really, but it is thin cast aluminum. I just thought it well worked as a fender.





 
#24
Notice the slight curve on the rear fender mount? I don't have a profile roller at my shop (only at work) so I used the old redneck bender trick. Take a 10' length, hold it straight up in the air and slam it down on one end. It took about 6-8 good whacks but I got a decent curve to match the fender.
 
#26
YEAH! I just took it for about a dozen trips to the end of the block and back. :scooter: So a couple miles of testing. No header yet so it's a screamer. Couple of things- first, a header. I bought a small screw on muffler to keep the noise down a bit. Second, the idle is too high. If you're not hanging on it takes off as soon as it's running. I want to get the header done before I mess with the carb.

Paticus- It is an old leaf spring of a chevy truck. The eye is mounted to the seat via a custom mount. I cut the leaf to length, heated it with the torch and bent it. Drilled a couple mounting holes and fabbed a mount from 3/16" plate. There is not a lot of bounce. Maybe like an inch. I've considered taking it to the belt grinder to soften it a little, but I'm not too worried about it.

The seat height is perfect for me but I know my wife will not be able to get her feet down. That is kind of a bummer since she really wants to ride it. I removed the tractor seat and the fender makes a pretty solid seat. I may have to make her a seat that mounts to the huge fender so she can ride. :grind:
 
#27
I got the header built after work. It is officially a rider. THe header is making contact with the frame in one spot so i need to tweak the bends a little. you can probably here the rattle in the video.

Here is the proof-:scooter:

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/...E254CB70-651-000000FBE7DFA3D0_zps5bece6a4.mp4

I still need to mount the ammo cans, tweak a little here and there, then tear down for powder. I am taking it out to the desert for my pit bike at an off road race in 2 weeks. I may or may not get it powdered before then.
 
#29
Thanks Buckeye. It definitely is getting closer to my original vision. I am building trophies for the off road race overall winners this weekend. To get those done I have solid works seat time, cnc plasma time, fab time, powder coat time, acid etch time, and assembly time. If I have some extra time I'll spend some on the ammo can mounts. And be one step closer to powder coating this bad boy.

Here is a shot of the trophies I made for the last race. they are 1/2" and 8 gauge aluminum, alder and brass.

 
#31
I am headed out to the desert this weekend, and I plan to bring my little mini out to run around on. Last night I pulled a few things off to get all the shakes, rattles and make sure it rolls. I adjusted the brake that was rubbing, soldered and heat shrink wrapped the headlight wire and reinstalled the bulb.



I tweaked my header so it doesn't hit the frame.






Pulled the air filter off and noticed that the reason it was idling high was because the screw on ferrule I use on the cable was too big and the slide wasn't closing all the way. I removed the cable and it cranked up and idled low and didn't want to take off. I have seen the methyl hydrate, lead solder, wood board method on you tube, but is there any other way of putting a ferrule on the end of the cable? I am picturing a small piece of brass rod with a tapped hole running perpendicular to a hole for the cable to pass through. then a set screw to hold it in place. I have lead and a torch but once I solder it on it has to be cut off to remove it from the cap on the carb. Any advice here is appreciated.



I added some foam between the gas tank and frame. Here is how the tank is mounted- Just a piece of 2" tube cut and flattened on one spot. The rear is held to the seat mount via a u bolt.



I had lost one of the rubber bushings that hold the tank in place, so I used electrical tape wrapped around the post that the bushing was attached to. Half a roll and it was the correct diameter, then hit it with a sanding pad on the angle grinder to get the height correct. It worked but I found the rubber one so this tape is a backup now.




The seat had a tendency to flip backwards when you put pressure on it so I welded it up. Now I'll have to cut 2 welds if the seat ever needs adjusting, not ideal but I am handy with an angle grinder.



So tonight is throttle ferrule, reassemble and test run. I can't wait to get out and put 20-30 desert miles on it. I have 125 miles of desert race course to get marked for a race next weekend so most of it will be in my truck. I'll be running around the pit areas and campsite on the mini.

Here are a couple glamour shots I took yesterday before I started taking it apart. The lighting was perfect, and I have this old brick building with hand painted signs from the 30's. Apparently I was not the only one who thought it was a good time and place to take photos because as I finished shooting and was about to crank it up and cruise for a minute, a photog, a helper and a gorgeous redheaded model came walking down my alley. I recognized what they were up to and offered up the whole space. I pulled the bike into the shop but left the bay doors open so I could get a glimpse or 2 of the spectacle. WOWZA is all I can really say. Studio Azul is my neighbor and they shoot some fine ladies. I got no pics of the redhead but here are the ones I took of the bike. Aside from the hideous plastic fender that I am planning to replace, it really fits into the ratty look of my parking lot. I hope I don't regret powder coating it.




 

WLB

Active Member
#34
Nice trail bike.:thumbsup: You should have a lot of fun marking those trails for the race. I love that wide open western country.

Nice trophies also. Anyone would be proud to have one of those sitting on their mantle.
 
#35
Thanks guys. I got the throttle cable end figured out. I used a board with a hole drilled in it. Filled it with flux. Cleaned and frayed the end of the cable then melted a wheel weight from my stash to fill the hole around the cable. After grinding to the appropriate size I tested it out. Worked great. I took it out for a good ride and the headlight that was working the day before, is not working now, so I need to figure out what happened there. I am down to one rattle, the rear fender, but I have a plan for that. it was too hot to remove the fender when I was done but it'll only take a second to fix this evening. Then an oil change, replace the TAV cover, and it should be ready for the desert.

A few minutes into my test ride last night it started hesitating and sputtering first a little, then a lot. It went from running perfect, to running crappy in under a minute. I pulled back in to the shop right as it finally sputtered out. :freakout: I was confused and a little pissed, but I had to figure it out. I pulled the plug and it looked fine, kind of toasted marshmallow color. So I put it back on and pulled a few times, nothing. Then I reconnected the plug wire :doah: and pulled a few more, still nothing. I was about to pull the filter and look into the carb. Then I remembered I had only put a splash of fuel in to begin with. Filled it up, and it cranked up no problem. Boy did I feel like an :asshole: but I was riding again. :scooter::scooter::thumbsup:
 
#37
Alright. Another day, another bunch of stuff done on the bike. Headlight- fixed. Rear fender- rattle free. TAV- cover on. Chain- guarded with stock guard and aluminum 6" extension. Header- (didn't know it needed a heat shield until late last night when I burnt my leg. ) - shielded.

Bike runs great. I rode probably 5 miles today. Downtown Salt Lake City-mission. I lapped the Sears at least 20 times. Heat shield never got dangerous. It's funny. I never think about safety stuff for me. My wife rode it a couple days ago and the whole time I was worried about the chain, and TAV. Then I burned my leg and I knew I couldn't let her do the same.
 
#38
What a weekend. Got a last minute call from the BLM about a raptor nest within a 1/2 mile of our course. That meant the course had to move. The site hadn't been used since 1988 but a pair of birds are nesting there this year. It took some work. We had to cut 10 miles from the track. We were able to pick up most of it elsewhere, so no loss in the end. The bike ran pretty well. At one point I looked down and the red outer cover of my air cleaner was missing. I did some backtracking and I found it. It looked like it got hung up on some sage brush and yanked off. Later the little hotdog muffler broke off at the body. the weld held up but the can did not. It sounds way better but in many of the areas I'll ride I need a spark arrestor. Here's a couple shots from the desert-




 

toomanytoys

Well-Known Member
#39
Looks pretty cool. But First real ride, you can always expect a few odds and ends to happen. But to me any first ride that I don't have to push the bike back to the garage is a success!
 
#40
Looks pretty cool. But First real ride, you can always expect a few odds and ends to happen. But to me any first ride that I don't have to push the bike back to the garage is a success!
True that! I completely assemble them, then ride them, then take them apart to paint, etc.

The fuel problem N8ball describes is one we've all had. On my last build, I was SURE I needed to install a fuel pump. While draining the tank to start tearing it back down, I noticed about a teaspoon of fuel dribbled out.

I lived in Tooele for awhile. Lots of places to ride, including Little Sierra. :thumbsup:
 
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