Made a start on the tank today.
In the same way that a cup of coffee tastes better out of a real mug rather than styrofoam, I think this tank is going to look a lot nicer in aluminum than in styrofoam.

hi glen
how thick is the ally on that tank it needs to be thick enough so you dont blow a hole in it when welding
how wides the rear wheal looks about 5.5"
ive just ordered some en16t bar to make cylinder head studs
just got the tips in for threads so will be threading on cnc lathe
got a pair of heads coming at end of week

graham

Hi Graham.

Where did you get the heads from?

The tank is. 063, thick enough for welding but thin enough for forming. I made the rear cowl in the photo further back from even thinner stuff, .050. That was also quite weldable with pulsed tig, noproblems blowing thru
The rear tire is about 7"wide, the fender is 9.

Glen

just noticed the bit about heads did not see it the other day
they are coming from goden engineering westmaling kent

Would those be made to the standard Vincent pattern, as in for 84 mm bore setup?

Glen

hi glen
just cheked whith a supplier
the cylinder heads are for standard 84 mm bore ported to 1 1/8"
black shadow spec
will pick them up tomorrow whith other bits

10:43 am local time
graham

made some progress on the tank. Top skin is done but needs polishing and a lot of work fairing up the weld areas.

Here it is with tank and seat both laying loose on there. Still a bit of tuning to do where the tank and seat skirt meet, they need to a little width adjustment. That can be accomplished when the tank bottom and inside is fitted and welded to the top skin.

Im hoping to get this balloon tired corner cripple on the road sometime this spring.

The Oberon bar end signals from Blue Streak Racing showed up today. What a treat to install a part that I don't have to make first. Near instant gratification!

They are very well made, super bright and with a little adapter allow for the clamp on bar end mirrors to fit on. The signals have a lens + amber 10 LED circuit board fore and aft . Being at the widest point on the bike they are very visible.
I'm also mounting a 140 flexible red LEd under the rear cowl lip. This is split into two 70 led sides . With a self cancelling Module
(Penta Star XP) the rear leds will seve as turn signal, running lights and brake lights, all by wiring into the three way module, which is about the size and weight of a small chocolate bar.

There is a 20 amp hour 410CCA Lithium Ion battery in the rear cowl, weighs just 2.5 pounds and will run the electric starter that Herve Hamon is developing. There are some existing starters that are OK for a standard motor but wont cut it with the increased displacement and CR. Herve is testing his unit on his own 1300cc Vincent race motor over the next few months. Herve and his Brother Paul own Alton.

Worntorn,

Since following your build on here I have been wondering if you know Paul Brodie.
He lives in Langley BC and also builds specials from scratch.
Many years ago he built a Vincent special using modern cycle parts, got it to a rideable/functional state but didn't really finish it off.
He's subsequently built a spine frame for an Aermacchi racer and spine frame for an extinct Excelsior engine he built from photographs.
His website is www.flashbackfab.com

There is a 20 amp hour 410CCA Lithium Ion battery in the rear cowl, weighs just 2.5 pounds and will run the electric starter

Potent light battery for you big beast. How are these recharged, on or off bike?
I'm going with a string of LEDs on my little special for several reasons, can't wait to be dazzled by yours.

Seeley, yes I do know Paul. He sold his Vincent before I bought my first one, so I dont know him well.

He is a very talented welder and fabricator and was the founder of Brodie mountain bikes, real high end rides.

His experience with his Vincent was just about dead opposite mine. He will freely admit that he had neither funds nor the ability at the time to properly build the engine, so it was entirely unreliable for him.

A friend of mine owns the bike now.

Hobot, these ligtweight race batteries get charged from the alternator just the same as with a common lead acid job.
Aside from the advantages of light weight and tiny size for a given amount of power, the maker also states that these batteries can be left without charge for a full year and will only lose 10%of their stored power. One more advantage is that they can be mounted any which way.


Glen

Glen. Just happened to stumble on your project post as Vincents are in another stadium than I play in. Ok Now I'm with ya on that type Li chemistry, brain blanked out but have read the ads and in my Peel plans too but only 4 ah range as no electric commensor involved. Hope yours slaps ya silly with its lightened big bore behavior. Pro = for-ward, Ject =-aimed.

Top notch all the way, that is shaping up to be a stunner. I like the turn signals and, well everything

Jean

Thanks Jean.

i moved the rear sets down three inches and remounted them today. The bike is very comfortable to sit on, fits like a glove.

One of the best things Ive done was to spend an afternoon sitting on various new bikes at the local Yamaha/Triumph dealership.

They had quite a number of new bikes in as well as a number of tradeins including two gsxrs. I found the riding position on all of the Japanese sport bikes to be very uncomfortable. The Triumphs, on the other hand, were quite comfy. Prior to this I had planned to set the bike up much like a Gsxr as far as ergonomics were concerned.
After sitting on all the bikes I rethought that idea and opted for numbers similar to the Triumph Daytona. The seat is a NOS item for a 2001 Daytona. It had the right shape to fit the frame rails as I had already made them. It turns out to be a really comfortable seat as well, I think even a little more comfy than the new Daytona I sampled.

It would be awful to do all this work only to endup with a bike that is torture to ride!


Glen

worntorn wrote:It would be awful to do all this work only to endup with a bike that is torture to ride!

Smart lad.