Café Commando build thread

[Jeandr]

What I want to warn you about though is the muffler brackets you have made. I have a similar set up on my 850. Mine mounted on the center stand holes. It works great. It is way better than the original set up. The first version though in this picture was not stiff enough horizontally on the chain side of the bike. This led to cracking of the exhaust on that side in the first week of riding. I added a bit more metal and since then it has been fine over about 3000 miles so far covered.

The lack of stiffness was only a problem on the chain side. On that side the diagonal brace I had installed could not go back as close to the muffler mounting point (because the chain was in the way). This flexing led to the problem. In the picture you can´t really see that the diagonal brace on the right side that was made from .375" round bar is longer and thus stiffens the bracket more.

It looks to me as though your bracket will not be stiff enough on either side. You could just weld on some 1/4¨ X 1" flat bar to make the braket into an L or T section. This is what I did on the left side to make it even stiffer than the right.

The other thing you could do is attach the header pipe to the front iso plate to eliminate the horizontal flexing at the head joint.

Thanks Nigel, I think you mean the pipe itself fractured don't you :?: That may be a problem with a bad weld on the pipe, I had that happen on the pipes I mounted on my Fastback, they were aftermarket and one side broke very soon after getting the bike done. I will make sure however that the bracket is stiff enough given the warning. I saved the pictures of your bracket and they were one source of inspiration for the one I made (the other is Ludwig). As a matter of fact, I have already been scolded by Ludwig on the weight of my bracket, his is much simpler, but he runs without a center stand, so adding more metal my freak him out :wink:


Britbike220, I will of course make sure the tire and fender do no touch the bottom of the seat. As it is now, I do have enough clearance (about 1") with the shocks fully compressed. With the Fournales air shocks, I just remove all pressure and use a woodworking clamp to bring the shocks to their stops.

Jean

 

[comnoz]

What gearbox is that?

Wow, That's my old racebike. Wish I still had it in one piece. The trans is a one of a kind I built one winter after I got tired of breaking Norton boxes. It is setting on a shelf in my shop waiting to be put in something special. Jim

 

[swooshdave]

Wow, That's my old racebike. Wish I still had it in one piece. The trans is a one of a kind I built one winter after I got tired of breaking Norton boxes. It is setting on a shelf in my shop waiting to be put in something special. Jim

More about the gearbox please.

 

[comnoz]

Well I fabbed the housing from aluminum plate and machined end plates from billet 7075. The shafts, shift forks and drum are from a 495 KTM. I made the gears from 9310VAR. First gear was very low and only used for launch. It was back-cut like a drag trans so all it took to shift to second was a light push on the shifter. Second would be engaged before first was disengaged and first would be pushed out of engagement when the shaft over-ran first. Once you were in second then a spring loaded pin would would prevent neutral or first from being selected without pushing in on the shift shaft. There was no engine braking in first as the back-cut would just push the trans to neutral if you let off the throttle.
I made up gears to give 2 ratio choices for second and third and three choices for fourth. All shafts were supported on roller bearings. Ratio changes were simple as the right cover was o-ringed and all you had to do was lean the bike to the left to keep the oil in and remove the cover to swap gears.
It was all built on a manual Bridgeport. I turned the gear blanks on a lathe and sent them to Co. Springs to an outfit with a gear hob to cut the teeth. Then to Kansas City for hardening. Then to Iowa to have the internal splines cut with an EDM after hardening.
I raced with it for 10 years and it was unbreakable. It was always good for the holeshot. Jim

 

[grandpaul]

That is some bit of kit, jim. You could sell a few of 'em and make some folks very happy.

 

[swooshdave]

That is some bit of kit, jim. You could sell a few of 'em and make some folks very happy.

I bet the labor and materials would not be worth the effort. Demand for $10k gearboxes is going to be low.

 

[comnoz]

That is some bit of kit, jim. You could sell a few of 'em and make some folks very happy.

I suspect that will have to remain the one and only. I would have to go back to being single and putting in long nights at the shop to build another one. Jim

 

[Jeandr]

Back to our regular program...

I cut the loop and welded it up at an angle matching the seat's underside

With the seat in place, it looks the way I want it to look. I will add a tail light support to the rear of the loop and for those who wonder about things, now there is a good two inches of clearance from the top of the tire to the bottom of the seat when the shocks are fully compressed. I will modify the seat mounting ears to fit after I try it out on a stock Roadster (just curious)

Jean

 

[bwolfie]

Looking good. Nice 3/8" rod end under your rear brake switch

 

[Jeandr]

Looking good. Nice 3/8" rod end under your rear brake switch

That is a ¼" rod end, the bigger ones will be used elsewhere :wink:

Jean

 

[Hobot]

Oh man these special builds like Jeans and one in row gear box wonders by Jim sure get the blood going and brain swooning to see. Wonder if I could rent the gear box for some timed runs then return for more mundane road loads.

 

[Carbonfibre]

Back to our regular program...

I cut the loop and welded it up at an angle matching the seat's underside

With the seat in place, it looks the way I want it to look. I will add a tail light support to the rear of the loop and for those who wonder about things, now there is a good two inches of clearance from the top of the tire to the bottom of the seat when the shocks are fully compressed. I will modify the seat mounting ears to fit after I try it out on a stock Roadster (just curious)

Jean

Are you comfortable with the strength of the lower rear shock mounts, and have you used gear and rear brake levers made out of Ti rod before?

 

[Jeandr]

Are you comfortable with the strength of the lower rear shock mounts, and have you used gear and rear brake levers made out of Ti rod before?

To answer your first question, yes, as to the second, where did you get the idea the rods were titanium :?: FYI, the rods are plain steel and I'm OK with that too.

Jean

 

[Jeandr]

Today I made the support for the license plate and the tail light

And this is how my handlebars will look. The Oberon bar ends are visible from the front and the back, so I will see if I can do without a set of rear flashers.

I also found out I will not get my Acewell gauge before June because of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan so I may put my tachometer and a bicycle speedometer just in case it takes longer than that to get it.

Jean

 

[pelican]

The Oberon bar ends are visible fr4om the front and the back, so I will see if I can do without a set of rear flashers.

Now that is cool!

 

[RennieK]

Hi Jean, are the led's inside the tail light red or how will you make it red?

 

[splatt]

Counter rotating rear wheel ?

 

[Jeandr]

Hi Jean, are the led's inside the tail light red or how will you make it red?

The LEDs are RED with a few white ones illuminating the plate. As for the tire, I saw that too late, it is indeed backwards, that is a front wheel use tire so putting it on the back means it should be turning the other way round.

Jean

 

[tjfisher]

Looking sweet!!!!!! I have spent the last two hours read the whole thread good thing I'm at work lol. There is a lot of innovative parts you have made that I'll bet a few of us ( mainly speaking for myself ) would love to get made !!. I'm no machinist and I was trying to think of a way to do the shifter brake swap but after read I believe you nailed it . Thanks for the great write up can wait to see more !!!
Tom

 

[Jeandr]

Started work on the fnders a while ago, first I made a male plug from an old steel fender and particle board sides. I filled the edges with bondo and then made a female mould from that plug. The female mold was not quite wide enough so I cut it in half and added a bit over ½" with a plastic moulding shaped to fit. Having the mould in two parts made it easier to release the fender I made from it. In the back, my first try at making a mould.

This is the fender roughly cut, I am looking at pictures to find inspiration for my cuts.

Now I have to make the rear fender

Jean