|
|
|
Last updated 6/27/10 I haven't posted any updates for a while, but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy. I picked up the body work from the painter, it really turned out nice. Also got the Acewell instruments/computer from Electrosport, (more on that later). And the new rear shocks arrived from YSS-USA. Getting real close to being a rider now.
This picture is a little fuzzy but if you look closely you can see the wiring harness is in, along with the airbox, front and rear fenders on, new shocks installed, and the headlight mounted. At this point I have the carbs left to install before I can crank it up.
All the wiring is done, except for mounting the battery and the voltage regulator. If you're familiar with the Ascot you'll notice the crankcase breather bottle is missing from the bottom of the airbox. I'm going to route the breather tube under the motor and use an mesh K&N type filter instead of the bottle. You'll also notice the coolant overflow bottle missing as well. I plan to mount a separate catch can in front below the radiator.
I installed a s/s braided line for the front brake, as much to clean up the looks as anything else. You're only going to get so much braking power out of that single disk/2-piston caliper setup. I fitted a new site-glass from New River Cycle in the master cylinder. I've done this on several bikes. They cut the plastic lens to fit each application, and you glue it in place with clear RTV. Works great.
I bought the headlight, mounting brackets, and turn signals from Aztec8 in Ormond Beach, FL, a nice ride up US1 from my house. The owner, Scott, is a real accommodating guy, and has nice stuff at good prices. He's a very successful amateur racer on a SV650 also. In the front, I did a little work on the triple-clamp, cutting the old headlight brackets off, and repositioning the ignition switch. I also had to do quite a bit of cutting and shaping on the headlight brackets to get the headlight positioned the way I wanted it. In the back, I cut the tag bracket down and got rid of the big ugly reflectors that used to flank the tag-light on each side.
I had read about problems with the stock ignition coils and that a popular swap for Honda dual-plug twins was to use coils from a mid-90's Chevy Beretta. I bought these at the local Auto-Zone and made some brackets to hold them place. Ascot-philes will notice the tach drive missing from the top of the front cylinder valve cover. I had decided earlier to get rid of that since I was going with an electronic tach, and it is also a potential spot for oil leaks. Good thing I did because the new coils would have never fit otherwise.
I found the company that makes these shocks, YSS-USA, reading an article about a rebuild of a vintage Honda CB500 in Motorcycle Classics Magazine. Aside from the trick billet body, they're gas-charged, with compression dampening, preload, and ride-height adjustment. I highly recommend these folks. They're great to deal with and can build a shock to any specification. They had my order shipped the same day. You might also notice the trick billet bracket my buddy made for the pipes. It's nice to have a friend with a machine shop in his garage. It also helps that he doesn't know much about motorcycle electrics, so there are usually opportunities that come up for me to repay the favor.
After a good deal of research, this is the computer I opted to go with, an Acewell ACE-3962HCP-S6. I had used TrailTech units before on dirt bikes, and was happy with them, but I wanted something a little more flashy for the street. I also liked the feature set the Acewell offered. Besides the usual tach and speedo, it also has a water temp sensor, displays battery voltage, and has a fuel gauge input, idiot lights for neutral, high-beam, oil pressure, and turn. Along with that there's an odometer, two trip meters, and all kinds of other functions such as max/adv speed, fuel mileage, shift light, etc. I'm very satisfied with the unit, but I wish I'd have done more research on the distributor, Electrosport. I had nothing but trouble with them, from out of stock, to the six-week delivery time, to the no response to emails or phone calls. I thought at one point I'd wasted $250 and started looking around for other units. I understand they are now out of business. And I hear Acewell is looking at Baja Designs for their new distributor. I hope so, a great product like this one deserves good support from a proven vendor. The bracket for the speedo is another one-off bit from my buddy's garage. The fuse box cover had not yet been detailed when this picture was taken. That messy paint work is not my doing, but it will be corrected before the bike is finished.
Next up will be fitting the carbs and firing up the motor and working any issues related to that. Then I fit the body-work and go riding!
|
