F5’s first ever brand new bike!

[Blackshear]

Well i have the compliance plate & all papers approved, all i need to do is pay for the plate. But sadly i can't ride atm as have broken collarbone.


[sigh]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Now, give yourself a goddamn rest before the next build

[F5 Dave]

all i can do- is rest atm. have 2 racebike transformations, a post classic resto job & continued development on this once tested on the road. oh well, bound to be more time when the arrives. . .

[Number One]

I like that purdy shiny chromey looking tank

[F5 Dave]

Well time for an update I guess. Sadly my clavicle needs pinning or some such so I haven't been able to work on the bike let alone ride it. In the last week I have got a bit more movement & not so much pain so I have made a bracket to fit the original YPVS servo motor under the tank with a view to fitting TSS aftermarket powervalves.

I've wired in the YPVS controller last night as well, now it makes that vzt vzst noise when power is applied (actually I still need to connect the last wires to the fusebox proper).

New leaner slides are fitted & I've got the ally RZ500 kickstarter mounted up. When I can I'll take it for a ride & check the jetting which hopefully should be close as & take it to the dyno.

But I need to get bones reattached before I can consider riding it, or even manhandling it. & no I don't need any test pilots

[sil3nt]

Just read through this whole thread and have loved every update! This is one hell of a project you have undertaken and the bike looks bloody awesome. You will be hitting the 2 year mark soon lets all hope everything is sorted before then!

Can't wait to see the dyno results as well.

[koba]

[nsrpaul]

I remember this bike when it was in streetbike mag, had it glued to the inside of one of my folders at school

its a mean ride, even cooler now by the sounds

nice work!

[tigertim20]

I have just spent fuck knows how long reading this whole thing, and WOW mate maximum respect to you. Absolute kudos to you for taking this on, its always awesome to see someone spending so much time and effort building a dream bike for themslves.
Real pity about the broken bones mate, but once you have the thing 10% legal, and you are tearing around the streets on it, I am sure that every late night, every dolar,bead of sweat and cuss word uttered in frustration will have been absolutely worth it.
Looks fuckin awesome too.

[F5 Dave]

Heya NSR Paul, don't suppose by any small chance you still have a copy of the article or the original magazine? I wouldn't mind tracking down a copy. They are out of action now so no back issues.

[nsrpaul]

would love to help, but gave away all my streetbike mags years ago, and had cut that one up as a schoolboy anyway

[F5 Dave]

Well a depressing day at the dyno

So the story so far last time I went there (as on the records) was 4/6/08. Sheesh!

So fate has intervened for a year. Last visit I left with a bike that would only run cleanly at full throttle near peak revs, on the + side it was grazing 100hp with mismatched jets 2 sizes different between the sides (all I had close then).

Now I have it carburetting fine at low throttle applications after many many iterations of needles & now slides.

Only for it not to want to run right at full throttle. Groan. Ok so I try several mains, but it just isn’t getting anywhere. Then I realise that the chokes are getting pulled by the cables, you have to check them when you put the carbs back in, but it’s been so much time I’ve been out with my broken Clavicle I’ve forgotten. Try it all again, better, but not the full answer. But I also notice the fraying wires from the original coils I’ve put back on.

So maybe that is causing the inability to take full throttle under load. I’ve tried bigger & smaller mainjets, neither seems better. I try lifting the needles in the hope that they are now too thick at the open position. This makes it hard to rev through past 7000. So I try back to the original 150s. It is better, But it isn’t really much better.

Occasionally it will pull & runs a ragged path to ~ 90hp, but not repeatable & not cleanly. The gear lever linkage thread also shears half way through the session, just enough thread to jam it back together.

This is pants. It will run just beautifully in neutral & blip cleanly sounding fine. But any richer kills it. Maybe it is that coil. I will swap it back to the other one & I’ll drop the mains out & the needles in leanest position & see if the bike will take full throttle (indicating the needle’s influence if it does). & then I’ll try some richer needles.

But another wait, day after I will be in surgery to get the bone pinned so may be a few days at least until I’m up for more fiddling.

It sure isn’t giving up its sweet spot quickly. I can imagine a zillion Banshee owners having given up before now fitting this kit. I have dark moments & I’ve done this heaps of times. Still bumbling like a tool at the moment.

[F5 Dave]

Well here we are again. I suppose people may have gotten bored of this thread, where is the jubilant one handed wheelies in top gear stories?

Well the reality is somewhat different.


But there has been progress.

It took me some while after my operation that I could work on the bike, but I've been to the dyno two more time since last post. 1st visit opened more questions than it answered. I spent another $64 on mainjets (which buys a depressingly small bag of 5 brass doodahs).

OK the 2nd visit was better, but still not conclusive.

OK so what I have now is a bike that will run in the mid 90hps. What I have learnt is that for some crazy reason the lean needles that the bike likes at low throttle applications will not pull full throttle despite going up several main jets & the needle being no bigger at the pointy end that I can measure. But I can swap to the richer needle with the slower taper & it will run just fine.

The other queer thing is that I've run mains from 148 - 158 & it doesn't seem to have much affect. Maybe it makes it better response with the smaller jets. I have dropped the mains out to check if the needles are restricting upstream of the mains but the bike will not rev out on full throttle coughing at about 7000 & not go past burbling like crazy.

Raising any of the needles doesn't seem to have much affect except for maybe making it too rich at part throttle.

The other thing I was battling was seemingly tyre slip. The bike would often get to about 9000 & just take off revs. I was trying to work out if it was clutch but there was tell tale signs of marks on the tyre.

I think the power hits pretty hard & the powervalves open with a hit. We tied the bike down real tight & eventually cleaned the roller that was pretty greasy. It seemed to help but still we had some issues.

So where am I now? well I think it is time to try it on the road & see how it actually carburetes. Then I can start to play with the programmable ignition.

Then there is the TSS powervalves with the YPVS controller which may smooth the power somewhat.

Bout time I actually rode the bike properly & see what it's like.

[Skunk]

'Bout time you did some work on this. Pity the progress is so slow at this stage.

[Slingshot]

Well here we are again. I suppose people may have gotten bored of this thread, where is the jubilant one handed wheelies in top gear stories?

Actually, quite the opposite...this is the only thread that I've ever subscribed too

It sounds bloody frustrating trying to get the carbs sorted...did you consider FI?

[F5 Dave]

Phew yeah that would have thrown in some extra variables wouldn't it? I have read about someone doing a 350 using R6 parts, but it's not exactly a common conversion & who knows if it would be safe closing the throttle at high revs, you have to feed some fuel in or a 2 stroke will seize up real nice. Would be a good experiment, but not on one's own bike.

I have since heard that these carbs are difficult in these applications due to the non replaceable air jets. I chose these carbs as they work so well on my Dirtbike & bucket (though larger & smaller respectively).

I have also discovered that the ignition curve I had selected is very close to stock & these engines really need a heap more advance in the midrange so that is where I am experimenting next.