Just gathering info from some timetrials and a few races so far. Wheelie bars are next, waiting for the cash.
Here is some info on the handling and general feedback.
I have been racing my stock 89 CBR600 for years and the CR is just so much lighter. It never has a traction problem, although no wheelie bar yet, and this is with a rock hard used street tire on the back. After all my motocross years I expected the CR500 to wheelie all the way down the strip, but I guess the strut for the rear, no weight transfer, and the lowering of the center of gravity made it very rideable. It will wheelie a little of the start sometimes, but always very low and controllable.
I have it geared 45/15 (3.0) vs. the stock 51/14 (3.64) final drive, so first is very tall and with the close ratio transmission I have to slip the clutch quite a bit on the start. Part of the advantage of it being geared even higher than required is that it also widens the transmission gearing and the time between the four shifts. I shift by blipping the throttle and still hit 5th about 30ft from the finish right at 80mph. It would probably run conservatively 95 or 100 top end? I am also running a much shorter rear tire too,140/70x18. I'm probably short shifting it. Re-gearing may be required once I install a wheelie bar anyway. I tried shifting with the clutch and also kill button, but that was less consistent. Strangely enough it runs almost exactly the same E.T. as my old CBR600 at this point with my 200lbs on it, 8.30 to 8.40, but feels slower than most street bikes I have ever ridden. Much more consistent than my CBR though.
I was very careful when lowering it to maintain the stock rake, at least. I think I can still lower the front more now since it is stable. I could only lower the rear to where the chain is at the tightest point or the chain would rub the swing arm all the time.
The brakes are hardly needed at the 79.5 - 80 mph I always cross the line at, but are more than sufficient. I would have liked a later model or even a Service Honda 500 with a rear disk anyway.
The delay box should be easy enough once I figure out a clutch release or just buy an air clutch. A shift light would be nice but I am having trouble building my own electronics or finding a dynamo/magneto type tach/converter output. I am still searching and saving for, a wide ratio transmission. From the research I have done shows the 86 CR500 did have a slightly wider ratio than others 0.791 5th, b.t.w. the factory manual I got was wrong on this spec, I looked at the microfiche and just did the math on the gear teeth, countershaft gear teeth to mainshaft gear teeth.
I have dropped all the rear shock and linkage now that I found the height I needed and used a piece of straight pipe from the upper mount directly to the swing arm. I reinstalled the stock airbox and had to notch it slightly. I plan on using the airbox for battery, air bottle and so on.
Kicking it was killing me as I have some knee and foot problems. It was also hard to cut a good light if I was huffing and puffing, so I had a 1.5" O.D. nut welded to the center of the flywheel and adapted an old car starter to accept a 3/8" drive to make a starter cart for it. I'll post a pic of the cobbled together starter, new rear strut and time slips a.s.a.p.
Third time out with the bike for practice. I may have spoken too soon about the consistency. It was windy but, My ET's were all over the place from 8.15 to 8.53 last night. The wheelie bars is going to help, but I am going to need a tach and or shift light. I am looking at this one right now.
I believe I am also going to need a steering damper as it scared me a bit on the big end once. It didn't really wobble and I wasn't hanging on as tight as I might have been, but it felt just a little light in the front. A steering damper is an item that I want to install before I figure out the hard way first. I was considering lowering the front end just a bit more, but I'm not going to sacrifice the rake angle I currently have now. I haven't measured the rake yet but as you can see from the picture above it looks to be more than stock in the extended forks state. The rake and height is something I need to have pretty close before I fit and install the wheelie bar.
02-11-2006
Here are some pics of the MPS air-clutch, Biondo bottle & clamp, delay box and shift light. What a mess,running out of room.
02-14-2006
I posted a few more pics. I'll get around to the text of the details when I can. The item from VTAC worked for a tach output. I run the standard Proform shift light set for a 4-cylinder or 2 PPR and it seems to be matched to the bikes RPM, so a tach should work correctly too.
03-15-2006
I got to make some test
passes, one session at night and one during the daytime. The clutch control
needed to be adjusted to let the clutch out more slowly since letting it dump
the clutch off the line made it spin badly. Mainly I need get a 5.5" M/T
drag slick on the bike, if it will fit and it looks like it will as long as
my stock 3" rim will be wide enough for the slick. The sizing for the 18"x5.5"
tire shows 25" O.D.. Even with only the stock 50-60 horsepower and 6 p.s.i.
in my current crappy tire, this old used hard tire is nowhere close to sticking
in cool temps and with the current track conditions, it spins through all of
first gear. I know I should try to adapt a wider 17" wheel to the back,
but that costs money and calls for machine work I can't do myself. I also changed
the gearing back up some with a 14/45 now. It feels close to toped out just
before the end of the eighth mile.
I installed the "deluxe" MPS air clutch to start with knowing I might need to slip it a little, but when I adjusted the air release needle valve to a point where it wouldn't spin the delay in the box got as low as 0.2 seconds not leaving much room for adjustment. Want it around 1 second. I loosened the clutch cable, which changes the delay needed also, to speed it up some but realized that the clutch was not even starting to move for about 0.5 second after the transbrake lets it go. Solution? I need more traction, and/or I need less pressure to the clutch slave cylinder. I used the Biondo 125 p.s.i. preset regulator and it needed less, maybe around 80 p.s.i.? I didn't use the MPS air regulator or the other dual gauge and adjustable regulator setups because there is just to much plumbing with them, adapters and small breakable pieces or lack of a gauge to read the bottle pressure. This bike vibrates pretty damn bad and I want it as bulletproof as possible. I don't like the idea of having to work on the bike between rounds either, even if it is only to put air in the bottle. I may just have to tap a regular air fitting on the paintball bottle and only put in 80 p.s.i. everytime though. There was just no room for the big bottle low pressure system anyway unless I wanted to mount it on the swingarm and have a long line that had to move with the handlebars. The airbox is already pretty full with the battery, tach adapter and radiator overflow bottle.
I'm not even using the shift light at this point. It is vibrating apart and getting some false flashes. It' just needs a good tach and shift indicator now that I have the 2ppr tach signal.
Here's what it has run so far, remember I don't care about fast that much just consistency even though I am not there yet either you can see when I start getting close:
Daylight and about 70 degrees F. Making major adjustments to clutch release air valve.
8.03 No electronics. I tried to just
dump the clutch by hand and it didn't spin the tire best I could tell. By what
it ran I must have slipped it some though.
9.13 First time to use the delay box. Full clutch dump. It spun and went way
sideways.
8.40 Full clutch dump. Spun bad.
8.21 Full clutch dump. Spun.
8.35 Full clutch dump. Spun.
8.35 Full clutch dump. Hooked up out of the hole then spun.
8.12 Full clutch dump. Spun.
8.14 Put some slip in the clutch with the air valve. Still spun.
8.09 Put in more clutch slip. Spun or at least chirped the tire.
8.02 Put in more clutch slip. No spin? Not sure. By the time I think it hooked
up.
Nighttime and about 60 degrees F. Most everyone was having traction problems.
I changed the clutch free play after the last set of test runs, before this
set.
8.76 Same air clutch adjustment.
Spun bad.
8.18 Tightened cable 1 turn out and 0.35 in the box. Spun some?
8.22 Tightened cable 1/2 turn and 0.35 in box. Spun some?
8.15 Went from 10 p.s.i. in rear tire to 6. Spin some?
8.31 Got out of sticky groove. Spun some? 0.35 in box.
8.17 Spun some? 0.30 in box and 0.5345 light.
Not much use working on my reaction and delay box time until I get it all set and not spinning the tire.
I found a tach adapter from VTAC it the TACHOMETER I/F MODULE a very simple to install and small device that was inexpensive. It was just a matter of finding the right business. They have some other products that look good too.
The starter setup:
The trick for me was no pit crew so I had to push it to the line or have no
starter when I got there. I either got to start it at the truck or fumble with
it at the starting line and then have somebody else drag it out of the way.
This is a old Dodge reduction gear
starter. I thought it might make better torque for this application. It has
a 2.5" 3/8" extension welded to it and a 2.5" socket on the end.Be
sure you are using cables that are thick enough if you can't get it to spin
fast enough. I tried jumper cable wire (soldered) and it wasn't enough. I had
my machinest weld the nut on the flywheel to make sure it was centered.
Original
Repair Parts list from stage I:
New Right hand case half
New Clutch Cover & seals, bearings
New Water Pump
New Carburetor Intake Boot / Insulator
New Uni Clamp-on Foam Air Filter
New 21" Front Street Tire
Used 140/70x18 Rear Street Tire
New Water Pump Drive Gear
New Low Handlebars
Used 90 degree Front Brake Hose, needed to clear top clamp
New Clutch Perch
New Clutch cable
New Rear Sprocket 45 tooth
New Front Sprocket 15 tooth
Used Case Guard, was missing
Used Stock Radiator Repaired
New Rear Fender
New Choke
New Chain, EK 520 MRD, gold
Used Gas Tank, ebay
Updates
after above and prior to 08/01/2008
Biondo Little Wizard
Biondo bottle & clamp
MPS Air-Clutch
Proform Shift light
VTAC TACHOMETER I/F MODULE
Avon Classic Superbike 18" Rear Tire
Work: Lost track from stage
I.
I haven't been doing anything with
the bike in some time. I decided I needed to keep my stock teeth for a while
longer instead of drag racing. Drag racing was cheaper.
It hooks up good now but seems
to have a lot of clutch time on the startwith the high gearing. This is making
my 60' foot times too inconsistant. More HP would probably help this a bunch.
I was looking at lock-up clutches, that's what I call them. I'm not sure which
type but the ones that create a centrifical spring force.
My next move is to pull all of the
electronics. I prefer the seat of the pants feel you get with the no E class
and is the more popular class here, at last count, now. I still need to spend
1k on the top-end.
Back to Stage I page
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