Toying with building/modifying my own bike

Need to put a few heads together here. As much as I'd like a lovely CFMoto or Benelli 600, I think honestly a 250cc-400cc air-cooled twin would be as close to as much bike as I would really need. So we have many CMX250/CB250 based bikes and being a big fan of 70's Honda's I'd love to put together a legally plated bike or be it heavily customized/modified.

What I'm thinking about:

Building off this, or something like it as found by MJH:
Attachment 9679

What I like on this bike are the colors, tank and wire wheels. Then I'd want to get a ideally air-cooled 350cc twin in it instead put a dirt bar on it and cut quite a bit of the back end off it to make it into a street-tracker inspired by this:
Attachment 9680Attachment 9681

The idea being that the bike would then be able to be ridden on legal plates and insured each year. Also with this build I'd like to spend the extra on real Honda and other parts like good brakes (Brembo) and Bridgestone tires, also some basic Chinese parts to keep the costs down.


Needs:
-Wire wheels
-Powerful front disk brake
-Honda CB250/CB350/CB360/CMX250/ based or real air-cooled parallel twin
-Carbs

I have a 1975 CB200T and a friends 1975 Daytona in my garage. I can find old 350-360 all day long here in the USA. But most have been fucked with too much and the people selling them are often trying to pull a fast one. They set back the odometers and take off the stock exhaust and mess up the tunning, I been looking for a good stock one I almost bought a 1970 this summer, but the bidding on eBay went to high for me.


http://www.motorstown.com/images/honda-cb-350-k2-03.jpg

I'd love to do a street-tracker type build of that CB350.:bandit:

Not much chance of finding Honda bits here, but I think we have the parts to build something quite pretty. Got any idea of a any Chinese air or oil-cooled 350 twin engines, frame and 17-18 inch spoke wheels that can take at least disk front?

As far I know, only Lifeng makes parallel twins with more than quarter of a liter displacement, so I think you're limited to 253 FMM, 233 cc engine. But it does not have to be a limiting factor - you can always reach out for tuning and if it fails, you can easily go back to stock condition engine.

As far as I could see, there are Chinese made with motorcycles with parallel twin engine and geometry of a "normal" bike. Unfortunately, all I've seen are more or less contemporary design and a lot of plastic panels that will have to replace, to got a bike kind you want.

I do not believe that can be a problem with the spoked wheels - 17" is a standard measure for supermotard wheels. If you insist on 18" wheels, for the rear, you can take standard enduro wheel, and for the front, you can lace same 18" rim on a front wheel hub.

However, I think you'll have the most trouble with the seemingly small details.

You look like your building my ideal bike for china. That Truimph would be my ideal bike for life, definatly a keeper that one!!
Here's a link to a post i did a few years ago.

http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...5-XTR-Lowrider

It was chinaV's old xtr and i wanted something cool to cruise around on and go to the beach, shortly after it got put back to dirt bike dutys and is now owned by serpenza here in shenzhen.
The galaxy wheels are beautiful and the brakes were always great, i was toying with the idea of a lowslung pipe too. it would be a good basis to go from, the only downside is the front end geometry and the smallest spocket you can put on the back is a 41 tooth.

have you had a look at Honda CB400SS ? they are available here in china and are a basic single cylinder bike with an electric start XR400 engine and spoked wheels.

also look for a honda VRX400 thats a retro roadster vtwin with big brakes alloy rimed spoked wheels. both these bikes would make great base bikes if you could find a cheap secondhand one.
Last year someone was selling a VRX400 over in Kumming for 8000rmb it was matt black and looked gorgeous but i was too slow and missed it.

Good luck with the build. Rich

Quote:

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Originally Posted by richardktm

have you had a look at Honda CB400SS

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by richardktm

also look for a honda VRX400 thats a retro roadster vtwin with big brakes alloy rimed spoked wheels

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Some very good ideas. I think it would be great to find a dirty old basket-case Honda like one of these, there are loads under old tarps at mechanics shops around here, preferably with a ruined engine that a Chinese dude is selling off cheap and recycle the wheels, brakes, gauges and as many other Honda bits as possible onto a legal plated Chinese based CB250 clone, thus the frame and engine numbers all match up. :naughty:

I do worry though, things like chain-line and stuff, many hours of Chinese mechanics grumbling 'ai-yo hen mafan' making spacers and back-plates for me. :lol8: Enough money, san-bian jiu and prodding would get the job done eventually. :icon10:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zorge

As far I know, only Lifeng makes parallel twins with more than quarter of a liter displacement, so I think you're limited to 253 FMM, 233 cc engine. But it does not have to be a limiting factor - you can always reach out for tuning and if it fails, you can easily go back to stock condition engine.

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http://goldenmotor.en.alibaba.com/pr...racer_new.html

Seems like this thing has an aircooled over 250cc engine, could be an error though. Yes, most likely they are all Lifeng engines.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by richardktm

also look for a honda VRX400 thats a retro roadster vtwin with big brakes alloy rimed spoked wheels.

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ahhhh VRX400 is a beauty. If i didnt need a dual purpose i would have bought this one http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=...id=14882688794

richardktm mentioned Galaxy, and I remembered their SUV bike. Isn't that basically what you're looking for? Of course, minus the twin engine.

When you look at the engines in the Qianjiang models, you cannot help notice the engines look very similar to the TYAN engines.


On the front page of the TYAN website they have the four cylinder 600cc? Are they in that saying Surprise we are the source of the better engines?


The choices for air cooled parallel twins are limited, you already know what they are, there are also 150cc and 125cc available, in addition to the 234cc.


But the most bang for the buck would be the TYAN TYNT engines, the 199cc and 223cc singles they also have balance shafts that would smooth them out some.


Then you look for a frame that can be registered, a bike that can receive the engine either the 234cc twin or the 223cc single. That should make you able to have registration, that being the original configuration would be legit. Just that you would be putting a bigger engine into it and not disclosing that to anyone.


Find your engine source first and get the diagram of it and then go hunting for the frame. I think that a standard GY frame can be leveled out, by adjusting the rear shock and with 18X18 rims and the correct forks. As for the engine choice with some adapting its likely that either can be set into such a frame.


http://www.sippe.co.jp/CUSTOM/comple.../CB223-001.jpg

Imagine having a 3-D printer, you could make any side cover or even air boxes custom made to fit any space?

I get allot out of everything, the gentlemen behind RYCA is inspiring to me because he is systematic in his approach to modifying, his background is in engineering. He is getting a lot out of what most see as a homely cruiser styled bike. Drilling down into the content of the website you see the relatively simple changes, how it is done, how he straighten out the lines of the base bike.


As an engineer you use project management, you approach the task systemically. It is how they make it look easy, they know their sources either to buy out of or for fabrication. Before you lift a finger it is all a defined set of tasks in a time line with sequential events.


Who ever is behind the Golden Motors CMX250 did not get it completely right, they needed to raise the seat and pull back the controls to midpoint, they also need a standard seat and tray and a standard fender in back.

perhaps some inspiration from Serpentza's build
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...cles-Challenge

Kennon

I am inspired by Serpenzas bike!