Skyteam Ace Perth Get Together Tue or Wed 15/16th March

2b

Been Around the Block
I will be in Perth on business Sunday to Friday next week. No bike to ride but wondering whether some Ace owners would like to catch up for a coffee/beer.

I am staying at Fraser Suites
10 Adelaide Terrace East Perth

What do you reckon, I should be free either Tue or Wed evening.

If there is somewhere good to meet up I can jump in a cab.

BTW, I look nothing like my profile pic!!!

Cheers
Richard
 
Well I didn't get to see any Aces while I was in Perth this week. But did meet up with Geoff (Perthbiker) who is sorely tempted to by an Ace, just needs to sell one of his other 4 bikes first. Had a great yarn on Wed and met up for dinner on Thurs because there was still more to talk about! Hopefully we will see a Perthbiker build thread on here soon.

Interesting fact. Out for a walk one evening I spotted this painting on the side of the WACA. And a bit of googling shows that they used to have a race track around the edge of the oval...

http://www.speedwayandroadracehistory.com/perth-waca-ground.html

Oh and the comet following the rider does have significance

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/31074172
 

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Hi all Ace'ers,
First posting on the DTT forum so I hope its in the right spot?! Feel free to move it as appropriate.

Sold my baby Aprilia SR50R 2-stroke scooter over the weekend in an effort to finance a Ace 125 project. I took my first ride on a stock Ace 125 with ~450km today and to say I was disappointing would be an understatement. It seemed to make more noise than go, slithered around a traffic island and battled to brake uphill. Such a let down after the enthusiastic praise for it from all the knowledgeable forum members.

Wondering whether the second hand 2012 Ace 125 is worth the $1,300 the dealer is asking for it? Reasonable condition without any obvious damage and only minor rust and chrome pitting here and there. Spotted a 150cc upgrade kit on the shelf so asked them to put together a deal for me, so will see what they come back with.

This bike will need some major work done to it if it is to reach a target top speed of 120kph. Would like to achieve that figure so that I could comfortable do my daily 35km one way freeway commute with a speed limit of 100kph.

Just thinking that this is a bridge too far for the Ace? Perhaps I should start off with a better base for a project bike and have been looking at the Cleveland Cyclewerks Heist bobber or Ace cafe racer with a similar Chinese derivative of the CG125, but sized at 229cc?

Guessing the one advantage I have is that even at 6ft the Ace seems to fit okay and my skinny, sub 70kg should help get the most out of any engine upgrade work planned.

Any thoughts and input appreciated.

Cheers for now.
 
I wouldn't enjoy that commute on my modified 125. It is much more fun around town and around the bay's of the harbour. Perhaps the 150 would be OK, others who have one will comment. But to do it in comfort you may be looking at the 250 upgrade and then I guess the heist would be higher on the agenda.

Your comments about rideability of the stock bike are spot on. But it still has the ability to turn heads and start conversations and quite a few people who are new to bikes are happy buying the 50cc!

I have had a look at some other big bikes as a big brother for the ace, since we met up last week, but I still can't get over the fact that given a choice, for 95% of my journeys, I would take the ace.

It would be great if you could find a modified one to try out.
 
I'm with you. Wishing I had your back roads and hills nearby to go fanging around on, or a shorter in-city commute.

The commute and hence day-to-day usage will probably be the deciding factor on which project bike I pick up in the end. Still looking at the Ace but have spent a lot of time on other websites and will start 'cross pollinating' ideas. I like the trumpet exhaust from the Kawasaki GPX bobber at http://bluecollarbobbers.com/product/old-school-trumpet-exhaust#.VvIwueJ965g and there are a number of other good looking parts on the website. Also some interesting parts from http://clevelandspeedshop.com/ which is where some of the CCW go-faster parts can be sourced.

Same basic CG125 derived engine 167FMM (67mm bore x 65mm stroke) giving 229cm3 in the Heist so am wondering how the engine mounts differ vs the Ace engine? What is the Ace's engine number? Guess the top mount will have to be higher to accommodate the longer stroke but with some simple fabrication of a new bracket, it may be a viable transplant.
 
Hey Perthbiker
I have an Ace that I bought about 3 months ago, with 150km on the clock.
Like you, as stock, the performance was underwhelming at best. There was no way that I could use it for my 40kmmcommute along the Kwinana freeway.
BUT.
I have:
- taken out almost all the restrictions in the exhaust
- installed a 150cc big bore kit (with stock head)
- rejetted the stock carbie.
- fitted 17 tooth front sprocket

All these changes cost less than $200, although the exhaust mod required a lot of work, and the welders at work helping me out.

Now it is an absolute joy, to ride,
I weigh 80kg, and it can do 115km/hr on the freeway. For lane splitting, it is probably perfect. The fuel economy is amazing (not sure of the numbers)

even though I still intend to upgrade shocks, instruments, clip ons, LED lights, and a few other things, it is great fun, and I like to use it rather than my Ducati 750 F1 around town

Happy to meet up some time if you want to check it out.
 
Well now, that is encouraging! :)
The mods you explained are basic so with a bit of extra work it sounds very doable.
Is the bike comfortable on the ass and wrists for a long steady commute as opposed to bouncing around the saddle on a twisty back road?
Haven't see any Ace's on the morning or evening commute so I guess you travel at a different time to me.
Could very well take you up on the offer for a closer look over the weekend. Let's see how it pans out.
 
Raymart1961 has it nailed!

The 150 conversion (with or without stock head) makes it an entirely different bike.

A de-restricted stock exhaust is better from a performance point of view than nearly all the aftermarket options, and quieter.

Crazy
 
I don't have any problem with the weight on the wrists. I still have the stock handlebars, and as they say, if your wrists hurt you need to go faster!
Seriously though, with stock bars, there is little weight on your wrists.
And I have no problem with the seat. It's certainly more comfortable than my road push bike after a few hours.
I spend most of my life in Melbourne ATM, which is probably why you haven't seen me,(and why I couldn't catch up with B2 when he was over last week).
I'm off to Melbourne for a few weeks on Monday, but PM me if you want to check out the bike.
 
ace/clubman bars are bad on the wrists but sock bars and clip ons are not so bad. i have done a few long rides and the ace is not too bad i have ridden 100kms in the saddle and pulled up ok
,would not like to tour to melboune from adelaide on it though!!!!!
 
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