The Twinstar Project

[CALfeRacer]

Finally got the muffler attached. My excuse for taking so long is it getting dark early and working too late. Lame excuse but that’s what I’m rolling with.

Biggest things now are to re-clean and seal the tank (radiator shop I took it to did kind of a shit job and they’re the only one near me who would do it) and get it registered. Other than that I think the air filter should go on fine, it’ll just be rigged up a little weird (will post pics when it happens...) it’ll need to get a tune when it’s rideable too.

Realistically I won’t get anything big done till the new year, with all the holiday festivities and such going on. Just wanted to give a quick update and say Merry Christmas to everyone still following along!


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[MiniatureNinja]

if you're gonna use a hoseclamp to secure the muffler, I would suggest a "constant-torque" clamp, they are much more heavy duty and usually have a cleaner looking band.

 

[CALfeRacer]

Yeah, that clamp is gonna come off. Thought it might work and had it laying around but noooooope. I’ll look up the one you mentioned, thanks!


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[pidjones]

I'd also suggest putting the hanger strap behind the muffler. 1) It'll look better. 2) Keep things out of the swing arm more.

Also, if you really want the shortys to work (at least a little), you need to pull the baffle and re-wrap it with some much better packing.

 

[CALfeRacer]

I agree it would look better with the strap behind, but I feel like there was a reason I decided to do it outside... Honestly I think it might've just fit best that way since I ended up welding the pipe at a bit too much of an angle coming back towards the shock

 

[goldy]

It's going to ROAR with that little muffler LOL! You may find yourself doing a little carburetor tuning when you get it on the road...the exhaust and air filter may lean it out too much, especially at full throttle...but that's not insurmountable.

 

[CALfeRacer]

Carb tuning will be fun

So I took a peek at the muffler, mount is on the outside cuz if it was inside it would be way too close to the swing arm for comfort.


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[CALfeRacer]

Spent a little time this weekend on the bike and forgot to post an update. Made a GROSS air filter setup with some spare pipe from the exhaust build. I know it’s bad, but this bike isn’t going to be making big power, and with the 250 in there there’s basically no room behind the carb for a filter.
Also the tank is soaking in metal rescue since the radiator shop did a shit job cleaning it. I was cheap and only bought one gallon, hoping I could just rotate it and get all sides. So far the sides are nice and clean, but the middle is still rusty. Another day or two of soaking and turning will probably lead to me just buying the second gallon and doing it correctly. Once the tank is clean and on, that’ll mean I’m close! Next big hurdle is plates.

 

[CALfeRacer]

Big news! I rode the bike for the first time!!! Sure, it was just a couple rips up and down the block, but it was so exciting! It also ran surprisingly well; no flat spots, popping, hesitation, or weird noises from the engine.
However, the tires are flat and I didn’t have a gas can so I was feeding gas in to the carb with a Gatorade bottle. The headlight also shut itself off right after I turned it on with the bike running. Not sure if it’s a blown fuse or blown filament, but I’ll need to check.
Hopefully it’ll be light when I get home from work tonight so I can scoot down to the gas station that’s a couple blocks away to fill up on gas and air. Biggest thing now is just getting it registered!


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[adventurco]

Congrats on the first ride. I would think that the hard 90 degree bends would be terrible for air flow on that air intake. But it sounds like it worked out?

 

[pidjones]

Could be that the restrictions in the intake are just what it needs, too. Like overcoming pods on a 750 by taping off or removing a majority of the filter area.

 

[CALfeRacer]

I’m certain the bends are awful for airflow. But it runs really well on the jets that came in the carb so ‍


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[CALfeRacer]

Went for the closest thing to a real ride tonight! Pushed her down to the gas station (only a couple blocks and my gas can is MIA), put in some gas, aired up the tires, and rode home! Definitely sketchy due to the lack of headlight, but super fun!
I’m going to need to adjust the front brake since it feels terrible (or maybe I’ve been spoiled by big dual discs on the SV?) and figure out what the random death screech coming from the speedo is, but those are minor. I’m just so stoked it runs well!
Here’s a picture of her first time out in the wild!

 

[pidjones]

Awsomeness!

 

[Jimbonaut]

Congratulations man, nothing like that first ride!

 

[goldy]

Congratulations! You can probably get rid of the "death screech" (it's a fairly common complaint) by spraying some penetrating oil up into the speedometer from the point where the cable connects. Don't compare the front brake to a new bike like the SV...it doesn't matter how hard you have to pull the handle, as long as it'll stop the bike, that's about all you can expect.

 

[trek97]

Very cool fun, That front brake will be lacking. But should improve "some" as the shoes bed in.

 

[CALfeRacer]

Don't compare the front brake to a new bike like the SV...

Yeah, I think it’ll just taking riding a couple times to get used to Guess I’ve been spoiled riding bikes with dual discs for the last few years lol. I’ll whip out the manual and see if it can be adjusted a bit better, but mainly just lower my standards.
I’ll try that with the speedometer! Worst case it’s an excuse to buy a smaller one

 

[CALfeRacer]

Very cool fun, That front brake will be lacking. But should improve "some" as the shoes bed in.

Hopefully! I’ll be sure to report back once I get some real rides in.

 

[CALfeRacer]

Went for another ride yesterday, and forgot to update (again). I adjusted the front brake, and it feels MUCH better. I also took the idle adjust screw on the side of the carb out a couple turns to bring the idle down. I’m thinking about picking up a cheap electronic tach off eBay to monitor how many RPM’s I’m at, set idle, etc.
Sounds like I need to get the VIN verified for Vermont plates, so I might just suck it up, take a sick day, and go to the DMV to get CA plates.


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