Ducati 160 motor, Honda frame, what???

[Jag767]

This just happened. T500 front drum!

[Jag767]

So the hub is properly fitted, which took some doing, spacers cut, and the hub itself has be refinished to a beautiful spun aluminum look. As I look at the panel, I notice somewhere along its life someone broke the brake cable stay off. Shouldn't be a huge deal, I have a donor panel, will cut the stay off it, shape it to fit, and weld it on. With a little filing no one should be the wiser. For the 15 hours of work between fitment, refinishing, repair, lacing, and truing, this thing better stop on a dime!

[Jag767]

Although the upgraded front wheel isn't done, and I'm waiting the new new tires, everything else is complete and I have been riding. The short version is the bike is a lot of fun.

The not so short version, I have a whole mess of tweaks to do. The current tires are just too wide, I need to firm up the front suspension, the carb needs tuning, and I need to finish the t500 front drum. The bike rides very different to anything I have been on. Granted, the last thing I was riding was a heavily worked cb350f, so obviously I found power lacking at first. The whole experience feels very analog. I'm on the brakes a lot more with only 4 gears, the clutch feels like I'm trying to break bricks, getting used to shifting by the sound of the motor is taking some getting used to, and if I don't give it a firm shift I'm finding a false neutral or two. It feels like I have to be very involved in operating the bike, which I don't know if it's the newness of it or not, but I quite enjoy it. The engine is very interesting. It runs extremely well, so well that I just bump start it to life without issue every time. I'm interested to dyno it, because I could swear I feel the torque go up at 4k and the hp at 5k, wonder how close my butt dyno is. Unlike the honda motor that really wanted to wind out, this does have a little bit of lower grunt, not that I'm dropping it that low. I find I'm staying between 4-6500 most of the time.

All in all very enjoyable to just ride thus far. I will borrow a friends go pro to video it more, the exhaust sounds fantastic, very pleased.

[Madman]

Excuse my complete and utter stupidity, but are you saying that the Suzuki T500 front brake fits into the Ducati drum? Or have you used the T500 drum, spokes and wheel too?

[Jag767]

Excuse my complete and utter stupidity, but are you saying that the Suzuki T500 front brake fits into the Ducati drum? Or have you used the T500 drum, spokes and wheel too?

It's going to be the t500 drum, and new spokes and a new rim. There isn't any ducati parts other than the motor, the current wheels are honda.

[Madman]

Thank you. Thought that there might be a simple and cheap way to upgrade the existing brake on my 250 to a TLS for a moment there.

[Jag767]

www.kinesismoto.com/the-featherweight/

Great hi resolution photo I can't upload here.

[Jag767]

Calling her done for now. The t500 wheel will wait til next winter. The bike runs fantastic, and the extra length of the carb manifold, paired with everything else I did, changed the way the torque is expressed in the motor. It has nice broad power really starting at 4k all the way to 8500. Im sure if I went to a larger carb it would pull to 10k, but I'd lose that lower end, which is where I spend most of my time whilst commuting.

[Nick]

Good job! Show the squares some class.

[Jag767]

Good job! Show the squares some class.

Haha thanks! If anyone reads bike EXIF, you'll get to see some great photos and a fantastic writeup there on thursday. Now a need another project. Anyone want to sell me a relatively unmolested 350nc? I only need the motor, going to build the frame.