The Impaler

CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#1
#1
I wanted a go-kart, but I also had a dirt bike rolling frame sitting around from an earlier project. So why not both?

Photos are in chronological order. The beginning of the build saw a lot of part improvisation, including a pool vacuum hose intake line.
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This project took 2 months of work in the summer of 2012 to get running. I've worked on it one weekend a month for the past year.
  • The top speed is 45mph.
  • Wet Weight is 180lb.
  • The fender\headlight is made out of 22ga stainless steel that I cut and welded together.
  • The frame is from an X-Motos XB-31 (Chinestraulian Honda knockoff)
  • The motor is a 196cc LiFan clone of the Honda GX200 with electric start. I haven't removed the governor on it yet.
  • Primary reduction is a TAV2 Torq-a-verter CVT
  • 11-inch clearance mini bike header from OldMiniBikes Warehouse w/ a Briggs & Stratton muffler.
  • The electrical system was added from scratch.
  • The air cleaner had to be moved and reoriented so I made a hose adapter for the carb.
  • The aluminum motor mount was made from scratch and double as an enclosure for the electrical system which is all DIN-rail mount components.
  • The downtube adapter is from scratch
  • The most recent pictures show that I went from having a chain tensioner to redoing all of the rear wheel adjustment components.
  • The rear sprocket was milled out to match the rear hub bolt pattern and to reduce weight. It's the only custom part on the bike that I didn't make myself
  • The fan cover which replaced the old recoil start cover was 3D printed.
  • The push-button switch shown on the bracket above the fan housing that holds the air cleaner is the hidden push-button start.
  • Aluminum clip-on handlebars are from scratch. The core of them is a 5-inch long 1/2-13 bolt.
  • Speedometer is a cheap $35 GPS unit.
  • Headlight is a Vision-X Solstice 800 lumen LED spotlight
Having a bike that sounds like a lawn mower is pretty amusing to be honest.

I took it to a small car show 2 months after I finished it and placed in the Top 10 out of 40 motorcycles.
 
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CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#6
#6
fistfullabar said:
Sick hows it handle?
Click to expand...
Really well. It's comparable to a lower displacement dirt bike in any way I can think of.
Part of the reason I wanted to start this project is due to the complete lack of lower displacement dirt bikes on the used market in my area. I wanted a dirt bike geometry, without the lower reliability you get from a high-revving dirt bike.

In traffic it's similar to the moped I used to have, but feels more stable and has MUCH more predictable braking habits.
 
CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#8
#8
Two of the welds on the lower motor mount are cracked pretty badly. I'm going to be dropping the engine out of the frame sometime in the next week so I can start the process of making a new one from scratch.
The original mount included a lot of room for adjustment because I made it early in the project where I wasn't confident about where the engine was going to be precisely placed. Now I know where I want it for certain I can make a more robust mount.

I'm also thinking I would like to swap the locations for the air box and electrical components, as well as potentially upgrade to a slightly larger battery.

Will have more photos of concepts once I'm done with disassembly and measuring.
 
CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#11
#11
Made a good deal of progress today. Did a complete teardown of the bike.

Here's the two cracked welds in the old motor mount.

I made changes to the CAD files I still have of the original motormount, printed templates out on the plotter, then taped, scribed, and center punched. I cut them to size on the band saw, then drilled and tapped all the holes.

Did the first round of welding.


Tomorrow I can do some mock-up.

I still need to
1. Make a new hose adapter for the carburetor
2. Make a new enclosure for the electrical system
3. Make a battery holddown bracket
4. Reassembly and rewiring
 
firemarshal71

firemarshal71

#12
#12
Wow, where have you been hiding out at? you have some mad skills and access to a lot of pretty cool shop equipment. I look forward to following this and anything else you come up with.:thumbsup:
 
jdogg

jdogg

#13
#13
Thanks for the detailed write ups and follow ups!! I know your at the far end of what OldMiniBikes covers but I dont venture far from home and wouldnt have seen this cool build on another site so thanks for updating!! :thumbsup:
 
CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#14
#14

Since the new motor mount is slightly wider, the old cover won't fit. So I'll have to make a new one.

Traced the carburetor gasket onto a post-it note, then used an engraver to transfer that onto aluminum.

Used a manual knee mill to rough out the inside and channels, then finished the transitions with a needle file. I then cut the outside shape on the band saw.

Also finished the battery hold-down. I don't get to use the pan-and-brake very often.

Test-fit in the frame. Larger battery fits nicely.

Left to do
1. Finish carburetor to hose adapter
2. Weld elbow onto air box
3. Make enclosure for electrical components
4. Rewiring
5. Make a new air box cover
 
CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#16
#16

Air box cover made out of more treadplate scraps. Formed on the pan-and-brake, cut to fit, then drilled.

1-1/4 tubing cut on the band saw using the miter guide.

More parts to weld together.

The heavy welds on the lower motor mount distorted it a bit so I had to clamp it down and mill the bottom so that it's parallel with the top. Then I had to mill away some of the internal weld, which I made a little bigger than I intended.

The fat weld was in the way of where the air filter needs to go when it is attached.


Test assembly of all the parts I just finished.
 
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CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#17
#17
Mostly finished with the new electrical enclosure. Made out of stainless plate, treadplate for the box sides, and t-slotted aluminum for the corners.


I just need to drill some holes for wire pass-through and once my relays show up I can get the wiring finished.
 
CaptainSlug

CaptainSlug

New Member
#19
#19
Finally done dicking around with the electrical enclosure. Had some issues getting it to fit yesterday, and decided it was way too shiny.


Tomorrow I can start wiring.
 
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