Hi Andy,
OK, I'll tell you about riding the CR. I still have some things to work out, and the bike is still in its break-in phase, but but here are a couple of things. I have to give it a lot of gas to start it when it's cold, and then it's a little hesitant for about a minute. The CR carbs don't have ports to attach vacuum gauges, so at this point I'm just going on the bench sync, but if I can figure out an unobtrusive way to mount vacuum ports, I'll do it. I thought my legs would be be really cramped by the high-up and far-back footpeg position, but it's actually not bad. On my first couple of rides, when I'd pull away from a stop my legs would be waving around while I located where to put my feet. My other bikes have pegs in the "normal" place, but once I rode this one a few times, muscle memory kicked in, and now it's not a problem. But (as PeeWee Herman said, there's always a big but) the clip ons are a whole other issue. They're forward and down, so the weight of your upper body is supported by your hands. If you're going about 70mph on level ground, it's not bad, because there's enough air under your chest to give some support, but at slower speeds it can make you sore. The worst is coming down from the mountains, braking in downhill turns. Ouch. Also, try sitting in your chair and leaning forward as if you're holding those bars. You're probably looking at a spot on the floor just a few feet ahead of where your front wheel would be. But lift your head as though you're looking down the road, and imagine holding your head like that for a few hours. It's funny that clipons and clubman bars are popular these days. The look apparently attracts people who have never ridden, but the reality of the riding position might be a rude awakening to them, as it requires a level of dedication. I wonder how many butchered, twice-ridden Hondas are gathering dust in hipster garages.
Alright, that's the bad news. On the other hand: every time I get on the bike, it feels like an adventure. First, the sound is fabulous. Oops, wait, there's a first before that. When I open the garage door and see the bike sitting there, I can't believe that I have it. This is what I'm going to ride! I've wanted this since about 1992. That's when I started collecting photos and descriptions. And dreaming. A couple of years ago I bought a Tamiya 1/6 scale model of the Dick Mann Daytona winner, figuring that when I had completed the big one, I'd build the miniature to match. So that's an upcoming project. The bike is not like anything I've ever owned. Every bike is different from every other bike, but this one is so different from my '70 Bonneville and '77 GL100 that I almost feel like a different person when I'm riding it. And leaning forward makes me feel more active, almost as though I'm flying through the scenery. It's unique, demanding, and totally engaging, and every time I look at it, I'm in awe of the fabrication skills of Takashi Iwamoto and Mitsuhiro "Kiyo" Kiyonaga. The beautiful sweep of the pipes, the instrument panel, fairing mounts, fender mounts, seat and tank mounts. Those guys are artists as well as gearheads. I like to figure out how to do everything myself, and when I started this I thought I'd learn how to weld and make all the mounts on my own. Ha! It would take me a million years to do what they did.
The sound. Whether you're going 20mph or 80mph, it sounds like you're at the races. When we stop at a light, if I want to speak to my riding buddy Will, I have to kill the engine. Winding through the canyons, going up and down through the gears, hearing the sound bouncing back off the canyon walls, everything seems to fall away except awareness of the bike. When I see that I'm going to cross paths with a patrol car, I go up a gear, and so far I haven't heard a noise complaint. Or maybe I just haven't heard anything because the bike is making me deaf. Hmmm.
I have 18 inch rims front and back, and that should make the steering a bit quicker, but I'd have to ride it back to back with a stock one to really feel it. Having two discs up front definitely is better. At some point I'll make it to a recycling place and put the bike on a scale, but it's definitely lighter than stock. I'm going to make aluminum spacers to hold the mirrors out farther from the fairing, because I have to move my arm and my head to see behind me. The bars are adjustable aluminum Tomaselli bars,and I chose them because they're a little longer than other bars I looked at. That gave room for the switch gear, and also provides a little more leverage. I had the crank balanced to 12,000rpm and micropolished by APE Raceparts, and the engine feels smooth and free-revving. The Barnett clutch doesn't do that rattle thing that the stock clutch does. When I took the transmission apart, I used a micrometer on all the parts, and there was very little wear on anything, so I just replaced the bearings, bushings, and seals and put it back together. I'm very happy with the way it shifts.
I rebuilt a set of NOS aluminum-body Koni shocks with internal parts from Ikon and springs from Revival in Austin, but they're too stiff. The shocks are adjustable for preload and damping, but for damping you have to take the springs off. And since things are so tight on the bike, everything is an interference fit. I have to drop the pipes to remove the bottom shock mount bolts, and I just haven't gotten to it. I adjusted the preload up a notch because the rear tire occasionally hits the bottom edge of the license plate, and I'll have to trim the top of the plate and move it up a little so I can loosen the preload. Still more things to attend to.
But when I ride it anywhere, it draws people in. There are thumbs up from people on bikes and in cars. And picture takers: girls stand next to it while their guys snap photos! Crazy!
Last time I mentioned going to the Venice Vintage Motorcycle Club Rally, and I forgot to mention that I ran into two forum members Don (SOHC Cafe Racer Fan) and Duncan (Dunc). Good to see them in person.
Smokey and The Bandit
That's it for now. Thanks for looking
Vincent
