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new member, new build.

2K views 16 replies 7 participants last post by  Davidlandonvoice 
#1 ·
unfortunately i tend to remain mostly silent in these forums. however i am well aware of their overflow of experience and information. signing up as a member allows easier searches, and when i really get backed into a corner; where else to turn to ask questions but here.

i live in southeastern ohio, 5mins from triple nickle (st rt 555) and rim of the world (st rt 78). they are fun rides. ive ridden for quite a few years. but it seems to have slowed now that there is a wife and children in the picture. lol

ive successfully rebuilt 5 motorcycles. some total basket cases, others barn finds or easy tear down/rebuilds.
1981 suzuki gs850gl
1986 kawasaki zx900rr (top gun bike, first ninja) bought frame and 4 boxes of parts.
19XX yamaha virago previous owner tore down. made a mess
1993 suzuki dr200se (turned from dirtbike to madmax/garage built scrambler frankenstein thing). blown motor.
1995 kawasaki vulcan 88 (1500). current daily rider. beautiful find.
i was working on a 1985 suzuki madura. i have the motor, and most of the parts, the remaining frame/wheels etc are at a friends house some miles away, hindering me from going further with it until i can obtain the rest.
while waiting i was present with an oppurtunity to purchase and build a previously running
1985 vulcan 700. $50. the previous owner rode it home and into his garage, where he complained of "coolant in the vacuum lines". a problem i have not seen or heard of before. nor do i believe he had any idea what he was doing or even looking for.
so as of current. i have the whole bike torn down to the bolts. frame is empty and will be painted soon. this bike has been nothing but surprises and "side of the road" fixes. so it will most likely not be a total OEM build. but a bobber of some sort. i won't know or plan until i have a running motor.
motor is out of the frame, i was not planning on breaking into the case, but simply checking the seals and gaskets surrounding. but i have noticed considerable mud and corrosion in the coolant channels. and a previous owner welded the shift pedal to the shift linkage rod. so i will have to crack the case to replace the rod/linkage for a new shift pedal. i already cut the rod to remove the pedal, so "leaving well enough alone" is not an option here. nor is it how i like to do things.
generally speaking, i know what i'm doing. i can generally figure out what i need, and if not; i'm very good at the "search button". so like i said, i'm usually silent past this, but thanks for the site, great forum from what i've seen so far, and although silent, i'm not absent.
thank you all
 
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#2 ·
Welcome to the machine! You're in my neck of the woods.

Having a hard time imagining how coolant can get into the vacuum lines. First thought - It was gas in the vacuum line from a leaking petcock diaphragm, which ends with gas in the oil.
 
#3 ·
That was my initial thought. The vacuum lines around the carb don’t have any access to the coolant system.
My only thought could be that:
The mechanical seal behind the water impeller was destroyed. I had a oil/coolant mud mix in the case, and fuel mixed in on top of it.
The previous owner rebuilt the carbs placing the needle on top of the spring retainer. (Nothing holding the needle down in the carb) so he was just pouring fuel into the cylinders. Running pretty rich.
If the coolant oil fuel mix made its way through the engine into any number of the breathers or emission systems then into the air box, it is likely it could have made its way into the carb.
However...he didn’t seem very knowledgeable (my nice way of saying it). I’m thinking he had no clue what was going on. Therefore I’m staring at ground zero.
 
#4 ·
I have built a ton of old school car engines, including race engines. I have built one complete street car (a 1972 VW bug) from the ground up. I have built a couple of drag race cars. I have never built or rebuilt a bike. I've replaced quite a few 2 stroke top ends and had the engine out of a Vulcan 750 (which, doing it the way I did it, pretty much required tearing the whole bike apart) It is a lot harder to "build" a bike than a car. When building a car, street or race, you just bolt pieces together for the most part, whether they are stock or not. There is not nearly as much fabrication involved as there is in building a bike. I have watched a lot of bobber/café racer builds on YouTube, and I just don't trust my welding enough to build a motorcycle frame.

No need to remain silent (though you can learn a lot from just reading) forums are also a great way to communicate with those who share your interests. Just don't insult anyone.
 
#5 ·
I don’t know how to weld. At least not well. I’ll be chopping the end off the frame and either rigid strutting the current spring location. Or fabricating a different support for the springs.
But I do t plan on adjusting it to much. Changing rake and other angles causes to many problems. And to much thinking to overcome. Lol.
Minimal adjustments. But unfortunately I don’t have most of the stock parts. Meaning everything from turn signals to seat and fenders will be customed. Or fabricated. All of which I have done before.
I’ll be cutting the emissions. And doing you “ear shave” as well as coasters the reed covers. Etc. bike will be minimal. Engine. Seat. Lights. Tank. I know my capabilities and limits. And I’d love to push them. But my Vulcan 88 is my daily. And I wouldn’t trade her for any American chopper bike I can think up.
 
#6 ·
It is not easy to hardtail a shaft drive frame. Bold on struts are weak. And you can't weld them because the left one attached to the final drive gearcase. With a hardtail you do not want anything bolted together. You want the frame completely rigid. It will be unsafe otherwise. I have seen a lot of people put struts on Sportsters. I have a Sportster, but I wouldn't do it. The Sportster does have the advantage of belt drive and the shocks bolt to the very end of the swing arm, like the Vulcan. But you still have the swingarm pivot in the front. For a Sportster you can buy a completely new hardtail frame. You will have to get creative with a Vulcan. There is more to it than just welding. There is some engineering involved. You have to get the stress points right, or it will break. I used to belong to a Honda Rebel forum, and guys would put struts on those. The shocks mounted to the swingarm well forward of the rear axle, and the swingarm was not designed to take the stress of being used without springs. It would buckle at the spring mount location. Japanese motorcycle frames are very thin. They get their strength from proper design.
 
#7 ·
Welcome to the nucking futhouse. Get a set of 10.5" shocks off a Suzuki Savage (s40) or a Sportster. Can usually find used Burly or progressive shocks on ebay

Sent from my little corner of paradise using Telepathy
 
#8 ·
Appreciate the knowledge. However there won’t be any aesthetic planning till the motor is running anyway.
I’m currently waiting on a mechanical seal that’s been in San Francisco for two weeks now.
The new clutch linkage arrived yesterday. But I broke my clutch basket tool. So I have another arriving Monday.
My carb seal kit arrives today. That will be quick and easy...until it comes time to choose exhaust and intake. Then the trial and error jet game begins.
I have time.
 
#9 ·
And if you lower it, it's a good idea to relocate the regular/rectifier


Sent from my A502DL using Tapatalk
 
#10 ·
How about a chopper? I have never seen a Vulcan 750 chopper. I have been tempted to build one. It would involve stripping it down to the frame, then taking or sending the frame to an expert to have it "raked" That involves cutting the steering head off, and welding it back on at a different angle, to make the bike longer and allow room for extended fork tubes without it being a mile high. Then put longer fork tubes on it, ape hangers (within reason) a skinny 21" wheel (front wheel from a Vulcan 800A might fit) and no fender. Instead of bobbing the back, just lower it a bit, and put a tall sissy bar on it. Think Peter Fonda's bike in Easyriders. Here is a chopper built out of a Honda Shadow VLX600. It just needs a tall sissy bar in the back.

the Dream
 
#15 ·
I've only seen 2 others in the wild, once in Orlando and one was posted up in Daytona at Biketoberfest '17.

I like the styling, too. My buddies like the look of the bike, I keep it clean enough that it looks good from 10ft back or so lol
 
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