i bow before you. that is fucking awesome. for your question as regarding tensioning, ill see if any of my oldschool moto buddies can think of anything. if they have anything beneficial i will post it or forward it to you. btw, is that a car tire on the rear?
Thanks for the comments. I did a couple build threads over in the hack forum. Just never spent much time over here. The REALLY awesume build is by JTH, mentioned a couple posts ago. Don't know how I missed that thread; but I have been working on this beast about a year. Too much time in the garage I guess. I need to read his posts in their entirety, as he seems to have solved some problems that have bedeviled me. Like the chain tensioner. Yep, that is a Comtrac 16x5 car tire on a Fat Bob rim. I have a couple other hacks, and 3-4000 miles on a bike rear tire is about normal. I figured with the low end torque this thing puts out, that was not going to get any better. Have about 2500 miles on this, and I have lost about 0.125" of tread, slightly less than 1/4 total. I think guys on solo bikes doing this (car tire) are nuts, unless you are just going to do 10000 freeway miles for an Iron Butt. But for a hack it's tits. Wanted to fit a Rally tire, with a bit more agressive tread. But for our fire roads kind of riding, this works great. Still may, if this thing ever wears out, and I can find one over here. Only place I have seen is the UK. Hopefully, if Wasp can git 'er done, I have a leading link fork set coming soon. The HD forks are fair, but seals are weeping, and they flex a bit too much laterally for my liking on fast sweepers with bumps in the middle.
Hey Pago - Nice build ! For the chain tensioner on the Scorpion, I started with a spring loaded tensioner from MonsterCraftsman that bolted directly to my 03 frame (where the exhast mount used to go). But what I found was that a hard mount tensioner wheel worked just a good due to the chain tensioning itself as the swingarm moves up. So, just the initial tension is needed. I made my own bracket (w/ horizontal slotted holes for adjustment) and used the urethane wheel w/ bearings from Monstercraftsman. They will sell the wheel alone. Hope that helps. http://www.monstercraftsman.com/?l1=products&l2=tensioners
Jim, Thanks for the reply. That looks perfect; nice and simple. I was trying to wrap my head around this spring loaded thingie and where to weld a boss on the frame to handle the loads. But with a fixed system it becomes quite a bit simpler; and I guess... the loads are rather small as well, now that I think about it. Still not sure where to mount it from on the frame, but maybe I can use the 2 bolts (shown in your pic) where the rear master cyclinder lives on some Sporties. For some odd reason, even though the XR rear master cylinder is NOT in that location, they left the bolt bosses in the frame. Clean chain by the way...
My chain on my 2001 Honda XR650R looked like that most of the time. It was an O-ring chain and I used Home Depot's Dupont teflon spray on it. It sprays on wet, drys in seconds and coats the chain with teflon. Dust and dirt would just about fall off from running down the road (I made it street legal) after pounding in the dirt. Quick spray with the teflon at later time blasted everything off. I had tried everything else you could think of (cahin lubes, waxes, WD-40, etc.) and they all made a mess. Really like the belt drive on my 1999 883C Sportster. Fun bike! I had sold my XR650R about 4 years ago. Tried out a bunch of used bikes. Then rode this for sale Sportster out Tanque Verde Creek road and part way up Reddington. When I got back test riding it, my wife said I had the biggest grin she had seen since I had been test riding used bikes. Definitely a visceral feel to a Sportster. It feels like a motorcycle, like an old Chevy/Ford rat-rod and not a comfort couch or cramped two wheeled fighter tarmac jet.
Hey question for you guys. Can you hear the pistons move in your bikes? I have a sound that can only be described as piston rings on a cylinder wall. My sportster and dad's softail does it, my road king is quiet. Sportster has 19,000 miles, Night train has 8,000 miles, Road King has 14,000. Shouldn't be a break-in noise I would think. The Road King is the only one with stock mufflers, so it's defiantly not making a noise. Also, anyone have an exhaust recommendation for the hard mounts? It has slip-ons with baffles removed. I'm looking for all the power I can get from an 883, so I'm hoping for a 2 into 1 exhaust that isn't too loud. Seems like the aftermarket has all but given up on the older ones.
Supertrapps definitely look trick, and are supposed to be too. Though it's seems pretty comparable, $ wise, to throw in a 1200 kit. That'll definitely give you all the power you can get from your 883 Terribly dumb post there fella.
EBay buy-it-now "auction" for a Kerker 2-1 for 86-2003 $630: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kerker-2-into-1-Sportster-Exhaust-1800-0581-/400283838224#vi-content The Kerker looks similar to the V&H 2-into-1 that was available from HD when the XL1200S was current, but is quite a bit longer. I don't think the V&H is available anymore, but maybe if you called every HD dealer in the country... Supertrapp is $520 from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/SUPERTRAPP-SAT-SYS-86-03-825-70883/dp/B000QG091S My 883 had Screaming Beagles on it, and was too loud for me (also the vibes broke the rear cylinder head pipe). I put on a stock 2003 take-off system for the "stealth" effect. I've had 3 SuperTrapp systems on different bikes, and they always fit well, and the "tuneability" has been useful. I'm considering the SuperTrapp, but I like my $520, too.
Yes, except then I'd have an excessively loud 1200 that I need to buy mufflers for. Either way I need to get this thing quieted down some, my right ear rings after a long ride without earplugs. The Kerker won't work for me, no room for a passenger and I may someday put bags on. I didn't know supertrapp still made exhaust for this bike, but I'm not sure the stainless would look right, there's a lot of chrome the PO put on. That seems to leave me with either Vance and Hines straightshots, one of their slip-ons, or Screaming Eagle assuming Harley still makes it. My stock chrome shields on the header have seen better days, so I would rather just change the whole exhaust while I'm at it.
For the solid mounts the 2 highest-HP pipes (according to XLF) were the Trapp 2-2 high mounts and a set of modded stock headers running cycle shack slash-cuts. *edit--You don't like the exhaust loud. Even the Trapps were ran with a bunch of discs. You want good flow and quiet, you need an ugly-ass garbage can like Yamaha put on the side of their sporty cruiser. small size, good flow, quiet--choose any 2.
I have the Supertrapp 2 into 1 on my 2000 Dyna finished in black. It performs well, but I have not done a before and after dyne. I had Screaming Eagle slip ons on it previously. It is not loud IMHO. Regardless, you should be wearing earplugs just for the wind noise at highway speeds. I have some hearing loss from a variety of things other than motorcycles and I am trying to preserve the hearing I have left. Earplugs are your friends. Anyway, I highly recommend the Supertrapps.
The supertrapp for the solid-mounts has got to be one of my favorite looking exhausts. I believe the 883Rs of the era came with a stock 2-1, or maybe it was a screamin eagle piece, either way - looked good and I'm sure would meet your noise requirements.
Somewhat loud is OK, but not drag pipe loud. Anything with a baffle would probably be fine really. I had vance and hines on my softail, I was fine with that. I think I've pretty much seen all of my options at this point, probably just going to go with the vance and hines straightshots. Not the best performing, but it'll look right and not sound too bad at least. I would go with supertrapp if it wasn't in stainless, I don't think it would look right at all on my bike. Too much chrome there already.
This is what the Supertrapp looks like on my '97 Sport. It's the brushed version which I think looks better than the high polished one. They do discolor to various shades of blue and gold. Suits me just fine and the pipe is not LOUD! like many performance oriented pipes.
^I wasn't the one asking the question. I assume the guy who did, has in fact, heard such a name as Vance and Hines in his search for an exhaust. If he hasn't, well then your reply was just brilliant. Now I've seem to gotten a little more out of you, as I didn't know it was VH that designed that SE 2-1 that I was trying to reference a few posts ago. That would've been helpful the first time around. Anyway, not trying to pick fights - You're a sportster guy, so we're cool. I just figure the point of forums like this is to get people to share what they know. If that's not it, I don't know what it's for. What is the internet for?