CB desert sled

looking good, not much to do now

To Paraphrase Mr. Johnny Cash, it took the whole staff and by the time we got done the title weighed 64 pounds! I got it one piece at a time, and it didn't cost mea dime, it's my '74, 76, 77,........... Deserts sled- mobile!....

FUCK! You beat me to it! And you lyrical quotations were so much more accurate! I guess great minds think alike, and you rock, sir.

I see you shortened the super traps too. Are they fastened on with purpose yet?

Its coming together nicely...

Hmmm...I remember getting nothing but shit from Luke when I had a trailer light on my XR....but that light lasted 10 years and cost about 6 bucks.






The bike looks great!! Cant wait to see it tear up some gravel over in Central Oregon....when we going

Good find! I see MT250 on the list. And I know someone with a project one. And after today just might be persuaded to take a front fender and/or a handlebar in trade.

The stars are drifting. Will they align? Or will I have to get the clamps out again?

I know there isn't, but it sure feels like there's lots.

Half attached. They're clamped to the headers so they won't blow off again, but there's no support yet; as-is the header will break if it's ridden for much distance.

Local first. Is there still a two drink minimum to ride Sandlake on weekends?

Hey Rick,

Sometimes the sail switch problems mean the blower motor is getting tired.

-John

That makes sense. The inter-web was full of info (mostly good) regarding this issue, main points were making sure the blower motor fan was clean (lots of crud slows it down) and making sure the air flow was unrestricted in hoses etc.

As it turns out, when we tested the switch with an ohm meter, it was definitely faulty, the action inside the switch was pretty "crunchy" and the circuit was intermittent at best. (Much better than finding something only slightly iffy and not knowing if you've found the problem :eek1)

All cleaned and reassembled now and working like a champ. If we ever hookup in our neck of the woods,we can at least keep you guys warm and dry!

That is UNREAL-----here in the Nanny state of doped out libs the DMV would have referred you to the CHP who would have been waiting with a firing squad.

I can see the DMV clerk now...... "you want to put THAT on the pristine California highways?"

no way would that ever fly here! lol

Believe it or not, you could actually could register a bike like that in CA using form SB100 (special construction vehicles). That's how all the custom-built bikes and cars get license plates. Makes it seem even that much more ridiculous that we can register custom-built vehicles, but cannot convert dirtbikes, doesn't it?

No ride report from Eddieville? You and Doc Sprocket need to give a tiny little update on your race adventures (or mis-adventures---fixed!)

Alrighty; it's been looking like a motorcycle for a while, now it's starting to work like a motorcycle. Lots of detail work to finish, but it's getting there.

Chain slider. Rather than go with a premade one I built one from plastic and aluminum. I built one before for my Husqvarna and it worked out well, so this is a repeat project.

Start with some plastic that's about the right size and clamp it in place:





Then put the other side block on and bolt it all together:





Aluminum side plates were added, and then one of the plastic side plates was cut and some spacers added to line it up with the chain.





As seen above, I also made a sidestand. I was going to stick with the centerstand but it hit the chain guide. Making it miss the chain guide while not sticking way too far down below the bike was going to require completely rebuilding it, so a new sidestand seemed like a better idea. Unfortunately the original sidestand wouldn't work as it hangs too low and would also interfere with the skid plate. The sidestand mount is an extension of the left exhaust hanger.

Start with the mount and pivot:



Attach it to the exhaust mount:





Make sure the sidestand tube goes in the right direction when retracted:



Weld the tube on, cut it to length, add the spring perches:



Finally add a foot and a boot hook:



End result:


There was no space on the outside of the sidestand -the exhaust is right there- so the springs are on the inside. Two identical springs are easier to fit than finding a nested pair of springs that would work well. The springs are really easy to install, but have a lot of leverage so they hold the sidestand up well.

Retracted:


Extended:

Another part to be made was a combination mount for a steering damper,speedometer, and hour meter.

I measured up the parts and made a plan.


The holes were all started using a center bit on the mill then drilled out on the drill press. The press is actually a much better drill than the mill, but is much less precise at starting holes.




The drilling was mostly done but I burnt out the xmas tree bit trying to make the cutout for the steering damper arm. I'll freehand it with the angle grinder when I install the damper.








A quick inner fender to keep back tire from flinging muck into the air filter and coils:


And it was time for a test ride:



I could have taken more pictures, but there wasn't much light left and I was having too much fun riding. It's running really well. Lots of power, and the handling is decent. There are some problems of course, but they're pretty much all tuning issues: jetting, lowering the footpegs, that sort of thing. No 'have to cut the frame' issues. And hopefully I'll get some decent video of this thing running.

Nice job...

Only 33 days until tech inspection in Mexicali!!

That is a great looking side stand, nice work.