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More of this to come in the future.
29 March 2010
10 March 2010
Spring Update
Its been awhile since I've updated last. Lots of things have changed included the abilities of the rider. I'm working more closely with a local shop on different abilities, which coincides nicely with the just begun WorldSBK season, and the upcoming MotoGP season. (I do also regularly watch the AMA races, but thanks to DVR, I seem to put them off until lazy afternoons and don't really keep up with that league in real-time).
The bike has been taken apart for a bit after getting some good miles on fair-weather days in the late-winter/early spring. The weather in DFW is funny and quite unpredictable. It dumped snow recently, without much prediction, and was 70 degrees outside shortly before, and shortly after that weekend.
The bike is having bungs welded to the exhaust headers so a fuel/air ratio monitor can be easily attached to aid in tuning. After the welding is complete, the headers are being shipped off to be coated by Jet Hot, along with the intake flanges. The principle behind ceramic coating is quite simple and something I enjoyed working as an undergraduate in Fluid/Thermal Systems.
To simplify, A biker wants the exhaust to get out of the motor, and out of the pipes quickly, for performance reasons. Similarly, a biker does not like getting burnt by the heat coming off the exhaust pipes. And lastly, if a biker can keep the bike's ambient temperature down, he can extract a little more performance all around (from cooler fuel, to easier engine cooling, etc).
Ceramic coating benefits all of the above. In a standard setup, the expelled exhaust gases are free to lose heat through the walls of the exhaust, evident if you've ever grabbed a hot exhaust pipe or, worse, header pipe. The exhaust gases cool as exhaust gas loses heat to the metal, and then to the ambient air. This cooler gas becomes more dense and moves more slowly. If the pipes were insulated, via exhaust wrap or ceramic coating, the exhaust gas would be less able to release heat before exiting the pipe. Good for performance, good for your extremities which get too close on occasion, and good for keeping radiant heat down.
The ceramic coating process, in its preferred form, adds the coating to both the inside and outside of the pipe. The intake manifolds, those which connect the carburettors to the cylinder intakes, are also being coated. Instead of keeping the heat in those pipes, as the goal is for ceramic coated exhaust, the goal is to keep the heat out of the intake air. A cooler, denser intake air increases performance of the motor as well.
While everything is apart, the carbs have been pulled to be thoroughly cleaned, and since the fuel lines and vacuum hoses all around have been on the bike for well over 5-years each, its time they be replaced. While the lines are being replaced, I took the opportunity to remove the vacuum petcock system and replace with a good old fashioned fuel valve. No more risk of vacuum troubles arising from the petcock's failure, it's related hose failure, and a cleaner look all the way around. The fuel pump needed rebuilt as its the original from 1999 (likely put on the bike in 1998 during assembly and sitting on the shelf for who-knows how long before that). Chris Kelley of CA-Cycleworks sells a convenient, inexpensive vacuum operated Mikuni replacement that is rectangular to replace the vacuum operated Mikuni pentagon shaped pump. The great bonus with the replacement fuel pump is that its cost is the same as the rebuild kit!
The fuel supply line is now run around the left (alternator) side of the bike, rather than in front of the vertical cylinder belt cover. To keep heat away from the fuel line and fuel inside, the lines have been insulated with Heatshield Products heatwrap (Builders Kits) or the similar material from McMaster-Carr.
The idea of putting everything back together, only to bolt up the OEM Mikuni 38 CV carbs is perhaps a little much. This may be the easiest opportunity to bolt up a set of Keihin FCR-41s that I'll have, and with my recent carbon fiber fabrication (thanks unofficially to friends at Lockheed), I could also make a new battery box and coil bracket, and go to the more attractive (though debatable/negligibly worse performing) pod filters. The next question that would arise is... K&N Pods or UNI Filters?
The bike has been taken apart for a bit after getting some good miles on fair-weather days in the late-winter/early spring. The weather in DFW is funny and quite unpredictable. It dumped snow recently, without much prediction, and was 70 degrees outside shortly before, and shortly after that weekend.
The bike is having bungs welded to the exhaust headers so a fuel/air ratio monitor can be easily attached to aid in tuning. After the welding is complete, the headers are being shipped off to be coated by Jet Hot, along with the intake flanges. The principle behind ceramic coating is quite simple and something I enjoyed working as an undergraduate in Fluid/Thermal Systems.
To simplify, A biker wants the exhaust to get out of the motor, and out of the pipes quickly, for performance reasons. Similarly, a biker does not like getting burnt by the heat coming off the exhaust pipes. And lastly, if a biker can keep the bike's ambient temperature down, he can extract a little more performance all around (from cooler fuel, to easier engine cooling, etc).
Ceramic coating benefits all of the above. In a standard setup, the expelled exhaust gases are free to lose heat through the walls of the exhaust, evident if you've ever grabbed a hot exhaust pipe or, worse, header pipe. The exhaust gases cool as exhaust gas loses heat to the metal, and then to the ambient air. This cooler gas becomes more dense and moves more slowly. If the pipes were insulated, via exhaust wrap or ceramic coating, the exhaust gas would be less able to release heat before exiting the pipe. Good for performance, good for your extremities which get too close on occasion, and good for keeping radiant heat down.
The ceramic coating process, in its preferred form, adds the coating to both the inside and outside of the pipe. The intake manifolds, those which connect the carburettors to the cylinder intakes, are also being coated. Instead of keeping the heat in those pipes, as the goal is for ceramic coated exhaust, the goal is to keep the heat out of the intake air. A cooler, denser intake air increases performance of the motor as well.
While everything is apart, the carbs have been pulled to be thoroughly cleaned, and since the fuel lines and vacuum hoses all around have been on the bike for well over 5-years each, its time they be replaced. While the lines are being replaced, I took the opportunity to remove the vacuum petcock system and replace with a good old fashioned fuel valve. No more risk of vacuum troubles arising from the petcock's failure, it's related hose failure, and a cleaner look all the way around. The fuel pump needed rebuilt as its the original from 1999 (likely put on the bike in 1998 during assembly and sitting on the shelf for who-knows how long before that). Chris Kelley of CA-Cycleworks sells a convenient, inexpensive vacuum operated Mikuni replacement that is rectangular to replace the vacuum operated Mikuni pentagon shaped pump. The great bonus with the replacement fuel pump is that its cost is the same as the rebuild kit!
The fuel supply line is now run around the left (alternator) side of the bike, rather than in front of the vertical cylinder belt cover. To keep heat away from the fuel line and fuel inside, the lines have been insulated with Heatshield Products heatwrap (Builders Kits) or the similar material from McMaster-Carr.
The idea of putting everything back together, only to bolt up the OEM Mikuni 38 CV carbs is perhaps a little much. This may be the easiest opportunity to bolt up a set of Keihin FCR-41s that I'll have, and with my recent carbon fiber fabrication (thanks unofficially to friends at Lockheed), I could also make a new battery box and coil bracket, and go to the more attractive (though debatable/negligibly worse performing) pod filters. The next question that would arise is... K&N Pods or UNI Filters?
07 January 2010
Headlight & HID
Its been awhile since I have installed the Desmoworld Clear Glass Headlight, but I noticed I have not posted any pictures of the unit! I had the ring powdercoated black, it comes chrome just like the stock headlight's ring. Here's an image with a standard H4 bulb (that happens to be blue, go figure):
HID Lights are all the rage right now, and for good reason: they are far brighter than conventional lights. With motorcycles, the more light the better, as there's often only a single headlight beam available. The common fix has been to increase bulb wattage to get a brighter output. While this does work, it also taxes the electrical system, which is not very robust on a motorcycle. HIDs put out a whole lot of light while using a low wattage, and are therefore very well suited for motorcycle applications. I tried out a DDM Tuning kit that's a 35W, 4300K color output setup. The wiring came to me with far more than I could ever use. With some quick cuts and some wires soldered and heat shrinked, I was able to remove what would have been a bird's nest of wires under my tank and fit the unit in the bike quite easily. The unit I have is the H4 Hi/Lo single bulb setup. This means I can still hit the brights switch and get a raised output from the headlamp. It works very well. Its almost TOO bright, so I have decided to be proactive and aim the headlamp down a little more than normal so I don't blind all of the DFW drivers. Here are a few shots of the unit installed:
HID Lights are all the rage right now, and for good reason: they are far brighter than conventional lights. With motorcycles, the more light the better, as there's often only a single headlight beam available. The common fix has been to increase bulb wattage to get a brighter output. While this does work, it also taxes the electrical system, which is not very robust on a motorcycle. HIDs put out a whole lot of light while using a low wattage, and are therefore very well suited for motorcycle applications. I tried out a DDM Tuning kit that's a 35W, 4300K color output setup. The wiring came to me with far more than I could ever use. With some quick cuts and some wires soldered and heat shrinked, I was able to remove what would have been a bird's nest of wires under my tank and fit the unit in the bike quite easily. The unit I have is the H4 Hi/Lo single bulb setup. This means I can still hit the brights switch and get a raised output from the headlamp. It works very well. Its almost TOO bright, so I have decided to be proactive and aim the headlamp down a little more than normal so I don't blind all of the DFW drivers. Here are a few shots of the unit installed:
Nearly finished (with Winter Project)
Had a little bit of trouble removing the old, corroded bolts from the front rotors. The factory bolts are M8x20 zinc plated steel bolts, with allen heads. I hate the allen head, especially in places that require a good firm torque setting. They are prone to torque-out and that's exactly the problem these old bolts had. Using a little bit of solvent and some bolt-outs from McMaster-Carr, these were all removed. New torx-head titanium bolts will be replacing them along with the ISR dampened rotors, from Desmoworks. The new rotors don't use an incredibly heavy steel carrier, and are floating (yet dampened - to increase the 'buttons' life).
The Aeroquip Starlite hoses and forged fittings, supplied by Baller Bolts went on without a problem. Note about BB, the owner is member RyanRacer of the DMF, and is very helpful to deal with. If you are going to do this job, its as easy as getting the appropriate size fittings (AN-6) and a length of hose, cutting it to size and putting it on.
The starter wire and oil cooler hoses have both been rerouted along the alternator side of the bike, so there is little visual obstruction and easy access to the horizontal belt and cover.
Here's the hoses tucked up against the frame and out of the way:
Notice the DP/DPM Cam End Cover. And the "now cleaner" looking side:
Shown are the DP/DPM billet valve inspection covers, Rizoma Oil Cooler Protector and Aeroquip hoses. Its also quite evidence from the clean appearance of the new billet that my horizontal cylinder head has cooked on some serious dirt over the years. Perhaps next season I'll finally pull the heads, have them painted black, and one of the performance cam sets will go in:
Shown, left to right, are sets of VeeTwo Torque Grind Cams (V2-210) and Race Grind Cams (V2-212). The Monster already has a set of adjustible VeeTwo cam pulleys, the silver pictured pulleys are a set for the 900SS or M900 trackbike that I have yet to obtain!
The Aeroquip Starlite hoses and forged fittings, supplied by Baller Bolts went on without a problem. Note about BB, the owner is member RyanRacer of the DMF, and is very helpful to deal with. If you are going to do this job, its as easy as getting the appropriate size fittings (AN-6) and a length of hose, cutting it to size and putting it on.
The starter wire and oil cooler hoses have both been rerouted along the alternator side of the bike, so there is little visual obstruction and easy access to the horizontal belt and cover.
Here's the hoses tucked up against the frame and out of the way:
Notice the DP/DPM Cam End Cover. And the "now cleaner" looking side:
Shown are the DP/DPM billet valve inspection covers, Rizoma Oil Cooler Protector and Aeroquip hoses. Its also quite evidence from the clean appearance of the new billet that my horizontal cylinder head has cooked on some serious dirt over the years. Perhaps next season I'll finally pull the heads, have them painted black, and one of the performance cam sets will go in:
Shown, left to right, are sets of VeeTwo Torque Grind Cams (V2-210) and Race Grind Cams (V2-212). The Monster already has a set of adjustible VeeTwo cam pulleys, the silver pictured pulleys are a set for the 900SS or M900 trackbike that I have yet to obtain!
01 January 2010
On Geometry
Recently, I've made two changes to the bike's geometry. The 1999 Monster is a member of the 1993-2001 Monster Frame series, which shares many features with the 851/888 bikes. The main differences are an additional brace near the steering stem was removed to accommodate the Monster's air box and the rear section of the frame is welded on, rather than being a subframe (subframes ARE used on all 'new' Monsters, a la 696/1100 and generally all other Ducatis, including the Hypermotard and the Superbikes).
A distinguishing feature of the 851/888/Monster's frame from the newer 2002-2009 ST based Monster frames is the hooped swingarm suspension. The swingarm connects to a hoop or arch that connects to a pivot or lever arm, which in turn is connected to the top of the shock. The hoop is originally made of steel and comes the color of the bike's frame. Thus, mine was antique gold. Until I changed it. For several years, I've been running a lighter and stiffer billet swingarm hoop. It left the geometry essentially the same, but gave a slight amount more feedback while looking really good. It came to my attention that DMF Member sweir1171 was making a ride-height adjustment kit. The kit features two machined, threaded risers that will raise the tail of the bike a few cm. They work fantastically and went right on.
Such a modification will change the wheelbase of the motorcycle and quicken steering.
While I quite liked the quicker steering and change in feel, I was also interested in improving the feel of the front end. The forks have been reworked with a basic respring, revalve and re-oil using RaceTech components, but aside from the slightly stiffer and lighter CycleCat top triple and clipon handlebars, not much else had changed. This is when I contacted IMA SrL. These guys are fantastic to work with.
There are a few differences in the pre-02 Monster frames and the newer Monster (02-09) frames beyond the rear suspension assembly. The older frame Monsters, along with all Supersports, utilize a narrow steering stem and are equipped from the factory with tapered roller bearings. The offset (the distance between the centerline of the forks and the steering stem) is 25mm. To put this into perspective, superbikes frequently leave the factory with 36mm offsets, and aftermarket triples may change this down to 32 or even 30mm. Several vendors sell triples with offsets as low as 27mm (Ducshop).
Newer Monsters (02+) have a bigger 30mm offset from the factory, use a much larger diameter steering stem and do not come with roller bearings from the factory (though one could upgrade to SpeedyMoto's set if they like). The rake change from old style monsters to new style monsters is a small but perceivable 23 or 23.5 (depending on the source you read) to 24 degrees. IMA produces beefy billet aluminum triple sets (upper and lower, including steering stem) for older Monsters and Supersports that increase the offset to 30mm, same as the new Monsters, and even allow for the use of a Monster-esque bar on a Supersport (if one was so inclined). They provided me with a black anodized set for my Monster.
Installation involves suspending the front end of the motorcycle, removing the wheel, gauges, controls and anything touching the triples. Once that's all taken care of, the triples are loosened and removed from the bike. The inner races must be knocked out of the steering stem before the new races may be inserted. Then a new tapered bearing that has been well greased is driven on to the IMA triple's stem. The factory uses SKF bearings, and that's what I replaced the set with (obtained from CA-Cycleworks in SpeedyMoto's convenient packaging). Then its all put back together, titanium bolts all around, and you get:
From a bit of a distance:
Update - 3/29/2010
The finished product has a trail of approximately 90.5mm, and started closer to 96mm. original wheelbase was 1430mm, and the final result is minimally smaller. The feel is fantastic on the street, though I've only put about 1,000mi on since the original writeup. I've yet to find really great roads outside of DFW like I had nearby in Middle Tennessee. Looks like its time to start taking off bling so I can track this bike. Or perhaps its time to invest in a 2nd bike for track only.
A distinguishing feature of the 851/888/Monster's frame from the newer 2002-2009 ST based Monster frames is the hooped swingarm suspension. The swingarm connects to a hoop or arch that connects to a pivot or lever arm, which in turn is connected to the top of the shock. The hoop is originally made of steel and comes the color of the bike's frame. Thus, mine was antique gold. Until I changed it. For several years, I've been running a lighter and stiffer billet swingarm hoop. It left the geometry essentially the same, but gave a slight amount more feedback while looking really good. It came to my attention that DMF Member sweir1171 was making a ride-height adjustment kit. The kit features two machined, threaded risers that will raise the tail of the bike a few cm. They work fantastically and went right on.
Such a modification will change the wheelbase of the motorcycle and quicken steering.
While I quite liked the quicker steering and change in feel, I was also interested in improving the feel of the front end. The forks have been reworked with a basic respring, revalve and re-oil using RaceTech components, but aside from the slightly stiffer and lighter CycleCat top triple and clipon handlebars, not much else had changed. This is when I contacted IMA SrL. These guys are fantastic to work with.
There are a few differences in the pre-02 Monster frames and the newer Monster (02-09) frames beyond the rear suspension assembly. The older frame Monsters, along with all Supersports, utilize a narrow steering stem and are equipped from the factory with tapered roller bearings. The offset (the distance between the centerline of the forks and the steering stem) is 25mm. To put this into perspective, superbikes frequently leave the factory with 36mm offsets, and aftermarket triples may change this down to 32 or even 30mm. Several vendors sell triples with offsets as low as 27mm (Ducshop).
Newer Monsters (02+) have a bigger 30mm offset from the factory, use a much larger diameter steering stem and do not come with roller bearings from the factory (though one could upgrade to SpeedyMoto's set if they like). The rake change from old style monsters to new style monsters is a small but perceivable 23 or 23.5 (depending on the source you read) to 24 degrees. IMA produces beefy billet aluminum triple sets (upper and lower, including steering stem) for older Monsters and Supersports that increase the offset to 30mm, same as the new Monsters, and even allow for the use of a Monster-esque bar on a Supersport (if one was so inclined). They provided me with a black anodized set for my Monster.
Installation involves suspending the front end of the motorcycle, removing the wheel, gauges, controls and anything touching the triples. Once that's all taken care of, the triples are loosened and removed from the bike. The inner races must be knocked out of the steering stem before the new races may be inserted. Then a new tapered bearing that has been well greased is driven on to the IMA triple's stem. The factory uses SKF bearings, and that's what I replaced the set with (obtained from CA-Cycleworks in SpeedyMoto's convenient packaging). Then its all put back together, titanium bolts all around, and you get:
From a bit of a distance:
Update - 3/29/2010
The finished product has a trail of approximately 90.5mm, and started closer to 96mm. original wheelbase was 1430mm, and the final result is minimally smaller. The feel is fantastic on the street, though I've only put about 1,000mi on since the original writeup. I've yet to find really great roads outside of DFW like I had nearby in Middle Tennessee. Looks like its time to start taking off bling so I can track this bike. Or perhaps its time to invest in a 2nd bike for track only.
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