one more 40's Colson to add to the fleet.

[bairdco]

yup. i've run them both ways, and the backwards way runs better. i've proved it to myself.

one more thing about alumiweld. practice, practice, practice. if you've never used it before, i can almost guarantee you'll destroy everything you try to make, get totally (asterisked) off, and denounce it as total garbage.

i can say that from my experience, also.

 

[bairdco]

i got stopped by a costa mesa cop for drafting a moving van down the street. i never posted the speed because no one will believe me. it was 54mph. he was pretty upset when he saw me in a full tuck, about 10' behind a truck. but he let me go with a warning.

i seriously think i can get 60+ out of this new bike, and when i do, i'll post proof.

that's all i want to say about it. it's all heresay and bragging without proof.

i'm not gonna respond to anymore posts about top speed until i have something to show for it.

 

[Goat Herder]

i seriously think i can get 60+ out of this new bike, and when i do, i'll post proof.

that's all i want to say about it. it's all heresay and bragging without proof.

i'm not gonna respond to anymore posts about top speed until i have something to show for it.

Agreed! My China will get to 70 in a half hours time.

 

[Allen_Wrench]

Agreed! My China will get to 70 in a half hours time.

Yeah, well mine would do 0 to 60 (KPH) in about 15 minutes (given the traffic). So there

 

[bairdco]

so, this bike's done enough to ride.

i'm waiting on a few more parts, and i have to build a lighting system and coupla other things to really set it apart.

got it running just before dark, so i went for a 20 minute run to the liquor store.

this bike is fast. i mean, it's beyond "my china doll is fast" fast. it's more like "what the heck just passed me on the freeway" fast.

once i added the air filter, the carb started working great. i need to tune the mixture a bit, but it'll be fine without re-jetting. after i run it a bit i'll know if it needs different jets.

i think i de-bunked the "ram air" myth. without the filter, it seemed to be sucking too much air and bogging it out.

the pipe is the stock can, and i cut the pipe at the top and knocked it out so it's completely hollow, no baffles. bent up a stainless header pipe and flange, and the supertrapp tip with 3 discs. the empty can and the discs are the same basic principal as an expansion chamber, and i can use more or less discs to tune it. sounds awesome. not too loud, but not tinny and annoying like a normal 2 stroke.

it pulls the 28t sprocket up to speed quick, and starts winding out, so i could go even smaller, which means faster. depends on if i want a city cruiser or a record breaker. for now, i'll stick with the 28.

i'll put the aermacchi head back on soon and try that out, too.

here's some shots in the dark. i'll take more in the light, and after i get it officially "done."

 

[silverbear]

My friend, you have once again raised the bar. Aside from it's performance, it is a beautiful bike with flowing lines and very interesting fenders... all design elements suggesting speed and flow. I also appreciate that you are able to do all this without a great shop, big budget and expensive tools. Hat's off to Bairdco.
SB

 

[chainmaker]

Man what a great looking bike, like Silverbear said the lines, fenders...that thing looks fast just sitting there.Great job on that one!!!

 

[azbill]

agreed ,,,
it looks fast (and cool) just sitting there !!!
sweet build

 

[Goat Herder]

this bike is fast. i mean, it's beyond "my china doll is fast" fast. it's more like "what the heck just passed me on the freeway" fast.

I passed a semi truck with my china the other day so fast that I shook his rig so hard I thought he was gonna loose control and go of the road.

 

[bairdco]

thanks guys.

the fenders i picked up off ebay last year. they're aluminum with the fins on top, and came with those super cheap wire fender struts.

i'm actually using two front fenders on this bike, so you don't have to cut the rear for the chain, and it gives it that "bobber" look.

the front fender was re-drilled and modified to be kinda symetrical with the rear. if you look close, you can see the original cut out on the fin near the back where it shoulda mounted to the fork. the cool thing is, that's exactly where i need clearance for the air filter.

i made the curved struts out of some solid aluminum rods, hammered 'em, bent 'em and alumiwelded them on. there's a few old timey bikes that used to have struts like that, colson, hawthornes, etc...

really gives it that flowing look.

made a headlight today for the front fender, but mostly rode it all day since it was 75 degrees.

i'll post more pics soon, as well as some speed videos so i can make goat herder jealous.

 

[bairdco]

i keep burning out lights with the sturmey archer dynohub. i had an LED set-up i rigged up from a cheap flashlight that worked all summer long when i was just pedaling, but that toasted within the first few minutes of riding at speed.

bought some better LED's and rigged that up, and it lasted half a day.

the hub puts out 6v and 3w at normal speeds.

i put a 12v, 4w bulb from a lawn light in and it worked great all day. took it for a spin around the block after dark and it burnt out. it's like it knew it was nighttime and decided to fail.

i'm waiting on a callback from Sturmey Archer to see if there's any probs running their hub at 40+ all day and if they have any recommendations or advice.

tomorrow i'm gonna hook up my voltmeter to the dynohub and find out what kinda power it's putting out, then go from there.

if they can't handle it, there's no reason to use these hubs.

i'll probably start a new thread once i get the volt readings.

 

[BarelyAWake]

I'm sorry to hear of your troubles baird - I dunno what could be wrong, mine's been nothin' but trouble free... I use a 6v 3w incandescent for the headlight & a LED Upgrade Kit - C/D Cell | Nite Ize for the taillight & while the incandescent does burn out from time to time, it usually lasts for a thousand miles or so of "high speed" riding...

The 'Nite Ize' is a variable voltage/wattage replacement bulb... maybe it's acting like a regulator? I've no idea tho...

 

[bairdco]

just a small update...

got the lights working using a small voltage regulator. hasn't burned them out yet. also made a functioning brake light by rigging an off/on button to the brake lever and wiring it to a battery powered light.

installed the aermacchi head after modifying the squish band (the piston was hitting) and recessing the plug. the plug hole was really long, and with the longest reach NGK i could buy, the plug was still inside the hole about 1/4". i had to drill the top down, then carefully grind it so it would seat flat. now the plug sticks out like normal.

my first day of riding it with the modified head, and i'm pretty sure there's no other hopped-up HT motor on the planet that can hang with this bike, except for 4easy's.

and from the videos i've seen of morini's, you guys better watch out.

too bad Jim backed out of the 60mph challenge...

the problem i'm having now is with the clutch.

it can't hold at the speeds i'm going and slips like crazy. i've adjusted everything but the spring tension on the shaft, which i'm gonna try next.

i've shaved the pucks so they "float" and that made no difference at all.

i've also noticed that the clutch pucks are the same material as the rag joint. looks like a cut-up old bias ply tire. rubber and twine, basically.

rubber and string are not very good friction materials, so i'm researching where to find some real clutch (or organic brake shoe) material. looking up re-lining places in my area to try to find a place i can either buy some, or hopefully score a few scraps.

i read through 4easy's hybrid motor build-up and he had the same problem, and ended up with a centrifugal clutch welded up or something. i don't really wanna go that route.

it's no use building the fastest modified china doll if the clutch can't handle the pressure.

i was all set to get my buddy to video me passing cars on PCH (speed limit's 55mph) but with the clutch issues, it ain't happening.

i'll post some pics and videos soon, it's just that my bike's not pretty enough with all the crap i have to keep adjusting and modifying.

i'll definitely have it dialed in by this weekend's LA ride. gotta show those LA guys how it's done.

 

[skjjoe]

You could try the acme clutch kit. But tis not cheap( $50) and I had to mod it to work (stiffer springs ). Mine never slips grabs like **** to tell you the truth. I will see if i can find a link. I'm not sure if they even make them any more. When i get back home in the spring Ill be following some of your mods on mine (intake and carb )and I sure dont want that problem. http://motorbicycling.com/f23/acme-labs-clutch-kit-9119.html

 

[bairdco]

thanks, skjjoe. i got it kinda working. messed with the shaft spring a little. couldn't tell any real difference in tension or grabbiness, so i just cleaned everything up and messed with the flower nut and the cable adjustment till it works.

dunno how long it's gonna stay working, though.

i can get some real friction material, but i gotta order it so i won't have it for awhile. but i think i can get it for the cost of shipping, 'cause i told them it was for a prototype and i might be ordering it in pre-cut pucks.

he's gonna get back to me...

 

[bairdco]

i realized today i haven't taken any new pics of my bike in the daylight, so here ya go. this is what a 50mph+ bike looks like, sitting still.

pic 3 is my simple yet elegant tank mounting set-up. leather straps and fender rivets.

pics 4 and 5 are my functioning brake light. (with a close up of the Thomaselli Superpratic B throttle.)

 

[bairdco]

here's some more.

pic one is my modified clutch arm with a sperical bearing.

 

[bairdco]

last one for now. another view of my throttle and medium compound Renthall motorcycle grips.

 

[bairdco]

a coupla notes...

in the second set of pics you can see the missing front fender strut. it's on PCH (pacific coast highway) somewhere. luckily, it was subconciously designed to "break away" instead of jamming into my spokes.

if you notice the exhaust mount, it's got 2 stainless, 1/4 20 bolts in it. the threads on one side stripped out about ten seconds after i started building this bike, as they were only drilled about 1/4" into the jug. i fixed that by drilling and re-tapping them. also, i normally wouldn't use stainless with aluminum because it eats the threads, but it was all i had the night before the LA ride, so i slathered them up with anti-seize compound and haven't tried to remove them yet.

the chainguard is modified from another bike and hasn't been clear coated yet. and i plan on stripping the bike down again to repaint the darts and clear coating it with topflite lustrekote fuel proof paint.

the brakelight switch is just an off/on button (off when pushed, on when open,) that is JB welded to the brake lever. there's a bolt on the lever where the cable end goes that keeps pressure on the switch. when you pull the lever, the button opens, and the light comes on. it's the same principal as mopeds and motorcycles, just rigged to a bicycle lever.

the clutch finally works. after messing with every adjustment, inside and out, i took the disc and the flywheel off and scuffed the inner surface with a drill and a sanding wheel, like you would a brake rotor for a non-directional surface. this makes the pucks grab, and will probably wear them down really quick, so i don't recommend doing this if you don't have to.

i think that's about it.

oh, and this bike has a manual choke. by "manual," i mean it's supposed to be cable activated, but i just reach down and pull up on the spring loaded lever for half a block, and it warms right up. this bike starts right up really nice, so even on a cold day, you don't need the choke for more than 15 seconds. i guess you could call it a "suicide choke."

 

[silverbear]

Keeps getting better, Baird. How many miles do you guess you have on it now?
SB