micargi puma gts newbie build

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Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
Cool that's kinda what I thought but just wanted to ask first. I'm still waiting on funds to allow me to get the bracket welded on but just planning ahead
 

Tony01

Well-Known Member
Nov 28, 2012
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sf bay area
Cool that's kinda what I thought but just wanted to ask first. I'm still waiting on funds to allow me to get the bracket welded on but just planning ahead
I can weld it for you. I got my buddy's HF mig 170 with flux core wire... It's strong but ugly... You can use my grinder to clean it up.

Btw a really cheap place for nuts, bolts, and electronics is HSC in Sunnyvale near Lawrence and central expy. Forget about paying $1 for a 1/4-20 Allen bolt at osh or hd.. More like 5cents...
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
Update. I finally got the bracket welded on. I'm in the process of cleaning the welds then I have to paint it and reroute the throttle cable and do something about the kill switch and redo the muffler bracket too. Thank you tony01 for offering to weld it but the other day I took it to a muffler shop and he mig welded it for me. It feels allot stronger then before. In I'm excited to finally ride it again but I got some work to do first.
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
So while I was smoothing out the welds I thought instead of grinding down the welds completely smooth I would leave as much weld and use Bondo to smooth the welds. My only concerns before I do this is the vibrations from the motor cracking the Bondo. I don't plan on making the Bondo thick but just to smooth the welds for a nice finish.
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca

I know there's a little gap between the welds but I don't want to use Bondo to fill the gap between the plate and the frame. I wanted to use the least amount of Bondo cause I'm worried that the vibrations will crack the Bondo if it's on too thick.
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca

There is some orange peel but with the seat there I'll never notice it. I also regreased the rear wheel bearing although it had plenty of good grease so I don't think ilk do the front one quite yet. Now all I have to do is put the bike back together and go for a ride.
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
A quick update. It's running good now that I got the seat post bracket all fixed. Just found out I'm running a bit lean but I'll fix that. I'm having an issue with my muffler mount breaking on me so I gotta sort that out. I'm gonna go to orielly's to look at the mounts there. I'm getting about 30mph regularly but I'll see once i get it jetted right. If I can get 35+mph top speed then I'm good, I'm not really looking to go over 40. On a side note I did notice a little oil around the head gasket so I might take the head off, sand it, and coat the gasket with copper spray gasket seal, or just get a copper gasket. I do have a compression tester so I can test before and after.
 
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Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
Got my muffler mount figured out. Should be good now, I used a clamp and hanger from a car so should hold up fine. I dealt with my head today too. I checked compression and it was at about 120lbs so I took the head off and the gasket did have some oil on the mating surface. I cleaned everything and sprayed the gasket with permatex copper gasket sealer. I didn't sand the head cause it's the rt head from dax and looked very good quality aluminum. I put the head back on, torqued the head bolts to 140in-lbs and rechecked compression. It was at around 150lbs now so it should be better.
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
I don't want to take it all apart again. If it continues to leak I'll check the jug. It'll be allot more work to remove the jug since I don't have the room to just slide it off the studs or even without the studs to slide it off the piston. I'd have to remove the engine. Side note the ports looked nice like they were smoothed.
 
Aug 26, 2015
472
6
18
Overgaard AZ
Oh I'm familiar with the fitting issues. I've got the Mustang now. Thanks to you lol.

In all seriousness, Thanks for such an awesome build thread, without your photo documentation, I would never have thought to attempt. Thanks for removing all intimidation!
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
Thanks for the kind words. This is my very first build thread I've ever done. I've built allot of rc cars and models and always liked detailed build threads but I've never thought about doing one myself till now. I always thought of making one after I started building so I thought I'd give it a try with my very, very first mb. I know I didn't pick an easy bike add a first build but I REALLY liked the style. It's been a long road and I'm still fixing stuff but it's mostly small stuff now. But I've always liked to work on something so this is a great hobby.
 
Aug 26, 2015
472
6
18
Overgaard AZ
Threads like this are beloved by me for good reason. Before turning a wrench, or spending a dollar, I knew exactly what I was up against. Every hurdle I had to jump was documented, from the front motor mount to the rear hub, I knew what I needed, even if I managed to screw up. I knew the rear wheel was less than optimal, and that a rag joint wouldn't work. I really enjoyed your thread not just because it was a direction I wanted to go, but also because I feel like I contributed. Before your seatpost ever broke, I saw the plate you recently installed. I thought it would be a cool and useful modification, so I brought it up. I'm really glad you chose to use my idea, one because I get to see it without doing it, and two because it made me feel like I helped. Regardless you had likely thought about it before, you did it after o brought it up, so at least from my perspective it seems like I was important. Unfortunately I can't use my own idea on my own bike, the "void" doesn't exist on the mustang, it's more along the lines of the old cantilever frames. Still I like the idea, and plan on incorporating it into my bike somehow. Thanks again buddy, and keep that rolling piece of art shiny side up.
 

Motakitty

Member
Feb 14, 2015
447
3
18
San Jose, ca
Went for a ride to work today and it ran worse with the new fatter jet. I think it was running slightly lean due to the leaking head gasket, which doesn't appear to be leaking anymore. I'll install the 65 jet again and then see how it runs. With the 70 it was four stroking allot and was only going 22mph so it didn't like that jet. My temps were always around 250f so I really wasn't worried about it. My muffler mount didn't break, I think it should be good now I used mounts for a car so it's kinda overkill, but that's what we need to do.
 

Tony01

Well-Known Member
Nov 28, 2012
1,876
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sf bay area
Quite the journey. Hey did I see you once around hillsdale? Do you wear a peanut helmet? I was in a hurry at the time or I would have pulled over as it's extremely rare to see other MBers on the road. Good thing you got it migged, just started doing mig and the difference is unbelievable over flux core.. But I still do flux core at home.