I cut back the Ryca-specified amount of inches from the mounting bosses on the frame, but when the bolts for the kit arrived I found they were too short--or more precisely the bosses weren't cut back enough. The difference was about 15 mm or 1/2". Has anyone else had this problem?

this Ryca kit is starting to sound less like a kit,... and more like a compilation of stuff,... and you figure it out...

I already do that,... didn't need a kit... ...

Serowbot wrote on 10/20/11 at 23:02:57:



If everyone wanted it to be easy, then paying $500 to have them convert your bike would be the way to go.

What problems are you encountering? I'm compiling a list for others to use and be aware of. The kit is still a good deal and while frustrating is worth the effort--at least in my opinion.


Gyrobob wrote on 11/27/11 at 03:45:21:

sbaugz wrote on 11/27/11 at 14:11:29:

same goes for me. in fact i found that I was the one often getting in the way of things and causing problems then the other way around. the build was pretty effortless indeed

beacon wrote on 11/27/11 at 14:07:18:



I'm still liking the project overall.  I'm not griping about it.

There are, however, several things that could have been handled better by RYCA without too much effort on their part,... things that they had to do one way or another, and the way they did it caused more time and frustration on my part.

 -- The rear wheel spokes are wrong.   ALL of them are bent.  I either have to send it back, or take it to a wheel specialist here, or take it apart myself and hog out each and every hole in the rim.  It is not very safe the way it is now.  I know, I know, there are several here who say it's no big deal, it works fine all bent like that.  I wonder what RYCA's lawyer will say in the first lawsuit,... "no big deal, it works fine?"
 -- The bolts on the ignition switch panel were loaded up with powder coating.  It took a couple of hours to get them cleaned up enough to accept nuts.
 -- The tanks didn't fit on the frames properly.  I had to relieve the frame and the inner panels of the tank to get the tanks free enough from the frame to not rub.  With a 650cc single, this would have made a lot of vibration noise or would have rubbed a hole in the tank
 -- The tanks needed a few evenings of bodywork to get them ready to accept paint.  Silly me, I thought that when I asked them to not paint the tanks so I could paint them (saving me some money), they would be primer ready.  None of the panels were really primer ready.
 -- The coil interferes with the tank.  I had to modify the coil mounting to get it closer to the frame.
 -- There are no RYCA supplied solutions for horn or crankcase fumes.  In my county, they check for those kinds of things.  I worked up a cheap ($8 for each bike) solution using auto smog parts.  The horn situation is still being worked.
 -- The linkages for shifter and brake etc., all needed to be thread-chased.  Luckily I have tap-and-die sets.
 -- The belt fouls on a crankcase bolt.  On both bikes I had to countersink that hole in the motor to get enough clearance.  As it is, there is about 1/16 clearance now, so I am hoping the belt doesn't wander any whilst underway.
 -- The air filter doesn't fit unless you are okay with the air filter sitting crooked on the carb, clamping it down real hard, and hoping it stays in place.  I did some cutting and welding on each bike to make room.
 -- The bolts supplied for attaching the seat to the pan are too short.
 -- The wiring is time consuming.  If you know how to do it, it might not be too hard.  If I had already done three or four of these conversions, I could probably have all the wiring sorted out and installed in an evening.  For me, though, there is a lot of trial and error, detective work, going back and forth from the .pdf pages to the youtube skits, to try and do this correctly.  It is taking three times as long as it should.
 -- The RYCA bolts for the engine mounting needed some length adjustments.
 -- The muffler has about 1 oz of silencing material in it.  I had to repack each of them to start off with.

There are some more items I can't think of right now.  Beacon, I'd like to see what items are on your list so far.

Also keep in mind the thread we are using to document the effort is called Double RYCA build,.. so every problem is multiplied by two.

Now, lest any of you get the wrong idea, I am not upset with the project.  Putting these bikes together with the kit is way less work than doing something from scratch.  The kit does cost a lot, though.

We will finish these things and we'll be delighted when we can get out in the hills and play.  I'll be bragging to everyone how cool this machine is.  The very first ride will be quite a thrill.

I could make a list of all the things I like about the kit and it would be a long list, but this thread is not dealing with that issue at the moment.