SuzukiSavage.com - That 70's Show

ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #60 - 12/06/16 at 10:53:37 Rear tank support at front of subframe...
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #61 - 12/06/16 at 10:55:05 Subframe mounts welded and flapwheeled smooth. Subframe and electrics mounted....
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #62 - 12/06/16 at 10:55:44 Side view...
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #63 - 12/06/16 at 10:56:14 Back view...
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #64 - 12/06/16 at 10:57:04 OEM GT185 tank pad and strap...
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #65 - 12/06/16 at 10:57:26 Tank mounted. White plastic spacers hold the front of the seat up just enough to keep it off the tank...
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #66 - 12/06/16 at 10:58:40 Re-purposed stock seat mount to hold tank strap as seen in another build thread. (Will remember to mask off frame to prevent scratches during mock up if I ever do this again)...
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ohiomoto Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 2685 WTF is JOG?	Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build Reply #67 - 12/06/16 at 10:59:38 Seat mounted but need to get shorter bolts...
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ohiomoto

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #68 - 12/06/16 at 11:00:01

Pretty satisfied with the way it's coming along. I need to tidy up the front of the rear fender, make a battery tray and mount the igniter box to it before tackling side panels and the mid-controls.

I took it for a spin up the street and it's pretty tall compared to stock and pretty "funny" with the forward controls. I could have dropped the rear end more if I had mounted the front of the tank higher but then would need to add longer shocks to level it all out again. So I would end up pretty much where I'm at now. Sort of a "Ryca Style" stance without the longer shocks. I think I could "massage" the subframe an inch lower if I really needed to while maintaining the line with the tank if I had to. I'm pretty tall so I'll probably leave it depending on how the pegs work out.

It's getting there...

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ohiomoto

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #69 - 12/06/16 at 11:25:03

xaman wrote on 12/05/16 at 20:32:56:

Looking great! No problems with the forks touching the tank?

--------------

Thanks for the complement.

The tank clears perfect but if I were to move 1/8th inch up or forward, the top clamp would hit. My decompression solenoid hits the tank tunnel when it engages so maybe 1/2" higher wouldn't be a bad thing. Then you could drop the rear subframe and add some longer shocks out back to level it all out. Sort of a win/win/win.

That said, the solenoid opens and the bike starts fine. I'll probably putt a small ding in the tunnel for clearance. No big deal.

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #70 - 12/06/16 at 12:02:29

Nice job making a "bolt on loop".

The tank fit is a challenge. I used a GT550 tank and lowered it a bunch so it would clear the top yoke....and it required a lot of work to notch for the top of the cylinder had at the cam chain, and I had to move the petcock back for clearance....and I had to play blacksmith and make the center tunnel in the tank deeper.

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #71 - 12/06/16 at 12:36:23

Thanks Dave. I was looking at the GT380 tank until I saw what you did with your tank. Way beyond my skills and patience!

Part of the reason I did my subframe the way I did was to have flexibility. I figured I would mess it up and didn't want to have to start from scratch. I can change the subframe mounts, the subframe or both as needed. Also, I could throw a tracker or cafe tail on it if I wanted. All I would have to do is fabricate a new subframe. I like the flexibility.

Turns out, this step went pretty much according to plan which was nice because I spent a lot of time planning and mocking things up before I dug into it. One thing I will say is adding a fender sure makes things harder. Fender, seat hoop, seat and tank. Too many moving parts!

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« Last Edit: 12/06/16 at 17:27:47 by ohiomoto »

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #72 - 12/06/16 at 12:43:40

ohiomoto wrote on 12/06/16 at 12:36:23:

I was looking at the GT380 tank until I saw what you did with your tank. Way beyond my skills and patience!

Making the GT380/550 tank did require a bunch of work - but it is nice having a 160 mile range!

A rear fender is a nice thing to have.....my Cafe' throws water all over me when I get caught in the rain! Angry

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xaman

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #73 - 12/06/16 at 21:09:29

This is super helpful. I've got the same tank in a box, waiting to be fitted to my savage scrambler build. Your posts will be really valuable when it's time, so thanks for sharing all the Intel.

Oddly, the forward controls don't bother me a bit. Mid controls would probably be more correct for a scrambler build, but my knees sure appreciate the current set up.

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Re: That 70's Show - 96 LS650 Build
Reply #74 - 12/08/16 at 07:52:26

Got the 320mm/~12.6" shocks yesterday and as suspected it jacked up the back of the bike just a bit too much for my liking. It's just a tad to "mid 70's motocross" for what I want.

I could lower the tail of the subframe and bump up the font of the tank to make it work. I would lose just a bit of space for my battery (the little Antigavity is tiny so it wouldn't be a big deal). But don't think I want to move the tank higher up by the top clamp and I really want the fender closer to the rear wheel.

Or I could even embrace the tall motocross look and take the 2" drop out of the forks and get that cushy ride back. At 6'3", I could pull that off but I makes the bike look short IMO.

I like the way it looks with the stock shocks. So I either suck it up and tweak the subrame to take to fit or live with the shorty stock shocks.

EDIT: The more I see this picture the more I hate those shocks on my bike. Ha ha. The were sold shortly after this post.

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« Last Edit: 02/27/17 at 08:44:19 by ohiomoto »

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