Salt Flats Silver Wing

Answers:



The front end is from last years bike, mostly because it works well at speed and it was already prepared. Also, once the class record starts moving up, there is a ZR rating tire requirement, and this uses 17" tires that really steer well at high speeds. We really like the extra wheelbase on Dan's bike.



The cam, made by WebCam in Riverside, CA, is about $200 and works best with shorter head pipes and intake lengths. If you go down this path, take the inlet plate off (on side air box) and remove the flame arrestor screen inside the airbox (most of them I find are plugged up from all the years of crankcase vapors). Generally, I recommend leaving street engines pretty much stock, putting them in good shape (rings, valve cleanup, etc.) and getting weight off the bike. Taking off weight, and changing the front end, completely alters these bikes. It's also the cheapest way to go.



JimL

Not at all....I don't offer anything for sale, or sell any advice or consultation. I believe in screwing stuff up all by myself, with no outside interference!!



I stumbled on these engines a few years ago, and finally figured out how to make them run hard. Because Bonneville is an old hobby of mine, and there is a specific engine class for pushrod motorcycles, this is a fun site to share conversation. A lot of what I've learned has come from members, and some have actually helped find bits and pieces with me.



Hopefully my little projects are entertaining to some. Thank you all.



JimL



P.S. This years entry lists "Chopper Charles" on the supporter list for the 1581 bike. Thanks again for maintaining this fun website.

I mentioned the issue with handling. Tonight I took a pic of the inside of the "streamlined" front fender. You can easily see that it was folding over at high speed (above 150) and then flipping back and forth until I got back down to around 135. I will NOT make this mistake again. You are looking at the inside of the right front of the fender, which explains why the bike felt like it would "dive" to the right (caused by the front wheel pitching left and tipping me right). Ugly, ugly feeling.



I think we're at the end of this thread....I'll start a new one when the next project gets moving (destroked engine to 649cc).



Thanks everyone, and have fun with your projects!



JimL