150cc Ice Bear Terifecta Trike

[wheelbender6]

Originally Posted by OneLeggedRider

I spent a few hours on the bike this afternoon and I gotta say even though I don't care for the 4000rpm stall speed and lower ratio, I don't hate it. It reminds me of my old Malibu SS. When it does launch it's with a quickness (not common for a 150cc scooter) and accelerating on steep hills is an entirely new experience on this bike. But wound for sound I could only achieve 53mph whereas the stock setup would hit 59mph on the same straight stretch.

Ain't scooters great. To launch at a high rpm on a cvt scooter, all you have to change is one spring. In a car, like your old Malibu SS, you have to buy a (relatively) expensive high stall torque converter and pull the tranny to install it.

-Buy the way, if you have a pic of the old Malibu, please post it.

[OneLeggedRider]

Mine wasn't a true SS (which was an option in '78) but it had the SS badges on the grille and doors. Don Masters Sr owned a speed shop in Columbus Ohio and built the car for my bestfriend Don Jr with the stipulation that he make payments on it. Soon after Jr lost his job and I took over payments on it without Sr's knowledge. 6 months later I put a rod through the block after getting several speeding tickets in it and the game was up, Don Sr repossessed the car. But for 6 months at the tender young age of 19 I had a bada$$ car that got alot of attention from females and law enforcement.

It looked identical to the one in the pic, bright red with tinted windows.

[OneLeggedRider]

Damn pics still won't load!

Oh and on the scooter it's actually 4 springs, 1 giant and 3 tiny.

[OneLeggedRider]

Thanks Jerry for getting the pic to load.

[JerryHawk250]

Originally Posted by OneLeggedRider

Thanks Jerry for getting the pic to load.

No problem.

[wheelbender6]

Good looking Malibu!
I don't worry much about originality, numbers matching, etc (unless it is priced like an original)
I like a good "driver".
I don't want a car that is too original and too valuable to drive.

[OneLeggedRider]

Originally Posted by wheelbender6

Good looking Malibu!
I don't worry much about originality, numbers matching, etc (unless it is priced like an original)
I like a good "driver".
I don't want a car that is too original and too valuable to drive.

It was a relatively small car compared to some of the others I've had over the years, but Don Sr knew what he was doing. A built 383 stroker with 2200 stall converter, turbo 350 trans and posi rear end. It was kinda tricky taking off from a stoplight with a cop sitting at the intersection, but man was that thing fun. In our neighborhood there was a big Monte carlo, Elcamino, Cutlasses, Camaros, and a Mustang GT. That little Malibu spanked them all with the Mustang being it's only real competition. Ahh to be young and dumb again..

[wheelbender6]

Originally Posted by OneLeggedRider

Damn pics still won't load!

Oh and on the scooter it's actually 4 springs, 1 giant and 3 tiny, and all of them have to be tuned for the same rpm.

I did not know that. When I bought my Prima Stage 1 Kit, (Exhaust, jets, torque spring & rollers), only the bigger single red spring was included.
- I did not install the spring and rollers because I did not want to compromise top speed.

[OneLeggedRider]

Originally Posted by wheelbender6

I did not know that. When I bought my Prima Stage 1 Kit, (Exhaust, jets, torque spring & rollers), only the bigger single red spring was included.
- I did not install the spring and rollers because I did not want to compromise top speed.

The 3 little springs are clutch springs and determine at what rpm the bike starts moving. The big spring is what your variator weights are pushing against (through the belt) and it returns the weights to the center when you let off the gas. So it is the main thing controlling your gear ratio, the weights provide the fine tuning. And the clutch springs don't have to match the rpm of the big spring, but shouldn't be higher rpm rated than the big one, less is ok. If the rear pulley starts to open before the clutch engages you need lower rpm clutch springs.

[OneLeggedRider]

Through countless hours of research I'm getting more familiar with the CVT transmission and tuning, and the difference between roller weights and slider weights.

Lighter weights generally equal faster acceleration and shouldn't affect your top speed unless you drop more than 2 grams.

You want the engine to stay in the "band"/power range all the way up to top speed so it's best to start out light and go heavier from there.

Slider weights have 2 advantages, the biggest being longevity, rollers also slide and develop flat spots which can lead to chattering. And because of their ability to "cam out" you can get an additional 1 to 3mph top speed from slider weights.

When upgrading to sliders a general rule of thumb is slider weight = roller weight + 1 gram.

The advantage of staying with rollers are they're much cheaper than sliders, so you can get a whole tuning kit of rollers for the price of 1 set of sliders.

I ordered 13gram sliders for my bike, but upon further review I ordered an additional set of 12gram sliders just because I like the acceleration of 10gram rollers and their hill climbing prowess. To be continued..

[culcune]

Did you do your homework like I told ya!? And join https://49ccscoot.proboards.com/? It would be nice if someone with your experience can get as much knowledge with the GY6 as humanly possible and be our resident expert here

You seem to be getting very comfortable and familiar with your engine, and I will have to pick your brain when I start getting my TGB Express with its 151cc GY6 (Taiwanese-manufactured GY6, so a tad bit more power than the common Chinese GY6s) back on the road. I can start making deliveries again with my scooter...

[OneLeggedRider]

Culcune I'm actually embarrassed at my lack of knowledge of the GY6 and it's CVT transmission. I'm 48yrs old and consider myself "the mechanic", but sadly I've learned this is not the case in all applications. I'm quite familiar with the Polaris CVT transmission, but it's a different animal entirely. But I learn quickly and I'm sure it won't be long before I know every aspect of the GY6 and it's transmission.

And there's nothing complicated about the engine itself, I've learned the difference between the A and B blocks, the best cams, and when an upgraded oil pump is necessary, etc. And thanks to the POS 125cc ATV I'm learning about the auto clutch and it's starter motor.

[OneLeggedRider]

More CVT tuning. I got the NCY kit for my 150cc Trike and it came with red clutch springs and 10gram rollers. So yesterday I installed the blue springs and Dr Pulley 12gram sliders. Why does the kit come with red springs? Who wants to rev their engine to 4000rpm before you even start moving? The stock setup had 14gram rollers in it and I liked the increased power of the 10gram rollers but I did lose some top speed so I'm hoping the 12gram sliders will be a happy compromise. If not I might try 10 or 11gram sliders. I took it for a very short test ride (too cold out) which was too short to really get a feel for it. Probably bundle up today and go for an actual ride.

[OneLeggedRider]

Haven't posted a Trike update in a while so here goes. We installed the blue 1000rpm clutch springs and that calmed the launch down to 2000rpm, which is much more manageable than 4000rpm. Then we swapped the 10gram variator roller weights for 12gram Dr Pulley sliding weights.

It's damn near perfect. Very impressive acceleration (feels like a sportscar taking off) and still has the same top speed. Even at half throttle it will take off faster than Jay's Hawk and pull hard to 45mph. But the tuner in me tells me it would be even better with 11gram Dr Pulley sliders OR a 1500rpm contra spring.

The idea of tuning a CVT tranny is to keep the engine in it's powerband almost all the way to top speed, and right now I'm falling short of that by about 10mph. But I'm getting close and this has definitely been a learning experience. And compared to what the bike was stock it literally does feel like a sportscar now, it accelerates hard and will chirp the tires if the conditions are right. The stock chain is about done though, stretching like crazy so the next upgrade is a 428 X-ring chain.

[OneLeggedRider]

You can get crazy with a higher rated contra spring (say 2000rpm) and heavier weights (say 15gram) but then you're gonna be shortening the life of your belt, even if it's a Gates kevlar Powerlink belt that I'm running now. So it's best to try to tune everything with lighter weights and springs.

In the last month I've learned so much about the GY6 CVT that it's astounding. I knew the Polaris CVT transmission and tuning it, but it's a much more rudimentary snowmobile setup that's connected to a high horsepower engine so CVT tuning wasn't so important. The GY6 is just the opposite, low horsepower so you're trying to squeeze every bit of performance out of the transmission.