The Diesel Project

[cheesy]

The cafe seat and frame hoop showed up today.

Heading to Farm & Fleet tomorrow to get new tanks for my oxy-acetelyne torch so I can make stuff start to fit.

[cheesy]

Got a lot to do to make the Kawasaki tank and generic seat to work with the Suzuki frame.

[JerryHawk250]

Nothing duct tape and zip ties can't fix. Lol it's starting to look like a bike. Progress!

[cheesy]

Started trying to make the tank fit this afternoon. Almost there. I have really missed futzing with my torches.

[cheesy]

Got somewhere today.


Sticking with the stepped seat for the time being because no mods are required to make it fit. Once Mrs. C decides she doesn’t like it, we’ll try the cafe seat.

[cheesy]

The tank is solidly mounted now. The back end of the tank is about an inch below the nose of the seat now. Any higher or lower would move the petcock out of level.

[cheesy]

I got around to welding the rear tank support in place last night. Now that I have it set where it's going to stay, I can now see that the 1985 KX250 tank was a pretty good choice for a diesel tank. On either side of the tank are two M6 threaded inserts where I can support the return line with P clamps. There are also plenty of flat surfaces near the filler neck to mount a bulkhead fitting for said return.

Pretty smart of Cheesy to pick that fuel particular tank.*




*Even if he didn't think of it at the time.

[cheesy]

Still waiting on the tubes. That part of Tim hasn't changed. Anyway, I started to work out the wiring. I'm not running an ignition system, so that simplifies things. A lot. Basically, I will be splicing into the 'run' wire at the engines' brain box and running that to a 6 circuit fuse box. All I am running off the box are lights and a horn. The lights are all LED.

The handlebar controls are Euro spec, which means there is a headlight switch and a headlight flash switch in addition to the usual stuff. I'm bypassing the starter switch because there is already one on the brain box. Might skip the headlight flash switch but will have to get fancy with the kill switch, because, diesel. Maybe do either a relay/solenoid set up to the mechanical shut down or just run something like a choke cable. Brake light and clutch safety switches are in the levers themselves. I do have the ability to run a gear indicator but after running manual transmissions since 1971, think I'll skip that.

I'm not sure what size charging system is on the engine. It could be a 12 amp or a 30 amp. If it's a 30 amp, great. If it's a 12, it should work okay with LEDs. I wired up the headlight to my 15v DC power supply last night and pulled a max of 0.5A at 12.5vdc on high beam. I still need to check the rest of the LEDs but I would be surprised if the max draw was over 4A.

[Emerikol]

Really nice to see this project moving right along. I really need to get back after my CB and CL builds. This thread is giving me a much needed kick in the rear to go out into the workshop and pull the sheets off the bikes and get wrenching.

As for the shutoff option, just my two cents' worth here, but would a NC/Powered Open solenoid make sense? That way the bike will be just that little bit harder to hotwire. If the solenoid doesn't have power, the mechanical fuel shutoff won't allow fuel, hence no big bang. That's what popped into my head, at least. Obviously I'm not there to see the setup first hand, so I could be way out in left field. Regardless, really enjoying this build, Cheesy!

[cheesy]

I was thinking along those lines, Em, but not regarding hot wiring, the engine also has a backup pull start.

For grins yesterday, I went through the rest of the lights and the horn to check for amp draw. Phhhtt! Except for the horn and the one soon to be swapped out incandescent bulb, the total draw wasn't even an amp. Most of the the individual lamps drew about 0.01A. The horn draws 1.5. I'm sure the starter has a healthy draw. Which is why I'm keeping the headlight switch. Like the horn, though, only momentary.

[Oddball Matt]

LED lights are cool, I just redid the i terior lighting of my van, 2x2 strips front to back on the cargo cpace ceiling and another two short ones on both sides of the cockpit ceiling center console. Total power output is around 15w which is a bit over an amp (and as it happens the exact same draw as the three incandescent bulbs on the original cargo space light) and the difference is quite literally like night and day! 5m roll of 12v sealed strip cost me a twenty and I had enough left to make a workspace light into my computer corner in the garage as well.

[cheesy]

Welded the fuse box mount in place this afternoon. When I say welded, I mean 'extensive tacking'.* I'll finish it up tomorrow.



*Apparently, my stick welding skills have gone into hibernation. It's not going anywhere but it's ugly.

[Emerikol]

Cheesy, have you seen these super fantastic "Weld Maker Betterers"? They are in a word, "MAGIC"! They instantly transform even the most terrible welds laid down by children who broke into their parent's workshop and started playing with all the big power tools into works of art that look like they were put there by the gods themselves! And the best part? You can find them in nearly any hardware store.



http://www.chinariders.net/attachmen...1&d=1607080759

[JerryHawk250]

Those flap disk are magic. They will turn the crappiest welds into works of art. Ask me how I know. I couldn't tell you the last time I stick welded. I got spoiled with the MIG welder. lol I've done my share of stick welding back in the day of fabricating metal buildings. Spend all day welding up steel columns and rafters. Man was that boring. lol

[cheesy]

Do they fill gaps?
Seriously, I have some and they are great little things to have for cleaning up welds. These welds are where I couldn't get to with an RA grinder. So, wire brush the snot out of the welds and hit them with the wire welder this afternoon.

On the plus side, I did get to use Big Boy tools to make the mount. Used 1 1/4" square tube for the mount. Cut it with my portable band saw, squared the ends up with a flap disc(also Crooked Cut Maker Betterer), transfer punched the holes, and drilled the holes with the new to me drill press. Finished up with deburring tools and an M5 tap. I should say that I added a variable speed controller to the drill press. Sometimes, even the low speed of 600 rpm is too high.
I swear, it took me longer to find the fuse box each time I set it down.