It's alive!

"BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires" (biturbo228) 07/14/2017 at 05:16 • Filed to: World's Fastest Cafe Racer

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Started first time, and sounds pretty damn good :) the videos just don’t do it justice, even on decent speakers. Interestingly, it’s not ear-splittingly loud given how small a diameter the silencer is. Won’t pass MoT, but with a baffle it should be no problem :) more videos after the jump :)

And after a bit of tuning to get it to run right

Jobjoris > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 06:07

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And you made that silencer yourself! AWESOME! What’s next.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Jobjoris 07/14/2017 at 07:40

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Yeah I know! It turned out pretty much perfect (mostly by accident I’m sure) :) not so loud that it’s unrideable, but still thoroughly meaty in person. Wasn’t even horrendously difficult either (although it did cost about as much in raw materials as an aftermarket silencer on its own, so I can see why people don’t bother).

Next up is to fit the stainless brake hoses that are in the post, modify the shitty aftermarket choke cable I bought that’s too long, sort fuel lines, replace tyres, a bit of wiring up the LED lights and then ride the thing!

Jobjoris > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 07:58

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My guess would be you’d never beat the price of a stock one but building your own is always better. Especially on a cafe racer ;-)

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Jobjoris 07/14/2017 at 09:49

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Absolutely ;)

If you go into specifics, then it beats the price. The exhaust I’ve made is 48mm (stock is something smaller than that). Most slip-ons need 50mm pipes, so you’d need a link pipe which adds a little. Then, mine’s got an alloy outer tube and wound up being 2kg lighter than the other aftermarket one I had. An alloy aftermarket one is probably more expensive.

Of course, I probably wrecked even that by making mistakes and having to order 3x the amount of tube needed, but still! Making your own stuff feels good :)

Jobjoris > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 10:10

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Don’t forget the hours you put in it. My hours would cost me over 100 euro each so... ;-)

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Jobjoris 07/14/2017 at 10:12

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Oh yeah, I always forget about that.

I don’t think I value my time particularly highly... ;)

davedave1111 > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 10:20

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“I don’t think I value my time particularly highly...”

Oh good. Want a job? :)

davedave1111 > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 10:22

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I’m not sure what the MOT rules for motorbikes are, but if they’re similar to cars then protruding sharp edges are a problem. You may need to pad/wrap the mounting bracket and possibly the front end of the silencer if those corners are sharpish.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > davedave1111 07/14/2017 at 10:28

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That’s a good point. I’ll check that out. The front of the silencer is rounded, but the mount might fall foul if it’s a thing.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > davedave1111 07/14/2017 at 10:30

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Haha ;) what is it?

My philosophy is that my time is only worth something if realistically I would otherwise spend it making money. If I’d spend it reading, or watching TV, or otherwise bumming around then it’s worth diddly squat.

davedave1111 > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 11:49

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https://www.mot-testing.service.gov.uk/documents/manuals/index.htm

I didn’t realise the motorbike MOT was so basic. Doesn’t look like it’s in there as far as I can see.

davedave1111 > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 07/14/2017 at 11:53

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If you’re working free, I’ll think of something :)

I think I value my reading/bumming around time higher than you, but fortunately I actually quite enjoy fixing things on the cars so it’s not a problem. I tend to look at it as ‘earning’ the money I spend on tools instead of mechanics’ services.