My new Build!

[slugshot]

I went for the carbed R1, they have more than enough bhp for me as I only take it out for steady drives out

As for the most difficult part of the build, the build itself was straight forward enough but good planning is the key to making the build fun rather than a chore. Keeping things simple enabled me to have the tR1ke ready for the msva in less than 4 weeks of evenings and weekends working on the build. For me it wasn't just about doing the build, I wanted it on the road asap to have some fun and then tweak the tR1ke as and when to put my own ideas into it, 6000 miles later i'm still having fun trying different ideas.
Iv'e just remembered the low point building the kit... The headlights that I fitted are all in one with drl,turn signals and high,low beam in one shell... they are great but i'm no auto electrician so swore and cursed at them for 3 evenings before giving up and getting a mate to sort them out.

Cheers

Kevin

[Deleted]

I only take it out for steady drives out hahahaha Your hilarious Kevin :-)


I think if you look at making each stage a job, instead of over facing yourself with lots of niggling things. Make a list of all stages and tackle them in turn and steadily. If your getting frustrated or stuck, put your tools down, walk away, post the problem on the forum or just post whats up, there is always another day. I wasn't in as much of a rush as Kevin to get it done ASAP, but still 6 months and it was built, and that was based on maybe 3 nights a week, 3hrs per night and a full day on a weekend.

Depends on if you want it done quickly to then update afterwards, or whether you are setting out to make a concourse build straight away. Will depend on your knowledge of building, and craftsmanship as to how fast you accomplish the build.

I have got more than angry at certain stages, only to have Erik, Edwin and Kevin make light of what is really nothing.

If worried, just ask, someone will have come across whatever the issue you have, and will be able to advise the best course of action.

Nick

[bluecob99]

Its amazing really coz even though I'm at the good old age of 41 I still look forward to getting home from work to do a little more. I guess the nice thing is a bout this build is no tr1ke is the same in the fact we all have our desired way, for example, dash design, where you put your electrics, colour choices and not forgetting wheels, to me all your tr1kes look totally different even though its the same kit, if that makes sense!! And that's the nice part about building your own l think. Question for you guys, lm opting for normal gear change and wondered where you got your gear selector from, is it something you made from scratch or can you purchase from the net??

[bluecob99]

By the way thanks Nick for the kind words of needing help mate!

[erik]

The gear selector was a PITA to get right and I have seen not one way which looks professional other than Clicktronik system. I managed to use a rod to the gear changer instead of a push/pull cable with good travel/leverage but has some flex sideways. If it doesn't work like a charm on the long run a Clicktronik will be the next move for me.

There are great build threads over here with good ideas. Best advice I ccan think of right now is to be selective in the hardware you like. If you happen to find hundreds of wheels there are many reasons to reject near all of them until a few are left to chose from (size, color,logo,price,spoke design matching 4studs, availability of 2 wheels only instead of 4, E-approved and matching to other parts like steering wheel, gear knob,lights, bonnet color etc. it's really a trip by itself but if you got it right it will save you a lot of cash at the end of the build not buying twice.

The biggest downside to my build was/is waiting for parts to arrive and poor qty of outsourced labour you cannot get grip on. You need to believe in the craftmanship of others which I found pretty poor in my experience. Who likes debris under the powder coat...

[Deleted]

Crikey, my gear system has changed 5 times I think :-)

I started with a Kliktronic but could not get it to work properly (my mounts were wrong). When initially building it nobody could help, but after I sold it loads of people pointed out itwas wrong, so not very helpful. Non of the people were on this forum though :-)

I then fitted a tunnel mounted shift, and this was in front of the handbrake., I maybe modified how this worked 3 times, but after sacking off the dreadful handbrake and opting for a substantial Hydraulic Handbrake, the centre tunnel started to get crowded and the tunnel material itself resembled the craters of the moon :-)

I knew at this stage a major modification was needed. Unlike Kevin, I was not able to mount my handbrake where he has his, because my seats are full size full width Cobra Monacos

So I decided to fit the handbrake with its vertical arm in the centre tunnel, and moved my gear change down to the right and just in front of my drivers seat. I tell ya, I don't know why I didn't look to fit it here in the first place. Feels so natural, feels great, needed a slightly longer gear change cable, so have a 1.5mt for sale going cheap if it's of use? Cost me £40, yours for £30 inc postage.

Now I have finalised the design as such of the gear change, I looked to make the gear lever much smoother, looked to redesign it until I realised that my spare dog bone from the lowered bike it came from was going to be the best bet. I will just need to take the top section off, drill and tap the alloy, then screw in and weld a alloy shaft, attach a gear knob and it's done. Not conventional, not just sourced from the net. Fabricated to a certain degree, and most defiantly a one off :-)


I am also 41, and so far this is my second built kit vehicle and I have just finished my Café Racer......

Whatever you decide to do, you have a whole host of threads to browse, follow, copy and maybe improve on. I think when I built mine, I only had 1 build to follow, and that stopped near completion so I just had to make it like I thought it needed to be. Hold tight, it's gonna be a bumpy ride. But once you drive it, you will realise that all the hard work, bruised knuckles and pain is well worth it. Kevin is an excellent engineer and a great source for information, Erik and Edwin are a pair of Dutch loonies (meant in the nicest way) I myself am a hot head but a heart of gold. RTR are there as backup for major issues.

There is a lot of knowledge just on the TR1KE thread, but a whole heap of wider knowledge on the entire forum.

Good luck

Get some pics on of your progress.

Nick

[slugshot]

Oct 1, 2013 11:10:50 GMT bluecob99 said:

Question for you guys, lm opting for normal gear change and wondered where you got your gear selector from, is it something you made from scratch or can you purchase from the net??

    Hi Will,

You are better off making your own gear lever system and if you're going for the rocking lever type you can experiment with the cable ends at various  distance from the lever pivot to get the feel just right. Using a bearing on the pivot will help make the movement nice and slick and with a quality push pull cable like (cable-tec) the spring in the gearbox is all that's needed for a perfect change.

Cheers

Kevin



 

[andy7b]

Hi Will
I took 5 months to build mine and that was about 3 nights a week at 3 hours each and about 4 hours over the weekends ( I have a 2 year old :-). )
I like to keep things simple and as open as possible, I agree with Keving in that making your own gear lever is the way to go ( unless you choose the flappy paddle way)
There will always be bits that do your head in but just grab a beer and sit and look at it for a bit.
Good luck and I /we look forward to seeing some pictures :-)

Andy

[bluecob99]

Cheers guys, good information, l will get some pics on over the weekend, not there's much to see. Its nice having the kids join in for 2 mins then buzz off! I like to keep them involved but with you trying to work out what goes where, you know, they seem to get in the way, Ha. Just waiting for partsssssssss now, how long does it take??

[Deleted]

I didn't realise you live on the dark side of the moon, so it could take a while for the parts to arrive, as for the offer of sending the gear cable for a tenner, I will have to revoke that offer :-)

[erik]

From the UK is snail mail. I had several parcels send to me taking 4-5 weeks to arrive. 3 parcels x5 weeks... Not funny.
Ebay parts are shipped very fast tough . Items send from Germany will be send within 2 days. My steering wheel from Italy was snail mail as well.
Don't order items when they don't have them in stock. I waited 10 months for Momo wheels before cancelling the order.

[bluecob99]

Australia is a very non Kit car country really, not like the uk, everything here has a V8 under the bonnet, mainly ute's. I'm so surprised the Tr1ke has been given the nod here, originally l wanted to build the Mevabusa but the laws here to be, won't allow it, and actually lm glad I've gone with the Tr1ke anyway,there very different. Hopefully getting my brake package etc this weekend, your not allowed braided hoses here so l think copper is the best way, don't know what you guys have fitted pipes wise?
By the way, what is the smaller of the three tubes which goes in the centre tunnel??? I know the other 2 are cooling to radiator from engine just not sure about the small old chap?
Many thanks,
Will

[paulh]

Hi Will.
The smaller pipe is also for coolant.If I remember right it connects the oil cooler to the rad.
Mine is using braided hoses for all the brake system, but I did consider using copper. Just made the job a bit easier running braided hoses straight through. I could be wrong, but I think most are using the same as mine.

[bluecob99]

Thanks Paul, yep your right, it connects to the radiator. Got my engine in over the weekend mounting bolts didn't align bang on but with a bit of help from the trusty Makita drill all was fine in the end, seems so much more to the wiring with the fuel injected engine that's gona be the tricky part l think, Should have it on wheels by the end of the week then start the brakes, l will put some pics up soon, just so busy plus don't no much about computers!!

[Deleted]

Why after so many frames, have they not got these holes in the right place? :-)