begun the collection of key parts for the scoot I will be riding...
Case venting experiments will prbably start in the spring, with
building efforts and porting/polishing efforts over the winter.
Hmmmm anyone have an ugly but straight Gts frame they want to sell me?
Notice that with about 12 miles on this GTS I switched to the Zippy 1's for around town blasting. When they wear out in a while, I will change to the heidenau's. I just can not ride on the sava's. This GTS also came with a defective front disc. totally warped and screwy. I am going to get a warrantee'd one hopefully from Vespa Brooklyn. They are good people over there, and I hope they can help me with this. Luckily, I already had a really nice front disc, so I put the one from my old bike on there, along with the front Bitubo shock. It just makes such a big difference. people who like the stock one better are on crack...
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4 comments:
Joel, you're a warrior and it was inspiring to experience CBR vicariously through your blog. As you apply GTS-optimization lessons learned to your new bike (great color, by the way!), I'd like to pick your brain on some observations:
1) Mods - Variator: Based on your and other GTS riders' comments, it seems as though just about everyone started with an aftermarket variator (J Costa, Malossi, Polini) with many going back to stock at some point in the run. Any clear winners among these for power/performance boost? Are the aftermarket variators more troublesome than the power they provide for a long distance ride, in your opinion? Thirdly, it sounds as though you guys were pulling and replacing variators and weights frequently; is this as simple as it sounds, or would this be a bad disaster for someone not super-skilled in Vespa wrenching?
2) Mods - Exhaust: the Leo Vince 4Road gets a lot of attention on MV - are any others worth looking at, such as the Giannelli?
3) Mods - Fuel Injection Mapping: near as I can tell, products like the Super Corsa Racing Power Boster Piaggio Fuel Injector Engine (sold by Motorsport Scooters) were not used at all by Cannonballers. Was their use so obvious as to not be mentioned, or is there a reason why products like this are disadvantageous on longer rides?
Anything obvious missing beyond tires, shocks, etc.?
Many thanks in advance, and congratulations on an amazing ride and near come-from-behind outright victory,
- Jack K. Barnes
Miami Beach, FL
2007 GTS 250i.e.
Modern Vespa: JKB
Jack,
Lets email about this.
Email me!!!
The variator that I feel is the fastest?
Polini, hands down. BUT, it will bite your case and dig into it until you start losing oil, which is really not a good way to go fast for a long time. WOT wise, I think the stock or 'costa (i hav had all three in my GTS's's) would be safer, and not quite as fast. I am going to try a costa on a 300 mile ride and really let 'er have it and report back.
The LeoV is great, but I just got a PM tuning pipe, because I really feel that the resonant frequency matching to the intake is beter with the loopy header thing that PM makes. Take a look at it. I have never tried the gianelli, and nobody I know has one. The Leo vince is great, especially if you take the time to get it fit up properly and put ZERO stress on the downtube. You WILL break the downtube if you dont take the time on the install with he leoV. It may not happen right away, but riding WFO for 400 miles a day will certainly compress time for you, and it will break.
I had a corsa booster and disconnected it, Rich had a corsa and left it connected and finally burned an injector. I am not SURE that it was the booster box, but all i know is that those things normally do not fail, and his did and mine didnt.
I am not sure if Jess left his connected or not.
I may hook mine back up for around town, but I wouldnt use one for distance riding, regardless, anymore. You need to balance MPG with performance, so aerodynamics and weight play an incredibly important role. Next time I would take off the buddy pegs take off the rear rack, take anything off that isnt a part of making it go faster or better or straighter or more efficiently.
Good tires are crucial. I ran a bitubo on my GTS, then jumped on a stock GTV and it felt like a hobby-horse in any kind of quick sweeper. totally useless suspension on the stock bikes, especially in the front. it might as well have just been springs.
The bitubo will at least bias properly attitude wise in a corner, so that really helps IMO. some guys love 'em, some people dont. I do.
The heidenau K61 with a 140 rear (140 is crucial for top end and MPG gains) is for sure what i would run in another CBR. for sure. They last really well, and they feel good. Sticky enough, wear long enough... I would change them on day 5 no matter what though.
Belts: I would bring like 5 belts with me. it sounds crazy, but these are crazy circumstances. For distance riding where you are not pushing TOO hard, just bring 2 spare belts and 1 set of rollers.
Top end is key for distance riding, forget about any clutch type of crap... I am going to do some venting mods and experiments on the case around the belt, and see if i can keep it cool. That seems to be THE biggest contributing factor, or at least one of the biggest when you are talking about new belts here.
Email me if you have more questions, I am glad to share.
KING. Your comments are much appreciated, Joel, and it's clear you've got some 2.0 mods in the hopper (the German carb/EFI configuration sounds over the top). I'll drop in on the MV CBR2008 thread or create another to follow up. Many thanks, and talk soon, - JKB
PM pipe was through SIP.... we shall see!!
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