putting my 400 where it belongs

[briyenkieth]

alright check this out, while cleaning up the garage I found a can of starter spray. Unable to resist myself I sprayed a couple of squirts into each port and to kicks later I was running!!! Although briefly since my carbs where still on the bench. Just waiting on the ups man to bring me the last of my parts to finish. I forsee a couple of blast down my street in a week or so. If you could only have seen my smile.

[courier11sec]

Just a reminder of which hand does what. Might need it since it's been almost four months since I got to ride.

Dammit! I so want to steal that idea!
Nice work on the chop.

[briyenkieth]

feel free! After 14yrs of tattooing I've learned there's no such thing as an original idea. I'm sure I'm not the first to get that.

[briyenkieth]

it's alive!!!! Primed the carbs few kicks and vroom! Idled rough and as I started to adjust it died. Tweenty minutes of kicking and nothing. Starter spray didn't help was getting spark, huh???? At some point I turned the petcock off! Already off and running on my Darwin award campaign for this year but damn! After that it sat and idled sweetly as I fiddled about tuning. placed a fan in front of the bike and let it run. It has been nine months since it was started. Shut it off and it started first kick. Thanks again Ian for the manual! From the carbs to ignition it's been a god send. Almost done reading the whole thing. Tomorrow I'll tackle the front caliper and adjust the clutch and chain. Then I still need a master cylinder for the front. Kinda want a remote resevoir unit. Just think they look trick, no other reason. I got some cash right now so it should be done in a day or so. Registered and insured no less!

[po-boy]

Glad to here ya got it runnin man.

[briyenkieth]

Thanks man. How you going on yours? To bad the few of us chopping live so far apart. Would look cool to see a bunch of chopped gs's together. Just came in from the garage( can't sleep to excited) cleaned the caliper and preped everything for assembly. Also sliped the new footrest rubbers on. It's incredible how the little things add up to make the total package. With those and the new battery strap and the shinny carbs and polished heat block with the new intake boots. Tomorrow/later today should net pods and front brakes.

[briyenkieth]

went for a few laps around the block today. Bike ran like pooh but I didn't care since it was the first time I got to ride it. The o-rings I ordered for the mix screws were wrong which I think is my biggest issue. Should of went thru cycle o-ring,live and learn. Didn't have the pods on either, local shop didn't have the right size in stock. Could be more of my problem I'm sure. Little phaqer is loud! I guess the mufflers are in name alone. Rebuilt the caliper but still need a master cylinder. Never got past twenty mph so the rear brake worked for now. Couldn't image actually going out into traffic that way though.

[po-boy]

I'll bet oncoming traffic could see the grin on yur face from 2 blocks away! Works been slow on mine. Damn cold weather, runnin out of things I can fab/paint inside the house. Keep chippin away at those last little projects and yours will purring like a kitten and stoppin on a dime...

[briyenkieth]

I was a bad boy today. Snuck the bike over to my dads house without my plate or insurance papers. Went the back way so it was low profile.
really need to jet it now. Falls on it's face when any form of agression is applied to the throttle. Right up to where the main jet comes in pulls real strong. Fortunatly no exhaust leaks. Had an intake leak around the boot but scored a set of clamps from the salvage yard.
on the subject of jetting, the main is a 112.5. I'm thinking of ordering a couple of 117.5,122.5,127.5 each. Do these sound like I'm going in the right steps? I read a thread sometime ago that suggested uping in these increments.
Otherwise I wish I was smart enuff to put into words how cool it was to walk out of the gas station and have it sitting there. Thanks to everyone that helped me get this far.

[briyenkieth]

Read another thread on jetting and the guy ended up at 132.5 main jets with pods and stock exhuast. Think I might start there since I have pods and free flowing mufflers. Get a few different sizes going up from there. Ordered a few more odds and ends. New resevoir and cap for my master cylinder an oil seal for the shift shaft and a new o-ring for the oil filter. That should seal it up and make things look nicer.

[briyenkieth]

alright so as of this post I'm sitting in hell!!!(DMV) Last step to on the road. When I leave here the 400 and my car will be legit. This is gonna hurt! Have 25 yrs of back registration to pay on the bike and a handful of parking tickets on my car. Looking at a total of $1300+! Ouch!!!!

[imnowhooked]

alright so as of this post I'm sitting in hell!!!(DMV) Last step to on the road. When I leave here the 400 and my car will be legit. This is gonna hurt! Have 25 yrs of back registration to pay on the bike and a handful of parking tickets on my car. Looking at a total of $1300+! Ouch!!!!

No offense...but another reason I'm glad I don't live in Cali!!!

[briyenkieth]

None taken. I can't wait to get out of here myself. My rent a month is equal to what my mother pays in land tax for 15yrs. My brother and his wife bought their dream home a year back for 120000, and it's almost 5000 square foot on two acres. Not to mention the reaming we are getting from the govenator.
At last I'm leagaly on the road. Full coverage was cheap. Like $250 a year.
Paint is not doing to well. A bit of gas leaked out and bubbled the paint around the filler neck. I think I can touch it up but not sure if it's worth it. Also seems I didn't prep the liner inside well enuff. Got a big bubble right under the cap on the tunnel.
Otherwise everything works properly. Nothing has fallen off..... yet! Bolted the plate on so I'm fully legit and loving life!

[bigmike1980]

how about some new pics? bike looks great glad I found your build thread

[briyenkieth]

I have been lagging haven't I? I've done some little things here and there that I feel are pretty slick. Like the delete for my tach drive, tapped the drive housing and put an Allen screw in. Looks sweet and fits like factory. First thought was to tap the head but didn't want to pull the valve cover. Pics to come as soon as I take some.
I think I figured out some of my carb issues. Float levels were 1/4 inch to high/low (depending on perspective). Now I did check when I rebuilt but my tape measure is wrong by a 1/4 inch! Once I figured that out it made sense and jived with how it was running. Rode it to work tonight and it felt like it was flooding out. When I got home a plug check showed real real rich. So with stock jets, pods and free flowing mufflers that shouldn't of been. Problem with late night tuning is no one wants to hear you ripping up and down the street. Test ride in the morning.
Felt great to ride though. Strangly the front feels rougher than the rear. Like there's to much preload, if it was adjustable. Again thanks to everyone for the help, interest and support.