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Pictures of my rat 'tard

4K views 35 replies 21 participants last post by  BSharp 
#1 ·
Here are a few pictures of my newly minted rat moto. It started off as a 1995 XR250L, and has benefited from a Krylon rattlecan makeover and a pair of GS500 wheels. I still have a few minor brake issues to work out, but the wheel conversion is basically done. There's no telling what I might do next, probably depends on what kind of cheap parts I stumble across.

Opinions welcome!





 
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#10 ·
fyi

BSharp said:
Hey, I'm all for learning...what don't you like?
I thought it warranted a 2nd look as well..just not something I had seen, then when I looked closer BAM it hit me that is the same as we use on Downhill Bicycles And it works well ther, so why not. Glad to see someone that isn't turning thar motorpickle into Amer. Chopper project # 3,009,553......sending respect yer way BSharp.....
 
#13 ·
Hotcorner said:
Looks to me like the side to side flimsyness of the caliper mount would allow the pads to drag/bump around on the rotor, but I'm no engineer.
You can't really see it in those pictures, but the caliper itself fully floats in a U-shaped carrier. Not only that, but the aluminum bracket isn't rigidly attached to anything at the bottom, it just rides on the wheel spacer. It does rattle around a little, but that's by design. The only thing that bracket does is hold the caliper at the right radius from the axle. As Bayou pointed out, the torque link from the bracket to the swingarm takes all of the braking force.

This is basically the same setup we used to run on our flattrack bikes. It would have been better to hang the caliper under the axle so that the torque link could be in tension instead of compression, but I think we made it plenty stout enough to compensate.
 
#15 ·
There will always be a soft spot in my heart for ratbikes. Nice job making one look respectable!
 
#20 ·
Vtard said:
I'd rattle can that frame as well for the "complete look" :D :thumbup:
I thought about that, but it seems like it would take a lot of either disassembly or careful masking to paint the frame without painting everything else...of course it is a rat, what's a little overspray?

Maybe I'll take that on later this summer after my exams are past...
 
#21 ·
bdmmotard said:
comfy. reliable. unique. cheap. winner in my book.

i vote for take a hacksaw to the side plates.
Do you have a drawing program like MSPaint or anything where you could sketch out a line that you think would look good?

I originally left the plates the way they are for a reason. A buddy of mine makes decals, and he hooked me up with Honda wings for the tank and my old racing numbers for the sideplates. After I got it together I realized that the Fusion isn't likely to be all that durable (I scratched it in a few places just reinstalling parts) and it would be nice to be able to touch-up without trying to spray around decals. Plus the Mad Max look started to grow on me.
 
#25 ·
BSharp said:
I thought about that, but it seems like it would take a lot of either disassembly or careful masking to paint the frame without painting everything else...of course it is a rat, what's a little overspray?

Maybe I'll take that on later this summer after my exams are past...
Tin foil works great for that :thumbup:

BTW, so does BBQ paint; it's a nice shade of flat black ;)
 
#26 ·
pookiebear said:
I want to see a close up of the front caliper. thanks! nice bike I just used car undercoat spray (rubberized) for my plastics.
I'll try to get a picture as soon as I can. Not much to see really, just a stock caliper hiding behind a big ugly bracket. I could probably shape it a little for looks, but it didn't seem worth the effort.

Undercoating sounds like a great idea, have any pictures?
 
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