Dirt Bike Diversion - part 1

[Note: Links at the end to things referenced in this post ...]

After having a stupid amount of fun completing a CornerSpin school for the first time this year, I  picked up a 2011 Honda CRF100 as a playbike and learning tool. Since I can never leave anything stock, a K&N air filter, Renthal bars and Acerbis hand guards went on first, quickly followed by a FMF Powercore 4 exhaust.

Now she's a beast, but two days of hard riding with my nephews over Thanksgiving revealed a few things:
1. The FMF exhaust is the shit! Really uncorks the torque of the little 100cc mill.
2. She's running really, really lean with the stock jetting and the K&N & FMF mods.
3. Re-gearing would make better use of the gears, as I rarely get above 3rd in general riding.
4. The suspension is woefully inadequate for my, ahem, adult-sized body.

So, up on the workstand she went. Here we go, in a partial state of disassembly/reassembly:

First up was the jetting. Stock is a #35 slow and #95 main, so in went a #40 and #105, respectively, sourced from jetsrus.com. I fully removed the carb for this, but it really wasn't necessary. Just drain and remove the float bowl, and there's plenty of easy access to the jets. The job was so easy, I forgot to take pics. Sorry.

A new rear tire was next. After removing the wheel from the bike, out came the Motion Pro tire irons. I only have a set of two, 11" irons, but will be ordering a set of their (longer) tire spoons shortly, as soon as my bruised knuckles allow me to type again. Here's a great video on how to change a tire and/or tube, from the experts at Dirt Rider, who make it look so easy:

Of course, I tried to re-use the original tube and pinched it on installation, and it leaked. Off again came the tire and a new, heavy-duty tube installed. Sure, the heavy-duty tubes are tougher to work with, but IMHO they're worth it on dirt bikes. While the wheel was off, I installed the new rear sprocket. Ain't she pretty?

I wanted to change the gearing to better handle adult riders. Factory is a 50:14 (3.571), and I’ve installed a 49:13 (3.769). This should result in a lower top speed, but should make better use of the power available. We’ll see. It’s a different animal since installing the FMF exhaust!

Changing the front (countershaft) sprocket required removing the left crankcase cover. Of course, I'd not purchased a replacement gasket, so one is on order now. BikeBandit is my friend!

Next up was the rear suspension. I purchased a BBR rear spring and fork springs that're supposed to be 30% stronger. While I was on the back of the bike, I started there.

Removing the rear shock requires taking at least one bolt out of the suspension linkage. Not a big deal, but you need to support the frame of the bike enough to let the swingarm sag. Got the OEM shock on the bench and...

First, there’s no (obvious) way to take the spring off the shock. No threaded collars for preload adjustment; no split top ring. Maybe, once I get some spring compressors on there, something will make itself apparent, but I can’t see anything at this point. Second, that aftermarket spring has about one half more wind than the OEM. That means the preload will be a lot stronger, and the travel distance (to the spring binding) will be shortened. Not good. There are aftermarket adjustable shocks available, but I’d prefer to not spend that money (yet).

Okay, spring compressor ordered (after the one I have for automotive springs wouldn't fit, darn it), and shock re-installed in the bike for now. Time for the new chain.

And f#%^$&%^%^#%#!!! The chain I bought, per the manual, is wrong. Manual spec's a 420, but a 428 is needed.

The 420's for sale on eBay, by the way, and a new 428 is on the way to me.



Next time...

Stay tuned. In our next episode, we'll install:
1. The proper size chain, and
2. The left crankcase cover with new gasket.

Plus, we'll attempt a disassembly of the OEM rear shock.

Cheers!
- Rob.

Post Script, links of interest (as promised)
K&N Air Filter
Renthal Playbike Bars
Acerbis Hand Guards
FMF Powercore 4 Exhaust

Carburetor Rebuild - 1973 Honda CB350 Café Racer

This was a fun escapade. Completely stripped, cleaned and rebuilt the carbs. Photo essay follows.

As they started, replete with lacquered gasoline.

Yeah, the floats weren't in much better shape.

Removing the jets.

The vacuum sections were in pretty good shape. Note the beverage.

Skipping lots of boring disassembly photos (that I took to help me upon reassembly), Most parts went into the degreasing/cleaning bucket.

Then dried in the dish drain. (I'm divorced, so there was no argument over this. Highly recommended.)

After cleaning and drying, reassembled with new components.

Hooray!

Kickoff - 1973 Honda CB350 Café Racer

A few years ago, I purchased a 1973 Honda CB350 with the intention of turning it into a café racer. I've been working on it slowly and sporadically since then, so it's time to start a blog. Here's what she looked like upon purchase, before disassembly:













After a complete disassembly, the frame looks something like this:



I'm in the process of removing all the unneeded tabs and mounting points from the frame and cleaning it up. Then I'll cut the rear of the frame behind the shock mounts and install a hoop to match the café seat.

Several purchased parts will go into this build, including:
- Clubman handlebars
- Fiberglass café seat/tail
- High-mount pipes
- Lots of stainless fasteners

I had planned to re-use the forks, but found the fork tubes so severely pitted where they'd been encased by the headlight mount shrouds that I had to find an alternative. eBay to the rescue, where I found a great set of forks from a '74 CB360. They are the same 35mm OD, so the triple trees are reusable.

I completely rebuilt the carburetors, with new jets, floats and other parts, and they're ready to reinstall. I'm looking to get the engine running on the stand in the near future.

More to come, and your questions are welcome.

An open letter to Virgina Governor Terry McAuliffe

Dear Mr. McAuliffe;

You cannot be an unintelligent or uneducated man to have reached the position you now hold. I do wonder, though, if you are a logical man.

I am a law-abiding resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia. I believe in my family, my country and my rights as outlined in the Constitution of the United States of America. I also posses a permit to carry a concealed weapon, as I believe in the Boy Scout motto: "Be Prepared." I hope I never have to use my weapon in self defense. Should I be forced, however, to defend my life or the life of a loved one, I hope I will not hesitate.

I hope you realize that I am not the problem. That law-abiding citizens are not the problem. That tools in the hands of the law-abiding are not the problem. That criminals ARE the problem.

Criminals, by definition, do not obey laws, do not abide signs, and do not care about those who do obey laws and abide signs.

I hope you and rational enough to realize that removing the ability or legal authority of the people to defend themselves against crime does NOTHING to prevent such crime.

Any effort you take to deprive the law-abiding of their rights to self defense only creates more opportunities for criminals to exercise their unlawfulness, and for law-abiding citizens of the state of Virgina to die needlessly.

Please, please realize that the criminals are the problem - not the law-abiding - and do everything in your power to bring criminals to justice without affecting the Constitution-granted liberties of the law-abiding.

Sincerely,
Robert X. Xxxxxxx

Metabones Speed Booster Auto Focus - Finally!!

Prelim report on Metabones Speed Booster update with autofocus for Canon lenses (on GH4):

EF-L 24-105 - works beautifully. I think this is my new happy place!
EF-L 20-35 - check.
EF 50 f/1.4 USM - check.
EF 40 f/2.8 pancake - check (and a great, compact combination!)
EF 85 f/1.8USM - check.
Unfortunately, my 35mm f/2 (not USM) doesn't respond, and the 75-300 IS USM makes the camera freeze.

Bottom line: Hooray!!!! The AF is quick and accurate.

In all functional cases, autofocus engages when I first bring the viewfinder up to my eye. This is probably a setting I need to disable somewhere in the prodigious menu system of the GH4.

Note: This is all with the (now discontinued) standard 0.71x Speed Booster. There are two other versions now available: the ULTRA (still 0.71 - not sure what the extra is there) and the XL at 0.64. I'm thinking seriously about picking up the XL. If you're really bored, ask me about the math of lens equivalents...

Filmmaking Resources

There are SO MANY great resources available these days to learn about filmmaking and all the related arts. I keep a list of bookmarks that I frequent to stay abreast of ideas, technologies and information related to this artistic pursuit. Below, for your hopeful elucidation, is a sampling of my reference list. Please comment and share what other good resources you frequent!

Newsy web sites:
studiodaily.com
nofilmschool.com
blog.planet5d.com
cinema5d.com
eoshd.com
creativeplanetnetwork.com

Filmmakers’ web sites/blogs:
philipbloom.net
vincentlaforet.com
hurlbutvisuals.com

Gear-heavy blogs:
dslrvideoshooter.com
suggestionofmotion.com

Technique-focused blogs:
prolost.com
videocopilot.net
www.stillmotion.ca or stillmotionblog.com

Magazines - print/subscription:
Videomaker (videomaker.com)
HD Video Pro (hdvideopro.com)
Moviemaker (moviemaker.com)
Filmmaker Magazine (filmmakermagazine.com)
Mix Magazine (mixonline.com)

Magazines - free/electronic:
digitalvideomagazine.com
videoedge.net
microfilmmaker.com
prosoundnetwork.com

On YouTube:
Freddie W. (youtube.com/user/freddiew)
Corridor Digital (youtube.com/user/CorridorDigital)
Film Riot (youtube.com/user/filmriot)

Commercial companies with cool products:
Rampant Media (rampantdesigntools.com)
Red Giant (redgiant.com)
Black Magic Design (blackmagicdesign.com)
Wooden Camera (woodencamera.com)
Redrock Micro (redrockmicro.com)
Zacuto (zacuto.com)
Rode (rode.com)
Rokinon (rokinon.com)
Metabones (metabones.com)

Thoughts on the SLR Magic 25mm T0.95 Hyperprime Lens

Received my SLR Magic 25mm T0.95 HyperPrime lens today. First impressions:

• It's heavy! It's tiny!
• The geared aperture/iris and focus rings have a nice resistance to them.
• Very solid all-metal feel.
• It has a small sliding lens hood that won't stay in place without tape.
• Comes with a threaded metal lens cap; very nice, but overkill. I'll be storing it in favor of a quick plastic cap.
• Focus throw is about 180 degrees.
• At T0.98, focus is limited to a few millimeters of depth.
• Compared it briefly to a 50mm on my full-frame 6D; the 6D is still wider, despite the math that the two should be close to equivalent.

After some time to play with the lens, here are some more thoughts:

1. Like most (budget) lenses, it's soft wide open. It takes on a 'dreamy' soft look, though, with focus limited to a few millimeters. At T2, it's very nice and sharp, still with a beautiful, even, soft bokeh.
2. The small sliding lens hood is in fact threaded (and not, insofar as I've found yet, removable). The lens itself takes a 49mm filter; the hood a (much more common) 55mm. If you install a 49-77mm step up ring to the lens itself, e.g. to add common filters, the hood will contact the step-up ring when trying to focus to infinity (and thus prevent reaching that focus); the solution is to use a 55-77mm step up ring attached to the hood rather than the lens itself. This seems like a small detail, but has ramifications in certain applications. For cine lenses, it's nice to have the front-most lens attachment not move as focus changes. Attaching step up rings and/or filters to the lens hood enables this.
3. A point worth highlighting: This is a COMPLETELY MANUAL lens, with no electronic communication to the camera. This means no lens metadata (i.e. focal length, aperture setting, etc.) will be recorded with your photos or videos. This is generally not a problem for video work, but might matter to a stills photographer.
4. The aperture ring is VERY close to the camera body, as in about 1cm away. There's only about 2cm separation between the aperture and focus rings. Should you want to operate both these rings via follow-focus type controls, be prepared to get creative! The focus ring is so close to the body that I can't fit a follow focus on the traditional left side when using my GH4 and the Wooden Camera cage.
5. That said, the built-in metal gears mesh perfectly with every follow focus system I've yet tried. Both focus and aperture rings have very little backlash/hysteresis.

Some photos:

T0.95 Soft!

T2.0 Nice and sharp, with good bokeh

T0.95 useless for wide shots

Much better when stopped down.