Moped Army

Accidental post;
Onward, Now with the bike in this position I can easily undo the wires, rear brake cable and the carb with intake.

With all the links to the front of the bike unhooked I can then remove the last long frame to motormount bolt.
Next I roll the front half over to a corner and lift the rear section onto the bench and remove the engine and exhaust.

I made a mental picture of the amount of the amount of steel I could cut away and not compromise the substructures
ridgidity (highlighted in red) Pedal action flexes the sub more than you would think.

I begin the cutting part by trying to pound off the bottom of the air box with a body hammer but this is pretty tough
steel and I didn't want to start warping everything. So I switched to a small chisel and began to peck away at the spot welds.




This method proved time consuming and painfull so I quickly switch to my air chisel and blasted on that sucker.
In no time I could tap the round part off with a hammer revealing a cool little cave that was chocked full
of sand dunes and all kind of road rash




Next is th absolute hardest part, cutting through the front and rear walls of the air box just above the pedal shaft tube.
I used a air die gringer with a cutoff wheel attached. I have years of experience with this tool so I know how it behaves in certain conditions.
Im trying to say this tool can hurt you badly, goggles and gloves a must for Noobs
I had to be carefull not to cut through the side panels of the sub yet cut deep enough so as to weaken the top half.
then I was able to wrestle the top half back and forth till it snapped out leaving a nice big open area.


I started to worry a little about all the metal I was removing and what if any weakening of the structure I was causing
so i clamped a rectangle piece of 10 gauge stell in a vice and created this crude little bolster brace I could weld back in for strength. A few taps, and hey it fits nice




Now onto the welding table. A few hot well placed spot welds and my bolster brace is rock solid. One detail still bothers
me though. It's that round empty cavern left in the bottom of the air box. If I leave it open It will fill back up with road rash and sand right near my carb.



http://i379.photobucket.com/albums/oo232/cheetahchrome1/hondaoverhaul017.jpg

I've decide at last to seal up the cave, so I cut out a proper fitting door out of some 18 gauge steel and prepared to weld it on.



Yes, thats right , here's where the time capsule comes in. It's such a neat hidden little space I didn't want to waste it.
Thinking quickly I snached the lighter from my bosses desk (he should quit smoking) enterned it inside the vault and welded the cover over.




Now just a few coats of the color of my choice and a befitting plack for future generationn and this mod is ready to
reassemble



A few quick test fits before bolting the front frame half back on. Yes, nice, looks like I've even got room for a
treats funky shaped filter.





Heres the done result and I'm pleasently pleased.
Most might say, "fuck that, it's too much work"
Well yes it is but I want to get more serious about tuning and
learning by trial and "now it runs worse" error.
I need quick hassel free access to my carb and now it comes out in 30 seconds.
Plus I like to keep the stock look on this one with sidecovers and such.