Differences between the dragstar 650 and virago 535

1.       Carb

a.       Dragstar 28mm

b.      Virago 32mm

2.       Front wheel

a.       Virago Max wheel size 90 to 100

b.      Dragstar max wheel size 110 to 120

3.       Front spoke

a.       Virago 4mm thickness

b.      Dragstar 5mm thickness

4.       Rear final drive

a.       Virago no extra mounts on rear swingarm

b.      Dragstar has extra mounts on the rear swingarm

5.       Ignition system

a.       Dragstar has a tps enabled cdi that adjusts timing of the ignition

b.      Virago doesn’t

 Hi all, just ignore this, im just making a list of differences the Virago 535 has from a Dragstar

feel free to comment with things you may know that i haven't listed and i will add it in...

Just dont put things like "it looks better" and such... coz we already know that.... hehehe

By Vy

DIY Air Cleaner

This generally doesn't happen often, but its happening to me so I decided to document it. ever get a large sized carb that is so big you can’t get an air filter/cleaner for it? well, if you are in US, maybe not, but here in Malaysia, getting a Harley carb conversion isn’t as simple as running to the store to buy an air filter.

My bike is in the process of being converted to a single carb (trust me.. not easy with a dragstar), and the carb I am using is not a Harley carb but a 39mm racing carb. Here’s where the problem comes. I did  not expect a large bell mouth so there is no motorcycle shop that sells aftermarket air cleaners for it. the only ones available is from a Harley which in this case costs more than the carb I bought. So I decided to buy an air filter for a carburetted car.

What you need:

1.       Air filter kit for a carb car (preferably something small)

2.       Scrap metal strips about a foot long

3.       Screws, nuts and bolts

4.       Larger piece of scrap metal.

5.       MIG/TIG/Stick/a friend that can weld.

6.       Grinder

7.       Hose Clamp that fits your carb

8.       Drill and bits

9.       Paint

Step 1:

Know what your air filter does and what you need to do

The air filter is designed for car carbs. This means that there is an off centre hole roughly in the middle and the top cover is held down by a bolt that bolts to the inside of the carb. This means that the carb can’t hold itself and you will need to fabricate several things

1.       A mounting point for bolting it to the carb

2.       A mount bracket to screw down the top of the filter to the bottom

3.       A plate to cover the existing hole and cut a new one

Step 2:

Mock up everything.

Plate for hole:

1.       Put the part of the filter that has the hole on it on a piece of paper

2.       Trace the hole out on the paper

3.       Cut it out and draw the outline of it on the scrap metal.

4.       Using a grinder/metal sheers, cut out the design and make sure it fits as closely as possible to the shape of the hole

Bracket for top of filter:

1.       Measure the estimated distance from the top of the filter to the bottom (easiest way to do this is to measure the filter element)

2.       Its ok to measure 1 or 2mm shorter as it will be a tighter fit.

3.       Bend the metal strip accordingly to fit the height.

4.       Drill a hole that fits the screw and nut.

5.       Mark where to weld the base of the bracket.

Mounting points for the carb:

1.       The carb uses a “socket” type bell mouth where you need to connect the filter to and tighten down with a hose clip. This won’t work with the filter so we need to make tie downs.

2.       Make little L shapes out of the scrap metal strips you have.

3.       Mark where you want to weld the bolts

4.       Drill a hole on the L shapes and put the bolt through then tighten the nuts to hold the bolts down.

Step 3:

Weld everything

You weld everything all at once to reduce the cost (if you are not doing it yourself) of the welding and the trips to the shop you will be visiting.

1.       Weld the back of the bolt to the L bracket (DO NOT WELD THE NUTS)

2.       Weld the metal filler plate you made to the back of the filter

3.       Weld the nut to the top of the top mount.

4.       Weld the bracket for the top mount where you marked it.

Step 4:

New hole for the air filter

1.       Place the carb on the bike.

2.       Put the assembled air filter on the bike at the carb to see if it hits anything.

3.       Once you know it won’t hit, mark at least 4 points on the back of the filter with a marker pen of where the bell mouth will be.

4.       Take off the filter and the carb

5.       Put the carb on the back of the filter again and place draw a circle where you had marked earlier

Mounting point for the air filter

1.       Clamp down the L shapes with the hose clamp onto the bell mouth of the carb

2.       Put the carb to where you drew the hole.

3.       Mark the points where the bolts are touching the filter

Note: putting marks on the L shape and the carb is good so you can remember the position of the L shapes in case you need to remove the hose clamp for any reason.

Step  5.

Cut ‘er up!

Intake Hole

1.       Using a grinder with a small cutting disk, slowly cut the hole you had marked

2.       It doesn’t have to be perfect and it is preferable if the carb can actually fit in the hole (which it won’t but it’s good to have that size)

3.       Once the hole is cut, deburr it with a grinding disk to make sure you don’t cut yourself.

Note: this is easier achieved if you use a used cutting and grinding disk (because it is smaller so easier to cut). If you don’t have them, to go a garage or metal shop and just ask for them. They will give it to you for free.

Air Filter Mount

1.       Measure the diameter of the bolt

2.       Use a drill bit that is 1mm larger than the bolt.

3.       Drill out the hole and clean it.

Step 6:

Paint the back

1.       Paint the back (inside and out) with some paint

2.       This needs to be done because after welding, the metal rusts easily. This will stop it.

Step 7:

Mount it all up and have a look.

Completed Air Filter Side

Completed Air Filter Front

Completed Air Filter Side

Went old school to make the patch as it was late at night. Didn't wanna wake the neighbors 

Almost Perfect Fit

Mocking Up

Test Fit

Welded Nut To The Mount

Another Test Fit

Welded Up The Patch And Cut The Hole

Mockup Of The Mount Points

Prepping For Weld

Second Mockup

All Welded Up And Connected To Carb

Side View

Note:

Yes I did announce that I won’t be posting guides for a while because my bike was in the shop. But I thought this would be useful for those who might have the same issues I have as I am encountering this while they are doing up my bike.

By Vy

DIY Saddle Bag

On my bike, I had mounted a leather toolbag to one side for me to keep my rain pants and rain shoes in there. However, I have been feeling that there isn’t enough space for me to keep anything else.

Checking the market, saddle bags are ugly and swing arm bags are now the in thing. I'm not into “the in thing”, but I needed a bag. So, when one cant buy, one makes…

The prices for swingarm bags and such are quite steep nowadays. So I took my time and went shopping.

I found a leather messenger bag for 60 bucks, and bought some metal plates from a hardware shop. The metal plates I bought were generally used for rack mounts and stuff. You can even buy these cheaper than what I got mine for in Daiso (the 5 dollar shop). But I spent another 20 bucks on the metal pieces.

The design is rather simple, you mount the saddle bag bracket on the floater (aka fender bars, bend an L shape (or buy a ready made L shape bar) to hold on to the bottom of the bag. Then, at the bottom, you want a bar to link the 2 L shapes together. This acts as a brace to make sure the bottom of the bag doesn’t sag when you put stuff in.

Here are the full steps on how I made it.

What you need:

1.       A leather messenger bag

2.       2x L shaped steel bars (with holes preferably)

3.       2x straight steel bars (with holes preferably)

4.       2x bolts and nuts (optional if you are not welding)

5.       1x drill and a matching bit

6.       Grinder

7.       Knife or scissors

Step 1:

Measure EVERYTHING.

1.       Measure the highest point of where you are going to bolt the bag to the floater

2.       Measure the width of the bottom base of the bag.

3.       Measure the distance between the 2 screws holding the fender up on the floater

Step 2:

Purchasing the steel bars

1.       When buying the L shaped bars, ensure that the bottom part of the L shape is AT LEAST 50% the length of the width of the bottom base of the bag.

2.       Buy 2 similar pieces of straight bars that are LONGER than the measurement between the 2 screws holding the fender.

Step 3:

Drill out the holes:

1.       Most likely the holes on the bar may not fit the size of the bolt holding the fender. Drill them out to fit the bolts.

2.       If you are not welding, then make sure the holes and the bolts you bought for the bottom base fits.

Step 4:

Connect everything

1.       Bolt on the L shaped bars on to the floater

2.       Bolt on the bottom base bar to the L shaped bar and mark where you need to cut off.

3.       If you are going to weld, mark where you need to weld to make a butt joint

Step 5:

Cut everything

1.       Cut the parts you have marked for cutting with your grinder

Step 5.1:

If you are going to weld, weld on the steel bars.

Step 6:

Paint:

1.       Using a rattle can, make sure you apply thin layers each time and wait for 10 minutes for the paint to dry and apply a thin layer again. do this at least 10 times and your paint wont peel off

Step 7:

Cut the holes

1.       Preferably with an extra set of hands, mark where you would like to cut to holes in your bag for mounting.

2.       Do not cut a hole that is too big or too small.

3.       Test with one of the fender bolts.

Step 8:

Sandwich

1.       Take the remaining straight bar and make sure the holes align with the fender bolts and are the same size.

2.       This straight bar goes inside the bag sandwiching the bag between it and the L bars on the outside.

Step 9:

Tighten everything

1.       Make sure all the bolts are tightened up on the floater

2.       If you did not weld, then ensure the bolt holding the base is facing down as you do not want to damage the bag when it sits on it.

Step 10:

Do it again

1.       Once you are done tightening everything, go for a 10 minute or more ride

2.       When you come back, tighten everything again.

3.       Check it again one more time 3 days after.

I also bought a type of mounting board to make an inner subframe for the bag as it sagged quite abit from being soft leather.

Note:

Please treat your leather with water resistance sprays or mink oil to ensure your leather doesn’t rot.

L Bars

Straight Bars

Making The Bolts Fit

Mockup

After Paint And Sandwich (the bag not the food)

Sag Before

No Sag After

Sag Before

No Sag After

Difficulty Level: 3/10

By Vy

How To DIY

Every time I post up a DIY guide, I will always get the question: “how much to do it for me?”

Well, its not like I don’t appreciate the money, but the main reason I post up so much DIY stuff for everyone is because of something I believe in; “if he can do it, why can’t I?” plus I'm a cheap poor bastard. Unlike what people say, its not that hard to do certain stuff. You just need to know how. Back in my day (as if I'm so old), we didn’t have youtube, and not all the shops are friendly enough to teach you how to do it (what can I say.. ASIANS)…

Well, here is a little something I thought might help you guys who want to start this DIY thing but are unsure:

Things you need:

1.       Balls: one or two doesn’t matter

2.       Elbow grease (here is how to get some: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elbow_grease)

3.       A friend (experience not required)

4.       A hardware store (preferably very close by) – optional

5.       A solid weekend (these are rare.. especially for those with family, BUT, if you can obtain one.. that’s a good start)

6.       The Internet / Youtube

What to do:

Step 1:

Gather your balls and put em back in your pants.

Jokes aside, the reality is, a majority of the time, people are afraid to do these things because they have this fear of screwing it up and having to pay a load to fix it.

Well, my advice is start with something simple. Doesn’t have to be something hard like reassemble a rocket. Just something simple like how to remove your battery or how to remove your seat. The reason you do something simple first is because you want to ease yourself into it and not frighten yourself away with something on a difficulty scale of 10/10. Start building your confidence with small achievements. But remember: build confidence, not ego.

Step 2:

Do research… this is where the internet and talking to mechanics and friends help. Send your bike or car in to the shop and watch how they do it. If you don’t understand something, then just ask. Google is your best friend at this point in time. Whatever you can think up, I'm very sure someone else has thought it up and done it already.

And as I always tell people (because I'm lazy), why read when you can watch?

Found something u wanna do but can’t really get it and the pictures are not clear? Sometimes, some folks post whole videos on YouTube about how it’s done.

Step 3:

Grab a friend.

It’s always handy to have a friend with you. It doesn’t matter if he/she knows what’s going on or how to fix it. They can be there to see what you may have missed or have a great idea in other ways to do what you want done. Also, the friend can also be the one to help document what you did. Not just as a guide, but to help you undo what you did if you screwed up.

Step 4:

Have a long/solid weekend.

A solid weekend is a weekend whereby you wake up on Saturday ready to do the work and have no distractions while you are doing it so you can complete your work by Sunday afternoon.

This is even better if you have a public holiday just near that weekend.

This is a hard one for those who are married and/or have kids. But make an arrangement with your wife. Check your calendar. And make sure you are fully available a week in advanced. And make it a point for everyone to know.

Remember, the most important is that you don’t rush the work. You must have enough time to do your work without a tight deadline.

This also ties in to the fact that when you work, stop and rest, get hydrated and NEVER work through the night. When you are tired, you will make mistakes.

Step 5:

A hardware store.

Contrary to popular belief, your don’t need to stockpile an arsenal of tools in your house to be able to do your DIYs.

That said, there also isn’t such a thing as “commonly used tools”. You will need to buy some other tools some time. A good example of this is that for the many years I have been doing this, I never used an 8mm drill bit… until recently.

What you need to buy are things you only need for the DIY. You don’t need to buy the most expensive tools but you shouldn’t buy the cheapest ones too.

My advice (especially if you are in Malaysia) is don’t go to those posh nice looking hardware stores, source out where constructions workers go to buy their tools. The difference in price is huge. Also, wear some dirty pants and a broken shirt. It helps lower the prices too.

If you are in Malaysia, Mr DIY has a lot of good tools at a good price now. Try that

Step 6:

Elbow grease:

Put your back into it. there are times when something you are doing is really hard or you just feel so tired you want to give up. Don’t! Just take a break, have an isotonic drink, stand near the fan. Then get at it again. Finish what you started, otherwise don’t bother starting. And when you have finished, stand back, have a look at what you did and give you self a pat on the back.

Step 7:

Welcome to the DIY club. You have taken your first step as a handy man and you will be able to fix almost anything now.

By Vy

DIY Removable Visor Tinting

I was recently inspired by this guy online selling so called “removable” tinting for cars whereby if you get stopped for your ridiculously dark tint, you can just remove it, go home and reapply it. This reminded me of F1 races and (I think) MotoGP races as well where they have a protective film they can remove when it gets blur.

My helmet used to have an internal visor that was dark to shade my eyes but after my accident, it no longer worked.

After watching the video and speaking to the guy who was selling this, I then realized it is actually one of those “sticky” sunshade materials that are being sold out there. Visiting DIY shops, I found that they sell these at quite a cheap price so I decided to test it out by tinting my visor.

Here is what you need:

Knife

Water in a spray bottle

Cloth

A plastic scraper

Cheap sticky sunshades

Step 1

Cut the sunshade out of the flexible frame

Step 2

Drape the tint over the visor

Step 3

Using your knife, cut out a rough shape of the area you want to cover.

Step 4

Stick the tint as well as you can without any water and fine tune the cutting.

Step 5

Remove the tint

Step 6

Clean the visor

Step 7

Apply water on the visor and the tint then again, drape on the tint on the visor

Step 8

Using the scraper, align the tint properly and push out as much air bubbles as possible.

Step 9

Using the cloth with the scraper, try to remove as much bubbles and water as possible.

Step 10

Go riding!

Review:

The tint is VERY dark. And because of its rubbery texture, the view is just very slightly blurred but not a cause for alarm. Riding in the dark is not a great idea but that’s the reason I chose this… if needed, just peel off the tint and keep it until you get home. So far, it is a very good idea for ppl who don’t like the burning sun on your face. And the temp in my helmet has for sure dropped a notch.

The Sunshade I Used

Back View

My Helmet

  

Cut The Tint From The Frame

Drape Over The Visor

Trim The Tint

Add Water

Remove Bubbles And Water

Completed Tint

Fullface Mode With Tint

By Vy

DIY Tubeless Rim Conversion

Although I ride a cruiser, I don’t believe that a bike cant turn, as such, I converted my rear rim to accept 17 inch superbike tyres.

The problem is because my powertrain is shaft driven, I could not get sports rims from donor bikes. So we converted the spoked rim with custom spokes.

The problem is, changing a rear tube every time there is a flat is very costly and tedious.

After some research, I figured out how to do this. Here is my guide should you wish to try it on your own bike

Things Needed:

Brake Cleaner

Loctite

Superglue

Silicone Glue (or super strong liquid nails)

Duct tape

Elbow Grease

A friend / shop that will agree to remove and install your tyre several times.

Tubeless tyre valve

Before you begin, please note the following:

1.       I don’t recommend doing the front tyre for if it fails in the back you can still save your ass with some skill you may or may not have

2.       This is a minimum 3 day job and takes patience, if you cannot wait, don’t do it.

3.       I do not claim responsibility nor warrant for any damages you may cause to your bike yourself or your ego. Do this at your own risk

Step 1:

Remove the tyre

(this has been covered for dragstars in http://madchopshop.blogspot.com/2014/11/how-to-remove-dragstar-rear-tyre.html)

Step 2:

Remove the wheel (this is where your friend/shop comes in)

Step 3:

Clean your wheel with a cloth then spray a crapload of brake cleaner then wipe it off.

Do this at least 4 times.

We do not use water because it doesnt dry well

Step 4:

This is your last chance to adjust your spokes.

Step 5:

Apply Loctite on all your spokes and leave to dry for 30 minutes

Step 6:

Apply superglue to close up the gaps the Loctite missed.

Step 7:

Use the silicone/liquid nails to cover the spoke nipples.

Cover them in a spiral formation all the way to the top of the nipple and do not be stingy on the glue.

Step 8:

While the silicone glue is still wet, cover the spoke nipples with duct tape.

Step 9:

Gently rub the globs of glue down while making sure the duct tape is securely on the rim.

Step 10:

Leave to dry in room temperature for AT LEAST 24 HOURS.

I can guarantee it will not dry by then but if by some miracle it does, proceed to the next step

Step 11:

CUT a hole in the duct tape where the air valve is supposed to go.

DO NOT puncture a hole, it may cause issues when pumping air.

Step 12:

Install the air valve.

Step 13:

Install the tyre, inflate it and test for leaks.

Step 14:

Weight test it.

This means install the tyre on your bike and leave it for 24 hours and check the air pressure.

Step 15:

Go riding.

Ride around like you normally would and check the air pressure at the end of the day.

In Case Of Leaks:

1.       Identify the leak.

2.       Fully deflate the tyre

3.       Superglue the area that is leaking

4.       Put a thick layer of silicone glue.

5.       Check for leaks again. repeat if necessary.

OR

1.       Deflate tyre

2.       Buy tyre sealant

3.       Pump into tyre

4.       Fill up air

5.       Rotate tyre continuously slowly for 5 minutes

6.       Test for leaks.

Note:

I am personally still testing this conversion. Will update more if I encounter anything

Also, a small leak of 1 or 2 psi a day is acceptable. I have the same problem with my tubed front wheel and I cant even find the leak anywhere… just air up every once a week.

Stuff You Need

Tubeless Air Valve (mine is L shaped because of my rim)

Brake Cleaner

Loctite

Silicone Glue

How The Globs Should Look

Duct Tape

A Bud To Help Install The Tyre

Leak Test

If Leaking, Use Superglue First

Use Your Finger To Apply Silicone Glue

Sealed Product

By Vy

How To Remove A Dragstar Rear Tyre

One would think that removing a tyre is an easy thing. However, when the tyre you are trying to remove has a drive on it, it gets a little bit more daunting. The worst is when there is a shaft instead of a chain.

On several occasions, I have seen people do it the right way which leaves my wheel scratchless and there is the wrong way that looks like the wheel was being removed by a grizzly bear using just its teeth.

Recently I wanted to try a DIY project with minimal help to see if I could do it. and this involves the rear wheel. Before we proceed, please do know for a FACT that removing stuff is easy. Putting it back is gonna be a bitch. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Tools Needed

Jack/Bike Lift

Pliers

WD40

Box and Open Ended Wrench sizes 8, 10, 12, 14

Adjustable Wrench (preferably 2)

Loctite

Step 1:

Jack the bike and stand it up with jackstands or something stable so that the rear of the bike is lifted up but straight.

Step 2:

Drench all the bolts connecting the wheel to the frame in WD40

The bolts in question are:

1.       4x final drive bolts

2.       Brake cover holder

3.       Brake adjuster

4.       Main shaft

Step 3:

Disconnect the rear light and remove the rear fender cover (this may be allen key screws or bolts depending)

Step 4:

Loosen the main wheel connecting shaft bolt. Do not remove the  nut or the shaft. Just loosen it so there is freeplay.

Step 5:

Remove the final drive bolts and mark them (they are usually of different lengths)

Then remove the brake adjustment nut and the brake cover holder.

Step 6:

If you look closely at your swingarm, you will notice the bottom of the gap where the wheel shaft sits is longer than the front.

Step 7:

You can now remove your rear tyre from the bike by just lifting it off the bike.

Step 8

Turn the tyre assembly with the brake side facing down, move the nut for the main tyre connecting shaft.

Remove the final drive by lifting upwards while jiggling it and I will come apart. Remember to keep the 2 inch spacer that will fall off together with the final drive.

Step 9:

Proceed to pull the wheel connecting shaft and the brake assembly out together.

Reassembling your wheel:

When you have done what you need to do with your wheel, you will need to reassemble it.

Step 1:

Prepare your final drive and insert the 2 inch spacer into the centre of the final drive assembly

Step 2:

With the wheel standing up, align the final drive with the wheel (try to get someone to help you).

It will usually NOT slide in and fit. But get it to fit as well as you can.

Step 3:

With the final drive more or less together, lie the wheel assembly down with the final drive facing up.

Tap the final drive while moving the shaft a little until it slides in.

Step 4:

Test the wheel. If you move the wheel, the shaft should move.

Step 5:

With the wheel standing up again, slide the main wheel shaft and brake assembly into the wheel.

Step 6:

(if you have a friend, now would be a good time to get help)

Lift the wheel onto the swingarm.

In between the back of the swingarm to where the drive shaft connects, there is a metal bracket. Make sure the drive shaft rests on that bracket when the wheel is on the swingarm

Step 7:

(Yes it gets harder I bet you wished you never tried removing the wheel now….)

Using a jack (hopefully its not under your bike),jack the wheel up until the wheel connecting shaft is sort of floating between the gap on the swingarm.

Step 8:

(read and understand this part properly before proceeding as you have to do it together)

Using one hand, lift the drive shaft and aim it at the boot (aka hole) that connects the drive shaft to the gearbox.

While doing this, shove the wheel all the way in.

Note:

If it goes in, good! If not (which is usually the case), WD40 the area that is rubbing.

If it moves in but the drive shaft is sorta not going in, rotate the wheel by a bit.

If everything seems to look right but still doesn’t wanna go in (seriously. This was me) give the tyre a good hard kicking from the back.. it will go in.

Step 9:

Loctite EVERYTHING

Step 10:

Tighten all the bolts by hand. DO NOT use pneumatic tools as the final drive will get screwed.

Note: If by the time you do this and you are exhausted, PLEASE go to sleep and do it the next day. Failure to fasten ANY bolt may result in damage of your bike or cause an accident.

Step 11:

Pat yourself in the back or shake your friends hand for a job well done.

Drive Shaft And Brake Assembly

Your Wheel

Remove Your Brake Adjuster and Brake Cover Holder 

Slide The Wheel Back, It Will Rest Nicely At The End

Note How The Drive Shaft Rests At The Tab

Before The Driveshaft Is Inserted

Jacking The Tyre Up For Insertion

Make Sure All The Holes Are Aligned

Drive Shaft Inserted

LOCTITE EVERYTHING!

Tighten Everything Up

Note:

Ride around and re tighten everything after a couple of days.

By Vy