bikers......whos riddena hardtail

[general--lee]

hi not sure if this right place to ask lol but..............

any got or ridden a hardtail motor bike?

just brought a z400 twin and would like to chop it as a project as its not cost a lot but are uk roads really not suitable for hardtails?

ive read about running low tyre pressure etc but a bit worried about spending ages doing it then it being hideous to ride lol,

thanks ken

ps i dont know anyone local who has one to have a go !!!

 

[fungus]

Also interested to know this. As with most armchair engineers I watch series like American Chopper where they build hardtails and say they ride beautifully.

I always thought that was because the roads over there were billiard table smooth, but my mate out there say's quite the opposite - some pot holes are big enough to swallow small cars!

What's the reality??

 

[general--lee]

i have spoken to two guys one said you gotta lovem to ride them they are hideous skip all over the road etc, the other said really good as long as you not going far and dont really want to take a pillion , i only like 12 miles away from work so that will be my longest journey lol, but would like some more opinions.....

just to add was gonna fit a sprung seat

 

[madkayaker]

turn the springs up for a few days and see what you think! I ride mine fairly hard spring

 

[general--lee]

z400 aint road legal its an american import been here years got it off a mate so gotta mot it register it etc

 

[madkayaker]

aw i see any pictures?

 

[general--lee]

will do tomorrow i pic it up on way to work

 

[BIG JAY VTR]

i have a cx500 custom hardtail, its a hard ride (kidneys take a beating) but it suprized me how well it handles, i took it for a quick run round with a broken speedo and got pulled by the police after they clocked me doing 63mph round a left hand bend in a 30mph zone, i run the rear tyre 5psi lower dunt sound much but handeling suffers below this, it also has 2" longer forks, not sure if i posted any pics on here, its my winter rat

how she arrived with me

after a little playing with

 

[zed head]

Get it on the road then take shocks off and put solid struts on it that should give you a clue... Not for me any more (nearly 50 now) and my coxics (dont know how to spell that) wont take it ... Last time I rode hard tail about 2yrs ago, 50ish miles, and I hurt for days... maybe I am just a wimp though.
Have fun
Baza

 

[general--lee]

its aatually a lot better than i thought now i have it lol seems to good to chop but i think i will try the rigid shocks and see whats its like

heres a pic ....

 

[English Steve]

Scratch-built hardtails usually have a sprung seat to improve comfort (slightly), but that is not always easy to do with a conversion.

For advice from people who have done it, have a look here and see my avatar.

 

[zed head]

does it run ? just needs left bar rubber and mat black paint... pull the front indicators and the switch from left contrlol off.... mot.... way ya go
Baza

 

[general--lee]

dont run at mo guytook tank off to paint and some wires come out he joined them back together and now not running or cranking, hopefully be fairly easy to see whats hes done wrong, i can get a mot no probs.....then send off papers to get it registered

 

[Blackjack]

The question is a bit meaningless.

How does a swing arm frame ride/handle?

Not all rigid frames are the same, and not all hardtails are the same either.

A swing arm bike with struts gives a harsher ride than a proper rigid, mostly due to the rider not being sat so close to the rear wheel spindle on a "proper" rigid (sort of like sitting over the axle on a bus ride).

Sprung seats, well, there's another controversy for you. I don't like them because the wobble around under your bum. As we're getting older and our knees tend to work less well, we're using solo seats to get some saddle height, but solidly mounting them.

The other argument you hear is "what if you hit a speed bump at 50 mph" to which I'd reply "have you ever hit a speed bump at 50mph on a Sports bike?". This has nothing to do with the frame, and a lot to do with the rider's powers of observation.

Getting the footrest/bar relationship right is important. Stretched right out forwards and sky high apes is, apparently, cool (who'd have thought that looking like a crucified monkey, was cool? But there you go...) but it's also disasterous for your spine.

Tuck your feet under your bum, flattish bars, things are lot more pleasant.

This is my Z400...

You might want to think about something a bit bigger if you're much over 5' 8" tall.

 

[madkayaker]

that looks fun

 

[general--lee]

is that the standard zed frame at front?

thats pretty much what i want to achieve...

fitting a smaller tank and tilting it achieves the 'look' or have you modified back bone too?

thanks ken

 

[chunkolini]

Blackjack
spot on with the crucified monkey analogy, a silly look.

I love the minimalist footrests on the z400, also the minimalism around the engine, very clean.

Joking aside, very sweet. Clean, not fussy and probably not hugely expensive.

Chunko'.

 

[dazzis]

the best bit is the z400 of blackjacks was built with the minimum of tools, from memory, a fiesta tube bender, pillar drill, hacksaw,files, grinder and a mig .


Ive ridden a hardtail , mine handled well ,very well :lol: , was comfy, its all about getting the controls to fit you. Starting another soonish
my old one below

 

[madkayaker]

How hard are they to build? (presuming you can weld)

 

[dazzis]

easy to build the hard part is knowing what you want from the start, and trying to visualise the end product, its easier to build a frame from scratch than it is to modify a frame, the most important thing is a good sturdy jig, every bracket and spacer has to be made etc the one above came to me as a rolling chassis, but i have since bult another which had to be modified as the guy i gave it too went out for some 8" longer forks and came back with some 4" shorter ones hence why the top tube doesnt line up with the new seat rails hth
pic below
ps i have a very good teacher in the black art of frame building