Wheelman Razor-Sharp Reflex (Stupid-Big Pics Fixed)

[LMH]

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[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Actually, I WOULD prefer yellow! Mine's gold, not silver, and the paint is a little dull from sun exposure. It's going to take some work with rubbing compound to make it as shiny as yours. You mean a plastics swap, not the whole scooter, right? (Too much weight and paperwork otherwise...)

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Pushing aside LMH's wacky offer (For now, Love..) I spent a nice evening in the garage with a buffer and some compound, shining up GoldenBoy. Pics will follow.

On the performance side, I pulled out all the stock rollers (156 grams total!) and inserted 6 of the 20-gram rollers instead. Top speed wasn't affected much, if at all, but the average RPM on the tach in low-speed operation went from 4K to 6K, which made a huge improvement. 65 MPH was all the road I had to wind out, but that was with WheelBoy (120 pounds) astern. It came up real quick and the tach was indicating 7200 RPM. (Redline is 8500)

On the negative side, when I roll throttle on below 40 MPH, the belt lets out a loud groan as the engine applies all of its torque - especially with the extra weight in the saddle. I suspect belt slippage from an under-rated Contra spring and a dry, 13 year-old stock belt. Now researching a stiffer replacement spring and new belt.

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Pics of the polishing from last night:

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So Flash doesn't feel left out, I took it out for a Post Office errand this morning:

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If anyone has blazed this trail, I'm on the hunt for a stronger Reflex/Big Ruck Contra spring. Thanks, Dawgs!

[ped]

nice work wheelman. Looks good. I like flash better lol.

if I see the spring I will let you know. I don't remember if the scooter West had it?

what would really look cool on the reflex is removing the front turn signals. put a same color plastic cover in its place. And adding new ones under the headlights.

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Well with 120 total grams (Down from stock 153), the acceleration improved, yet it didn't. Top speed easily topped 70, but now the tach is nudging the redline, so I may add a couple grams to the long ramps in the stock variator.

What IS it with Honda scooter clutches? Just like hopped-up Elites, the Reflex clutch is undersized, even for stock power. Rolling throttle on at 30 causes an initial lunge, but a sudden decrease in the rate of acceleration. Enough so that the head nods forward a little as the belt cover lets out a low moan. That's not as erotic as you might imagine. I'm pretty sure it's not the belt, which would be a squeal. Also non-erotic.

Anyway, my bell was pretty durn Blue when examined, although that doesn't show well in last week's pics. Plus every used one on feEBaY looks worse than mine. All this means I'm shopping for a lustier clutch, perhaps Italian? I may go Commando and ride the thing without the belt cover. No worries about the starter Bendix which resides elsewhere.

[LMH]

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[Red Eft Performance]

I can get these but they are pricey. Ive heard they work really well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FH8JmJngIoI

Keith

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Yes the K mod (dude named Koehler started the practice, or takes credit for it) eliminates the rapid up shift at low rpms by removing the 3 21-gram rollers on the short "primary" ramps. This eliminates the low-speed "upshift" and leaves the engine revving higher at lower speeds, but it puts all the burden on the 3 31-gram rollers in full-length ramps. I may lower the short ramp weights, but go up a bit on the long ramp ones.

Red, that is one Sexy video. Watched it twice. Saved to Favorites. Scooter per-nographee. Now if you'll excuse me, I must clean up.

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Second thoughts about 12-year-old rubber at 75 forester very long haunted Wheel-dreams. I believe everyone should look for the date stamp on their tires, and consider the performance envelope in which they operate. The stock Bridgestone Hoops on Golden Boy were original, and with only 3K miles had plenty of tread. However close inspection revealed the micro-cracks of dreaded Weather-Checking. Ozone affects tire rubber this way, making delamination a distinct possibility. Those highway Gators, tread ejected from 18-wheeler tires is a good deal more serious when 50% of the tire count suddenly lets go.

MiCityGrip2014.jpg (95.12 KiB) Viewed 8118 times

Getting rubber that wasn't made during the Clinton administration should be a priority for anyone going fast.. The date stamps indicate these City Grips were molded in June and October of this year. The P rating means good to 93 MPH. Very reassuring. I will purchase tire irons manana, and post the installation process.

[LMH]

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[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

I paid like $114 for both at RevZilla. Normally buy tires, from MotorCycleSuperStore.com. For some reason I didn't compare prices, but quite sure there's not a huge difference. Tires were levered on this evening, along with the tall Givi Shield,

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

New tires mounted, GoldenBoy is now safer. I thought about selling the stock Hoops with 31-- miles on them, but as I took the pics I noticed how checked the rubber was. I decided nobody would be safe on them, and discarded. On the check ride, the low groan from the belt side is still with me whenever I open wide at a low speed - 20-30MPH. I dropped the left panel and belt cover for the second time this week to see if I could make the stock parts work a bit better. I thought perhaps the clutch shoes were stiff on their pivots, or the pads were glazed again. I was right about that part - more later.

The first time I somehow managed to twist the variator nut off using a pair of Allen wrenches inserted into the holes in the pulley and a Stick from my tool kit, to jam the pulley. The nut broke free, but just barely, and there was no way to apply a proper torque wrench for the 69 pounds required. Enter this Holder Tool:

RHolderTool_resized.jpg (794.06 KiB) Viewed 8095 times

If you're like me, there's a special joy in getting a new tool, but it's especially gratifying when the thing works well. For $65, it had better work flawlessly! This one does.

Examined the variator - all the Sharpie was erased, so I know I'm getting full variator range despite the 33 gram DROP in total weight.

RBeltFace_resized.jpg (938.85 KiB) Viewed 8095 times

Even the Bando drive belt looked pretty good at just under 23mm - Replace minimum is 22.3. For being 14 years old, I gotta say Bando's good stuff. Not even a bit glazed. Can't say the same for the clutch. Disassembly should've been easy - I spent a fortune on that 39mm socket for the Elite, but Seriously!? This one's a 41!!? Not to worry, Wheelman found a way:

RClutchAssy_resized.jpg (1.05 MiB) Viewed 8095 times

Yes, only geeks use adjustables, but this one was maxed out at 41, so technically it wasn't "adjustable". It was just barely possible to get it around the nut.

I keep saying this clutch is too small for the mighty 2-valve 250 that spins it. Check out this bell:

ClutchBellBlue_resized.jpg (785.54 KiB) Viewed 8095 times

Am I blue or Whut? I already de-glazed the clutch pads last week, and here's the before-and-after of a pair of the pads:

RClutchPadsBefAfter_resized.jpg (1020.62 KiB) Viewed 8095 times

I think we found the source of the low groan. Cleaned up and Lubed the pivot pins with a light dab of grease, reinstalled the dampers and springs, but mainly got my hands really clean and wiped everything down really well with Tony (acetone), including a light wipe of the belt, before remounting. I left the side cover off altogether for now. If this doesn't work I'll spring for an aftermarket clutch - hopefully they're stronger - and spring. Reflex will run with no cover at all; there's no Bendix to lose.

[ped]

Hi Wheelman. You may want to consider a half inch Electric impact wrench $34.99 with coupon. At Harbor Freight. may work very well for removing the rear wheel to.
http://www.harborfreight.com/12-in-Heav ... MiJ9%0D%0A
for some reason the rear clutch tends to seep out grease. You have to clean it once in awhile or your clutch pads will keep slipping.
your clutch pads may come with a dab of grease, but personally I would not add any grease at all to the pivot points. I would just clean it.
there should be a collar on the Contra spring to keep the grease from getting to the pads.
you can see a little bit of Greace next to the pivot point inside plate. it may be coming from the shaft bearing? Or the clutch itself when its fully contracted at high speed.
I do think the clutch is a little small.
Nice work thanks for posting

[LMH]

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