New Member Building SouthPort w/SkyHawk GT-5

VonRang (Von Range)

New Member
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7:52 AM
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
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I am a 47 year old kid that in my twenties built street bikes, namely a Kawasaki 500cc GPZ CAFE racing engine in a Kawasaki 500 LDT upright riding frame.

I was also a diehard hot rodder in the early 1980's and built a 1972 hatchback V8 Chevy Vega w/327, Turbohydro400, 9" Ford rear w/Detroit locker.

I also fly high powered amateur rocket and am a certified TRA Level 2 flier.

From this resume, most anyone could discern that I like to tinker and build stuff. Especially stuff that goes fast!

Everything old is new again and motorized bicycles are no exception. To me they are the closest thing to the early motorized bicycles of the very early 20th Century.

I purchased a new Schwinn SouthPort 7sp cruiser and a SkyHawk GT-5 kit. A SBP deluxe jackshaft shift kit is on the way along with resonator & hardware kit.

The Southport will receive a transplant of wheels/transpack from my late 1990's 21spd mountain bike along with the Shimano hardware. A drive chain automatic tensioner will be fab'd from a thread on another forum and will be incorporated into the SBP shift kit.

I will also try to dress the bike as much as possible to resemble late 1950's/ early 1960's Schwinn Hornet's.

I will perform what I know about port matching on the I/O. I also want to try fabbing a long runner (read tunnel-ram) intake manifold from conduit. I do not know if this principle will work with a two-stroke engine.

Next build will be the same, but on a Macargi Cheetah w/full suspension front to back.

Pictures coming soon!
 
Well I wish I still had it. It was rootbeer brown, with two white rally stripes. I parted it out years ago to a friend that was building a '71 Vega wagon.

I still know every item that needs to go into building one. I learned about intake and exhaust porting on that 327. I hope to put that skill to reasonably good use on this Grubee SkyHawk GT-5.

I want to see if I can make a long offset intake manifold from steel conduit that places a Dellorto SHA 14.12 carb slightly below and behind the rider's seat.
 
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