Gassy Gary

Still my same bike but my first thread is so old and it's come quite a ways since I first put it together, so I wanted to start over with a clean fresh new thread.

Here's my current build, based on a 1997 Gary Fisher Mamba.

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Here's how she used to look:
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And here's what started the change:
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After this happened, one thing led to another, and, well...here she is.

PARTS LIST:

Engine
-66cc China Girl
--No-name billet head
--No-name MZ65 replica
--DIO reed valve
--19mm OKO carburetor (GENUINE, not the all-too-common Chinese knockoffs)
--Windowed piston
--Sick Bike Parts shift kit
--Jaguar CDI (on its way)

Front end
-Monark Type II front fork and headset
-Shimano HB-M475 front disc hub (on its way)
-TRP HY/RD hydromechanic front disc brake w/ 160mm rotor (have it, not mounted yet since my new front hub isn't here yet)
-Sunrace multi-angle quill stem
-Dimension cruiser bar
-Sick Bike Parts throttle
-Dual pull brake handle
-Shimano Tourney shifter (on stem)
-Genuine Honda PA50 grips (thought it would be a neat touch; I've owned 2 Accords, a Civic, and a CR-V, which should tell you where my loyalties lie)

Rear end
-Shimano 7-speed cassette and derailleur (may not be long for this world)
-Shimano center-pull rim brake (same as above)
-Rock Bros cargo rack
-Cloud9 cruiser saddle
-No-name rear mount kickstand

TO DO:

To get it running
-Make cables; the new bars are a lot taller and further out than the factory flat bars, and the NT throttle cable wouldn't fit the OKO. Will be using Jagwire compressionless housing for most everything.
-Lace new hub into front wheel...debating whether to attempt it myself or just pay my local bike shop.
-Wire up CDI

Once it's running
-Lights and horn
--I have a whole setup ready to go on (low-beam and high-beam headlights, taillight with brake light, horn, tach, plus handlebar switches for all of it), but I'm trying to figure out how to keep it charged. Ordered a little 12V DC motor to mess around with and see if I can turn it into a usable dynamo, but may just wire everything up as total-loss in the meantime.
-Sturmey Archer rear hub
--The 7-speed isn't really doing it for me; half the gears are useless because the ratios are so close together, and I've been left stranded a number of times after a goofy shift made the chain come off and tie itself in knots (if I was lucky) or just snap a link (if I wasn't). With an IGH, I could have a more usable ratio spread, even if I have fewer gears, and I'd be able to run a stouter chain (and not have to worry about it ever falling off).
--Related to this, the rear rim brake doesn't exactly fill me with confidence either. As long as I'm replacing the hub, I may as well kill two birds with one stone by getting one with some form of hub brake. My frame doesn't have any mounts for a disc brake caliper, but Sturmey makes a 3-speed with a 90mm drum brake (model XL-RD3), which should be more than adequate, based on the research I've been doing.
--I also ordered this really awesome stick shifter.
-New tank, very possibly this one.
 
Good choice of gas tank you'll like it, It's made very good. I have the 1 gal tank
People who have a Whizzer or a Cruzzer are always scratching their head and wondering why their bike is acting like it's starved for fuel

The Cruzzer gas tank has a nice chrome cap. I don't know it it still comes with a vent valve in the gas cap but if it does you'll have to take it out.
The vent valve don't work very good and the tank gets a vacuum. You'll hear a woosh of air when taking the gas cap off.
The vacuum created prevents proper fuel flow and you'll loose a few MPH on your top end speed. Your bike might even act like it's starved for fuel.
It's easy to take the vent valve out you'll notice there are 2 metal tabs holding it in. Just bend the 2 tabs up to remove the vent valve.

The Cruzzer gas tanks are really good quality. But when they were painted they painted the top of the gas cap fill neck.
The gas cap will scrape the paint off and flecks of paint will get in the fuel system.
The paint flecks usually block up the fuel petcock fine screen filter.
You'll need to scrape the paint off from around the top of the fill neck
 
Good choice of gas tank you'll like it, It's made very good. I have the 1 gal tank
People who have a Whizzer or a Cruzzer are always scratching their head and wondering why their bike is acting like it's starved for fuel

The Cruzzer gas tank has a nice chrome cap. I don't know it it still comes with a vent valve in the gas cap but if it does you'll have to take it out.
The vent valve don't work very good and the tank gets a vacuum. You'll hear a woosh of air when taking the gas cap off.
The vacuum created prevents proper fuel flow and you'll loose a few MPH on your top end speed. Your bike might even act like it's starved for fuel.
It's easy to take the vent valve out you'll notice there are 2 metal tabs holding it in. Just bend the 2 tabs up to remove the vent valve.

The Cruzzer gas tanks are really good quality. But when they were painted they painted the top of the gas cap fill neck.
The gas cap will scrape the paint off and flecks of paint will get in the fuel system.
The paint flecks usually block up the fuel petcock fine screen filter.
You'll need to scrape the paint off from around the top of the fill neck
Thanks for the advice!
 
Update time.

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New cables are all made up. Routed the clutch cable through the now-unused front derailleur slot in the frame and used some conduit zip ties for the throttle. At first I thought the orange might be a nice contrast, but now that it's all on, I'm kinda not feeling it. Also swapped out my previous janky front motor mount for the SBP part. Soon as I figure out how I want to mount the new CDI and coil, she'll be ready to go.

I also have all the parts for my electrical setup but I'm gonna hold off on that until the bike's running and tuned.
 
It has a rubber gasket around the inside so I'm hoping it'll work better than the others. Thanks for the warning though.
Put a drink in that cupholder and go for a ride, your name will make tons of sense afterwards. You are going to love the shift kit. Get an internally geared hub for less heartache down the road.
 
Scored this wheel for fifty bucks, which I'm super jazzed about.

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Anyway I'd like some opinions. I got my lighting system ready to go but I'm wondering which of two headlight setups to use. Either one will be turned into a housing for the same LED lights, so I'm just concerned about aesthetics.

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First one is this little moped light. I like that it's not obtrusive, but fitting the LED units inside and mounting it would probably be harder than the second option.

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Second is this fairing. Would be easier to mount up and put the lights in (they're the exact same diameter as the bulbs), but as it is right now, it makes the bike look like a midget with a giant head. I'm thinking it might look okay if I cut down the windscreen a bit, and would also let me hide some of the wiring and cabling, giving the bike a cleaner look overall.

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What do you guys think?
 
That little fairing is cute!
It would definitely be a lot more practical: a lot less fabrication to install it, and I could put other stuff inside it, like maybe the horn, a grounding stud, or the fuse box for my lights. But it looks way too big and I'm afraid of butchering it if I do try to cut some off.
 
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