Customizing a 2001 250

[punishum808]

So I got this bike from a cousin who had it sitting for 15 years. It had extremely low miles, 2,200 and it was babied BUT it had some goodies like a 'Jet Kit' and pipe and we were going to originally use it as the pit bike for my practice dragbike.
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When I started to get her running again it was in really, really bad shape. Outdoors sitting in Hawaii as folks know, is BAD. In the middle of the ocean, surrounded by salt water, the most isolated inhabited place on the planet is not good for anything mechanical or metals especially when it sits. Rust is EVERYWHERE.
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Well, one thing led to another and now it is being used for a client and the build is being videoed for our motorsports TV show. After 22 years in Hawaii PunishUM Motorsports will be going national in 2022 but that's for another story.
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So here is the start of the build, it has been going on for quite some time.
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Hope y'all enjoy it. Mahalo
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[punishum808]

When I finally got her indoors to work on it was apparent she was rough, real rough. Before we got to ahead I made sure the motor was free.
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The forks are pitted and rusty, the rotors are just as crusty and the powder coat on the wheels were so abused from the elements it was flaking off.
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Took off all the unnecessary items like turn signals, reflectors and anything that makes it a street bike.
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Absolutely no brake feel at all and it would not hold pressure.
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[punishum808]

So the next step is tearing it down.
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Seeing what was still working, what needed to be tossed and what needed to be freshened up.
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[punishum808]

First thing I did was to clean up the wheels to stop the corrosion on the aluminum.
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Prepped them really good, masked and added rattle can paint just to temporarily protect the surface.
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These are going to get widened to be able to put proper road racing slicks on and powder coated as well.
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[punishum808]

Next thing I did was to start smoothing out the body lines.
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Eliminated the bungee tabs, removed the taillight assembly. Helmet locks, all gone.
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So I closed up those holes first.
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[punishum808]

Then I made up a cardboard template to close up the hole left when I removed the tail light assembly.
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[punishum808]

Now you can see the more cleaner look is starting to appear.
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[DannoXYZ]

Very nice... very nice...

[punishum808]

All the front turn signals, reflectors and all the other factory body lines are all smoothed out as well.
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I also closed up the grill opening on the lower fairing. Anything to make it look cleaner.
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[punishum808]

Then I got the headlight block out piece and most folks would just duct tape it in.
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I grafted it in there so not only will the look be be smoother it will also add rigidity to the fairing.
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And I also started to look at aero enhancements not only for aesthetics but for added benefits.
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[punishum808]

Originally Posted by DannoXYZ

Very nice... very nice...

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Mahalo, thanks for your advice on the wiring, appreciated it.

[punishum808]

Next up was the seating area.
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The factory seat is to tall, to mushy and doesn't give back positive feedback with all that cushion.
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So I began by taking it all off till just the pan was left and fabricated pieces to help with a tail stop.
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I also picked up a rear cowl for that true racer look.
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[punishum808]

I hand laid all the fiberglass.
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There are tons of 'How To' videos on this topic. Some are quite good but there are tricks to making sure you can get the best fitment.
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After having done body and fender on show cars since I was 16 for over 40 years you pick up a trick or two here and there.
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[punishum808]

And once sanded over the shape starts to take place.
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[punishum808]

I began trying to add aero enhancements.
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Getting them from ebay and spending hours looking for the right ones to fit the vision in ones minds eye.
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[punishum808]

Lots of fabricating as 'UNIVERSAL' mean LOTS of WORK customizing things.
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BTW, the factory fairings are not symmetrical, what you measure on one side does NOT mean the same measurements will transfer to the opposite side.
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Trust your EYES what it tells you if it looks balanced.
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I have been doing artwork for over 45 years, so if it doesn't look right to you, it probably ISN'T.
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Take your time, be patient. Because once you get to the bonding phase, it is PERMANENT.
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Fixing anything at that point is like a doctor breaking a broken bone to reset it.
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It can be done but if you have no experience doing so it will mean more than not throwing things away and starting ALL OVER AGAIN.
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I will show it to y'all later but you now have a sneak peek of how I am grafting a '08 front fender and modifying and changing its shape to fit onto the '01 bike.
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[punishum808]

I bonded the new solo seat to the cowl so it will be removed as one piece.
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If not you will have to get creative with adding dzus or panex fasteners for it to be race legal.
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[punishum808]

Speaking of fasteners, the lowers are all supported by fasteners in the factory openings.
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Next posts I will show you how I extended the lower fairing for it to be track legal as a oil tray.
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Till next time, 'Keep it off the Streets and on a Track and SPEED SAFELY'.
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ALoooooHA, book UM Danno.
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[Ceeloo Yello]

Keep up the good work.

[DannoXYZ]

Wait, so you moulded fibreglass seat on top of existing seat base?

I have VFR750F coming from Canada and will probably make something similar. One-piece solo seat and remove subframe. Save about 10-15 lbs.

[DannoXYZ]

Originally Posted by punishum808

ALoooooHA, book UM Danno.

Everyone says that to me! I was too young to get into that show. New re-make's is little too violent. I like original Magnum P.I. !

[punishum808]

Originally Posted by Ceeloo Yello

Keep up the good work.

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Mahalo

[punishum808]

Originally Posted by DannoXYZ

Wait, so you moulded fibreglass seat on top of existing seat base?

I have VFR750F coming from Canada and will probably make something similar. One-piece solo seat and remove subframe. Save about 10-15 lbs.

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Basically but it is a LITTLE more involved than that. It will definitely save weight. I must have shaved off close to 60 pounds on this 250. Gauges, fairing/headlight brackets, tabs that held on OEM pieces, passenger pegs, OEM fork brace, kick stand, all the OEM pieces and then remade better fitting brackets out of aluminum.
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[punishum808]

Originally Posted by DannoXYZ

Everyone says that to me! I was too young to get into that show. New re-make's is little too violent. I like original Magnum P.I. !

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Me too, I enjoyed the original Magnum PI much more. I was an extra on the revamped Hawaii 5-O that just went off the air.
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NCIS is in the process of spinning off a Hawaii series slated to come out next fall.
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[punishum808]

So one of the things about any street bike is there are a lot of things that need to be changed in order for it to pass tech for racing.
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One requirement is to make sure should you leak fluids it doesn't go directly onto the track.
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The Ninja 250s pan is far to short to cover the bottom of the cases to catch any fluids.
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So at first I mocked up a cardboard extensions of the lower fairing.
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[punishum808]

That cardboard mock up didn't quite go as planned so I took sheets of aluminum I had to make a mold.
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[punishum808]

This is how the mold looked from the side.
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[punishum808]

Clecos are the best tool you can use for holding together panels, sheets, its uses is almost limitless.
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[punishum808]

Then once the mold is done lay your glass and let it cure.
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In this case you would want to lay the glass larger than your actual mold and then trim it down to its size.
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[punishum808]

Then once the glass is properly cured remove the mold and Wallah, you have a full lower pan.
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Then do regular body work, prime and paint.
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Proper for passing tech for racing.
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[rstnick]

Very nice work your doing there Tracy.

[punishum808]

Originally Posted by rstnick

Very nice work your doing there Tracy.

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Mahalo

[punishum808]

One of the next things we made was a forkbrace.
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The factory one is to heavy and not to effective.
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[punishum808]

So the new brace is not only way better but it also saved weight as well.
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I also had to make sure it had the clearance as I graft a '08-'12 front fender onto this '01 we are working with.
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[punishum808]

And since we are not using our 250 on the street everything in regards to unnecessary weight was taken into account.
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Like no need for the speedo drive.
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So we made this one with a dust cover to protect the wheel bearings.
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That saved some weight right there.
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[punishum808]

Next time I will show what we did with the exhaust.
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Till then Keep it Off the Street and on a Track and 'Speed Safely'
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ALoooooooHA, Book UM Danno
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[punishum808]

*** ALooooHA ***
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So this pregen, thanks to Danno for teaching me the proper terminology, already had a good exhaust on. I just didn't like the size of the canister and the dated look.
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[punishum808]

*** Changing the Canister ***
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So my good friend and lead fabricator for my TV show, @punishum808 came to help me tack on a newer smaller canister.
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[punishum808]

*** The New ***
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So besides saving weight I liked the new look as well. My boy SeanO also made a custom bracket.
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All of this is just mocking up right now, it will eventually get coated with hi-temp cerama-kote.
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[punishum808]

*** Till Next Time ***
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Will show you the carbs and what was done.
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Keep UM off the street and on a track and 'Speed Safely' ALoooooHA, Book UM Danno
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