Building my Jota

[sideshow]

Interesting that they measure the wheelbase as part proof that it's a std classic! So if you run 21 deg of rake and a long swingarm to compensate, as long as it's the same wheelbase as the old beast, it's a std classic! Nice. You just don't tell the engineer the head tube has been removed and repositioned.

The inspection went well, fortunately I had a classic vehicle club official there too, so he could concur it was in fact a classic vehicle , the only thing so far I have been pinged on were the indicators, they are LED, and thats not allowed on a classic. So I have some different more traditional ones coming for registration purposes. They weren't keen at all on bar end indicators, I even found a set of classic ones with the lens forward and back on the indicator, back in the day they acted as the only set needed, as the y could be seen from both front and rear of the bike, I asked for if I could use those, but they weren't allowed , even with proof of age. If its only indicators I have to change, so be it, I think thats lucky and a small price to pay.

the wheel base of the bike was measured, and also seperate measurements from centre of front wheel spindle to front of tire etc, max width of the bike from outside edge of the alternator cover to the outside edge of the cone. , many different height measurements etc.

It all took 30 minutes including photography. Lets hope I get passed to the next step which is a road worthy and decibel recording.

 

[Dellortoman]

Sounds like the engineering inspection was done by idiots. The things that they found "wrong" with your bike don't make sense.
What? You can't have practical upgrades on a classic vehicle? If so, they must have not noticed that half of your bike came off a 3D printer!

Measuring from centre of front wheel spindle to front of tire is just the tyre radius. They can get that from the spec numbers written on the actual tyre itself! Bloody officialdom gone mad.

 

[sideshow]

Sounds like the engineering inspection was done by idiots. The things that they found "wrong" with your bike don't make sense.
What? You can't have practical upgrades on a classic vehicle? If so, they must have not noticed that half of your bike came off a 3D printer!

Measuring from centre of front wheel spindle to front of tire is just the tyre radius. They can get that from the spec numbers written on the actual tyre itself! Bloody officialdom gone mad.

the engineering inspection isn't a technical inspection, its just to check you haven't modified the frame or changed the wheel base etc. It also is to confirm in fact it is a Laverda.

Basically a new specification document is written up from their measurements taken , which includes serial numbers and tire sizes, once official, I cant change the tire size .

The 3 d printing on the bike is non structural covers and bulk heads etc. 3 d printing was used to verify the designs of brackets and adaptors I drew up, and then those parts were machined from billet traceable TI, or 7000 series aluminium.

I totally agree with you on the indicators not being accepted, it should be seen as a practical upgrade. But if thats the worse they found then I am pretty happy. I think Quentin maybe in the same situation as me with his SFQ and modifications.

 

[chrisk]

They are stupid bastards.
Of coarse it’s a Laverda, blind Freddy could see that!

 

[sideshow]

Wow so it’s been 3 months since I last really did anything here on the Jota , loads of reasons, firstly a custody battle for my kids from the ex wife, which took a massive amount of time and energy and money, I won, but it seems now more attacks will be made by a woman who feels she is scorned.
work has been rather full on as well, with several trips around europe to start and finish projects, and have boats ready for regattas that have now started again… one regatta had 12 yachts in it, 12 yachts above 30 meters long, and 7 of them work with me, we managed to win both classes and my boats came from first to fourth in one class and the second class I had first through third place, with also a trophy for the overall regatta win going to one of my boats too… I call hem my boats only because either all the running rigging and special hardware or the majority of the work in that manner is done by me… probably better to call them my employers! In any case it was a bloody good start to the season we didn’t know we would have.
I had bad news on the Jota, it was refused to be accepted for registering, even though before I started with the project I showed the guys who were doing the paperwork for the Jota, what I would be doing , and they said no problem…. There was a complete 180 on that decision. I have one more meeting to finalize what I am doing, but the plan is this
1. Strip the 1200 that I have, strengthen the frame, Miguel is going to cerakote the frame in silver and everything that is on the Jota will be transferred to the 1200. The Jota engine will reside in the 1200 for a period of time . As this bike was sold a specific way to me we can do the changes with an engineer who gets everything homologated .
2. The 1200 engine will go to Red and come back all singing and dancing, just like the Jota engine. When the 1200 engine is back that will go back into the 1200 and be matching numbers again, and the Jota engine will go in the Jota.
3. In the meantime the Jota will be put back to looking like a Jota, albeit a wolf in sheep’s clothing, or more of a sleeper, and it will be re United with its matching numbers engine when the 1200 engine is back.

it may sound silly or prolonged, but I had planned on re building both bikes, one as an endurance replica and one as standard, so that’s what I will end up with. I changed my direction a few times with things, so I have almost enough new spares to do both bikes at the same time, so that’s pretty good .
I pretty much decided all this yesterday, while getting in the shed for the first time in ages, my head was in the right space, I have had 1 week of respite from the ex, although that won’t last long, as we know the next court appearance will be soon. it was just good to get in the shed, do a late spring clean, and get the bikes all in their right places , so as to line the 1200 up for a swap over. I am getting a second bike lift to park next to the Jota, a bit of a luxury, but it means I can work on two bikes at once….Below is the shed after a bloody good clean up, a ton of dust was moved, A good soul searching of do I really need this , and a decent rubbish stack removed of things I will probably regret getting rid of, nothing bike or espresso machine related! The last shot is the 1200 the recipient of a ton of good bits about to be rained down upon it. The good parts off the 1200 mixed in with the good parts of the Jota will go back onto the Jota…… which I haven’t decided which clout to paint it, as to my eyes only I haven’t seen another color yet that makes me say I want that for my bike… time will tell, so if not orange, i Don’t know what , but that is some time away, what ever it will be , it will match a silver frame

 

[Paul Marx]

Divorces are terrible.
Mine has been going on for 12 years now.
Even though my ex and I now agree, the proceedings are long drawn out.

Nice shed.

Paul

 

[Laverdalothar]

sad to hear of the divorce, the fighting around the kids (who are always the most tragical persons in this) and also your bad luck with the inspectors. What was their problem with the modifications, please?

 

[sideshow]

sad to hear of the divorce, the fighting around the kids (who are always the most tragical persons in this) and also your bad luck with the inspectors. What was their problem with the modifications, please?

Nothing structural, all cosmetic really, plus brake upgrade, The bike is allowed a fairing , that was just a different shape from the original Jota. The bike looked completely different, but once again it’s all cosmetic. They said I could push it through if I put the normal Jota seat for 2 people on and changed the fairing, then once licensed I could change it all back, changing again when it needed it’s roadworthy again, that was more a sneak around the fence and an act of kindness , but I prefer to not have to change everything each time. Those re the rules I guess. now I get what I want but just on a different bike

 

[Laverdalothar]

I understand. they can be PITA really sometimes... same over here...

 

[sideshow]

I understand. they can be PITA really sometimes... same over here...

Yes they can be, but I guess the system is set up by people who dont know or care, but apply a rule to the masses, it is what it is, I will get there eventually. Thats the good thing, And I will be one of the lucky ones that has two of Red's donks in my bikes

 

[chrisk]

Bastards, why not leave it until you move and try again.

 

[sideshow]

So paperwork pushing is going on at the moment, It seems like all the gear on the Jota will definitely go on to the 1200, but before I get into pulling it apart we are dotting all I's and T's , once thats sorted the 1200 engine is off to Reds shed.

so far all my moto gadget gear can be homologated, that is the tiny indicators, the rev counter with just a small display for the speedo

whats bloody odd is that the CEV tail light cant be, Nor can the Marchal head lights... not for any other reason than that they dont have CE numbers on them. I understand the Marchal's as thats pushing it a bit, but the CEV tail light is giving me Tourette's.
Wheels and tires are no problem, neither is the seat and fairing, we arent going anywhere near asking about the tank, but we think that will be accepted in any case, if not a 1200 tank will be in place if its knocked back on that. Brakes are no problem, thankfully there is a good brembo library to get all the drawings from , to show they actually exist and are CE.

The next thing I have been chasing is twin headlights. I have now found some Hella spots , 160 classics, 30mm OD bigger than the Marchals, which is bigger than I would like, but they have CE for high beam in europe, Im just now trying to find a low beam in the same style with CE. So if anyone knows of a lens or a model that would fit, sing out. I have asked Hella EU, but they are taking their time to get back to me.
If I run with the Hella's I will make the black plastic bit at the back metal. I would prefer some 130 od spots, so also if anyone knows of some that are CE for high and low beam in Europe, please shout out again. If that doesnt happen, and Im trying my hardest to make it happen, I would even machine up new buckets to fit CE lenses , then I have another of Bobas fairings, with the headlight cut out, that I bought at the same time as everything else that I can use, but I hope it doesnt get to that .

Im also looking at a different front mudguard that isnt so big, nothing wrong with the one I have, but its a bit too indian chief for the look I want, so if anyone has any ideas of nicer smaller ones let me know

I was planning on an underslung rear brake caliper, now the exhaust is in place that gets in the way of the brake stay/ torque arm, Im not entirely happy with the exit of the exhaust and how it looks , so I think I will cut it just behind the collector, and make it more pleasing to my eye, and hopefully that will allow the brake stay to fit in where I want it, otherwise its back to the original top mounted caliper.

In the mean time , the Norton, Triumph , MV and Ducati have all be getting regular rides as commuters to work, Its between 21 and 24 degrees already when I leave for work at 0645 each morning, damn but the breeze is nice and cool on the way in, and I cant stop smiling each time I come back into my shop when I see a bike outside. Hopefully in a week or two I will know more about the Jota/1200 swap out.

 

[KERMIT1200]

So paperwork pushing is going on at the moment, It seems like all the gear on the Jota will definitely go on to the 1200, but before I get into pulling it apart we are dotting all I's and T's , once thats sorted the 1200 engine is off to Reds shed.

so far all my moto gadget gear can be homologated, that is the tiny indicators, the rev counter with just a small display for the speedo

whats bloody odd is that the CEV tail light cant be, Nor can the Marchal head lights... not for any other reason than that they dont have CE numbers on them. I understand the Marchal's as thats pushing it a bit, but the CEV tail light is giving me Tourette's.
Wheels and tires are no problem, neither is the seat and fairing, we arent going anywhere near asking about the tank, but we think that will be accepted in any case, if not a 1200 tank will be in place if its knocked back on that. Brakes are no problem, thankfully there is a good brembo library to get all the drawings from , to show they actually exist and are CE.

The next thing I have been chasing is twin headlights. I have now found some Hella spots , 160 classics, 30mm OD bigger than the Marchals, which is bigger than I would like, but they have CE for high beam in europe, Im just now trying to find a low beam in the same style with CE. So if anyone knows of a lens or a model that would fit, sing out. I have asked Hella EU, but they are taking their time to get back to me.
If I run with the Hella's I will make the black plastic bit at the back metal. I would prefer some 130 od spots, so also if anyone knows of some that are CE for high and low beam in Europe, please shout out again. If that doesnt happen, and Im trying my hardest to make it happen, I would even machine up new buckets to fit CE lenses , then I have another of Bobas fairings, with the headlight cut out, that I bought at the same time as everything else that I can use, but I hope it doesnt get to that .

Im also looking at a different front mudguard that isnt so big, nothing wrong with the one I have, but its a bit too indian chief for the look I want, so if anyone has any ideas of nicer smaller ones let me know

I was planning on an underslung rear brake caliper, now the exhaust is in place that gets in the way of the brake stay/ torque arm, Im not entirely happy with the exit of the exhaust and how it looks , so I think I will cut it just behind the collector, and make it more pleasing to my eye, and hopefully that will allow the brake stay to fit in where I want it, otherwise its back to the original top mounted caliper.

In the mean time , the Norton, Triumph , MV and Ducati have all be getting regular rides as commuters to work, Its between 21 and 24 degrees already when I leave for work at 0645 each morning, damn but the breeze is nice and cool on the way in, and I cant stop smiling each time I come back into my shop when I see a bike outside. Hopefully in a week or two I will know more about the Jota/1200 swap out.

With reference to headlights how about 'crafting' on a pair of Kawasaki 750ZXR twin headlights on?
Andy

 

[andre g]

or Gsxr, Triumph, Afrika Twin there are some.
I also looked for some double lenses system which are according the norm, because the Machals are just high beam lights. I wanted to mount them endurance like in front of the fairing. It was difficult to find some adaptable because they all had big boxes behind the reflectors. So I decided for the smallest rectangular I could find in put it in the fairing…..

 

[sideshow]

With reference to headlights how about 'crafting' on a pair of Kawasaki 750ZXR twin headlights on?
Andy

hadnt thought of that, I looked for GSXR ones but hadnt found any.... the penny should have dropped with piranha brother talking about zxr headlights too

 

[sideshow]

or Gsxr, Triumph, Afrika Twin there are some.
I also looked for some double lenses system which are according the norm, because the Machals are just high beam lights. I wanted to mount them endurance like in front of the fairing. It was difficult to find some adaptable because they all had big boxes behind the reflectors. So I decided for the smallest rectangular I could find in put it in the fairing…..

I have an 819 and 812 in the marchal which is high and low beam or rather wide.... just guts me I cant use them

thanks for the heads up.. will look at all those models

 

[T.C]

Hey Todd, that motor you have there in your Jota is going to knock your socks off
After getting mine going I have been blown away, Red knows hows how to build a stonking engine buddy.
Get it sorted and get out and enjoy it.
You wont touch your other bikes once that Jota is going.
Cheers
Tom

 

[Tippie]

If your rear brake is fully floating you could cross the stay and mount it above the swingarm pivot instead of below it, Quentin and I have this and it is fantastic, the rear squats a bit when using rear brake. Was used on many GP bikes in the ´80s.

 

[sideshow]

If your rear brake is fully floating you could cross the stay and mount it above the swingarm pivot instead of below it, Quentin and I have this and it is fantastic, the rear squats a bit when using rear brake. Was used on many GP bikes in the ´80s.

Hi Tippie, can you send me a photo of your set up?

thanks

 

[sideshow]

Hey Todd, that motor you have there in your Jota is going to knock your socks off
After getting mine going I have been blown away, Red knows hows how to build a stonking engine buddy.
Get it sorted and get out and enjoy it.
You wont touch your other bikes once that Jota is going.
Cheers
Tom

thanks mate, Im envious of you and your bike. I will be lucky enough to have the 1200 resuscitated in Camira too... so when visitors come , they will have one too