FJ Dragbike Project

[ribbert]

Further to my previous post, do not confuse this type of LED with the Cree globes, they are not much better than standard globes.



Noel

[Arnie]

Noel,

Can you provide a URL for the supplier of these lights?  That's an excellent price for a pair of cree LED globes.

Arnie

I do not recommend them for a street bike. They do not reflect enough light to illuminate the complete light housing to allow the brake light to function properly.

Randy - RPM

Randy, you are right about the poor illumination from the LED globes you mentioned.

However these cree tower globes (yes, they fit ) have outstanding performance in plate, stop and brake light illumination from all angles. I have these very globes in mine. The brilliance of the number plate almost requiring eye protection.
I also have a brake light modulator that flashes a dozen or so times rapidly when the brakes are first applied then settles into a solid bright light.

I am told my rear lights, including brake, are a standout amongst other traffic.

Even conventional LED's with lights on the sides and top do not offer much better performance, but these cree units definitely do.



Noel

[racerrad8]

Noel,

Can you provide a URL for the supplier of these lights?  That's an excellent price for a pair of cree LED globes.

Arnie

1157 BAY15D 64 LED 1206 SMD 2057 Car Brake Tail Stop Turn Light Bulb Lamp White

Randy - RPM

[Arnie]

Thanks Randy :-)

[fj1289]

Yes, LED lights will be a future "upgrade".  Also need to find a smaller wattage headlight bulb too.

Think I've got the electrics sorted again. 

I went two directions at once - like I'm prone to do.  Started with sketching a new wiring diagram with the intent of splitting the electrical system over two batteries.  At the same time started troubleshooting what I already had.  Battery seems to be good - as long as you fully charge it!   Noticed last night as I started tracing the wiring runs that even when I had "good" power at the main switch it was still .4 or .5 volts less than battery voltage.  So now I assumed the issue was with the wiring going to he main switch and could rule out an error with the install of the new shift light and 2 step.  The voltage would still sporadically drop to 6 or 7 volts at the switch or just drop off to zero.  Finally back tracked to an old spade connector I originally used to provide a quick way to remove battery power from the switch gear area (since the battery itself is tucked up under the steering neck where the factory mounted the coils).

Cut the connector off the feed wire. Full battery voltage at the wire!  Replaced the spade connector with a new butt connector - full battery power to the main switch!

This evening I'll get everything put back together and loaded into the trailer -- ready to try again tomorrow night.

Hopefully can make it off of work in time today to get a physical done for the NHRA competition license I'll need when I get into the 9's.

[Pat Conlon]

Chris, you are running a total loss system (all battery) with your alternator blanked off, correct?

[fj1289]

Exactly Pat.  The battery is an early version of the Ballistic LiPO battery - an 8 cell. Will probably add another 8 or 12 cell this winter.

I also may add the alternator back in someday, but for now keeping it simple.  Originally removed the alt to help seal up an oil leak that was giving me issues.

Electrics have been a recurring issue for me. So far all have traced back to poorly executed connections or bad terminals -- all from my original buildup of the wiring harness. I think the only remaining connector from the original is a spade connector setup going to the headlight so I can quickly power the high beam if I lose the low.  If the weather and work allows, will find out if all the electrical gremlins have been evicted tomorrow night.

[fj1289]

Well, the weather hasn't cooperated with my plans very well this week...anyone seen a guy with a lot of animals building a large wooden boat?!

And looks like work is going to keep me away for a week or two.

The battery has been holding its charge well and there is still full power to the main switch -- should be good to go when I do get a chance to hit the strip again. Need to lean the needles a little on the Lectron carbs, but that is all there is left to do! 

[Dads_FJ]

Well, the weather hasn't cooperated with my plans very well this week...anyone seen a guy with a lot of animals building a large wooden boat?!

And looks like work is going to keep me away for a week or two.

I should say so...

[fj1289]

Made it to the track again on Sunday - last test session of the year at Bandimere.

This year family and work demands have played hell every time I've planned to get to the track.   Racing is done for the year at Bandimere - Saturday and Sunday were day long test sessions to close out the season.  This time it was work that tried to cancel it -- a last minute tasking to ferry an airplane to Florida for testing.  Out Saturday and return on a commercial flight on Sunday.  You have got to be f'ing me!    Found an early flight - had to get up at 3 am to catch an early flight to make the last half of the final test session on Sunday -- hoping the whole way back weather holds out.  I've already loaded the trailer and left it hooked up to the Suburban at work when I flew out Saturday morning - plan to head straight for the track when I get back Sunday.

Trip goes well and I get back as planned - make it to the track about half way through the test session.   Get unloaded and check things over - CO2 bottle for the shifter is empty.  Crap!  Left the spare bottle in the garage.  Luckily my wife and in-laws are coming to watch - spare bottle will be here in an hour.  In the mean time try to reconfigure the shifter system to fill it up with the air compressor.  Short story - didn't work well.  1st run was a write off as a result.  After the run I also realize I've left the laptop at home so I can't download the datalog from the WEGO III.  Not a huge deal - the carb changes I made should still be pretty conservative and the 2 - step release point is at least in the ballpark (engine doesn't bog and the RPMs don't "flash" when I release the clutch).

Weather is borderline.  Clouds getting lower and temps getting cooler.  Get the full CO2 bottle in time for the second run and the shifter is good to go.  Get in line and there are a couple very light sprinkles.  Runs stop while the track officials assess the track conditions.  After 20 minutes or so they are able to resume running. 

2nd run goes better than the first - except my face shield fogs up so bad I have problems seeing the tree and the track.  Good news is the new shock spring is doing its job - shock doesn't bottom and the tire stays planted.  Bad news is the run is slower than expected - especially the 60':
60'        1.903
330'      4.609
1/8       6.793  at 112.44 mph
1/4     10.409 at 126.38 mph
The 1/4 mile time & speed are a bit slow because I rolled out early -- with the fogged up shield I had trouble making out the end of the track!

As I roll back to he pits, I hear the PA.  Seems they are getting ready to shut down due to weather - calling for anyone that hasn't made three runs to line up before they close.  Crap!

Not much time to sort out why the run is so slow. 
Quickly check the shock travel - used about half.  So I set the adjustable link one mark softer.  Leave the shock alone.  Figure the shock and tire are holding the launch so I'll turn up the 2-step rpm a little.  The adjustment is made by turning a potentiometer at the end of the box - not a precise adjustment and no time to check the change.   Roll right to the end of the staging lane, get my run card punched for the third (and final) time for the day and take my lane. 
The run is pretty uneventful - get the ticket and it is a little better than the previous:
60'        1.876
330'      4.524
1/8       6.702  at 112.81 mph
1/4      10.267 at 135.86 mph

Still scratching my head on the 60' times.  The 2 - step rpm was a little higher this time, but not much (definitely didn't set it high  enough!).  Trying to figure out why the previous 60' times were better with uncontrolled wheel spin and having to feather the throttle?  Seems it would be quicker getting good traction off the line and being able to keep the throttle pinned.  The clutch tune should be somewhat conservative, but I still expected at least a 1.5 60' out of it!  For sure not 1.9 and 1.8...

One step forward, 2 steps back ........ guess that's racing

More to follow after I look at the datalogs and some video of the runs.

[The General]

Made it to the track again on Sunday - last test session of the year at Bandimere.
This year family and work demands have played hell every time I've planned to get to the track.   Racing is done for the year at Bandimere - Saturday and Sunday were day long test sessions to close out the season.  This time it was work that tried to cancel it -- a last minute tasking to ferry an airplane to Florida for testing.  Out Saturday and return on a commercial flight on Sunday.  You have got to be f'ing me!    Found an early flight - had to get up at 3 am to catch an early flight to make the last half of the final test session on Sunday -- hoping the whole way back weather holds out.  I've already loaded the trailer and left it hooked up to the Suburban at work when I flew out Saturday morning - plan to head straight for the track when I get back Sunday.

Trip goes well and I get back as planned - make it to the track about half way through the test session.   Get unloaded and check things over - CO2 bottle for the shifter is empty.  Crap!  Left the spare bottle in the garage.  Luckily my wife and in-laws are coming to watch - spare bottle will be here in an hour.  In the mean time try to reconfigure the shifter system to fill it up with the air compressor.  Short story - didn't work well.  1st run was a write off as a result.  After the run I also realize I've left the laptop at home so I can't download the datalog from the WEGO III.  Not a huge deal - the carb changes I made should still be pretty conservative and the 2 - step release point is at least in the ballpark (engine doesn't bog and the RPMs don't "flash" when I release the clutch).
2nd run goes better than the first - except my face shield fogs up so bad I have problems seeing the tree and the track.  Good news is the new shock spring is doing its job - shock doesn't bottom and the tire stays planted.  Bad news is the run is slower than expected - especially the 60':
60'        1.903
330'      4.609
1/8       6.793  at 112.44 mph
1/4     10.409 at 126.38 mph
The 1/4 mile time & speed are a bit slow because I rolled out early -- with the fogged up shield I had trouble making out the end of the track!

Not much time to sort out why the run is so slow. 
Quickly check the shock travel - used about half.  So I set the adjustable link one mark softer.  Leave the shock alone.  Figure the shock and tire are holding the launch so I'll turn up the 2-step rpm a little.  The adjustment is made by turning a potentiometer at the end of the box - not a precise adjustment and no time to check the change.   Roll right to the end of the staging lane, get my run card punched for the third (and final) time for the day and take my lane. 
The run is pretty uneventful - get the ticket and it is a little better than the previous:
60'        1.876
330'      4.524
1/8       6.702  at 112.81 mph
1/4      10.267 at 135.86 mph
Still scratching my head on the 60' times.  The 2 - step rpm was a little higher this time, but not much (definitely didn't set it high  enough!).  Trying to figure out why the previous 60' times were better with uncontrolled wheel spin and having to feather the throttle?  Seems it would be quicker getting good traction off the line and being able to keep the throttle pinned.  The clutch tune should be somewhat conservative, but I still expected at least a 1.5 60' out of it!  For sure not 1.9 and 1.8...
One step forward, 2 steps back ........ guess that's racing

This stuff is really insightfull for me.  Hadn`t realised the intricate dedication, skill (and balls!) required for your sport. ..I guess I should be more accepting of people with different interests to me. Many seem ta watch Grit Iron, Baseball, Cricket and even Hockey!...I`m sure there must be a skill in there that makes people sit mesmerised for an hour or two...some even appear to be endowed with balls...but I don`t think I`ll ever have what they`re having...(not that there`s anything wrong with that!)...unless I`m watching real footie or there`s the taming of a motor involved. 

[fj1289]

Downloaded the datalogs from the WEGO III.  The WEGO III is primarily a wideband O2 sensor controller that also has a rudimentary datalogging capability.  It can log 3 channels of data - AFR, rpm, plus a third 0-5 volt signal.  Right now i am only logging two channels. Typically the third input would be TPS (throttle position sensor) or MAP (manifold air pressure).  I'd like to record rear wheel speed, but my setup (hall effect sensor and rare earth magnets epoxied to rear brake rotor bolts) is not compatible with this logger.  I made an attempt to build a frequency to voltage converter, but don't think the hall signal was compatible.  I may revisit this project over the winter. 

Here is the log from the second run:



Redline is RPM, green is AFR.
From the left you can see the engine on the 2-step about 4700 RPM.  The AFR is off scale high due to the ignition cuts to hold the engine at the launch RPM . 

--- quick sidebar on O2 sensors --- O2 sensors only do what their name implies - they sense O2 in the exhaust stream.  That's it, nothing more.  If the O2 sensor says there is a lot of O2 in the exhaust, it's up to you to figure out why.  In this case, an ignition misfire will make the O2 show a lean condition because there is a bunch of unburned O2 in the exhaust.  Doesn't matter how much fuel is in there with it - the O2 sensor doesn't detect fuel -- only O2.  An exhaust leak can also throw things off.  The one that gets people though is when you are so rich on the mixture that you are fouling plugs and getting a misfire -- the O2 will show you as lean!

You can see a couple things in the log where I release the clutch and the 2-step is deactivated - the RPMs jump about 200 RPM before the clutch pulls it back down and you see the AFR drop rapidly since the 2-step is no longer  cutting the spark to keep the engine at the set RPMs. 

Back to the logs - you can see the clutch slip as the engine RPMs climb slowly and then about 1.8 seconds into the run starts accelerating quicker as the RPM line gets steeper until the shift to second.  Can't really tell what the clutch is doing without comparing it to wheel speed, but the bike seems to be lazy during that first 60 feet or so.  Since the RPMs aren't spiking up toward redline and then "bogging" back down, I don't think the clutch is slipping too much.  I think I'm simply not throwing enough power at it off the line.  I need to bump up the 2-step RPMs 500 at a time until it gets slower/ spins/wheelies - and then figure out how to solve that...

For the third run I increased the 2-step RPM maybe 200 RPM (not enough I'd say):



The 60' was marginally better and the bike pulled out of the "lazy" acceleration a tenth or two quicker as reflected in all the split times.  Also looks like I may have kissed the rev limiter at the top of 1st gear the way the line flattens out at the top of first. 

It appears on all the runs when the bike pulls out of the "lazy" area around 6700 RPMs or so.  I'm thinking 6000 or 6500 may be the sweet spot for the 2-step RPM.  Of course, adjusting the clutch or suspension tunes may move that around a bit...

This may also explain the quicker 60' with the previous wheelspin -- the engine was able to get into higher RPM sooner, but having to feather the throttle to gain traction kills the 330' time.

Looking back at the previous runs, the bike did pick up a little better than a tenth from the 60' to 330' points which I was expecting to see.  Now I just have to get the 60' down where it should be - especially with a 66" wheelbase!

[fj1289]

...unless I`m watching real footie or there`s the taming of a motor involved. 

General - does that also include rugby?!

[andyb]

Sounds like you're finally starting the arduous process of dialing it in!

I don't need to tell you that the 60 has a lot of room to improve.  So does the 330, and the rest of the incrementals, but half track mph looks quite stout!  Incremental times from 330-1000 should look really, really good.  Your 60-330 time on the better run is in the 2.6 range, so the bike is definitely pulling hard once the arms come in. 2.1 from 330-660 is really good as well, that's a hell of a motor.

Looks to me like you need a bit more static in the clutch, the motor is driving through it a bit more than I'd like to see.  If you shim the springs a bit, it's also going to push the shock some, so you may end up wanting to go back to stiffer, where it was.  That'll put the power down sooner, and improve the 60, if you can stay hooked.  The laziness under 6700 revs looks like it's just waiting for the arms to come in and lock things up.  I wouldn't worry it unless you've got a dyno curve showing a big step in the power at that level.  If you wanted, you could test it by shifting very early and letting the motor pull from 5k or so in a longer gear, and check the logs.  You may end up having to get more weight on them to bring them in earlier, but I'd look at more static pressure first.

I can't tell if the slight drop in revs on your 4-5 shift is an artifact or indicating something, but it shows both times.

You a pinch rich at WOT?  If the weather is this cold, that's going to be filthy in the heat of summer.

What's up in second gear at recovery rpm?  Messy curve on both plots?

The other thing I'd say is that the goal isn't to use all the shock travel, the goal is to stay hooked.  Once you've got the bike planting the tire and not spinning, stay as stiff as you can.  Energy that moves the suspension around is wasted energy that could be better spent going forwards.

Definitely need to be a bit more aggressive on the 2step, but I understand taking it slow and keeping everything working together on the way there!  The tire's sticking and the logger is working, so you're definitely on the right path, it's just always longer than you'd hope

[fj1289]

Sounds like you're finally starting the arduous process of dialing it in!

Exactly!   The results weren't as good as I wanted, but I finally have a start on the process.  Looking at one more "last chance" for the season on the 9th of Nov down in ABQ.   Fingers crossed for the weather...

True that on the 60 and 330 - they aren't even in the ballpark right now! 

Looks to me like you need a bit more static in the clutch, the motor is driving through it a bit more than I'd like to see. 

That was my first thought too - then I talked myself out of it.  I'll give the static a try first.

Here is the  baseline tune Tim Hays recommended for the clutch in mult-stage mode based on the info I gave him:
4 static springs (has place for 6)
6 washers on each arm (this model has just 3 arms)
20# holdback springs (also have 14# and 17#)
.100 air gap

I'll add 2 more static springs.  Since I still have the slider studs in the pressure plate, I can add a slider spring and nut on the outside of the hat to adjust tension if needed on the 2 additional springs - like the reverse of shimming a spring).

I can't tell if the slight drop in revs on your 4-5 shift is an artifact or indicating something, but it shows both times.
<snip>
What's up in second gear at recovery rpm?  Messy curve on both plots?

I need to check my kill times, but I wonder if they a too long?  I wonder if that is causing a hiccup on the shifts?   Also wonder if second gear could be either a little clutch slip or some tire spin?   After getting the launch in the ballpark it'll be time to spend some effort getting all these other points sharpened up a bit too.
It is still a bit rich - I'm burning the last of my Q16.  I can't buy it in Colorado -- it uses MTBE for oxygenation and is banned from sale (and use I presume...) in Colorado -- even for off road use!  I jetted down some for the altitude - just not enough.  I have another set of power jets to put in when I change to "plain" race gas. 

The tire's sticking and the logger is working, so you're definitely on the right path, it's just always longer than you'd hope

Amen to that!  Just happy to be ON the path at this point!

Good point on the shock travel - it is in the "good enough" category right now.  Tuning this beast will be a constant iterative process - as one aspect gets better, it'll show the next that need improvement, then the next...  Shock and tire are good enough right now, clutch and 2-step should get the focus now.