Aprilia RS250 - Money Pit
Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2009 6:14 am
Hi All.
A few details on my RS250 project, some of you may recognise from the Aprilia Forum, but I'll pop a summary in here and some pics once I get a bit Flikr account sorted.
I ended up buying a pretty physically challenged Aprilia RS250 way back in October 2005 and then the rot truly set in! Three years later and it's still not running, let alone finished. I've spent nearly double what I had originally thought when I started (with another few grand still to go) but it's been awesome! The end result will be a bit of overkill in lots of places but I got to the point where I am really not wanting to compromise given how far I've came and what I really wanted to build all those years ago. I've not kept a record of time actually spent on the bike, as there have been lots of occasions where months have gone by (or for this year, a year) where there has not been much going on. If it ends up being 4 years till it is done, my excuse will be that it was really only 2 if you count actual time on the bike!
The rebuild has been stalled by rapidly dwindling funds in the project account, two garage break-ins, two house moves, two workshop moves and four holidays in the last two years. I've done what I could myself and farmed out what needed to be done by others. I've spent way to much on some things that I suppose were not strictly necessary (replacement forks, custom triple clamps and brake lines and electrical connectors) and the packaging of the components has evolved a bit during the build as well but it's been a lot of fun. Here's a bit of a brief on the spec so far and (hopefully) some of the finished product which I am hoping I can get down to 120kg with all fluids except fuel:
Chassis:
Frame/Swingarm - 98 Aprilia RS250 stripped and painted matt black
Rear Subframe - Stock modified for equipment mounting (oil tank, shock can, battery)
Rear Suspension - Technoflex rear shock adjustable for ride height, pre-load, rebound and high/low speed compression
Front Suspension - 2005 GSX-R 600 forks and custom triple clamps, stock RS250 steering stem and offset.
Brakes - Braking wave disks front and rear, front radial callipers from 2005 GSX-R 600 with HEL brake lines and 19x18 brembo master cylinder (folding lever), stock rear calliper and master cylinder, HRC fluid reservoir
Engine:
Stock Aprilia RS 250 with high flow air filter, re-jetted to suit stainless steel Jim Lomas exhausts (polished by hand in front of the telly for a few weeks) with a fresh top end
Cooling - Original thermostat and radiator piping removed, ZX-6R radiator fitted with custom cooling link pipe and silicone hose kit
Maybe some engine mods one day, but for now I need to get used to the handling mods and get some laps in before I start chasing (and spending more money!) on more power.
Miscellaneous:
Custom wiring loom with quick-disconnect connectors (work in progress)
Electrics relocated to front of fairing, Koso race tachometer, compact battery
Modified oil tank under seat (a cut-down and plastic welded stock item)
Dunlop Alpha-10's in stock sizes
Woodcraft foot pegs (with stock levers) and clip-ons
Venhill (UK) high performance teflon lined actuator cables for powervalve, clutch and throttle
Domino quick action throttle
Lightech folding clutch lever
Carbon hugger and front guard
A big post, but it's the first one in this index so might as well have a red hot go at it.
Pics to follow soon, but here is a teaser.
Cheers
A few details on my RS250 project, some of you may recognise from the Aprilia Forum, but I'll pop a summary in here and some pics once I get a bit Flikr account sorted.
I ended up buying a pretty physically challenged Aprilia RS250 way back in October 2005 and then the rot truly set in! Three years later and it's still not running, let alone finished. I've spent nearly double what I had originally thought when I started (with another few grand still to go) but it's been awesome! The end result will be a bit of overkill in lots of places but I got to the point where I am really not wanting to compromise given how far I've came and what I really wanted to build all those years ago. I've not kept a record of time actually spent on the bike, as there have been lots of occasions where months have gone by (or for this year, a year) where there has not been much going on. If it ends up being 4 years till it is done, my excuse will be that it was really only 2 if you count actual time on the bike!
The rebuild has been stalled by rapidly dwindling funds in the project account, two garage break-ins, two house moves, two workshop moves and four holidays in the last two years. I've done what I could myself and farmed out what needed to be done by others. I've spent way to much on some things that I suppose were not strictly necessary (replacement forks, custom triple clamps and brake lines and electrical connectors) and the packaging of the components has evolved a bit during the build as well but it's been a lot of fun. Here's a bit of a brief on the spec so far and (hopefully) some of the finished product which I am hoping I can get down to 120kg with all fluids except fuel:
Chassis:
Frame/Swingarm - 98 Aprilia RS250 stripped and painted matt black
Rear Subframe - Stock modified for equipment mounting (oil tank, shock can, battery)
Rear Suspension - Technoflex rear shock adjustable for ride height, pre-load, rebound and high/low speed compression
Front Suspension - 2005 GSX-R 600 forks and custom triple clamps, stock RS250 steering stem and offset.
Brakes - Braking wave disks front and rear, front radial callipers from 2005 GSX-R 600 with HEL brake lines and 19x18 brembo master cylinder (folding lever), stock rear calliper and master cylinder, HRC fluid reservoir
Engine:
Stock Aprilia RS 250 with high flow air filter, re-jetted to suit stainless steel Jim Lomas exhausts (polished by hand in front of the telly for a few weeks) with a fresh top end
Cooling - Original thermostat and radiator piping removed, ZX-6R radiator fitted with custom cooling link pipe and silicone hose kit
Maybe some engine mods one day, but for now I need to get used to the handling mods and get some laps in before I start chasing (and spending more money!) on more power.
Miscellaneous:
Custom wiring loom with quick-disconnect connectors (work in progress)
Electrics relocated to front of fairing, Koso race tachometer, compact battery
Modified oil tank under seat (a cut-down and plastic welded stock item)
Dunlop Alpha-10's in stock sizes
Woodcraft foot pegs (with stock levers) and clip-ons
Venhill (UK) high performance teflon lined actuator cables for powervalve, clutch and throttle
Domino quick action throttle
Lightech folding clutch lever
Carbon hugger and front guard
A big post, but it's the first one in this index so might as well have a red hot go at it.
Pics to follow soon, but here is a teaser.
Cheers