Moriwaki swing arm
 

I got a Moriwaki modified swing arm installed today, by my friend, Mike, in Lake View Terrace, CA. I bought the swing arm on eBay, from Japan. I also bought the oil cooler off the same donor bike, from the same seller. (You can see it just above the belly-faring, in the full-view pic). I'm trying to figure it out--the season is changing--but the bike appears to run 10 to 20 degrees cooler for a given situation, with the new cooler. It's a 6-row Active.

One of Jamie Daughtry's shocks is arriving next week, so I'm looking forward to getting that installed, too. I opted for Jamie over Ohlins according to relative value, and the reputation Jamie's work carries.

I've only ridden about 60 'freeway' miles since the swing arm swap so no major changes in handling noted. My expectation is that I won't feel much as I have a stock engine and ride 99% of the time on the street. But, if nothing else the swing arm looks cool.

Mike did the front forks a while back; upgraded with .90 Race Tech springs, 7.5 wt fork oil, and he drilled a 1mm hole in something--LOL. I understand this is a standard mod to the stock forks. After the mod was done it made a MAJOR improvement. No more diving under braking, and a very 'certain' feel in high speed sweepers. It's ample to my needs, as they say.

I'm looking at HC pistons, lightened flywheel, and maybe some 'light' head work in the future. It seems pretty clear from my research that these engines don't give up ponies willingly, if at all, for minor changes. All the obvious stuff--intake, exhaust--appears to be pretty much optimized as the bike comes from the factory.

Also went with a 520 chain, and had that installed today by Mike, too. The problem was I futzed up ordering the rear sprocket and got a 45-tooth. Thought I'd try it. But I don't care for it. When the 41-tooth arrives I'll be swapping to that. If anyone wants/needs a 45-tooth to fit a Marvic/Galespeed wheel, it's yours.

Alan

Good for you hombre, that is some serious coin for those parts, as well as shipping. Some of us talked about this during the summer..


https://www.superhawkforum.com/forum...-cooler-34484/

Kelevra, I thought about it...a loooong time. I tried to talk the seller down. They weren't having it. When you've got something that's basically one-of-a-kind, it's a seller's market I suppose... I debated it a couple of months. Finally, I decided I'd never find another, so committed. The oil cooler was less compelling. But after learning the stock cooler's responsible for about 1/3 of the cooling capacity of the bike, and living here in a desert, it seemed a wise choice. I understood those adapters (the ones that mate to the engine) are pretty hard to come by, as well, so if I wound up going with a different cooler I'd still have had to source the adapters. (I saw a pair on eBay Australia for $109 USD plus shipping).

Wicky, you might be (and probably are) the very Devil, to tempt me so. LOL. I recently joined that board, and saw that engine in the classifieds. Even built by Roger Ditchfield. They don't come better. And it's another you'll-never-find-another, type item. It's expensive, and there are some risks (financially) in the transaction, for me. (There's no guarantee for anything). But it's definitely something we'd all love to own. Who knows? ;)

Give this one some seat time before you judge. I spent maybe 7/8 years on mine before doing the brace mod. I noticed a sizable improvement in rear feel and flex reduction after. Bike looks great Alan, the wheels are bitchen.

Wow,

I saw that swingarm and just couldn't bring myself to spend the $ as I have a braced swinger already.

The braced swinger made it necessary to fit a ZX10 front end and some radial brakes. Worth every cent.

In relation to your comment about exhaust, For years I have tried to buy a set of overbored headers and stumbled across this in a wreckers on the other side of the country.

https://imgur.com/gallery/mJdHj

I bought them knowing that the cans were stuffed but didn't worry as all I wanted was the pipes.

I have done a few things that you are contemplating such as J.E pistons and some head work along with a 4 degree advancer, electric water pump , Dyno jet kit , lightened flywheel,H Power stacks and a few other bibs and bobs.

I have now fitted the pipes and imagine my surprise when I saw how they mounted .

https://imgur.com/gallery/G0P23

https://imgur.com/gallery/5DoGX

https://imgur.com/gallery/2kotF

Why have I posted this, just to let you know that the pipes have made a huge difference to the way the bike performs. It's not the different cans as they were already on my bike and were fitted by making and adaptor, so the only difference is the headers.

These headers are completely seperate from each other and sound great as well. So maybe some headers will help you , that is if you can find some. I would much prefer one each side but I can live with them because of the change that they have made to how the engine performs with them.

Your bike looks great by the way!

If you can find a set, Akrapovic full system would be a nice addition to you collection of rare bits.

So very right.

Wolverine, it would be great if it's not just a cool-looking part but actually does something for my riding! LOL. I think you might have to ride it hard to get the sense of the thing. When I left Mike's I simply rode home the 60-something miles on L.A. area freeways with most of my attention devoted to not getting run over. I'll run it harder in the future, and report back.

kenmoore, as I mentioned, I too wrestled with the decision to purchase the swing-arm...for months. There's a story I heard/watched (one of the Zeitgeist videos) about a kid who played Monopoly with his grandmother. She always beat him, using the strategy of constant accumulation without cease. Finally, one summer the kid played monopoly every day and honed his instincts and skill, using what his grandmother had taught him. Finally, at the end of the summer he challenged, and beat his granny, took her very last dollar, forcing her to retire from the field. "And then..." (as he reported) "...my grandmother had one more lesson to teach me. 'Now', she said, 'it all goes back into the box...' " LOL. By this I just mean I paid the price to hang on to the swing-arm for a while. Thanks for the heads up about the exhaust. I have heard that a 'full' exhaust (not simply slip-ons) makes a significant difference with our bikes. And those header-pipes of yours are both disturbing, and wonderful. I've never seen anything like them for the Super Hawk/Firestorm. It sounds like they're very efficient. Now, I'm looking...LOL.

Xeris, Mike's got a set of the Akrapovic Ti (headers, mids and cans) on his bike. They are works-of-art. But he watches me too close and I don't imagine I'll be able to steal them...

As for the wheels, as noted they're Gale Speed's. BST supplies a set for our bikes. They were $3400. I had a set on a Ducati. They were great. But they were 'nervous', a little. Maybe a little too-quick steering. That factor, and the price, ruled them out. Probably great on a race bike. Not optimal (IMHO) on my street bike.

I contacted Carrozzeria, but the person I spoke with blew me off. I had a set of their wheels on a 'Busa I owned. They were good wheels. They've changed ownership in the meantime. Probably still good wheels. But, based on who I interacted with, the new company owner is in need of customer support people who are more motivated to support the growth of the company.

I finally settled on the Gale Speed wheels. The price was right. All the reports are that they're very well made. And they still make them. Albeit, it was about an 8 week wait. They are the heaviest wheel of the three I mentioned. However, the weight is concentrated at the hub which negates much of its ill-effect. In practice, riding with these, the steering is 'lighter'. Not effortless. But the bike goes where you point it without much muscle required. Even under heavy acceleration (flat out through about 80 MPH in fourth) you can make significant heading changes. They aren't 'effortless', but the bike does respond and it's not the situation where you have to back off the throttle or you won't turn in time, if you know what I mean.

If I could make only one modification to my bike, it would be lighter wheels. It makes such a handling difference. Braking and acceleration improve, as well. The wheels were $1680 shipped, from maxmcdirect.com (a Japanese company; great to deal with; they sell the 'Coerce' brand).

Alan

have to say nice swinger you got.. you are also correct in saying these engines dont give much out with serious mods.. that engine thats for sale is prob the best mori engine on the planet for sale atm... iv bought lots of parts from mark the owner of it and if you do deal with him, he is 100% straight...Roger Ditchfield is the man for VTRs and thats one of his engines, again another nice guy to deal with and has helped me a lot during the build of mine this year..

yes they cost a bit of money to sort but, and its a big but lol.... the very first time i used mine with the mori engine,all the months of hassle and money and skinned knuckles just disapeared in 2nd gear....

fabiostar, I researched importing this engine. I concur with you that it's a singular specimen. At that price (about $2900 USD) it's a steal. It's a great deal of money. But where else will you find another in such condition, and built by Roger Ditchfield?

Unfortunately for such endeavors (importing such things to the U.S.) the EPA has things locked down pretty tightly. You can import the engine for a race-only bike. But re-dedicate it to a street bike and you'll be liable $25K/day (yes, per day) if they catch you. It's essentially impossible to import it as a street-going engine, with its modifications, unless you're willing to lie your butt off and forge documents right and left. You could probably sneak it into the country, amongst other articles, but then you're a smuggler. There's a chance you could have it tested and get it certified for use here. I am sure that would cost more than I'm willing (or able) to spend. I am not down for any of these...options.

Mark seems like a good guy and I'd have no qualms purchasing this engine from him if the situation was different.

Alan

dear god thats a serious bit of shit you guys have to go through to get bits...not good at all. a pity as its just the engine you need..as you say marks a decent spud and has helped me with a lot of advice and parts during my build..
i know i sound like im gussing over these mori engines but they really are a different animal from a vtr....good luck Alan in getting your bike to were you want it...and your swingarm is epic looking.

Nice built, and really like the galespeed wheeld, i always wanted these.

If you don´t go by moriwaki engine route, there is possibility for you to have pistons from CP pistons, 11.3 CR and 98.5 bore. These were made for me, but are much better priced for US guys. It shouldn´t be problem to alternate bore to 98 or 99 if you wish, as template should be there. But in case of overbore, be sure you are able to find anybody willing to do cylinder boring in crankcase, for me it was near nightmare.

some more details
Red Storm - Page 5 - VTR1000.ORG

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.sup...5cd5236cf9.jpg

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.sup...b099910097.jpg

This thread needs a porn filter!

I love those wheels!!!!

Unless you done these in last few weeks cp has no record of making them as I called about similar pistons for mine but in a larger bore size. Do you have the build or stock number off box or receipt you could share? The guy I talked to said they could find them from the job number if I could come up with that.

I love the dual right exit!
I bought a set of vance and hines csone mufflers with this in mind for my build.
What brand of exhaust headers is that?

rktdoc: I didn´t find any job number in email communication. Pistons were sent in the middle of February 2015 with tracking number 1Z57EW040365737687, my contact was Tjader Harris. If you send me email to PM, I can send you some communication.

Not sure where the original box is.

found some payment info:
BLZ : 20815
DVR: 0030481

date of transfer payment: 30.12.2014
transfer number: 2326222307

rktdoc,

I can't say what brand the headers are !

They came with Micron cans.

The construction of the headers is good and the fit is excellent.

I am thinking that they have been manufactured by a dedicated exhaust manufacturer as the welds are of machine appearance .

Maybe they are Micron.

I have researched them and to date can't find any info.

Maybe someone on here can shed some light on them.

I am about to order some reverse cone megaphones but need to decide on what finish to get.

JE can make you some 0.5mm OS slugs (what I am running), need to order 4, however.....

JE are designed to use with oem rings, which are not available for os sizes. CP pistons are probably best way. If they dont find my old job, they can still provide blank new pistons based on data provided, like I did.

btw, looking on my old thread on uk site, I would restate my thoughts about crank balance with new pistons. Rebalance would be good if you find the somebody knowing the job. But for the most folks, it is better to leave factory balancing.

OS rings are (or were) available in 0.25mm and 0.50mm OS... am running the +0.5mm so I know they exist (or did anyhow, whether they can still be ordered is another matter)

Maybe NOS somewhere, but at least japan.webike was not able to provide os rings, same with UK distributor.

Edit: When I built the engine, sequence was following,

1. JE pistons for few quids, just check cylinders are within tolerance, ouch ...
2. Contact JE pistons if they sell me os pistons, price is higher but hey, no work involved. Then order os rings from Honda, no way ...
3. Find alternative, there are 100mm JB pistons on japan webike, but quite pricey. I can have my own from CP for better money, lets try if I am able to provide all data needed for new pistons.

​​​​​​​

100mm bore would really improve breathing on these engines, even allow for larger valves without so much shrouding
​​But I wonder if the walls are thick enough to allow that bore without distorting. If so it would be a good power improvement all the way through the Rev band.

you are right, 100 mm was not recommended by Roger Ditchfield due to wall thickness and related heat transfer. Maximum is 99 mm. But 100 mm still doesnt make much difference.

there is a 99mm kit on Webike.... (never saw any 100s FWIW)

as for valve sizes, sticking with stock valve size would increase velocity and boost cylinder filling and torque, making it a better street engine.... track may be better with larger valves but a street engine, IMO, would be best if left with stock-size valves (which would be my choice if I ever went to the 99mm kit)

back to the OP: I was looking at said Galespeed wheels until a set of nice used Dymag CA5 carbons appeared on eBay.... Love my Galespeed radial brake master cylinder....

Stephan, those are sweet, my friend. I'm looking at engine mods.

...Back to mikstr...LOL...I'm sure the Dymags are super. And yes, Gale Speed surely makes a quality product.

Alan

Even a street engine would benefit with slightly larger valves on the outlet side
The exhaust port design on these heads is terrible. The intake is adequate enough but the exhaust really needs opened up for better flow.
It really limits the pumping capabilities of this engine.
The gurus from Erion Racing mentioned this to me years ago when they tried running the bike in ama Superbike with no luck..
​​​​

rktdoc:

My POV is, that building the engine is quite complex with lot of things you have to solve. You need to start with correct cams, headwork, HC pistons, full exhaust, and build it info functional package ending with correct setup of carburation and air intake as stock airbox is true limitation (which is the problem I am still facing, but there is some progress). You will be quite lucky and will do big amount of work if you will success, and result will be not only engine with good top power, but engine with nice powerband.

Ovebore valves or 100mm pistons are just icing on the cake, affecting that you have 1-3 bhp more.

Rings for JE pistons
 

It is still on the list everywhere, try to order and see what will happen. It would be nice to have it available again.