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Thread: "How low can you go" Grom build

  1. #21
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    Update 5: Vinyl is an art...and I suck at Art

    Had a busy week so I didn't have much time to do anything big on the build. Decided to try my luck with the vinyl wrap, and its not as easy as all those youtube tutorials make it out to be. But at least I can get a look at how the color will look against the stock black frame and engine. Some of my errors will be hidden by other panels, and the seat, but its still not the perfect job I set out for. I also am not to particular about this first go around of wrapping as I would like to see how durable it is once I am out and about this summer. The beauty thing with vinyl is that I can always re-wrap it. From afar...it looks....Okay

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    Close up is a different story:


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    My big learning on this first go around is to mount the fairing first to see what actually shows once its mocked up. I was so worried about removing "fingers" in an area that isn't even visible when everything is put back together, that it messed up parts that will be visible. It also lets me know which side of the part to start stretching and molding first.

    These were the smaller pieces, so hopefully the practice will show in the larger pieces.
    Last edited by sk8r3124; 03-08-2019 at 01:28 PM.

  2. #22
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    Was there a reason you went with vinyl instead of something like plasti-dip?

  3. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by D'z Nutz View Post
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    Was there a reason you went with vinyl instead of something like plasti-dip?
    I have a heat transfer setup at home, and when talking to my vinyl distributor, I realized it wouldn't be crazy expensive given the grom fairings are relatively small. Also, its a skill I don't have, and this gives me an excuse to learn. I work in an office 8 hours a day, and was never a mechanical person. I wanted to learn, so that's why I started with the ruck, learning the fundamentals of CVT engines, and wiring. I guess I am always just looking to learn skills I don't have. That's how I tackle choosing my winter projects

  4. #24
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    That's an awesome attitude.
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    You realize you are talking to the guy who made his own furniture out of salad bowls right?

  5. #25
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    Update 6: Lets put some air on this girl

    So everything so far has been essentially bolt on. There is enough of an appetite for aftermarket parts that companies make specialized add-ons. The air ride kit is not one of them. I saw an instagram post of an air ride grom and reached out to the guy to ask him where he bought his setup. He told me that he makes the kits himself, and the thing wasn't cheap (The shitty exchange rate didn't help the cause either). I have seen a bunch of groms in the city with stretches, and lowering links on the back end, but I wanted something truly unique, than not everyone would do. This is going to be the one thing that sets this bike apart from the pack. So I pulled the trigger....and hoped this random guy in Pennsylvania doesn't run away with my money. I waited...and waited.... and finally got a tracking number...phew!!! After I knew the package was on its way, I didn't mind the 3 weeks it stayed at customs before being released. Then the day arrived. Here she was in all her glory:

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    I wanted to see how much lower it would look, so I did a side by side with the shock support.....and there wasn't any difference.

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    Turns out, its the custom brackets the guy made that changes where the shock sits are what makes it go lower than stock.
    Here is the air strut with the brackets on.
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    Last edited by sk8r3124; 03-19-2019 at 11:11 PM.

  6. #26
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    There was one problem though....The undercowl that holds the battery and fuses was preventing me from attaching the top bracket to the frame.
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    But that job is no match for my trusty dremel. Normally I hate making permanent cuts or changes to body panels, but a quick search on partzilla and I realized that if I messed up, it would cost me a whopping $16 USD plus shipping to replace. So I powered that baby up and started hacking away. (In hindsight, I cut off a little more than I actually needed to)
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    With the cutting, the battery needed to be shifted higher, I will probably 3d print some "L" brackets and plastic weld them to the under side of the cowl to replace the box enclosure I hacked apart. But all in all, I don't think it was the worst fix.
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  7. #27
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    My next mission will be coming up with a way to mount the air compressor to the bike. The grom is already such a small bike, there isn't much room. Given that I had done the air box delete, I made a bunch of room around the front of the bike. So thats the plan.
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    Again not wanting to do anything too permanent, I wanted to stay away from welding or drilling through the frame. So before heading to the hardware store.... I drew myself a plan better than anyone could do in AutoCAD.

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    After basking in my engineering genius for a few minutes... I headed out to lowes and found some stuff that may work with minimal adjustments.

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    So that's where she is are right now. Once the compressor is mounted, its just a matter of connecting the lines, and integrating the electrical and the air ride milestone will hopefully be done.
    Last edited by sk8r3124; 03-19-2019 at 11:27 PM.

  8. #28
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    Do you not want to do anything permanent strictly so you can return it to stock and resell it later or whats the thought process there? Love the updates!
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    Meh, they all look like Jackie Chan to me
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  9. #29
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    That's kinda my thought process. Most of the time your taste isn't going to be everyone's taste. There isn't much of a custom grom market that I have seen yet, so I can't really guage what I would get if I sold it. Its kind of the same with the ruckus (Although every time I consider selling the ruckus... I just can't do it, its just such a blast to zip around on)

  10. #30
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    Updates?
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    ...Last thing I want is someone reading my posts and losing their cock over it...
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    Meh, they all look like Jackie Chan to me
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    I'm generally cute.

  11. #31
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    I have kinda been at a stand still. Currently getting some custom brackets made, and until all of them are made, I didn't want to progress much farther.

  12. #32
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    I set up the air system temporarily. This is how low she will sit when parked

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  13. #33
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    Update 7: Compressor finds a home

    I was originally going to get a buddy to machine the compressor mounting setup pieces I need to progress the air ride part of the build. Then decided that since it would be covered by the fairings, there really isn't a need to make it look super clean. So I just went to Lowes, grabs some flat metal, an angle grinder and drill and started fabricating myself.

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    Everything is still bolt on so I can still turn back to stock if I choose to. To protect the frame, I took some of that padding for under doors to prevent drafting around the uclamp, and this will also allow me to get a better seal to the frame. There were a couple of items on the frame that had to be relocated to fit the compressor, they are ziptied to new locations now and will make them a little more permanent in the future.

    So here is how it is mounted:

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    Last edited by sk8r3124; 05-09-2019 at 11:05 AM.

  14. #34
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    Short clip of the system in practice

  15. #35
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    Update 8: Last part of the air setup complete

    The last part of the air ride system is the drop plate to protect the engine while riding, as well as act as a kickstand when the bike is parked. Now that it is so low, it is not very sturdy unless it is on jack stands, so the drop plate was a must before I can take it off the stands and start testing some mechanical things. This is also where I realized that I will actually have to do something permanent to the frame. I have to do a stock kickstand delete or I wouldn't be able to turn left without it hitting the ground. So to the dremel I go.

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    The drop plat consists of two industrial grade door brackets and to pieces of steel attaching them. After lining them up, drilling some holes, I was able to put them together and align where on the frame I need to drill the hole in order to attach them.

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    I could have gone a little lower at this point, but the exhaust wasn't on yet, so I wanted to er on the side of caution. I can always order new brackets if I want to make any adjustments in the future. As you can see after I attached the exhaust back on, I have about a half inch of clearance to play with if I wanted to adjust in the future.

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    Last edited by sk8r3124; 05-19-2019 at 01:37 PM.

  16. #36
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    I pulled the grom up to the ruckus so people can see how low it actually is. Its almost the same size that the ruckus when its fully aired down and from the other size you can see how low it is compared to a larger vehicle.

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  17. #37
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    Update #9: Back to the cosmetics…Let’s make her look pretty

    Now that the air system has been figured out, its back to the cosmetic stuff. To compliment the lowered stance, I also lowered the handle bars. Very simple swap, and it turned out to be cheaper to buy them out of Florida and pay shipping and a terrible exchange rate compared to my main supplier in Quebec.

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    Next up are the wheels. Originally, I had planned to get a wide set of custom wheels as that’s one of the defining pieces on the Ruckus, but between the two custom rims, and the two custom hubs required to run them, it would make the build super pricey. Instead I ordered some wheels from Thailand. They are alloy so not as strong as billet aluminum, but I am not stunting this bike and doing wheelies so they should hold up. Maybe in the future I will upgrade to the widened wheel kit, but let’s see how much I enjoy this thing before dumping even more into it. The stock black wheels would have technically worked with the color scheme I was going for with the bike, but I like the gold look.

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    (Not sure why I cant remove the headlight picture below)
    Attached Images Attached Images  
    Last edited by sk8r3124; 06-27-2019 at 01:49 PM.

  18. #38
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    Next up is the headlight. I am personally not a fan of the stock headlight, so I wasn’t worried that it would have to go because I lowered the front of the bike so much. There is some nostalgia I have with the Ruckus headlights. The simplicity of them made it an easy decision to go with them on the Grom build.

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    Last edited by sk8r3124; 06-27-2019 at 03:09 PM.

  19. #39
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    Those head lights make it look like a nerdy kid with coke bottle glasses.
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    I'm generally cute.

  20. #40
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    Should have done a small lightbar or something more aesthetic

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