Bimota BB1 Exhaust

I've had a number of inquiries about the custom exhaust that is on my Bimota BB1, so I decided to post some information about it. One of my Bimota mail list friends, Anders Hørtvedt in Norway, sent me a bunch of information about the history of my BB1 (he knew the original owner). The custom exhaust was actually fabricated from a section of a sailboat mast. Yes, you heard me right - a sailboat mast! It's amazing how you can find unusual things from which to fabricate custom parts. Here are a few pics of the exhaust. On the left side you can see the channel where the sail fittings slid up and down the mast.

 

 

 

 

Unbelievably Bad Luck

Okay, this is unbelievable. I took the BB1 for a ride over to San Francisco yesterday, only about 15 miles each way. I was coming out of the toll plaza to get on the Bay Bridge (which connects Oakland and San Francisco) and I apparently ran over something metal that I never even saw. I heard this loud scraping sound and then some clunking. I was in the middle of about 12 lanes that merge down to 5 so I couldn't pull off the road, and once I was on the bridge, there was no shoulder and stopping would have been seriously dangerous. The clunking stopped, but the bike started handling kinda funny - weaving a little bit. I slowed way down, and once I got across the bridge, took the first exit and stopped to discover that whatever I hit took a chunk out of the rear tire, and ripped a huge section out of the entire length of the carbon fiber rear fender. The tire was completely flat but luckily the rim never touched the pavement. I couldn't leave the bike where I was, as it would have surely ended up stolen. So I rode a few miles on city streets in first gear to get to my local Bimota dealership. Luckily they had a tire in the size I needed and mounted it up for me (I had to wait a few hours). 
 
Is this bike cursed? When I last rode it in September I got hit by a car. Then after the months of time it took to get it all back together, this happens on the next ride. I'm almost afraid to take it out again!

I'm going to try to find someone who can take the rear fender and make a copy of it. I've gotten a couple of referrals to check out.

Here are a couple of pics of the carnage:

Bimota BB1 Finally Finished

At long last, I finished getting the BB1 back together with its new paint job. What an ordeal that was. I had all sorts of problems with the fuel tank. The first time I put it back on (which is an absolute bitch of a job), no fuel was making it into the carbs even though I could hear the pump running. After removing it I tried to remove the fuel pump to make sure all the hoses were connected properly and it turns out you can't get the fuel pump out of the tank, at least I couldn't even with the help of my friend Mark Ellsworth. But we were able to see that the hoses were all intact, and put it all back together. We tested the fuel pump by putting some gas in the tank and running the pump with a battery, with hoses feeding back into the tank. Everything was working fine. I put the tank under the bike and used some longer hoses to connect it all up with the tank just sitting on the floor. The bike started right up, but then I discovered fuel dripping from the carbs right onto the exhaust - not good. I suspected this could be due to a sticking carburetor float, and tried the old mechanic's trick of tapping on the float bowls with the plastic handle of a big screwdriver. Voila - the dripping stopped! So I reassembled everything and filled the tank all the way. Later I noticed a very strong gasoline smell in the garage, and looked down to see a huge puddle under the bike. Aaaaarrrrrggggg!!! Started all over again, removed the tank, emptied it into a gas jug, and removed all the fittings - there are 3 on the top of the tank, one for the wiring that goes to the fuel pump, one for the fuel level sensor, and one for the fuel line connections. Two of these are sealed with o-rings and one with a rubber gasket. I discovered a tiny tear in one of the o-rings so I replaced that. Just for good measure, I used some RTV on the two o-ring seals and reassembled everything. I waited overnight and then filled the tank to check for leaks, and there were none. So once more I reassembled the tank to the bike, and in the process added a quick-disconnect to the main fuel line where it goes into the carbs, so that this job will be easier in the future (hopefully never again). 

Next was to re-fit the fairing and the seat/tail section. The fairing was a challenge, it's a really tight fit. The tail is an even bigger challenge to get it over the exhaust without scratching it up, and then getting it into position for bolting into place. After a lot of sweating and swearing I finally got the whole thing together. I fired it up and took it out for a quick ride just to make sure everything was in order. Anyone who knows these bikes knows that they vibrate like there's no tomorrow. So, of course one of the bolts holding the bodywork on vibrated loose and fell out, along with the fancy custom-machined aluminum bushing. I'll have to get another one made (I really wish I had a lathe of my own). I'm thinking Loctite should be used on every bolt on this entire bike!

The good news is that the bike runs great and looks better than it did when I bought it. Here are a few pics of the finished product: