2 STROKE DREAM BIKE

I would classify this machine as my dream bike.

Banshee Street Moto: 350cc two stroke twin, 5 speed gearbox, 40 to 90 horsepower (depending on tune), involuntary wheelies all day long, 2T Grand Prix sound, comfortable seating position.
The Yamaha 2T twin RD/RZ/YPVS/Banshee engines are designed to be rebuilt in the pits, while using the least amount of tools. The selection of aftermarket parts for this format is endless.

CONCLUSION
As an ex Yamaha RZ YPVS owner / builder, I know the thrill factor of that machine would be off the charts. Unfortunately a bike like that is out of my price range, as I have never spent more than $3000 for a motorcycle. If I win the lottery, building a machine like this will be a top priority.

2020 UPDATE

I have not posted in two years, specifically because the machine has not experienced an issue.. It’s been three years since I fouled a spark plug. There is no more tuning needed. It’s a starts on the first kick at 50F without choke machine.

As an experienced motorcyclist, I still have no desire to go back to riding street motorcycles. It would take a street legal, two stroke, 125cc+, street super-moto, to match the thrill factor of the 2T ‘scooter’.

Street legal Honda CR500 two stroke. Captain Inasano.

CONCLUSION
When my bike was a completely stock 50cc with the ‘weed eater’; sounding exhaust, there were a few instances where an onlooker would point and laugh. From their perspective, they are observing a ’25 MPH scooter’, because the machine has to rev to 7000 RPM to keep moving at low speed.
After tuning this machine’s engine, CVT, gearing and sound, all of the laughing has stopped. Now all I hear is, ‘Do A Wheelie!’, ‘What Size Is That Thing?’ and ‘Do You Want To Sell It?’

Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic 2 Cycle Oil

I’m the type of guy that will putt around town using $20 a quart racing oil. I’m a big fan of Klotz, Motul and Castor Oil. I would never use a ‘cheap oil’, until now…

After a bit of research, I decided to switch to Mystic JT4 Full Synthetic Snowmobile Engine Oil / Mystic JT4 Full Synthetic Person Watercraft Engine Oil. (same thing)
Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic has attributes of an expensive synthetic racing oil.

MYSTIK SAYS: “The advanced formula used in Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic 2-Cycle Engine Oil meets engine requirements for an API TC and JASO FC quality oil. For use in all air-cooled or liquid-cooled 2-cycle (Injector or Premix) Snowmobile engines”.

Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic contains some degree of ESTER SYNTHETIC base oil.

Motul 800, Maxima K2, Bel-Ray H1-R, Red Line Racing and Silkoline Pro 2, Ipone Samourai and Klotz -R50 contain ester synthetic base oils.

Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic is $15+ a quart quality oil, for less than $10 a quart.

STIHL HP ULTRA ester synthetic is $100 per gallon.
MOTUL 800 ester synthetic is $70 per gallon.
BELRAY H1-R ester synthetic is $65 per gallon.
REDLINE Racing ester synthetic is $60 per gallon.
KLOTZ R-50 ester synthetic is $55 per gallon.
MYSTIK JT-4 2 Cycle Full Synthetic $25-$35 per gallon.

Mystik JT-4 full synthetic information suggests that it is technically a semi synthetic, that contains group III and group V base oils.

Mystik JT-4 is not as advanced as a true Ester Synthetic like Motul or Belray, but, it is unusually advanced for it’s price range.

Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic does not have that boat motor smell!

I personally do not want my exhaust to smell like a boat motor or weed eater.
The exhaust smell produced by Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic is quite neutral.

Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic smokes very little during warm up.

Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic is similar to Maxima Super-M
QUOTE: “Super-M is a blend of clean burning petroleum base oil, synthetic polyester, polybutene, anti-scuff / anti-wear compounds and a new additive that keeps rings, power valves and the exhaust tract carbon free.”
Interestingly, Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic and Maxima Super-M are the lowest smoke oils I have ever used. They are lower smoke than true full synthetics like Klotz and Motul.

CONCLUSION
Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic is the most ‘sleeper’ 2 cycle oil on the market.
It’s quite odd to find an inexpensive two stroke oil that contains some degree of group 5 / ester synthetic oil, as well as a very robust additives package.

500+ MILE UPDATE
I’m about to complete an entire season on the same spark plug. (shocking) When I used the best racing oils, it fouled the spark plug every 100 miles. After switching to Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic, fouling plugs seems to be a thing of the past.

The concept of easy starting is brutally obvious with a small displacement two stroke engine. When I was using the best racing oils, the engine required choke to start when the outdoor temperature dipped below 70F.
I have not had to use the choke since switching to Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic. It’s now a ‘starts on the first kick’ machine, even if the outdoor temperature is 40F.

750 MILE UPDATE
It’s time for a new top end. Here is the old top end after 750 miles on Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic.

The head is clean. The exhaust port is clean. The rings are free. Everything looks good.
I am retiring the spark plug after 750 miles of problem free operation.

In the past when I used castor / synthetic racing oil, at 500 miles the rings were stuck and the exhaust port was 25% blocked. (picture below)

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VAST CONCLUSION
This is the ‘best’ oil for putting around town. Nearly all of the concepts on this blog are about obtaining the best result in the street environment.

This would be an excellent 2T oil for a trials bike. The 2T trials bike spends the vast majority of it’s time at extremely low engine RPM, for which is taboo in the two stroke realm. With the right jetting and Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic oil, you could idle all day without fouling a spark plug.

Finally, I have nothing to gain by praising any product. I’m not the type of person that wants other people to use the products that I use. I am not the type of person that is obsessed with saving money. I am not an opinion whore. My goal is to reveal what works best in a specific application.

2020 UPDATE
I have come back three years later to update this posting. I am still using Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic.

The engine has still not fouled a spark plug. This is quite rare for a a 32:1 premix setup.

I usually replace the fragile 70cc top end every two seasons, as there is noticeable power loss after half a dozen soft seizures.
Since I have been using Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic, I have only experienced one soft seize in three years. The bike still has the pull of a fresh top end.

I miss the smell of some of those premium 2T racing oils, but, Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic keeps this engine tight and clean.

Back in the day you would never use 2 cycle ‘boat motor oil’ in a high revving two stroke engine, because ‘boat motor oil’ was specifically designed to allow a 2 stroke engine to idle all day long without fouling the spark plug(s), while occasionally taking the engine to it’s 3500 – 5500 RPM top end.
In today’s world, the ‘boat motor oil’ (Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic) will allow you to idle all day without fouling the spark plugs, yet it now has the 10,000+ RPM protection that you get from a more expensive synthetic.

I personally would not use Mystik JT-4 Full Synthetic in a constant high RPM racing application. In a racing application I would use Klotz Benol, Klotz Super-Techniplate, Castor 927 or Blendzall Ultra.

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FASCINATING OIL TESTING INFORMATION

Years back, someone claiming to be a chemist, claimed to be testing various 2 cycle oils. He published his results on a snowmobile forum. The self proclaimed chemist used terrible grammar and spelling, for which made his claims suspect. However, his RPM and cold point pour numbers are seemingly on par with true scientific information.
Let us also consider that English might not be the chemist’s first language, which might explain the poor spelling and grammar.

QUOTE:
“The R.P.M. Unit (machine) was built with a stainless steel piston that run’s up to 16,000 r.p.m’s, I add E-10 gas into the port hole and add the oil to a 50-1 mix and run it until the database software on the computer tell’s me at what r.p.m. the oil break’s down, It also tell’s me the viscosity under load presure, was there any foam under heat and how much carbon build up under heat. The unit gets to a 116 fahrenheit.

TESTED: Injex pro 2- cycle, The base stock is mineral oil the other is synthetic oil, this oil contains a large amount of detergent’s and ash, Maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength 8,875, With a large amount of foam and heat under high r.p.m, This oil failed my test.

TESTED: Mystik jt-4 synthetic, R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength 13,600, This oil was the best in cold pour point so far with a – 56 f, This oil is excellent and passed my test.

TESTED: Red Line two-stroke snowmobile oil, This oil has 80% base stock’s of very small molecules, It has very low ash, Very good film strength, And a pour point of -42f, Maximum r.p.m. before break down was 11,443, This oil passed my test.

TESTED: Polaris racing synthetic oil, this oil had 85% base stock’s of very small molecules and a very high film strengh, first let’s compare this to ves gold plus, the racing oil has .9% higher visosity then the ves gold plus, But the ves has more corrosion inhibitors then the racing oil, polaris racing synthetic maximum r.p.m. before break down was 12,920, This oil passed my test. with a pour point of -40f. So far the best bang for the buck is the Mystik JT4 synthetic.

TESTED: Amsoil Dominator, pour point -50, This oil has excellent synthetic base stock at 75%, and 25% high processed oil’s, but it has alot of detergent’s in the formula, R.P.M. before break down of the viscosity and film strength was 12,002, This oil passed my test.

TESTED: Legend ZX-2SR: First off under the microscope this oil is not a synthetic oil, but an ultra pure highly refined mineral oil, the molecules are very small, the pour point was -54f. R.P.M. before brake down of the oil viscosity and film strength is unknown. My test unit only goes to 16,000 R.P.M. and the oil never broke down.

TESTED: Polaris synthetic blend (blue) oil, This oil is 70% mineral oil with 30% synthetic in the mix, The molecules are not very uniform, Maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strengh was 8,988, This oil failed my test.

TESTED: Spectro syn-snow, this oil is 100% synthetic with very small and uniform moecules, there is a detergent in this oil, maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength was 13,778, this oil passed my test. pour point was -55f.

TESTED: Legend ZX-2R, This oil is almost the the same as zx-2sr, this is not a synthetic but a highly refined mineral, the molecules are small, But not as small as the zx-2sr, Maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength was 13,675, pour point was -48f. This oil passed my test.

TESTED: Yamalube 2s two stroke oil , This oil has a mineral base with synthetic added to the mix 60% mineral, 40% synthetic, Maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength was 9,998, Even though the r.p.m. were not that impressive, I am going to pass this oil, Becuse of it’s rust protection, and it is a very clean burning oil, pour point was tested at -33f.

TESTED: Klotz R-50 Techniplate, This oil is all synthetic, and has very small molecules, And it is a thick oil, Maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength was 15,579, even though the oil broke down, my test unit stayed at 116f, wierd, this is the first time my unit did this, pour point tested at -14f, this oil passed my test.

TESTED: Shell ADVANCE SNOW ULTRA ,This oil is all synthetic, The molecules are very small and uniform with low ash, This oil is a API-TC, JASO-FC, Maximum R.P.M. before break down of the oil viscosity and film strength was 11,902, this oil passed my test.

TESTED: CASTOR OIL, Yes people out there are using it, Castor is a bean oil, it is a excellent lubricant, With a high R.P.M. of 13,992 before break down, But this oil is very dirty, with carbon build up, this oil failed my test.

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CONCLUSION
This claimed testing revealed that Mytik JT4 Full Synthetic seemingly outperformed oils like RedLine, Amsoil Dominator and Yamalube 2S.

Notice how the test claimed Mystik JT4 Full Synthetic is 70% synthetic.

Notice how the Amsoil results claimed, ‘has alot of detergent’s in the formula’, which is a well known fact.

All of the above information appears to be on par with market and consumer claims.

Home Made Fuel Fragrance

Some of the all time best smelling exhaust scents are produced by the use of Race Fuel / Race Gas, Nitro, Klotz 2T oil, Castor Oil etc. Men get more excited over these scents than the scent of a fine smelling woman.

You can buy Fuel Fragrance to make your exhaust smell like cherry, vanilla, grape, bubble gum, cotton candy, root beer and more. You can get a 4oz. bottle for $12-20, which adds scent to 20 gallons of gasoline. It’s highly rated. Try some.

HOW CAN WE MAKE OUR OWN FUEL FRAGRANCE?

Fragrance Oil: My limited research indicates that fragrance oil is a small amount synthetic ester based scent in a vegetable oil carrier. i.e. jojoba oil, apricot kernel oil, almond oil, avocado oil, coconut oil.

Some synthetic 2 cycle oils are ester based. Some synthetic 2 cycle racing oils have some percentage of castor oil. This leads me to theorize that there will be no conflict between gasoline, 2 cycle oil and a small amount of synthetic fragrance in vegetable oil. Let’s test this theory.

I mixed a small amount of fragrance oil, synthetic blend 2 cycle oil and gasoline. After letting it sit for 48 hours in a below freezing temperature garage, I see no signs of separation, fogging or gelling. It’s very clear.

The MSDS sheet for some fragrance oils claim they have a flash point of 200F. The flash point of some common 2 cycle oils is around 200F.

HOW MUCH FRAGRANCE OIL DO WE USE?
Thanks to the Lampe Berger (oil fragrance lamp) hobby for this fairly scientific baseline. A Lampe Berger is essentially a Bunsen Burner with scented oil mixed in the alcohol fuel. The common formula for Lampe Berger Fuel is 10 drops of fragrance oil per 16 ounces of 91% alcohol.
If we convert the 10 Drops per 16 ounces formula to a gallon of gasoline, we figure: 128 ounces in a gallon & 20 drops in a milliliter: 128 / 16 = 8, 8 X 10 = 80 Drops Per 128 Ounces or 4ML OF FRAGRANCE OIL PER GALLON.

THIS IS 4ML OF FRAGRANCE OIL

There is roughly 3785 milliliters in a gallon. We are adding 4 milliliters of fragrance oil to a gallon. This is a ‘pre-mix ratio’ of 950:1.

WILL FRAGRANCE OIL BURN CLEAN IN MY ENGINE?
The indoor Lampe Berger experts know that if you use too much fragrance oil in the lamp fuel, the lamp can produce a small amount of smoke and soot. Their testing proves 10 drops of oil per 16 ounces of alcohol of oil burns clean, while also producing a significant aroma.
This provides a reasonable amount of evidence that 4ml of fragrance oil will burn cleanly in a gallon of gasoline.

TESTING / RESULTS

ROUND ONE (4ML PER GALLON)
I drained the fuel from my 70cc two stroke scooter’s fuel tank, fuel pump and float bowl. I measured exactly one gallon of 40:1 premix gasoline. Using a graduated cylinder, I measured exactly 4ml of Vanilla Fragrance Oil and added it to the gallon of gasoline. I shook the mixture aggressively for 30 seconds and poured it in to the fuel tank of the scooter.

THE SMELL IS STRONGER THAN I EXPECTED

The exhaust smell is twice as strong as any common race fuel or two stroke exhaust smell. The smell is not overwhelming, but, it is easily strong enough to mask the smell of two stroke exhaust. After running the bike with the garage door open, my garage smelled like a candle and bath shop.
The scent is incredibly accurate and very professional in atmosphere. It smells exactly as if the smell is coming from scented candles or a fragrance oil burner.

ROUND TWO (1ML PER GALLON)
Same process with 1ml per gallon.

THE SMELL IS SUBTLE

It smells very good, but, it has less scent than a race fuel or scented two stroke oil. The scent is very light. It is not strong enough to cover the smell of two stroke exhaust.

ROUND THREE (2ML PER GALLON)
Same process with 2ml per gallon.

THAT SMELLS GOOD!

The smell of 2ml per gallon is strong enough to mask the smell of the two stroke exhaust, while at the same time remaining fairly subtle. The smell of 2ml per gallon is comparable to a scented 2 cycle oil or race fuel.

ROUND FOUR (2ML PER GALLON RIDE)
After riding the bike for 15+ minutes to bring it up to full operating temperature, the 2ml per gallon scent is not as strong as when the bike is being warmed up. When the two stroke engine warms up enough to stop smoking, the scent is slightly reduced.

These combined results provide an estimate of fragrance oil volume / scent potency.

VOLUME / SCENT POTENCY
4ML PER GALLON = SMELLY
3ML PER GALLON = SCENTED
2ML PER GALLON = LIGHTLY SCENTED
1ML PER GALLON = EXTRA LIGHTLY SCENTED

Results will vary. By general rule, the sweet, fruity and floral scents are the most potent.

AUTOMOTIVE USE
After round one of the above experiments, I poured the 4ML Per Gallon mixture in to the fuel tank of my truck. (4.3 liter V6) The fuel gauge was reading 3/4 tank. This was approximately 15 gallons of fuel and 4ml of fragrance oil.

I drove my truck for the first time in a couple weeks, after forgetting that I poured the scented fuel in there. When I stepped out of my truck with it running, I was startled by the smell of vanilla.
That is a mixture of approximately .25ML per gallon, producing a decent amount of exhaust fragrance.

The mixture and effect will vary drastically by type of engine.
Let us also take in to account the subjective nature of ‘smell’.

RACE SCENT
More than a few people have stated that the trademarked KLOTZ racing oil exhaust scent smells like, ‘Laundry Soap’, ‘Dryer Sheets’, ‘Fancy Soap’ etc. KLOTZ is also described as having a ‘sweet smell’. It’s seemingly a ‘fresh scent’ with a bit of sweet scent. With that stated, I have seen fragrance oils like, ‘Tide Laundry Detergent’, ‘Gain Laundry Detergent’, ‘Downy’, ‘Snuggle’ and so on, that can help one create their own ‘race scent’.

When you do a high RPM run while using factory scented two stroke oil, the extra heat causes the scent to smell sweeter and more intense. I am pleased to report that fragrance oil works in the same manner. After doing a high RPM run with the Baby Powder fragrance oil, I started smelling those extra sweet notes that one smells at the kart / motorcycle / RC racetrack.

CRAZY SCENTS
A small list of the most crazy scents. (not recommended)

Marijuana, Bacon, Beer, Cigar, Dill Pickle, Drakkar, Maple Pancakes, Pipe Tobacco

NOTICE / DISCLAIMER
This is a two stroke scooter / small engine / hobby blog. I am only recommending the possible use of a small amount of fragrance oil in a carbureted small engine.

The phenomenon is somewhat rare, but, some oils do not mix well together. As shown above, if you have a two stroke engine, mix a small amount of gasoline, fragrance oil and 2 cycle oil together, to check for signs of separation, fogging or gelling.

It has been said that you do not use certain fuel additives in certain fuel injected engines, as it can have some effect on sensors.

Using too much exhaust scent in public areas is borderline anti-social behavior / disturbing the peace. In this specific application, we are using fragrance to mask the ‘boat motor’ / ‘weed trimmer’ smell of generic 2 cycle oil / exhaust.

Why Are Scooters So Fun?

WHY ARE SCOOTERS SO FUN?
I believe I am qualified to answer that question, being that I gave up riding motorcycles to ride a ‘scooter’.

MY ‘SCOOTER’

BENELLI QUATTRONOVE – 70cc TWO STROKE – 50 MPH

This is not your little cousin’s ‘moped’. This 200 pound sport scooter is the size and rider fitment of a 600cc sport-bike motorcycle. A rider needs to be six foot tall to sit on this bike with feet flat on the ground.

WHY ARE SCOOTERS SO FUN?
The answer to this question is a science within itself.

THE MATH
I live in a cramped metropolitan city with 250,000 people crammed in to a 10 square mile area. The speed limits in this city range from 25-40 MPH, with 45-55 MPH zones on the outskirts of the city.
I rarely left the city when I owned a 120-150 MPH motorcycles. Like most street motorcyclists in this area, I cruise around town.

When I ride a motorcycle from one side of the city to the other, while concentrating on faster acceleration and riding 2 MPH above the speed limit, the GPS recorded average speed is 25 MPH. A more aggressive rider on the fastest motorcycle is only going to raise this number a few MPH.
No matter what you (legally) ride in this city, the bike spends most of it’s time going 20-30 MPH.

A bike that provides the highest amount of functionality, performance and thrills at 25 MPH, is going to be the best bike for this environment. The math does not lie.

HOOLIGAN HANDLING
The phrase ‘Hooligan Handling’ was coined many decades ago in the UK, to describe a lightweight motor-bike with fast steering and small turning radius. The term was often used to describe certain lightweight, sub 250cc, two stroke motorcycles and scooters. Called ‘Hooligan Handling’, because these bikes were the most proficient at escaping the police in city / urban areas.

For example; the scooter can turn around in a single lane of traffic, ride up the drive ramp, down the foot path and in to the grass field, before a car or common motorcycle can get turned around. If they dare to give chase, the scooter rider rides down in to the ditch, running next to the lightweight bike whilst throttling it up the other side of the ditch, before riding away whilst flying the middle finger. Thus why the term ‘Hooligan’ handling was so fitting.

Think of it this way. The common house fly has a top speed of only 15 MPH, but, it’s very hard to catch because it has hooligan handling.

NOTE: I do not advocate fleeing from the police on a scooter.

LESSON IN TRACTABILITY
A sport-bike motorcycle, or any motorcycle for that matter, is not designed to go around the common 90 degree street corner turn.
The most popular turn in street motorcycling is nearly a problematic chore. Most street motorcyclists spend the majority of riding time on the slower city streets, riding motorcycles designed for open roads and large race tracks.

The taller the wheel, the less revolutions of the wheel in the turn. The less revolutions of the wheel in the turn, the shorter the distance of travel in the turn. The shorter the distance of travel in the turn, the less lean angle on the bike in the turn. The less lean angle on the bike in the turn, the less speed of the bike in the turn.

The shorter the wheel, the more revolutions of the wheel in the turn. The more revolutions of the wheel in the turn, the longer the distance of travel in the turn. The longer the distance of travel in the turn, the more lean angle on the bike in the turn. The more lean angle on the bike in the turn, the faster the speed of the bike in the turn.

When a motorcycle goes around the common 90 degree street corner turn, it’s taller 17-21 inch wheels make the turn very short, therefore reducing lean angle and speed.

When a scooter goes around the common 90 degree street corner turn, it’s shorter 10-13 inch wheels make the turn quite long, therefore increasing lean angle and speed.

Ironically, scooters are faster than motorcycles, while riding around the most popular turn in motorcycling, the everyday 90 degree street corner turn.

Hypothetical. You claim your 150 MPH sport-bike motorcycle can beat my 50 MPH scooter in a race, “anytime anywhere”. I’ll take that bet. Meet me at the kart racing track. Don’t worry, your 150 MPH sport-bike can easily navigate all the turns on the track. Just be careful how you use all that ‘power’ and ‘top speed’.

The scooter passes the motorcycle in the turns as if the motorcycle is standing still. The straight portions of the track are too short for the sport-bike to make up the lost time by using it’s relative speed advantage.
The motorcycle gets clowned by a machine that many motorcyclist believe is clownish.

Nothing like having video proof of concept.

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The slower city streets are more like a kart race track than a motorcycle race track. The scooter technically owns the cramped city streets, while it lacks the straight line acceleration and top speed to impress the ego.

Similar circumstances play out at street rider track day at the motorcycle / sports car race track. They block off part of the straight portion(s) of the racetrack, keeping track speed under 80 MPH. Street riders on Ninja 250’s often do faster lap times than equally skilled street riders on 150+ MPH sport-bikes, because the more nimble, flick-able, lightweight 250’s provide a tractability advantage in the small track / amateur realm.

Here is some high tech proof of concept.

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As the video above showcased, the 60 horsepower 250cc Moto3 bikes are around 10 MPH faster than the 260 horsepower 1000cc MotoGP bikes, in some of the tighter corners.
These street is a much tighter environment than the racetrack. With that stated, a scooter is virtually faster than a motorcycle at every action other than going in a straight line.

THE FLICK-ABILITY FACTOR
To turn right you must briefly turn left. To turn left you must briefly turn right. On a motorcycle this is called counter steering. On a 200 pound sport scooter it’s called; flicking the bike in to a turn like a hand puppet.

A 250cc two stroke Grand Prix racing motorcycle weighs only 250 pounds, yet produces 100+ horsepower. Some of the 500cc Grand Prix two strokes were pushing near 200 horsepower, while weighing less than a modern Kawasaki Ninja 300. The flick-ability of these lightweight machines is absolutely insane.
The common two stroke sport scooter gives one a taste of this insane flick-ability, without the power. Riding around every seemingly insignificant street corner gives one a racetrack like experience.

You can often push the limits on a scooter while remaining in the safe zone, while the same moves on a motorcycle can be quite risky.
No matter how challenging the turn is, a scooter essentially goes where you mentally point it, while it takes focus and skill to hold a challenging line on a motorcycle.

LESSON IN THRILL FACTOR (THE FEELINGS OF SPEED)
When you are riding a 175 MPH Hayabusa motorcycle 40 MPH, it feels as if you are riding 20 MPH. Even the Ninja 300 makes 40 MPH feel like 30 MPH. In an environment with 25-40 MPH speed limits, these motorcycles provide little or no thrill factor unless you are breaking the law.

When you are riding a 70cc two stroke scooter 40 MPH, you are getting the thrill factor of 60+ MPH. The rage is constant.

There is an old motorcycle adage that holds true to this day. ‘It’s more fun to ride a slow bike fast, than to ride a fast bike slow’.

At the end of the day, it’s a stack of cheap thrills that makes a good ride. The more cheap thrills you can stack, the better the ride.

THE ROLLER COASTER EFFECT
When you are riding most sport oriented motorcycles, your knees are down and your feet are back. You are leaning forward to some degree. In this common motorcycle body position, rapid acceleration often makes the rider feel as if they are part of the machine, rather than a feeling of needing to hold on.

When you are riding a scooter, your upper legs are horizontal and your feet are in front of you. This is a roller coaster like seating position. This seating position puts your body on the vertical balance point, which causes small amounts of acceleration to feel like extreme acceleration. The sensation of needing to hold on while accelerating. It’s equivalent to, ‘getting put back in your seat’ in a fast car.

THE GROM EFFECT
The Honda GROM is a 125cc motorcycle with 12 inch scooter wheels. The GROM uses the same size front and rear tires as my scooter.

GROM is a small motorcycle with sport scooter handling. Ironically, many riders are letting their bigger motorcycles collect dust, because they can not deny the hooligan thrills that GROM gives them on city streets.

For many GROM is all the ‘motorcycle’ they will ever need.
For many GROM is a way of life.

I walked in to a shop with a GROM parked out front. The middle aged clerk said, ‘nice scooter, I could tell that it is a two stroke’. I asked him if he owned the GROM parked out front. He told me that he traded in his GSXR 600 to get the GROM. I told him that I sold my Ninja 750 to buy the scooter.
This was one of those logical grown man moments. A logical grown man will abandon status and numbers, to obtain the secret hooligan recipe.

Make note, I would not ride a four stroke scooter. It would take a street legal, street tuned, two stroke super-moto to exceed the 2T sport scooter experience.

HEAT FREE RIDING
When you are riding a motorcycle on a hot day, the engine heat bakes you when you stop at traffic lights. This causes discomfort and frustration. It seriously degrades the city motorcycling experience.
Motorcycle engine heat in summer traffic causes many riders to wear less safety gear.

Engine heat on a scooter is virtually non existent.

FATIGUE FREE RIDING
When you ride a sport-bike with clip-ons and aggressive rear sets, you are leaning forward. This causes fatigue to the arms and lower back. This fatigue can set in as fast as thirty minutes. The negative side effects can be long term.

The scooter is a comfortable chair in comparison.

UNIVERSAL PARTS AND PLATFORM
When you buy a scooter from the Minarelli / Yamaha platform, there is a universal selection of parts for every component on the machine. One can select decent quality Chinese parts, good quality Japanese parts or high end European parts.
Some of the bearings and other parts on a scooter can be replaced with American replacements from your local auto parts store.

A scooter’s build quality is determined by it’s tuner. It’s a rolling hobby.

There are high end / racing parts for the same platform. A scooter gets insanely fast when you throw money at it.

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0-60 MPH in 4.5 seconds is on par with a Ninja 650 motorcycle or a 400 horsepower 2017 Chevy SS car. The scooter is likely faster from 0-45 MPH / stoplight to stoplight. This is enough acceleration to embarrass any 175 MPH sport-bike rider that has problems getting a decent launch.
Depending on set-up, top speed of a scooter like this is around 95 MPH.

Perhaps the most thrilling aspect of the powerful scooter, you can power wheelie bounce the front wheel up and down on command at low to medium speeds, like a turbo Hayabusa does at high speeds.

CONCLUSION
The 50-100cc scooter is not for everyone. It’s obviously not going to work on the expressway, highway or interstate. This is a matter of, ‘the right tool for the job’.

When I bought the scooter, I figured I would tinker with it for one season, before selling it to buy another motorcycle. Like any motorcycle experience, I expected the thrills to fade.
After a couple of riding seasons on the two stroke scooter, I have no desire to go back to motorcycles. The scooter thrills never fade.

This is more intense than a horror movie…

Benelli Quattronove 70cc Street Tune Up

BENELLI QUATTRONOVE SCOOTER
(70CC STREET TUNE)
49x – X50i – Andretti

70CC STREET TUNE (TORQUE MONSTER)

BENELLI QUATTRONOVE
50 MPH STREET TUNE FORMULA

PREFACE
All aftermarket 70cc cylinders are to some degree ‘sport’ tuned. Compared to the stock 50cc cylinder, the common 70cc sport tune sacrifices a great deal of relative low RPM torque to make more high RPM power.

The common ‘sport tuned’ 70cc scooter generally does not move until the tach reaches at least 6000 RPM. The engine is always screaming at higher engine RPM during launch, acceleration and cruising speed. However, when we tune every aspect of the machine to produce relative torque, we can restore a great deal of that 5000-6000 RPM pulling power.

The street tune pulls like a damn train from 5500-7500 RPM. It has an extremely wide 5000 RPM to 9000 RPM power-band.
Lower RPM operation and the lower tone of the street exhaust serves to make the bike seem ‘bigger’ than it actually is. One might say that it performs like a restricted 125cc machine, rather than a screaming 70cc machine.

70CC STREET TUNE

ENGINE
ENGINE MODEL : QJ-1E40QMB  / 12mm Wrist Pin Type
The stock 50cc cylinder has a very wide, street-able power-band. (3500-7000+ RPM) It produces maximum torque at 5000 RPM, while producing maximum power at 7000 RPM.

TUNE UP: Replace 50cc cylinder, cylinder head and piston with Malossi Sport 70cc Cylinder Kit (Minarelli 12mm) – $125
AVAILABLE HERE

The less expensive Asian 70cc sport cylinder kits look the same, but, many come with a 2mm plus squish clearance. This severely decreases relative torque.
The slightly more expensive Malossi (Italian name brand / quality) cylinder kit comes pre-tuned with a tighter squish clearance, which makes excellent torque / power right out of the box. It’s well worth the extra thirty dollars. The ‘Malossi Sport’ air cooled cylinder is well known for it’s street torque and reliability.

Replace the 12mm wrist pin bearing every time you have the top end off. This bearing is the weakest point in the engine.
Wrist Pin Needle Bearing (12mm) JOG Minarelli 1E40QMB
Heavy Duty Replacement: Wiseco B1043
I.D. 12mm
O.D. 16mm
Length 15mm

SPARK PLUG
NGK BR8HS

CDI IGNITION
Benelli Quattronove comes with an unrestricted CDI from the factory. There is nothing to be gained by use of an aftermarket CDI.

CARBURETOR & PREMIX CONVERSION
The Benelli Quattronove’s stock carb is the common PZ19JB (12mm) Chinese Mikuni / Jog clone carb. $18 new on ebay. It’s a great fuel economy carb with fair performance.

TUNE UP: Replace with Malossi 19mm PHBG Carburetor Kit – $120
This is the highly coveted Italian made Dellorto 19mm PHBG carburetor sold under the Malossi name, that contains the proper AU two stroke atomizer. This carb is pre-tuned for the two stroke 1E40QMB / JOG / Minarelli Horizontal platforms.
AVAILABLE HERE

JETTING: The Malossi / Dellorto carb comes with a 72 main jet. Using this jet provides precise jetting in my environment with the street tune setup.

Precise jetting may involve trying i.e. 72, 75 and 77 main jets.
In my summer environment;
72 Main Jet: Crisp jetting / lighter brown spark plug. (great power)
75 Main Jet: Slightly rich with darker brown plug. (good power)
77 Main Jet: Too rich, black spark plug, sputtering on hot days. (fair power)

The carb comes with the adjustment clip in the top groove of the needle valve. This is the leanest needle position. Move the adjustment clip down to the second groove from the top, which raises the needle one adjustment richer.
Raising Needle / Lowering Clip = Richer Mid Throttle
Lowering Needle / Raising Clip = Leaner Mid Throttle

Do not touch the air screw on the carb. It’s flow set to maximum performance at the factory. This carb is a high quality preset instrument.

Do not forget to plug those brass vacuum line connections on the top of the carb.
I plugged these connections with ‘black rubber vacuum cap assortment’ from an auto parts store.

REMOVE THE SNORKEL FROM THE AIR-BOX
The new carb outflows the stock 50cc snorkel on the top of the air-box. Performance is terrible with the 50cc snorkel.

The Benelli air-box is a cloned Yamaha JOG air-box. Yamaha engineers knew what they were doing when they designed this air-box, as it provides maximum mid-range torque, with the top end hit of an open filter, in street / mild sport tuning platforms.
Yamaha engineers used this same air-box on 90cc models of the same engine, by using a snorkel with a bigger port. Thus revealing the stock air-box with snorkel removed has more than enough flow for a 70cc street engine.

NOTE: The stock air-box’s rubber boot is a very tight fit on the 19mm carb. I used a dremel tool / drill with a stone bit, to file down the inner diameter of the air-box’s rubber boot about 1mm. This allowed the boot to go over the carb much easier.

DO NOT USE AN OPEN FILTER!
Using an open filter with 70’s size main jets will overheat / damage the engine!
A K&N / UNI Foam / open filter set-up requires a significantly bigger main jet (85-120?) and possibly a richer needle valve setting.
On street and mild sport tuned set-ups, an open filter sacrifices a significant amount of relative street torque, for little or no increase in relative top end power. An open filter is also very loud.

THROTTLE CABLE
The stock throttle cable / oil injection cable combo will NOT work with the new 19mm carb. It will install, but, the cable will be too short to pull the new carb’s throttle slide more than 3/4 throttle. This is why we convert to premix and use the custom throttle cable that comes with the carb kit.
The cable is designed to be custom cut and fitted. I had to cut about an inch out of the custom cable for a perfect fit. Cut little by little until it’s a perfect fit.

CONVERT TO PREMIX
To convert to premix, simply plug the end of the oil injection line that connected to the old carb. This is a safe / common practice. The remaining oil in the injector pump will lubricate itself while it does nothing.

Advanced tuners will remove the flywheel and stator, giving them full access to the oil pump, where they remove the plastic drive gear that drives the oil pump.

Mix quality two stroke oil with gasoline at:
30:1 ratio for heavy thrashing.
40:1 ratio for light street use.

THE PERFORMANCE OF THE MALOSSI 19MM CARB IS SHOCKING!
Without exaggeration; this carb doubles the torque / performance feel of the bike. With the stock carb; snapping the throttle wide open at 5 MPH would calmly increase the speed of the bike. With the Malossi 19mm carb; snapping the throttle wide open at 5 MPH will cause the bike to pop a 3-6 inch wheelie, before taking off rather briskly.
The performance improvement of this carb is like going from a tame 70cc scooter, to a restricted 125cc motorcycle.

This drastic increase in performance comes at the cost of decreased fuel mileage.
If you are getting 60 miles per gallon with the stock carb / oil injection, you may encounter as low as 30-40 miles per gallon with the new carb / premix. While thrashing the bike on very hot summer days, you may see as low as 20-30 miles per gallon.
For reference; a carbureted 125cc two stroke motocross bike gets around 15 miles per gallon. This can be quite shocking to those outside of the two stroke realm.

EXHAUST
STOCK EXHAUST: The factory exhaust is a catalytic converter disguised as a expansion chamber / ‘racing pipe’. It gets dangerously hot and plays a role in causing 70cc soft seizure / overheating. It weighs a ton. It belongs in the garbage.

TUNE UP: Replace stock exhaust with Stage6 Street exhaust for Minarelli horizontal engines. The Stage6 Street exhaust is an absolute torque monster. (excellent power below 7000 RPM) The Stage6 Street exhaust has a low tone growl that makes the engine sound ‘bigger’ than it actually is.
This exhaust is also sold under the name ‘Turbo Kit TKR’.

REMOVE EURO SPEC RESTRICTION FROM EXHAUST

Or replace with any ‘Minarelli Horizontal / 1E40QMB’ exhaust from the ‘Touring’ category, that makes maximum power around 8000 RPM.
Options: LeoVince Touring, Malossi Wild Lion, V8 Racing, Technigas Silent Pro, Naraku Traffic,  Tecno Streetline etc.

The cheapest generic street exhaust is better than the stock catalytic converter.

The ‘street’ / ‘touring’ line of  scooter exhausts make decent power from 5000-8500 RPM. This provides a wide power-band with lots of torque / usable power at lower RPM.

The ‘sport’ line of exhausts (mild expansion chamber) make great power at 7000-9000 RPM. A narrow power-band with a stronger hit at higher RPM, at the cost of losing a significant amount of torque / usable power below 7000 RPM.

CVT TRANSMISSION
1E40QMB 16mm / 21mm Variator
1E40QMB 16 Spline Clutch
MITSUBOSHI 16.6 X 792 Belt

TUNE UP: The Benelli Quattronove’s CVT is ‘unrestricted’ from the factory, but, it needs a few upgrades to better serve the way the 70cc cylinder makes power.

VARIATOR: Remove the stock roller weights and install 15X12 4 Gram Slider Weights. – $20
AVAILABLE HERE

The stock roller weights work perfectly, but, slider weights will lower engine RPM slightly at cruise speeds, while providing the same amount of acceleration and hill climbing ability.
In this application sliders make the bike more calm and street-able, while rollers are inherently peaky. It’s a matter of preference.

For tuning reference; (180 pound rider) I tried some 5.5 gram slider weights. These weights were too heavy, causing the bike to lose some degree of hill climbing and roll on acceleration performance.

CLUTCH: Replace the three stock clutch springs with yellow ‘Yamaha JOG 1500 RPM Clutch Springs’. – $10
AVAILABLE HERE

If you do not replace the stock clutch springs, 0-10 MPH acceleration will be terrible.
The stiffer 1500 RPM clutch springs cause the clutch to engage at a slightly higher RPM, causing the bike to launch at a slightly higher RPM, which better compliments the way the 70cc cylinder makes it’s power at a slightly higher RPM.

NEVER USE CLUTCH SPRINGS FROM CHINA! Aftermarket clutch springs from China are not much stiffer than stock springs. Only use clutch springs made in Taiwan or Europe, because they are much stiffer than stock. KOSO Taiwan and Malossi Italy make higher quality clutch springs.

Replace the stock clutch contra spring with a ‘KOSO 1000 RPM Contra Spring For Yamaha Zuma’. – $13
AVAILABLE HERE

The stiffer 1000 RPM contra spring will raise engine RPM slightly while riding, to better compliment the way the 70cc engine makes it’s power at a slightly higher RPM.

CLUTCH TUNING NOTES: When I tried the common blue 1000 RPM clutch contra spring, I found that engine RPM was too low at all speeds. When I tried the yellow 1500 RPM clutch contra spring, I found that engine RPM was rather high at all speeds.
The KOSO black 1000 RPM contra spring performs as you would expect from a 1200 RPM spring. It has a little more tension than the common blue 1000 RPM contra spring, while having far less tension than the common yellow 1500 RPM contra spring. This gives me better hill climbing ability than the blue 1000 RPM contra spring, without the excessively high RPM of the yellow 1500 RPM contra spring.

DRIVE BELT
MITSUBOSHI 16.6 X 792
When it’s time to replace the drive belt on the Quattronove, you must get another MITSUBOSHI 16.6 X 792 Belt.

DO NOT USE A 788 BELT!
If you use the market suggested, less expensive, shorter 788 X 18 30 replacement belt, you will lose top speed and raise engine RPM at cruise speeds.

GEARING
A scooter is only as top speed fast as it’s maximum RPM and final gearing.
My Benelli QuattronoveX X50i (12 inch wheels model) has a 13.5 : 1 final drive gear ratio, which is essentially 35 MPH gearing. This 13.5 : 1 ‘granny low’ like gearing is a major cause of engine soft seize, because the engine is screaming 9000+ RPM when you want to ride 40+ MPH.

Installing different gearing in a scooter is not so much about improving top speed, as it is about lowering engine RPM at higher cruise speeds. If you install taller gearing and expect to ride at those faster speeds at 9000+ RPM, it may soft seize the same as it would at lower speeds with stock gearing.

TUNE UP: Replace primary transmission gears with ‘Stage6 15/50 up gears for Chinese Minarelli scooters CPI Keeway’. – $75
AVAILABLE HERE

RESULTS: Installing Stage6 15/50 ‘up gears’ changed the bikes final drive ratio to 11.3 : 1.

Stock Gearing – 8000 RPM @ 35 MPH (cruise speed)
11.3 : 1 Gearing – 7300 RPM @ 35 MPH

Stock Gearing – 8700 RPM @ 40 MPH
11.3 : 1 Gearing – 7800 RPM @ 40 MPH

11.3 : 1 Gearing – 8000 RPM @ 42 MPH (cruise speed)

Stock Gearing – 9000+ RPM @ 45 MPH (soft seize)
11.3 : 1 Gearing – 8500 RPM @ 45 MPH (fast cruise speed)

Stock Gearing – 10,000 RPM @ 49 MPH downhill (inevitable soft seize)
11.3 : 1 Gearing – 9500+ RPM @ 51+ MPH downhill (possible soft seize)

The 11.3 : 1 Final Drive Ratio Is Amazing! The stock 13.5:1 gearing had the engine screaming 8700-9000 RPM, to ride 40 MPH in a 40 MPH speed zone. This meant running the engine right on the verge of overheating.
With 11.3 : 1 gearing, the bike purrs along 7500-7800 RPM @ 40 MPH. The bike’s new 8000 RPM @ 42 MPH sweet spot / cruise speed is perfect.

At times I will be riding 35 MPH on a flat surface, noticing that the tach is reading as low as 6700 RPM. That is near 125cc like RPM!

NOTES: Stage6 15/50 up gears are straight cut gears. Straight cut gears are quite noisy compared to stock helical cut gears. When spinning the back wheel with the engine off, they somewhat imitate the sound of; “you might have a bearing going out in there”. At various speeds you may hear a faint ‘turbo’ like whine.

As you get accustomed to straight cut gears, you will likely notice an increase in efficiency. For example, at lower speeds decent torque starts at 1/8th throttle instead of 1/4 throttle. It feels as if the bike rolls easier at lower speeds. There is less CVT / engine braking at all speeds. The all around feel is quite different. It’s better.

The installation of the 15/50 up gears did not require additional CVT tuning.

–
PERFORMANCE SUMMARY (180 POUND RIDER)
All figures obtained using 4G / DigiHUD GPS speedometer app.

Stock 50cc: 0-35 MPH in 14 seconds
Stock 70cc: 0-35 MPH in 12 seconds
70cc / Stage 6 Street Exhaust: 0-35 MPH in 10 seconds
70cc / Stage 6 Exhaust / 19mm Carb / Gearing: 0-35 MPH in 8 seconds

0-35 MPH in 8 seconds is on par with a stock Honda GROM 125cc motorcycle.

NOTICE / DISCLAIMER
Results will surely vary. These little two stroke engines are very sensitive to changes in temperature, humidity / barometric pressure, elevation etc. Your tuning will be specific to your environment, expectations, rider weight, riding style etc. Each person will end up with their own specific formula, while this posting is merely a generic baseline.

The Benelli is a full sized sport scooter with 12 inch wheels. It weighs 215 pounds. It’s nearly the size of a 600 sport-bike. With that stated, the street tuned Benelli Quattronove is not a power wheelie machine.
Smaller, lighter, under-powered scooters with 10 inch wheels wheelie very easily.

Most advertised top speed numbers in the 50-70cc scooter realm are based on riding downhill, with the rider in a tucked position. To obtain the flat ground / rider sitting straight up top speed of the machine, simply subtract 3-5 MPH.
For example, my scooter’s top speeds are; 51 MPH tucked rider / riding downhill, 47 MPH tucked rider / flat ground and 45 MPH no tuck / flat ground. I am sometimes prompted to refer to it as it a 50 MPH bike, while it is more realistically a 45 MPH bike.

TORQUE TUNING RATIONALE
The scooter community, it’s fans and it’s critics, spend way too much time worrying about ‘Top Speed’. So many people beg the question, ‘How Fast Does That Thing Go?’, when a machine’s top speed has nothing to do with everyday performance on the street.
The base logic for any sort of performance tuning is to tune a machine for optimum performance in a specific environment. By general rule, the smaller the track, the more relative torque is of importance.

REFERENCE
Everything one needs to know about the 1E40QMB engine / scooter is obtained in the two stroke sections on 49ccscoot.com and 90GTVert on youtube. A gold mine of information. Countless step by step articles, pictures and videos, showing you how to diagnose, repair and modify these Minarelli / JOG / 1E40QMB platform scooters.