Thanks for the positive comments!
Not included in previous posts are these couple items:
The original Centurion with its 750 cc Kubota has an add-on belt driven water pump which leaves little room for anything else not to mention lots of rubber hose.... (Not sure about the Lane Museum setup..) This also pretty much limits the possibility of ever using any alternator other than the tiny Kubota generator unit since that pump occupies precious room where a normal alternator could go. Something to think about if anyone is going to build one of these and is planning on running much of any electrical load and trying to keep a battery charged..
The Centurion in this thread using the 850cc has a normal style water pump and a 100amp 80's style Delco alternator. These alts are very inexpensive to buy, maintain, and remove if necessary. The Kubota exhaust manifold is wrapped to keep the heat away from the alternator.
Original Centurion (left photo)..............................CrazyJerrys Centurion (right photo)
I also use a 3.27 differential. It's a new unit from Quantum Mechanics that's advertised to be more stout than the factory 3.27. The original 1966 differential contained a 4.11 ring and pinion which would be great for pulling stumps on the farm, but with a straight 4spd is a poor match for the 3000 rpm of the Kubota. I could only get about 45 mph with a 4spd and that 4.11 however, at idle I could dump the clutch and it would not even come close to stalling.
This car has no power brakes and no power steering. Due to the light weight neither is necessary. It can stop really quick with a mild press on the pedal, and it steers easy and go cart-like. It will corner like a slot-car, to the point where I hope the body mounts are strong enough. Parallel parking is easy if you can see your corners..
Both the Original Centurion and Lane's have the rear view mirror on the windshield like a normal car... With the rake on mine, that mounting location is completely useless. I had to mount it on the dash..
The Original Centurion had no exterior door mirrors and Lane's had a gigantor set of Mickey-Mouse ears (maybe that's why they only got 45 mpg!)
I decided against cctv for rear view and went with 2 Wally World bicycle mirrors. Since everything else is about 3/4 scale they fit right in!
If anyone builds one of these, don't overlook the muffler. I had a single setup like the Original Centurion but after several configurations I baffled a single-in dual-out muffler. The engine behaved differently over the rpm range with each one.
For the flip-up headlights, the Original Centurion uses an electric motor out of a 70 Charger (like the General Lee!) to open and close them. (Price one of those out on eBay - incredible!!!) Well, I'd like to see how great that actually worked on the Original Centurion. My experience was the flip-ups are too heavy and the motor isn't nearly strong enough. In fact my fabricated square stock linkage (per the instructions) has actually twisted a bit. I ultimately changed a couple of pivot points and put a manual cable pull on it (with a thumb lock). I also got some lightweight plastic 6054 headlights to replace the heavy glass units. The flip ups work real quick now.
Not sure of a build thread for the Tri-Magnum, but an update thread is not out of the question! Possibly starting this fall. I have 2 possible donor bikes and one is a 1980 Honda GoldWing 1100 Interstate, the other is a 1985 Honda GoldWing 1200 Interstate. After doing a single VW carb conversion on it, I've been driving the 1980 for a month now to see if it's "The One"... It seems pretty bomb-proof and lots of power. The 1200 is simply too nice to bust up but who knows... Will reveal more in the Fall on a new thread...
~CrazyJerry