The goal was to modify as little as possible on the existing wiring harness, and first try crancking  of the motor before connecting the fuel hoses.  After getting the startmotor up and running, it was time to mount the fuel tank at the rear, connect the fuel hoses, and start the engine. Crancking and starting succeeded without too many difficulties.

Fuel pump assembly, the fuel level sensor and the fuel cap have been installed on the welded tank. I've closed the exit tubes, and filled the tank with fuel. Luckilly there are no leaks !  

Two 3mm Aluminium plates were lasercut and bended to create the fuel tank volume. The CNC machined interface rings for fual cap and the pump assembly, together with the plates  have been TIG-welded. By re-using the original Ducati fuelpump and sensor, I avoid to have to do changes in the wiring harness (exept from extending it). The tank assembly will be located above the rear wheel and will partly serve as extension of the backrest. It will be mounted on rubber blocks and kept in place with tension springs.  Also the radiator exit has been repositioned.

Welding of all framework is finished now. Also the rerouting and mounting of the exhaust pipes has been executed. The radiator also got his fixation points and is now attached to the front frame.

Too many professional projects to focus on, caused some delay in my planning of this personal project.

The Eyes… - 3D scanning – reverse “designeering” in Solidworks

I’ve chosen the most complicated part of the vehicle to start the assembly process : the front suspension, and steering mechanism.  The complexity is due to the many pivoting axis and moving parts.

Time has come to start the construction process!

No enormous exhausts for the electric version ...

Creating side views in Photoshop to explore character lines and proportions, allmost there..., the inlet in the front wheel needs correction.

In the photoshop rendering of the previous blogpost, it was clear for me that some shapes and proportions were not yet ok. The most efficient way to solve this is, is creating a side view line drawing with Bezier curves. These are very easy to manipulate, while maintain smooth transitions. In this way, with the side view rendering in the background, it’s possible to easily optimise proportions and creating character lines without losing the feel with the 3D model.

The most fun part of this project is the conceptual design and making nice visualisations, and in a later phase the real assembly and construction.  But sticking with a digital pencil alone will not be enough to built a functional vehicle. Therefore you need technical drawings of every single part of the end product.  All the parts need to be constructed and engineered, and finally produced. Creating and detailing technical drawings is unfortunately needed and they are less fun to do, but that's compensated when the final parts come out of the laser cutter.