Here is a partial list of completed projects by Nautilus Tuning. Most of these are personal items, bought, restored, used and sold by us.
2004 VTX 1300S: Was badly out of tune (ran like a sick dog) and mostly stock when I got a hold of it. Much has been done to this machine; “Black Betty” now has some very subtle touches in design and performance. Most signature stock design points have been retained, like the long, swoopy fenders, prominent headlight, large chrome exhaust pipes and spoke wheels. The subtle touches are things like: 1). aftermarket and lowered front and rear suspension for lower stance and superb handling for the size, 2). tuned carb, baffleless exhaust, and modified air box for increased torque, and 3). beach bars and aftermarket seat for comfort. All these elements together contribute to a look that is long, low, loud and fast.
Cosmetics & Suspension:
- Ultimate Lowboy Seat
- Progressive Springs in front suspension – lowered 1″
- MB Gas Shocks on rear – lowered 1″
- Barnett Braided Stainless Steel Clutch, Throttle and Brake lines
- Arlen Ness mirrors
- Kury Deep Dish Bezels on front and rear signals
- Beach Bars – (wide and low handlebars)
- Highway Pegs
Performance:
- Customized exhaust, looks like stock but has all muffler parts removed, no baffles at all. Extremely LOUD!!
- Customized air intake, looks like stock but has K&N air filter element and the box has been cut open to allow additional airflow
- Drilled out emulsion tube for better air/fuel atomization.
- Extra large pilot jet and main jet for faster acceleration.
- Factory Pro main jet needle for smoother acceleration and strong torque.
- Swapped out rear final drives with a VTX 1800, heavy duty rear end with lower gear ratio for even better acceleration.
- Rear tire is almost brand new, front tire is new.
1974 CB450: Rescued from New Jersey via Craislist ad. Slightly rusted, not running but not locked up, and mostly stock. Brought to running condition, changed out some parts for integrity but left pretty much original. The goal was not to restore to a showroom piece, but to leave some of the age marks and patina but still be in reliable running condition.
1975 CB750: Rescued from Virginia via Craislist ad. Kinda running, many parts not stock as previous owner was trying to turn it into an 80s chopper. All chopper parts were quickly discarded and replaced with original parts. The goal for this one was a complete restoration, however a buyer showed up after a bulk of the stock parts were installed and before paint and final touches were completed.
1974 CT90: Barn find. Essentially the bike I cut my teeth on. In fair shape when found, didn’t take much to get it running. Eventually rebuilt the engine and ran it for many years. Sold to a cousin who did a full restoration.
1972 CB125: Barn find with under 500 miles. Supposedly was bought new, used very little and then parked. Decades of not being can be harder on these bikes than actually being used. It was my ride after I “outgrew” the CT90. Other priorities (marriage & family) took my heart away from bikes for a little while. Eventually sold at auction after years of sitting outside… This is one I wish I had back.
1974 Volkswagen Bug: What can I say? Everybody owns one of these at some point. 🙂 Besides the requisite parts to keep it running (clutch, plugs, wires, fuses, brakes), it was also repainted (OEM Fiesta Orange), many new chrome pieces added, interior restored, etc. Also sold at auction to free up cash for other projects.
1995 BMW 325i Convertible: Taken in as a trade. Not running condition. Replace cooling system (radiator, water pump, thermostat, thermostat housing, fan, etc.), bring to running condition, perform maintenance & service, repair & restore leather seats, replace misc. broken plastic parts. Sold before interior restoration was completed.