Tinkering thread! What are you up to?
Discussion
I bought a 990SM as soon as I moved off I knew something was wrong - 5psi in the front tyre !
After pumping it up I thought I'd better check everything else - suspension setting were all over the place , I tried to set them back to factory std and found one rebound adjuster had half the adjustment it should.
A decent discount negotiated and wondering whether the MOT from yesterday was worth the paper it was written on, I took it home and went through it
Chain tight as a bow string - it wasn't even touching the top chain guide !
Chain adjuster block cracked
Clutch dragging - I suspect the oil jet is blocked but this didn't help
Brakes weren't as good as my 950 so changed the fluid
Quick test ride, much better
Google for some better suspension settings as a starting point, removed the comfort seat as it holds you in position, adjust the bars forward and remove the screen as it creates turbulence
Another test ride - now we're getting somewhere, I felt like taking it back to the previous owner to show him what he'd been missing
Next is to check out the filter and the mapping, I know it's been played with as the lambda isn't connected
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/2jKZ89YR[/url]
Edit - I give up trying to get pics into text, I'm sure you can figure it out
After pumping it up I thought I'd better check everything else - suspension setting were all over the place , I tried to set them back to factory std and found one rebound adjuster had half the adjustment it should.
A decent discount negotiated and wondering whether the MOT from yesterday was worth the paper it was written on, I took it home and went through it
Chain tight as a bow string - it wasn't even touching the top chain guide !
Chain adjuster block cracked
Clutch dragging - I suspect the oil jet is blocked but this didn't help
Brakes weren't as good as my 950 so changed the fluid
Quick test ride, much better
Google for some better suspension settings as a starting point, removed the comfort seat as it holds you in position, adjust the bars forward and remove the screen as it creates turbulence
Another test ride - now we're getting somewhere, I felt like taking it back to the previous owner to show him what he'd been missing
Next is to check out the filter and the mapping, I know it's been played with as the lambda isn't connected
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/2jKZ89YR[/url]Edit - I give up trying to get pics into text, I'm sure you can figure it out
Edited by KTMsm on Friday 28th May 09:24
After my last track day I was finding it uncomfortable with my wrist position on the throttle due to the long travel from off to full chat. So I have bought a quick action throttle which only moves a fraction compared to the factory one, just need to make sure I don't high side it now!
Had new tyres fitted to Gaydius and gave it a good wash and changed the oil, filters and plugs.Seems like I have got myself a bargain with this one, it's practically brand new.
Also fitted a new reg rec, battery and ignition coil to my Mrs SV650 and got that back up and running again.
Also fitted a new reg rec, battery and ignition coil to my Mrs SV650 and got that back up and running again.
Not sure if this is classed as tinkering, but I’m off to the ABR festival from Thursday so decided to clean up my Sidi trials boots, as they have been sat not doing much for a Few years!
They have come up pretty well.
They always seem to make me think I am a better rider than I actually am, so let’s hope these help me on the off road trail!
They have come up pretty well.
They always seem to make me think I am a better rider than I actually am, so let’s hope these help me on the off road trail!
Ilikemotorbikes said:
I don't know about anyone else but it seems not being able to hang out with like minded bikers and bore them with what jobs I'm doing on my bikes is getting a bit boring.
So tell us or show us what you're up to in this thread!
My Aprilia RSVR has the following jobs upcoming in the next week or two
- fit brembo monobloc calipers
- fit rsv4 rearsets and brake MC (gives you a working rear brake supposedly)
- fit carbon swingarm guards
- possibly get the rear fairing painted as it's got a big gouge in it
My Honda CG125 is just a matter of changing tyres over so I can get it MOT'd - went OK until I pinched a tube
My Yamaha R1
- service it, tidy it up and get it ready for a blast on track this year all being well
My Honda MT50
- rebuild the C90 engine that's going into it... I built the gearbox up wrong the first time round so its a strip and redo it jobby
- clean up the tank
- possibly change tyres over
- sort the brakes out
- get it ready for a daytime MOT
Over to you, what are you tinkering with at the moment?
Thought I'd provide an update on my bikes.So tell us or show us what you're up to in this thread!
My Aprilia RSVR has the following jobs upcoming in the next week or two
- fit brembo monobloc calipers
- fit rsv4 rearsets and brake MC (gives you a working rear brake supposedly)
- fit carbon swingarm guards
- possibly get the rear fairing painted as it's got a big gouge in it
My Honda CG125 is just a matter of changing tyres over so I can get it MOT'd - went OK until I pinched a tube
My Yamaha R1
- service it, tidy it up and get it ready for a blast on track this year all being well
My Honda MT50
- rebuild the C90 engine that's going into it... I built the gearbox up wrong the first time round so its a strip and redo it jobby
- clean up the tank
- possibly change tyres over
- sort the brakes out
- get it ready for a daytime MOT
Over to you, what are you tinkering with at the moment?
Aprilia - fitted carbon swingarm guards then sold it.
Honda CG125 fitted the new tyres and really need to get around to changing the oil at some point. The tyres make it look more purposeful now I think
Yamaha R1 - its sort of finished... Needs a few tweaks to be tip top but its there or there abouts.
Honda MT50 - zero progress! Started trying to build up the engine and noticed the barrel was cracked so now just considering putting a 140cc motor in it instead
Decided to rebuild the bolt up rear wheel for my Zed project, with new fasteners, only to find the cap head bolts holding the hubs in place wouldn't fit.. sigh. turns out the old cap heads had been machined to fit snugly into the recesses made for them in the hub. So had to machine all 12 bolts the same way. Its done now.
Meanwhile mounted the Dyna coils, once I'd made 4 stand off spacers. They are very close to the cam cover, but can reduce the spacers by a couple of mm to gain a tiny bit more clearance.
Fitted the stainless under tray and splash guard, the latter may need to be cut back a bit, once I know the upper chain run.
Found a problem with the freshly upholstered one off seat, it wouldn't fit anymore, not by a little but by a lot.. turns out it had been upholstered back to front!. Assumed it was obvious which end was the front and which was the front, but seems not.
Meanwhile mounted the Dyna coils, once I'd made 4 stand off spacers. They are very close to the cam cover, but can reduce the spacers by a couple of mm to gain a tiny bit more clearance.
Fitted the stainless under tray and splash guard, the latter may need to be cut back a bit, once I know the upper chain run.
Found a problem with the freshly upholstered one off seat, it wouldn't fit anymore, not by a little but by a lot.. turns out it had been upholstered back to front!. Assumed it was obvious which end was the front and which was the front, but seems not.
Hello Merch, the Kwak is coming together quite good, I have some questions :
Is the Hub / spokes assembly custom-built or commercially available ?
When you have to machine the bolt heads, what material are they made of ?
I had that dilemma too, in a smaller scale on my MiniBike.
If bolts are high-grade steel which is zinced the machining leaves "open" steel surfaces which are prone to corrode,
if they are stainless the strength is not optimal, and stainless in aluminium may cause "electrolytical" corrosion.
My guess is you either went titanium or had them plated again after machining ?
Is the Hub / spokes assembly custom-built or commercially available ?
When you have to machine the bolt heads, what material are they made of ?
I had that dilemma too, in a smaller scale on my MiniBike.
If bolts are high-grade steel which is zinced the machining leaves "open" steel surfaces which are prone to corrode,
if they are stainless the strength is not optimal, and stainless in aluminium may cause "electrolytical" corrosion.
My guess is you either went titanium or had them plated again after machining ?
Benni said:
Hello Merch, the Kwak is coming together quite good, I have some questions :
Is the Hub / spokes assembly custom-built or commercially available ?
When you have to machine the bolt heads, what material are they made of ?
I had that dilemma too, in a smaller scale on my MiniBike.
If bolts are high-grade steel which is zinced the machining leaves "open" steel surfaces which are prone to corrode,
if they are stainless the strength is not optimal, and stainless in aluminium may cause "electrolytical" corrosion.
My guess is you either went titanium or had them plated again after machining ?
The wheel was made by my friend, to be used on my old drag bike. Is the Hub / spokes assembly custom-built or commercially available ?
When you have to machine the bolt heads, what material are they made of ?
I had that dilemma too, in a smaller scale on my MiniBike.
If bolts are high-grade steel which is zinced the machining leaves "open" steel surfaces which are prone to corrode,
if they are stainless the strength is not optimal, and stainless in aluminium may cause "electrolytical" corrosion.
My guess is you either went titanium or had them plated again after machining ?
The cap head bolts holding the hubs together are stainless steel (A8 grade) so machining them didn't cause any issues with future corrosion etc. Some might say stainless isn't ideal for such a use, but the wheels are very over engineered, while A8 grade is pretty much as good as using high Tensile steel.
The use of thread lock helps with electrolytical corrosion. I doubt it'll be a problem for many years.
I'm not a fan of Ti fasteners, they might be light, but they have a tendency to fail suddenly. There's a reason Ti wheel spindles are banned in drag racing, not sure if that's the case in other types of racing.
Pic of drag bike with those wheels..
Hello Merch, I hope I don´t give a stalking impression but your mentioning of "A8" stainless left me puzzled at first,
I know that different countries use different types of grading for the same material, so I searched a bit and found out
that this "HCR high corrosion resistance" steel is known as 1-4529 in Germany,
in the dealer brochure it was listed in described it as "king of special stainless materials". Rang my usual bolt supplier
and had a quote for one (1) M6 x 30 bolt........11,50 € hex head, 14,50€ Inhex head.......YOU WOT M8 ???
Titanium suddenly had a Lidl whiff to it.
Another supplier quoted me 98€ for one hundred (100) same-sized bolts, that was more like it.
I know that there are lots of far eastern copy-material frauds on the market, but will give this a try.
Not that I really NEED it, but having stainless bolts in a "better than V2A" quality cannot be bad.
By the way, I have a new "fave bike" from looking at EuroDragster galleries :
Early GSXR 1100 lump in a rigid frame, turboed, Sportster Tank, very high Z bars, UK plate.........where else.
First saw it in a RWYB report 4 weeks ago, last weekend he ran ET Bike, did a 9, and made it to the Final, good lad.
Count yourself lucky to live, tinker & modify in UK, german TÜV guys are total humorless and would have this crushed.
I know that different countries use different types of grading for the same material, so I searched a bit and found out
that this "HCR high corrosion resistance" steel is known as 1-4529 in Germany,
in the dealer brochure it was listed in described it as "king of special stainless materials". Rang my usual bolt supplier
and had a quote for one (1) M6 x 30 bolt........11,50 € hex head, 14,50€ Inhex head.......YOU WOT M8 ???
Titanium suddenly had a Lidl whiff to it.
Another supplier quoted me 98€ for one hundred (100) same-sized bolts, that was more like it.
I know that there are lots of far eastern copy-material frauds on the market, but will give this a try.
Not that I really NEED it, but having stainless bolts in a "better than V2A" quality cannot be bad.
By the way, I have a new "fave bike" from looking at EuroDragster galleries :
Early GSXR 1100 lump in a rigid frame, turboed, Sportster Tank, very high Z bars, UK plate.........where else.
First saw it in a RWYB report 4 weeks ago, last weekend he ran ET Bike, did a 9, and made it to the Final, good lad.
Count yourself lucky to live, tinker & modify in UK, german TÜV guys are total humorless and would have this crushed.
Just changed the exhaust on the happy shopper Gladius and whoever fitted the front header bolts last time has either cross threaded 1 of them or it has severely corroded in there as the head sheared off.
I've tried heat, penetrative fluid, double nuts on the remaining stud, mole grips, impact stud removal tools, easy outs, cross cutting the end of the stud to fit a screwdriver and it just will not budge!!
Its not often that I am defeated, but this time I definitely am.
I've tried heat, penetrative fluid, double nuts on the remaining stud, mole grips, impact stud removal tools, easy outs, cross cutting the end of the stud to fit a screwdriver and it just will not budge!!
Its not often that I am defeated, but this time I definitely am.
airsafari87 said:
Just changed the exhaust on the happy shopper Gladius and whoever fitted the front header bolts last time has either cross threaded 1 of them or it has severely corroded in there as the head sheared off.
I've tried heat, penetrative fluid, double nuts on the remaining stud, mole grips, impact stud removal tools, easy outs, cross cutting the end of the stud to fit a screwdriver and it just will not budge!!
Its not often that I am defeated, but this time I definitely am.
Have you thought about drilling it out with a left handed drill?I've tried heat, penetrative fluid, double nuts on the remaining stud, mole grips, impact stud removal tools, easy outs, cross cutting the end of the stud to fit a screwdriver and it just will not budge!!
Its not often that I am defeated, but this time I definitely am.
Working on older bikes where they've never been apart always takes longer. Today I got the side stand, luggage rack and rear bodywork off. After 90 mins working outside on the concrete I had a headache and nausea. Sacked it off and going out in my Impreza with aircon this afternoon. I wish I had a garage!
Been a while since we had this one but felt like resurrecting it. Had a day off today to work on the Fazer. Swingarm is out and needs rust treatment and repainting.
However, had real issues with removing paint, with wire brush on drill, wire brush in hand, and eventually a trip to the local DIY store for some (rubbish) paint remover. What do folk use for paint stripper - swingarm is steel - or should I just bite the bullet and buy an angle grinder and some flap discs?
However, had real issues with removing paint, with wire brush on drill, wire brush in hand, and eventually a trip to the local DIY store for some (rubbish) paint remover. What do folk use for paint stripper - swingarm is steel - or should I just bite the bullet and buy an angle grinder and some flap discs?
Krikkit said:
Brake fluid can work a treat, but these days I don't know of any really good paint stripper. Maybe blowtorch and scrape it? Not good for the curved bits but easy on the big runs.
I actually have some brake fluid kicking about that won't be any good for the bike any more as it's open. I may try that. Gassing Station | Biker Banter | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff