Joined
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285 Posts
Hi all
Just an update on where I'm at with my bike... I'm at the end! That's just under 4 years all up. About 3 years longer than I was hoping, but there you go.
I've got tons of photos so if anyone wants to see anything in particular, let me know and I'll see what I've got. I'll just add a selection of the recent ones in this post. I've petty much touched every part of the bike to restore/repair/replace/improve it, apart from the front forks and the brake calipers. All other parts now have their own individual stories.
So of you will recall I spent quite a bit of time trying to get the bike running properly. I found a wide variety of problems including burnt wiring, a sticking choke slider and after much effort with the pickups, I gave up when I found I was getting the same results no matter what I did. The engine was also vibrating quite a bit and so I called up Brook Henry for a chat and sent it off to him. I gave him free reign to 'make it perfect'. He stripped it down to the last bearing and measured and checked and balanced everything. He found incorrect pistons and a crank well out of balance. He ran it on a stand before the strip down and confirmed the ignition was bung (Bosch units). Once inside, we were able to confirm and deny the various bits of history I knew about the previous rebuild. I could sort of tell, and I know for sure now that it never ran properly for the previous owner and he just avoided telling me that particular detail. My guess is that he spent his maximum allotment of time and money getting it done and when it wouldn't run right, he gave up and let it sit for 6 years before selling it.
Some of the images are from his workbench, where everything is laid out. Other images are the unboxing and installation back here, including wiring up the new Sachse ignition. Curing the process I also completed some final tasks I had yet to do. I installed a lower case saver, new neutral switch, new rubber on all panels, relaid the wiring to make it nice and tidy, replaced all throttle and choke cables etc.
The motor has now had many nice things done. I made it clear that it was never going to be sent away again in my lifetime and so it had to be done right. That meant he could do what he though was necessary. It was stripped down, vapor blasted, everything inspected and checked for straightness (gear shafts etc) . New VeeTwo pistons and rings, new big end, cylinders honed to fit, new bearings all the way, crank now properly balanced of course, new VeeTwo valves, valve seats, valve guides and all of the necessary adjustments and calibration. He also did a couple of mods. One involves an extra oil passageway and the other fastens one of the big bearings that apparently can slip. The engine already had a high capacity VeeTwo oil pump so that went back in. I'm unsure what he did to the clutch but it is disassembled in the photos and it sure feels better now. he also installed the VeeTwo oil filter insert. it's a machined item with o-rings that replaces the black plastic item. (this is the socket that the oil screen pusses into inside the lower block). I asked what else would be worth doing and he suggested replacing the 4th gear that commonly breaks (and had in fact broken previously in this engine) with the much better VeeTwo version. I was happy to go with that. Of course all new gaskets throughout, and he also used new bolts all around instead of re-using the old ones. Everything replaced came back in bags and I'll put a photo of that below as well. The final key item was the Sachse ignition. He was involved in the design of these and keeps them stocked, so I was confident he'd install and set it up properly. The new Sachse replacement for the coils is just a box, but he said it's just as fine to keep the Dyna coils and I wanted to do that. They look better and I already have a nice bracket made up for them. Oh, and there were also the carb kits I sent along in the box.
So then it all came back here. The job took a few months longer than I had hoped, but unlike everyone else I've dealt with during this job, he actually apologised repeatedly for the delay... and to top it off he's dropping in next week in person to complete any necessary setup. Can't beat that for service!
As it turned out when I ran it a couple of days ago, it may not even need any further tweaks. It started on the 3rd, somewhat apprehensive kick (I'm still smarting from that nasty kickback last year) and it ran perfectly. I'm used to riding it like it's going to die on every corner or shift, but now it's just perfect. It's mechanically quieter (Brook said it was a noisy engine when he ran it there), but it also sounds better, deeper; probably because of the drop in mechanical clattery. I've got 30 weight mineral oil in for the run in and I'll be back on 20/50 after.
Moving right along... here's a video of the startup and bits of the test ride. I shortened it a bit and inserted a couple of clips from my wife's phone. The mic is right in front of my mouth inside my helmet, so there's a lot of breathing noise at the start.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA3lnpl2KXk
The photos show the installation, the case guard, the location I decided on for the Sachse unit, the wiring I did for that, some of Brook's photos etc.
(I'm having trouble posting here... getting database errors. Thankfully I always copy my posts to notepad before I submit them!)
Just an update on where I'm at with my bike... I'm at the end! That's just under 4 years all up. About 3 years longer than I was hoping, but there you go.
I've got tons of photos so if anyone wants to see anything in particular, let me know and I'll see what I've got. I'll just add a selection of the recent ones in this post. I've petty much touched every part of the bike to restore/repair/replace/improve it, apart from the front forks and the brake calipers. All other parts now have their own individual stories.
So of you will recall I spent quite a bit of time trying to get the bike running properly. I found a wide variety of problems including burnt wiring, a sticking choke slider and after much effort with the pickups, I gave up when I found I was getting the same results no matter what I did. The engine was also vibrating quite a bit and so I called up Brook Henry for a chat and sent it off to him. I gave him free reign to 'make it perfect'. He stripped it down to the last bearing and measured and checked and balanced everything. He found incorrect pistons and a crank well out of balance. He ran it on a stand before the strip down and confirmed the ignition was bung (Bosch units). Once inside, we were able to confirm and deny the various bits of history I knew about the previous rebuild. I could sort of tell, and I know for sure now that it never ran properly for the previous owner and he just avoided telling me that particular detail. My guess is that he spent his maximum allotment of time and money getting it done and when it wouldn't run right, he gave up and let it sit for 6 years before selling it.
Some of the images are from his workbench, where everything is laid out. Other images are the unboxing and installation back here, including wiring up the new Sachse ignition. Curing the process I also completed some final tasks I had yet to do. I installed a lower case saver, new neutral switch, new rubber on all panels, relaid the wiring to make it nice and tidy, replaced all throttle and choke cables etc.
The motor has now had many nice things done. I made it clear that it was never going to be sent away again in my lifetime and so it had to be done right. That meant he could do what he though was necessary. It was stripped down, vapor blasted, everything inspected and checked for straightness (gear shafts etc) . New VeeTwo pistons and rings, new big end, cylinders honed to fit, new bearings all the way, crank now properly balanced of course, new VeeTwo valves, valve seats, valve guides and all of the necessary adjustments and calibration. He also did a couple of mods. One involves an extra oil passageway and the other fastens one of the big bearings that apparently can slip. The engine already had a high capacity VeeTwo oil pump so that went back in. I'm unsure what he did to the clutch but it is disassembled in the photos and it sure feels better now. he also installed the VeeTwo oil filter insert. it's a machined item with o-rings that replaces the black plastic item. (this is the socket that the oil screen pusses into inside the lower block). I asked what else would be worth doing and he suggested replacing the 4th gear that commonly breaks (and had in fact broken previously in this engine) with the much better VeeTwo version. I was happy to go with that. Of course all new gaskets throughout, and he also used new bolts all around instead of re-using the old ones. Everything replaced came back in bags and I'll put a photo of that below as well. The final key item was the Sachse ignition. He was involved in the design of these and keeps them stocked, so I was confident he'd install and set it up properly. The new Sachse replacement for the coils is just a box, but he said it's just as fine to keep the Dyna coils and I wanted to do that. They look better and I already have a nice bracket made up for them. Oh, and there were also the carb kits I sent along in the box.
So then it all came back here. The job took a few months longer than I had hoped, but unlike everyone else I've dealt with during this job, he actually apologised repeatedly for the delay... and to top it off he's dropping in next week in person to complete any necessary setup. Can't beat that for service!
As it turned out when I ran it a couple of days ago, it may not even need any further tweaks. It started on the 3rd, somewhat apprehensive kick (I'm still smarting from that nasty kickback last year) and it ran perfectly. I'm used to riding it like it's going to die on every corner or shift, but now it's just perfect. It's mechanically quieter (Brook said it was a noisy engine when he ran it there), but it also sounds better, deeper; probably because of the drop in mechanical clattery. I've got 30 weight mineral oil in for the run in and I'll be back on 20/50 after.
Moving right along... here's a video of the startup and bits of the test ride. I shortened it a bit and inserted a couple of clips from my wife's phone. The mic is right in front of my mouth inside my helmet, so there's a lot of breathing noise at the start.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA3lnpl2KXk
The photos show the installation, the case guard, the location I decided on for the Sachse unit, the wiring I did for that, some of Brook's photos etc.
(I'm having trouble posting here... getting database errors. Thankfully I always copy my posts to notepad before I submit them!)
