The Bikeshite Thread

[Jazoli]

The new Z900rs is a cracking bike too, seen one in the local kwak dealers recently and if I wasn't skint because children I'd be tempted to sign my life away for one

 

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They can be had for 99 a month on a pcp

 

They are nice, I rode a 900rs and it was very pleasant indeed!

[hairnet]

Fixt

[UltraWomble]

Much pissing about today and

ALL lights now working as the should.

Rides fine even if heavy at low speeds.

Moved today for the first time since 2010 under its own steam.

Needs battery.

Needs front calliper stripping off and freeing up as its binding.

I'm thinking of binning off the rear seat and rear sets.

 

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[LostnotFound]

Well on yesterdays misplaced sausage ride I did confirm just how crap my boots are, it only took 90mins from getting home that I could just about feel my toes and I discovered while 'investigating' a hedge by a layby that they're no longer waterproof as the dew from the grass I walked over seeped straight through where the upper is coming away from the sole.

 

They were cheap and I've had my miles out of them, had a nose around the local shop who had nothing that looked like fitting the bill. At least it's summer now and I won't need warm boots for months to go.

[hairnet]

w2's from j and s (i think) i paid 140 i think

 

https://www.fc-moto.de/en/W2-4-Dirt-Adventure-Waterproof

 

you can buy the black normal version too

 

got monsooned in them last year with trousers over the top and only toes got a little wet

 

took boots off and socks were only damp not wet

 

warm too and chunky - can walk about in them for ages unlike sports boots

[LostnotFound]

That's a good vote of confidence for W2, I'm loath to buy boots of the tinternet as they're so random size wise so will add them to the list to try on next time I'm near a J and S.

 

The number of 'casual' styled boots that get reviews saying they give out after a year is depressing.

[Fat_Pirate]

Went to Poole bike night for the first time this year, saw a Niken in the metal:

I like it, but not enough to get one - be good if I encountered a lot of wet, cobbled streets I suppose.

[pilninggas]

Went to Poole bike night for the first time this year, saw a Niken in the metal:

2019-04-16 18.38.46.jpg

I like it, but not enough to get one - be good if I encountered a lot of wet, cobbled streets I suppose.

that's how i feel about them. i might buy one when they start to enter the used market.

[twosmoke300]

Saw one last weekend on the road in devon somewhere

[hairnet]

Went to Poole bike night for the first time this year, saw a Niken in the metal:

2019-04-16 18.38.46.jpg

I like it, but not enough to get one - be good if I encountered a lot of wet, cobbled streets I suppose.

 

 

that's how i feel about them. i might buy one when they start to enter the used market.

a solution to a problem that doesnt exist??

[hairnet]

in other news stena have said right got quotes

 

its £££ for the parts and labour

 

whats ya details so we can send you the money

 

result

[pilninggas]

Went out on the zx10 this morning, ended up in the North, so haven't gone home. In a hotel in Bangor.

[5speedracer]

170miles on my 650 Royal Enfield so far mostly as per "running in" instructions. 60mph at 4k revs.

Enough to open the taps up or keep it steady?

 

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[Jazoli]

Just ride it normally using all of the rev range, dont let it labour in too high a gear and it'll be reet, my mt09 was bouncing off the limiter as soon as the oil had warmed up!

[hairnet]

170miles on my 650 Royal Enfield so far mostly as per "running in" instructions. 60mph at 4k revs.

Enough to open the taps up or keep it steady?

 

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as long as its warm

 

floor it

 

makes no difference anymore

[Jerzy Woking]

If it is like my Himalayan, it has really thin oil in it until first service. My dealer here told me to take it in at 800kms, not 500kms, which I did. I never bothered with their speeds for running in-i just treated it a bit gently, and never loaded the motor. S

 

Feels better with every kilometre ridden.

[Bfg]

.

Evening all,   Just dropping in to share a few tidbits I've been doing on 'Katie' over the past couple of afternoons.

 

The old girl's not shite to me ..but neither is she polished and glitz either . .

 

P1300614 Katie.jpg

^ she's on m' lift for a few minor jobs (..ok, cleaning might be one of them !).   

 

P1300664 Katie.jpg 

She's an early Sunbeam S7 (post-war, frame number 986.)  ..first registered on 22nd March 1948.   So not old, just eight-and-one-half years ..older than me   

 

P1300618s.jpg

^ Foremost task was to replace an annoyingly weeping sump gasket. I can live with a wisp of seeping but I'm embarrassed by incontinence when it drips !  ..so I drained the oil and dropped the sump. 

 

P1300619 Katie - sump gasket.jpg

^  This early model features a really daft bit of design detailing ..a rebate in the (very shallow) sump pan to locate its oil filter box.  The problem is that the rebate cuts across the mounting holes, so a single gasket over the top doesn't work. 

 

There's no gaskets specifically made for the early S7 now,  so I had to make one (or three !?) myself. .

 

P1300624s.jpg

^ the first I made to fill that rebate.. And yes., the middle is yet to be cut out

 

P1300657s.jpg

^ The filter box will sit on that inset cork and is pinched in place by the crankcase. I've bedded the gasket in place with gasket sealant. ie. its underside face is now glued to the sump pan.  I then cut two more pieces, one to go around the outside of the oil-filter-box flange and another to sit over that and the flange.

 

P1300661s.jpg

^ two pieces glued together and with the holes - it looks like this. It'll fit face down over the filter box, with the box's flange sitting in this rebate. 

 

The glue and sealant will sit and dry overnight & perhaps tomorrow too, before I fit it.

- - -

 

My next little job was something many of you are not familiar with, not at least on a regular basis .. that'll be greasing (nipples) in the brake linkage, suspension and wheel hubs.

 

And then when that was done, I adjusted the back brake .  .

 

P1300665s.jpg

^ The back brake-lever is on the LHS side on most old British bikes.   This one then has a rod linkage (the chrome rod seen alongside the tool box) which activates a lever on the end of a cross-link bar (seen disappearing across the frame to the other side of the bike, behind the tool box ).  NB. The rear brake light switch is an aftermarket item ..because this vintage of bike didn't have brake lights.  Come to think of it I recall the law changed ..was it later that same year ? ..to make them compulsory.

 

On the other side of the bike . . .

 

P1300668s.jpg

^ That cross-link comes out on the RHS, just under the tail end of the in-series gearbox. A lever on its end is actuated as the cross-link bar rotates, and that pulls on the chrome brake rod (running parallel with the drive shaft ..but for its kink around the suspension). And then finally.. another levered shaft through the rear drive's bevel box, to the brake drum situated within.  

 

The short n' long of it is that these all ought to be correctly orientated and adjusted - for maximum leverage.  ie., those levers need to be as near to 90^o angle to their operating rods as practical and any 'play' needs to be adjusted out. First however the back brake has a car type adjuster . . .

 

P1300670s.jpg

^ on the RH forward side of the rear drive / brake back-plate is a square peg (..in a round hole) that many of you who've had drum-brake cars will be familiar with adjusting. It's a very good system - but not a common feature on motorcycles, as most used adjustable bowden cables. And then of course things went across to disk brakes with hydraulics.

 

I bought this bike several years ago but was in dismay with the quality of some of its cycle-parts restoration (done in the early '80's, although I'm sure the engine has very recently been rebuilt) and the way bits of it had been put together.  The cam-follower shaft for example had been put in back to front, so oil couldn't get into it ..to thereafter lubricate the rockers and overhead camshaft.  Clearly the last owner hadn't done any miles on the bike ..because otherwise the camshaft would certainly have died a most untimely and painfully skidmark death.  And fortunately I'd spotted the error during my 'new bike' pre-start checks (before riding these bikes I check the lubrication is actually getting to their camshaft) so again no damage was done.   But when I rode the bike I realised it needed more sorting than I had the time for., so I put it away for a rainy day  (..today wasn't wet as it happens).

 

One of the jobs on the list was to establish why the back brake seemed to have 4" of travel and then didn't work. 

 

Today I found that four-sided brake adjuster pin was wound all the way OUT    ..tight against its stop.  Perhaps the restorer thought "Vintage bike brakes are always like that mate" ..and so didn't dare ride the bike.

 

Actually the brakes on this model are surprisingly good ..once they are adjusted correctly. And its performance and handling ..despite having no damping to the front forks nor its plunger rear suspension is better than most other immediate post-war bikes  (..sports types, Vincent, etc. excepted).  It's darn comfortable too !

 

With a little progress (..in the right direction) made - That'll be all for tonight, 

I bid you a sheltered one.

Bfg.  

- - -

 

p.s. Not having a good back brake on a vintage bike is something to be very wary of.  Why ?  ..Because all motor-cycles of this era were designed to be braked front & rear, both in unison together. Ostensibly this was to prevent the front end from diving, which adversely effects steering geometry and balance - but there were practical reasons too...  Wheel hubs and brake drums were most commonly made of cast iron or steel.  And as far as was practical - the front brakes were made as lightweight as practical. As a consequence they were small drum brakes that didn't work very well.  But this was safer ( ! )..because the forks and their spindly wire-spoked wheels bent too much anyway.    

 

Rear wheel hubs were bigger because they very often had the drive-chain sprocket bolted on, so the brake was also larger and the spokes were shorter / stronger.

 

Sports bikes used larger diameter aluminium wheel hubs / brake drums, very often with cooling fins. (NB. shorter spokes = stronger / stiffer wheels). And also aluminium brake back-plates. For the same weight these bigger brakes were much more effective. Their forks were made more robustly or else had an additional cross-brace (either above or just under the mudguard) to help prevent their twisting.  NB. aluminium also dissipates heat better than iron or steel. 

 

The Sunbeam S7 (and later the S7-deluxe) used cast-aluminum back-plates, and its front and rear brake (drums & pads) are the same size.  When very narrow 6" front drum brakes were commonplace, these were 8" in diameter and also had wider drums / brake pads. Its famed 'fat tyres' disguise this underlying benefits and also that of their wheel's much shorter / stronger spokes.   Sunbeam's more sporting S8 model (introduced in 1949)  had BSA A10 front forks with a steel brake back-plate, and its front brake drum was narrower and only 7" in diameter (..those forks and wheels are not stiff enough for more).  The early S7's front forks, aside from the top and bottom steering yokes - had a substantial cross brace (over the mudguard. see my first photo) and then the mudguard and its stays are also very strongly built. The additional cross-brace was dropped from the later S7-deluxe model.

 

For those interested in Brit classics, I've continued with this work < here >

Bfg   

[5speedracer]

If it is like my Himalayan, it has really thin oil in it until first service. My dealer here told me to take it in at 800kms, not 500kms, which I did. I never bothered with their speeds for running in-i just treated it a bit gently, and never loaded the motor. S

 

Feels better with every kilometre ridden.

I'm kind of doing this, just increasing the revs a bit. Doubt it it's got nikasil lined bores or anything so treating it old school. An MT09 would be treated differently though!

 

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[Jazoli]

I've done lots of miles this weekend, really enjoying the new bike, have a pic....

 

[doug]

Sold

 

 

And if my courier gets his finger out I should have the XT600  from Castros Bro tomorrow. Am like a kid before  christmas.

[Aston Martin]

Batman is in Derby.

[strangeangel]

They're BREEDING!

 

 

[doug]

Got the XT today from Castros Bro. Very pleased with it. Managed to get the exhaust studs out and re-tapped the head.

 

 

Got yi ya wee bastid.

 

 

 

Just the MOT to get now. 

 

Very pleased with it. Thanks Castros!!

 

All this and a free pair of socks found under the seat,my size too.

 

 

[Bfg]

.

HELP advice / tip / sensible or otherwise suggestion - Please !

 

I gotta seized engine on my old Sunbeam Katie.     < here >

 

Long and short of it is : her engine was rebuilt by a previous owner but it's never been used much (brakes on the bike were awful). And so its in-line twin cylinder 500cc short stroke OHV had not been run in. But she was starting easily and running well. I've decided I need to find her a new home, and so I'm checking and recommissioning as necessary.  Presently I'm working in the garage trying to sort out issues with the 6v electrical charging system. It has dynamo charging system with voltage regulator, an in-line ammeter and ignition warning light.  Initially it seemed as if I had no charging at all.

 

So, the first thing I did was check the dynamo itself. It looks as if it's not long ago been fully reconditioned, but still I checked the connections and twiddled around to see if I could find a fault in the wires - All seemingly good. I then moved on to checking the wiring to and from the dynamo and its connections - again all seemed good.  However when I revved the bike the ammeter started dancing around erratically. 

 

So clearly the dynamo is working 'some' ..because although weak I was getting indications of a positive charge (not enough to power the lights but enough to turn off the ignition warning light). 

 

Next I tried disconnecting the warning light, to eliminate the possibility of a fault through that - No difference.

 

The following day I swapped out the ammeter.  And although the needle was less bouncy - the readings were still erratic. 

 

Then, I moved on to checking the voltage regulator.  Again I did this by substitution of one voltage regulator for another (I had a few in a box which I'd bought with a job lot of project bikes). Once swapped over, I'd start the bike and rev it to 1/4 throttle to see the ammeter reading.  I only needed to run it for a minute or two, for each swap ..and then the engine would cool down a bit while I swapped out for the next.  Unfortunately the first two spares I had were duds, so I was just about to try the third (..a good one taken off my other bike) and found the engine to have seized. 

 

This is not uncommon on these bikes during running-in (which have a couple of unnecessarily tight tolerances), but I've never had one do this before ..after a short test and while cooling down in the garage.  I hoped that leaving it thoroughly cool overnight might have thermally contracted and freed itself - but it didn't.

 

The following day, I tried rocking the bike back n' forth vigorously in 4th gear, but still she didn't free up. I had a can of penetrating oil which had become depressurised (..not squirty any more) so I decanted its contents into a jar ..and from there added a few cc of the stuff through each spark plug hole. That's a lot but why muck around.!  I then left that for another 24 hours.  

 

Today I've tried rocking the bike back n' forth vigorously in 4th gear again (until panting x three occasions) - but still no go.  Even with the cable eased right off, the clutch slips a little with such jolting.. 

 

The engine is seized, with the rear-cylinder valves open and the front's closed.  Feeling with a probe I gather the pistons are about half way down their bores. The piston top is wet with penetrating oil.  Nevertheless I've just added another few cc's to each.

     

So there we have it my (latest) problem.  Naturally I'd prefer not to start pulling the bike apart, even to take the cylinder head off  or to drop the sump - IF someone here has experience,  a clever idea, or Tip  of how I might otherwise free it. ?  

 

Thanks, Bfg.

[RayMK]

Trying to be helpful, but my experience of seizing is only with 2 strokes which, for me at any rate, have only ever run tight or seized on full throttle when riding. Apart from checking that rings have not been shredded by the ports, recovery and a return to normal running was undramatic.

 

Therefore, my experience leads me to be surprised that an engine can seize after an apparently normal period of running, and I assume a normal switch off.  In my ignorance of possible reasons for the perplexing 'lock-up,' I would go for the easy investigations first e.g.

1. Drain the engine oil to see if there are traces of metal - which would suggest mechanical conflict and probably warrant a strip down.

2. If possible, and with the bike on a centre stand, observe parts of the transmission when rocking the back wheel to ensure that everything is free to move (rock) up to the crankshaft.  I suspect this will be difficult or impossible because of the enclosed nature of the Sunbeam engine and transmission design.

3. With your knowledge of the engine's internals, are there any components located with a woodruff key or similar locking/orientation devices which may somehow have dislodged and caused a mechanical obstruction?  I would be looking at camshaft, oil pump and distributor drives in this context. Of course, if a possibility is identified then strip down is the unfortunate consequence.

4. If the engine has pushrods, can you ascertain by looking at them (assuming minimal dismantling for viewing access!) as to whether one or other end of a rod has become unseated and locked the engine?

 

That's my lot.  I think you will have to bite the bullet and strip the engine unless something obvious and fixable is found.  

 

Life's little troubles can be bloody inconvenient when they gang up on you.  

[Jerzy Woking]

Sorry- I'm better equiped to break bikes than fix them.

 

Good luck.

[Bfg]

Trying to be helpful, but my experience of seizing is only with 2 strokes which, for me at any rate, have only ever run tight or seized on full throttle when riding. Apart from checking that rings have not been shredded by the ports, recovery and a return to normal running was undramatic.

 

Therefore, my experience leads me to be surprised that an engine can seize after an apparently normal period of running, and I assume a normal switch off.  In my ignorance of possible reasons for the perplexing 'lock-up,' I would go for the easy investigations first e.g.

1. Drain the engine oil to see if there are traces of metal - which would suggest mechanical conflict and probably warrant a strip down.

2. If possible, and with the bike on a centre stand, observe parts of the transmission when rocking the back wheel to ensure that everything is free to move (rock) up to the crankshaft.  I suspect this will be difficult or impossible because of the enclosed nature of the Sunbeam engine and transmission design.

3. With your knowledge of the engine's internals, are there any components located with a woodruff key or similar locking/orientation devices which may somehow have dislodged and caused a mechanical obstruction?  I would be looking at camshaft, oil pump and distributor drives in this context. Of course, if a possibility is identified then strip down is the unfortunate consequence.

4. If the engine has pushrods, can you ascertain by looking at them (assuming minimal dismantling for viewing access!) as to whether one or other end of a rod has become unseated and locked the engine?

 

That's my lot.  I think you will have to bite the bullet and strip the engine unless something obvious and fixable is found.  

 

Life's little troubles can be bloody inconvenient when they gang up on you.  

 

These motors wouldn't normally seize, but I suspect this one has literally only done a few dozen miles since it was rebuilt.  And I don't know what tolerances it was assembled to. But if they were minimum - then yes it might well pinch up ..but then usually free off just as easily. 

 

Most commonly the pistons' skirts seize, but if the crankshaft's end float was set to its minimum then the massive white metal bearing is a likely place for a chunk to break off and become lodged.  I've seen bearings with this damage quite often because of faulty (porous) manufacture. In my opinion those two components were unnecessarily tight (..as if a printing error in the manual !). 

 

Removing the rocker cover is no big deal but for removing the fuel tank first. Never the less I guess that will have to be done in any case. I've just replaced the sump gasket ..for one I made in cork, but can drop the sump again to see if I can see anything.  Who knows - if I can't see anything wrong (which would be the situation if a piston skirt was seized) then I might be able to take a block of wood to the crank and give it a wallop.!

 

With the rocker cover off  and the sump removed I'll be able to see the cam chain (..no push-rods as this is an OHC ) to ensure that's not snapped or its clip come undone and got itself lodged. Oh the thought of any of these things is enough to make one sweat with fear. 

 

I do thank you for your thoughts  ..they have bump started my thinking, with regard to what I must now face. 

 

All is good with the world ..somewhere.!   

Bfg.

[Maurice Marina]

These motors wouldn't normally seize, but I suspect this one has literally only done a few dozen miles since it was rebuilt.  And I don't know what tolerances it was assembled to. But if they were minimum - then yes it might well pinch up ..but then usually free off just as easily. 

 

Most commonly the pistons' skirts seize, but if the crankshaft's end float was set to its minimum then the massive white metal bearing is a likely place for a chunk to break off and become lodged.  I've seen bearings with this damage quite often because of faulty (porous) manufacture. In my opinion those two components were unnecessarily tight (..as if a printing error in the manual !). 

 

Removing the rocker cover is no big deal but for removing the fuel tank first. Never the less I guess that will have to be done in any case. I've just replaced the sump gasket ..for one I made in cork, but can drop the sump again to see if I can see anything.  Who knows - if I can't see anything wrong (which would be the situation if a piston skirt was seized) then I might be able to take a block of wood to the crank and give it a wallop.!

 

With the rocker cover off  and the sump removed I'll be able to see the cam chain (..no push-rods as this is an OHC ) to ensure that's not snapped or its clip come undone and got itself lodged. Oh the thought of any of these things is enough to make one sweat with fear. 

 

I do thank you for your thoughts  ..they have bump started my thinking, with regard to what I must now face. 

 

All is good with the world ..somewhere.!   

Bfg.

 

Hmmm. A four stroke seizing after a rebuild and then not freeing of when cool?

 

 

I’d be biting the bullet and stripping the engine. At least pulling the head as a start....

[Bfg]

.

^  Nowt as queer as reality !

 

I want to thank those who have commented, if only to offer a listening ear and thereby support.  I lifted the rocker cover off this afternoon to see the timing chain etc - And all looks really good in there.  I then dropped the sump and again - No issues are evident here either.  Him upstairs is watching out for me ! 

 

Further report and piccies < here > .

 

All I need to do now is to free it off ! ??

 

Again Many Thanks to all, but especially to RayMK.

 

Bfg.

[UltraWomble]

MOT Tomorrow - if it fails dismally will bin off insurance under 14 day cooling off....