New chopper project

Well, I just got the bike I have been wanting (well at least the right engine/trans/frame/forks etc). I think shes quite purdy like this but I am going to work my magic on her this winter and have her ready for the summer. She is an S&S 85ci engine, Harley 5speed, Santee Rigid frame, WideGlide front end, 21" front tire and a ton other things. Anyway, here she is.

Added a new toy to the house!

1998 Mustang GT.

Usually Ford isn't my thing but I think this one is purdy.

Interesting petition

Click Here to read about the petition

Bike with emblems

80 Hardtail Harley added to family and BSA goes away

Well, I had a chance to trade the BSA for a hardtail 80 Harley and here she is:

99 Harley is almost done!

Now it needs tank badges and I am considering adding the bags. Not totally sure yet... but getting there...

Painting for the 99 Harley

Trying to adjust the carbs

Today I messed with trying to get the carbs all synced up. I spent a lot of time setting up the throttle adjustment to try to get the slides open the same amount at bottom of throttle. Still not where it needs to be but everyday I mess with her is a learning experience! Am seriously debating selling the AmaL's and replacing them with new carbs... Just not totally convinced yet...

It lives!!!

Today was a big day in progress. I woke up this morning and got my son ready for church to go with my parents and off to the garage I went. After about 20 minutes both carbs were installed. It took some work to get fuel lines put back on and everything ready to start. I took her outside again and started my sequence. I first held down ticklers till I got the stinky finger on each side (due to I was cheap and didnt buy the *non stinky* kit for the carbs. I just want to note that I didnt even replace the spark plugs. I pulled them and cleaned them, then reset them to factory specifications. I kicked the bike over about 6 or 7 times and she still didnt seem like she was going to hit. I got some handy dandy starting fluid and gave her a small drink in each carb. The very next kick was when the life came back to "Lucky". She fired up and roared to life. The bike stablized at about 4000 rpm's. I definitely have some adjusting to do with the newly redone carbs. But I let it run for about 20 minutes so I do know the timing is good and it seems voltage and everything else is good. I didnt try to ride her yet but thats not far down the path now. One thing I might mention is she was leaking oil like crazy. There has been a small spot developing under her in the garage but today when she started it began dripping faster and faster until it was a full fledged gush of oil. It leads me to think the return line to the oil bag might be off or clogged or even have a hole in it. Anyway, enough talk, here is the video of her running. More updates to come soon!

Peace!

RH Carb assembled!

Today the goal was to just get the RH carb assembled. Everything was cleaned previously and JB Welded (fuel inlet). The actualy assembly sure doesnt take very long. Here are some pics of the finished carb. Tomorrow hopefully I will get them installed and try to get her to start!

RH carb fully cleaned and all sanding done!

Well, tonight the JB Weld has set up quite well and I used it to clog a hole I found (mentioned last night). I also used it to plug up the choke hole on the cable assembly that goes in the top of the carb. Tonight consisted of some sore fingers. The RH carb was not as well rounded inside the bore as the LH carb was. I used 400 grit sandpaper and wrapped my index and middle finger with paper then began to smooth out the inside of the carb. After I determined the inside was as smooth as a babies ass I went on to the slide. I sanded for about an hour to an hour and half but stopping every 20 or so strokes to see how the slide action was working inside the carb. Much like the other carb I only took enough metal off so that the spring could overcome the friction of the slide. I really am nervous about the throttle sticking so I am taking the extra time to test everything about the throttle and do not want to get caught off guard while riding "Lucky"... Yup... I finally came up with the name of the build... I am going to call her "Lucky". Havent decided if I am going to look for images from WWII with the "Lucky" girls or if I will use 4 leaf clovers. But since green is my favorite color the bike will end up with green fender and green tank more than likely. Today feels like a big accomplishment. I will try to get the rebuild kit in the RH carb tomorrow and I should be ready to install and try to start again soon!

peace!
Brian

RH Carb first manual cleaning and JB Weld installed

Well, tonight I started on the RH carb... It was not nearly as dirty as the LH carb however the air mixture hole was totally clogged and took about 30 minutes to get it unclogged. I tried everything from tiny wire to toothpicks and compressed air. It was being a total bitch. After over an hour of cleaning it was ready to leave for the night and resume work tomorrow. During dis assembly I noticed the plug that was in the choke hole was moving a bit. So I put some pressure on it with a small allen wrench and it came OUT!! It was CORK... you have to be kidding... who would put cork in the top of a carburetor that is a vacuum source with constant pull. Eventually that thing was going to come loose and go inside the engine or who knows what... So I kept cleaning. I reached the bottom of the carb and removed the fuel inlet adapter that connects to the bottom of the bowl. After a thorough cleaning I noticed an odd indention in the side. It seems like there was something jammed in the side. Another freaking piece of cork.. Yeah.. cork to hold in the fuel. The fuel pressure was always pusing this thing outward. No wonder the carb leaked like a sprinkler. There is a hole just a tad smaller than a pencil eraser in the fuel inlet. So I sanded it down very very well and cleaned the surfaces. JB Weld to the rescue!! Time for some rest... 2 suprises is enough... More updates tomorrow!

LH Carb is fully assembled!

Well, after some a ton of sandpaper working on the inner barrel and the slide it moves (not easily, but the friction from the slide movement is less than the strength of the spring that controls the movement) I have the LH carb fully assembled. Now since I elected to not disassemble the throttle at the handle bar I have to put the cable in then install the carb on the bike at the same time. So as much as can be done is done to the LH carb. It has a full rebuild kit in it and is checked with tolerances. I am quite proud of this carb as I would happily use it and stand behind the work i did on it.

LH Carb is almost done

After all the cleaning on the LH carb I was inserting the slide into the body of the carb and I noticed it sticks at the top of the movement. Almost like something was gummed up in there (which we know it isn't due to I just cleaned it). So I go on the internet today and read all about Amal carbs and how if some blunder-head tightens it too much then it will warp the carb body and the slide will stick... ugg... So I look into how to fix it. After quite a few searches I find a company that wants to bore out the body, insert a sleeve over the slide and that should fix it.. So I keep reading.. it is 79.99 per carb and 12.00 shipping... Ok... WTF! A new carb isi about 150.00 and then it will have new ticklers and all... So here was what I did, I got some 400 grit sandpaper from the garage and about a dab of WD-40. I wrapped the paper around my index and middle finger and proceeded to removing the area of the housing and the slide that have visible wear marks. ~~ Very slowly ~~ and checking every 2 or so strokes. After about 20 minutes the slide is still tough to move but not as tough as the spring is strong that controls its movement. It appears that I have averted the 92.00 for a used carb sleeve. But time will tell as we get her started. I should get LH carb assembled tonight (providing Lowe's has a bolt to fit the choke hole I am trying to plug!). Felt like a great day on the LH Carb. RH carb is still taking its bath in mineral spirits. Here are your images to show how it came out!

2nd carb left in solvent!

I took the other carb apart tonight and put it in the solvent to clean. I figure in a day or two I will be ready to do some scraping and final cleaning of the second carb. It wont be long after that!

LH Carb disassembly and now cleaned!

Today was the day to disassemble my first Amal Carb. Yup... my first time... I started out by removing it from the bike and taking careful note how the throttle cable was removed from the carb. When I got it inside, Monica took some great pictures for you all of the dis assembly. I could not believe what it looked like inside. I am so glad the bike didnt start last week and ruin the engine with this crap! Here is a slide-show and a link to the images!

http://s48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/Blurg01/LH%20Carb%20-%20BSA/?albumview=slideshow

Watch carefully towards the end of the video. The audio kinda breaks up but that is fire in the hole baby... rawr... fire in the hole!!!

Good exercise for fat boy!

Take 1

Stupid batteries...

Petcocks are in!

Entire family is sick but today the new petcocks came in and I just had to put one on to make sure they are the right ones! Battery is ready to go also.

At this point here is what is left:
1) Install other Petcock
2) Change fluids
3) Install Battery

After these 3 quick tasks I should be able to see if she is ready to roll or if she needs more attention. Still not positive the carbs are ready to go but I will deal with that bridge when I get to it.

Lowe's Saves the day!

Well, I had no idea the thread pattern or how hard it would be to determine which petcocks I needed for this old Brit bike. So today with part in hand my son and I ventured to Lowe's. We spent about 30 minutes checking thread patterns in the store and viola! It is a 3/8" pipe-thread. Easy cheesy! Time to order.

Petcock Trouble!@

Tonight I put the old (but cleaned out) petcocks back on the bike, installed the tank and put about a gallon of fuel in her. It looked like a sprinkler under there! The right petcock was leaking from all over the place, but where the petcock attached to the tank itself was completely dry but I definitely have a bad petcock. The ones on it now are some aftermarket that are all pitted and in terrible shape.

Paint!

Well I have been reading on the internet and I found a site where they were talking about how "they used to do it". Some old timer was saying that all his great paint jobs came from the Cosco. (That was a drug store popular in the 60's and 70's). Anyway, he was going on and on about how we spend too much money on paint when we can put some work in it and do a damn fine job ourselves. So I read his article, clicked print, closed the page then went to the work printer to realize it was out of order.... So I lost the article and the print... just damn lovely... So I started writing all of it down that I could remember. He said there were a few basic steps and I am going to write them out here.
1) Use fine grit sand paper to prepare the already painted tank/fender/etc
2) Prime with a decently thin primer (*no house thick crap he said to be exact*)
3) Now paint! Make nice even strokes with your aerosol can (using your choice color).
4) Dry with a hair dryer from about 10 inches till you get the top of the paint almost baked *Being careful to not blow directly onto wet paint and make it run*
5) Just as the top of the paint is almost dry from #4 then you sprinkle the glitter of your choice on the paint.
6) Continue to dry paint with hair dryer.
7) Spray generously with clear coat aerosol till she looks wet and shiny.
8) Dry with hair dryer using same technique as # 4

9) Now paint that sucker again with the exact same color and refer to #5, then 6, then 7, then 8, then done!
9) Optional # 9 .. use a different color to do the edges of the parts and leave the center the original color now refer to #5, then 6, then 7, then 8, then done!

RAWR!! It has fire!!

Today the carbs are moving freely and feel like they are ready for fuel. So like every internally combusted engine it needs 3 things....

1) Fuel
2) Spark
3) Air

So I hooked up the battery charger to the leads on the bike (note: tank is still off and no fuel going to the carbs yet). I kinda cringed due to it just makes me nervous on the first hookup... I took the sparkplug out of the left cylinder and also the right one. I left the left wire connected to the plug and laid it on top of the head so I could rotate the engine with my right hand (via the kick starter) and watch for spark... nothing... over and over... nothing

Next I thought I should just keep it simple before I panic. I checked the clips holding the 2 battery wires. Woohoo. I hadn't made sure they connected well. Tried the kick over trick with my hands and POOF! I have fire... hellz to the yeah!

The 2 hard parts of the equation are done. Now providing the timing is correct I should be busting bugs within a week or so.

Left to do before firing:
1) finish cleaning rust from the tank
2) install newly working petcocks
3) put on tank
4) buy fuel lines and filter
5) install fuel lines and filter
6) buy a battery
7) install battery


This should put her running. Then I just have to put the rear fender back on and bolt down the seat. Closer and closer every day!

Took the tops off the Amal Carbs

Well, my wife was taking my son to put him in the bathtub so I figured it was time for a mad dash to the garage to see if I could get those carbs working better.

I started by taking the 2 screws off the top of them Amal 930 on the driver side. The spring and cable assembly came out like it should and I gave the inner part a push down and away it went.. Lots of carb cleaner later it is moving like it should@!

So I repeat on the passenger side carb and viola! Both are sliding and closing properly. Not sure if the fuel will be metered properly but that is definitely a start!

I did notice a funny shaped U clip that holds the metering needle and it appeared to have a crack in it. I didnt mess with it but left it where it was and figured to make a mental note (and internet note) so if the drivers carb stops working I might have a reason why.

20 minute bath time is over for my 2 year old so time to jet!

Throttle will twist today!

NICE! OK, lots of carb cleaner late and now the cables will open the carbs up. However, the spring isnt strong enough to close them yet. I figure a few more days worth of cleaning will help my situation. Still not to the point I am ready to pull the carbs off and start taking them apart yet for a rebuild. I truly believe I can clean them out and get them working without that.

I started looking over the electrical today... noticed a hanging wire near the headlight that is just 2 bare wires... guessing thats a bad sign... figuring on an entire rewire and with the hopes of JockeyJournal would assume that shouldn't be too bad.

Progress on Carbs today!

Well, both carbs appear to be seized up. I unhooked the twist throttle from the cables to see if one of them was the culprit of why the throttle would not turn and no dice. So I filled each cable with carb cleaner and then moved toward the engine!

I took off both breathers and sprayed a huge amount of carb cleaner over the air inlet and the bleeder valve*(yay stinky finger club time!). Both bleeder valves were even seized up so I started with a rubber handled rachet and a dead blow hammer to nudge them downward. Both popped right down but only one popped up... ugg

I kept spraying and pulling, pulling and spraying. Felt like I was making progress but nothing changed. I pulled both plugs and put about 1/5 of a quart of motor oil in the cylinders so I could roll it over and check for compression... RAWR... thats what the meat and potatoes of the 60's felt like when it blew that huge gust of air out!! Compression is very very strong. Will look thru the toolboxes this weekend to get an actual reading.

Ok, back to the carbs. More spray... more pulling of the cables. Neither cable ever moved however the other bleeder valve did pop back up!!! WOOHOO! That is progress for the day. Time to play with Blaine and then get some rest for tomorrows 30min to 1 hour of work on the bike.