Boardtrack Replica

I Think It's Done

2009-10-18T14:04:00.002-05:00

I'm now looking into and planning my next motorcycle. Remember, I have quite a few production motorcycles but I really like working on them (mine - not yours) as much as riding them. Maybe that's why the bikes I've chosen to collect are tuning nightmares! The built from scratch thing really does it for me. I've considered doing some alloy casting for the next project. I might go so far as to cast a block and other engine parts. If I can source a vintage engine, I would really like that as well. If any followers know of any original older engines suitable for such a project - single or twin, I'd be interested in a lead.

2009-10-17T17:55:00.007-05:00

I machined this adapter/spacer for the sprocket. The webs in the hub best facilitated a three bolt pattern but I already had a four bolt pattern on the sprocket. This spacer is first mounted to the hub with three bolts, then the sprocket is mounted to the spacer with four bolts. This is a tricky deal because you can't just go drilling holes and plopping in any old bolt that fits. There are actually all sorts of rules for using fasteners. Look them up and use them. Learn about different fastener's strengths and weaknesses. More importantly, learn how they are designed to work. You can't just throw any bolt in a hole just because it is the right diameter. In this case, it was a no-no to have threads inside the holes of two adjoining plates. As shown in a prior post, the bolt pattern on the hub was set for me as a three bolt pattern. Through, measuring, aligning, and the use of transfer punches, I first made the four holes for the sprocket. I then radiused the center hole to fit the radius on the hub. I used some machinist radius gauges to check. I think it was 5/32" but I can't remember. I first used the lathe putting various radii on the hole, then sanded the remainder. According to the gauge, I hit it pretty close. Once mounted to the sprocket, I centered it on the hub (using the radiused center hole) and used a transfer punch to locate the holes, already in the hub, onto the spacer. I actually did two and located the third after the others were bolted down. I would rather have it slightly out of round than to have to wallow out one or two holes to align everything. This is why you can't just guess on these types of things. It introduces inaccuracies that build on themselves until you have a piece that is not precise at all. Haven't ranted in a while. I spent nearly $20 just for the seven stainless fasteners for this part. Even then, I couldn't find what I needed and had to modify what I could find just to get it to "work". If I had $1 for every time I have had to shorten a bolt or modify a bolt head on this bike, I would have a few coffees to spare. Well, I guess they don't carry shouldered machine-head bolts at Westlake/Ace. Because of this, I set the heads low and the 60 degree heads actually do most of the shear work rather than the threads. The proper use is to have no threads at all inside the hole. Note that I needed the machine heads as the plate had to be flush with the sprocket face. Here is one of the bolts turned down next to two originals for the comparison. I was more fortunate with the four bolts for the sprocket. I found them with shoulders but not in a machine head. I had a little more room on the back of the spacer and oriented then like the studs on a car spindle - sticking out from back to front. I had to taper one flat on each bolt head so it would clear a step on the hub OD. Here is (a blurry shot of) the spacer first mounted to the hub. You can also see the four studs loosely fitted. If you look closely, you can see they are shouldered just enough to fit the sprocket - beautiful! That's the way bolts are supposed to work, using washers to give us the proper spacing, but how often do we do this? I am a little leary of the hub to spacer three-bolt interface but I am confident with this connection this. Then the sprocket mounted to the spacer. I used Locktight and torqued everything to about 25 ft/lbs. I want to distribute the stresses as evenly as possible. Well, that's about it. Not perfect, no cush drive, but back on two wheels.

Hub Issue

2009-10-09T12:21:00.006-05:00

The Worksman wheels are great - and the best option for such a project. The rims are actually pretty accurate to the time - rolled from 1/8" steel. The spokes are .120. The front hub is steel while the rear hub is alloy with a 4" drum brake and is threaded for a freewheel. It actually stopped the bike admirably. My first experience/test ride revealed that the brake was almost ineffective. Perhaps the shoes have partially bedded-in or perhaps my adjustments to the linkage improved the leverage but they (it) sure work better now. I did find myself dragging my feet a few times trying to attenuate my speed through the crowd at the show. The foot pedal is not in the most convenient place and people just weren't moving enough. Even so, at walking speed I could easily keep the bike upright with both feet up. Maybe all the road cycling I do helps with that but I was happy the frame performed with some stability. Well, as mentioned, the alloy hub was designed for a freewheel. I covered earlier how I modified the supplied HD freewheel to hold a sprocket. I did not modify how it was mounted to the hub - via the traditional threads. These didn't last under the torque of the 13 HP engine. I did gag it a few times when the crowd would split and enjoyed the feeling of thrust. To me I thought that made the bike look like it really could do more than just putt through a fairground - like it really wanted to go...... and it did. The final moment was after leaving the show and riding around an adjacent block. About a block from the truck, and away from most of the crowd, I lost power. Looking down, I could see the PTO working. A guy walked up and told me the sprocket was "slipping". We ended up having a good conversation about the need for us to go to Davenport next year. He also noticed my, and I quote, "high dollar seat." He was correct on both accounts. Well, my correction to the problem is not completely solved. I really would like a cush drive of sorts but I'm not sure how to do it with this hub. I think I will simply build a spacer that will mount solidly to the hub and then to the existing bolt pattern of the sprocket. With this setup, I realize that any future failure of the sprocket mount could be catastrophic. There will be no threads to give way, no free-spinning parts. The body of the hub would fail around the axle bearing, drop the wheel to the side, and send the sprocket into the spokes. Either of these last two events would lock up the rear in a quick way. In the nature of the original risk-takers, I will use this anyway, and hope that it helps me "keep my foot out of it." For those contemplating this type of project, cush drives are a huge deal and were designed and used from the beginning - as in the 1910s. It's not something to blow off saying, "Well it's not like I going to race it or anything." I hear these kinds of statements all the time and they are typically to justify either a lack of money, a lack of detail, or a lack of ingenuity. That said, I have isolated my rear sprocket/wheel from much of the vibration problem by using the belt driven sheave on the jackshaft. The primary reduction is elastic, so to speak. The secondary is chain driven and prone to more shock. The engine pulsations are what does a lot of the damage and can otherwise transmit themselves all the way to the contact patch between the ground and the tire. An all chain-driven application is at a higher risk of failure without some form of cush drive. This was one of the major advantages of the older leather belt-driven machines. This pic shows the webs cast in the hub. I must avoid those when laying out a bolt pattern. A friend managed to get six bolts, two between each web, into his identical hub. I am going with three. First I used a 5/8" end mill to take down some of the casting so that the bolt heads would be on a flat surface. My friend bolted from the outside, threaded his hub, and added nuts inside. I feel a solid bolt shoulder would be best in my case - no more stress risers than absolutely necessary. I then drilled a 1/8" hole and flipped the wheel. Using a degree chuck(super spacer, whatever), I spaced two more identical holes (120 degrees apart) for a three bolt pattern perfectly spaced. One could also mount the hub on it's axle and affix a degree wheel(made from a printout available on the web) onto the hub and, using a fixed pointer, rotate the wheel the required amount and mark/drill or mark directly at 120 degree points at equal distances from the axle. How far out? Well, that's why I first flipped the wheel to identify the hub ribs and drilled the first hole from that side. One could even mount the wheel on the bike and scribe a line around the hub for the nominal bolt pattern line. Intersect the line with the degree wheel marks and there is your bolt pattern. You don't have to have many machine tools to do a job right. What you need is the patience to do it right. The layout is all the same, the tools just make the holes. If you do such things, take the extra time to center punch any marks for drilling, start with a small bit, and really clamp down the work - not just for safety but for much increased accuracy and neatness. A hole is not just a hole! Well, that's all for now. I have to build the spacer and mate that to the sprocket - maybe next week.

The unveiling

2009-10-04T12:43:00.005-05:00

Took it to Ralph Wayne's Backyard Nationals yesterday. Unloaded it down the street and rode it up. A gate guy was waiving bikes onto a side street but waived me through. Huge attention getter as I rode through a sea of people on the blocked-off roads with people reaching for their cameras. I couldn't help but think they would be disappointed to see up close that it was a fake. Everyone assured me it was still cool and plenty stopped to look and ask questions. "Where did you get this part?", "What frame did you use?", What year is that engine?" Quite a few thought it was a Harley engine - shows how many posers are there. I became more and more confident raising eyebrows by saying it's a Briggs & Stratton. The biggest boost was saying I fabricated it, frame and all, myself. In the past, I've taken a nice cafe racer, a vintage BMW, a production 2-stroke road racer(loudest!), and this. This got by far the most attention - what I've found I crave for my troubles. Soon, one of the show guys told me to take it up under the main tent(said he was cherry picking a few bikes). I felt a little sheepish but finally rode it up there. Look at all the Harley-types around it! At the end, I fired it up a rode to the truck. Took it for a side journey around the block and spun the threads on the rear hub! An aluminum alloy hub with this torque is just too much. I'll likely mount a sprocket carrier directly to the hub face and take it easy next time. The acceleration is fun though.

2009-10-02T23:31:00.003-05:00

I get a lot of inquiries about this project. I have received e-mails from Belgium, Japan, Australia, and all over the U.S. Well, out of the blue I get one from another Dave who sent scans of the head tube decal and primary cover decals. He felt they were a set of original decals. If not, they were still a Godsend. What luck! I have not been able to make heads nor tails of the head tube decal until now. It did reveal to me that my interpretation of the gray drop shadow on the tank decal was incorrect - it is actually a teal green. I have always thought this was an illusion or lighting effect until I looked again after receiving David's scans. I'll either redo them, hand paint over them, or blow it off. That head tube decal was greatly appreciated. In it's full size it is too big as my head tube is not as large as the original. I put it on anyway and I like the way it finishes up the front end. So much more is known and shared about this marque now than when I started. Makes me want to start over again! I did sort the brake out a bit and it is much better. Add to this that I had yet to finish weld the brake pedal pivot tube for that inaugural ride. It didn't contribute to the poor braking but I am fortunate it didn't completely fail. It did so once back in the garage as I checked for flex in the linkage - close one and lesson learned. This is pretty much how it now looks - sans the small side decals which I opted to place on the battery/tool box. That thing is so stuffed, even with just a 3.3amp AGM battery, that is is a pain to work in there. The key is on the left. I widened the rear stand and added spacers to the pivots so the stand would better clear the axle nuts. The fender is visible too. Since this photo I have distressed it a bit and rubbed down the shabby pin striping to a "worn condition". I bought some of Felt's new Quick Trick cruiser tires in all black and they are the closest to the old combination tread I have found. There has always been a void in this area IMO. They come is several colors including cream/white so, should I stay with white, I will go with those. I now have 4 rides up and down the street on the bike and my confidence foolishly grows. Tomorrow I will take it to Ralph Wayne's Backyard Nationals to see what kind of response I get.

Tidying Up

2009-09-20T00:52:00.008-05:00

Here's the kill switch I fabricated. This grounds out the coils. It functions like and looks very similar to an original except the spring is bent to conform to the shape of the bars. Before I trimmed the metal spring around the button, I got a nasty shock when the web of my hand hit it. Works perfectly now. Here's the battery box I'm building. It fits snugly in front of the rear wheel. I hope to relocate the ignition switch and maybe the regulator add a small AGM battery so I can start it without a jump. I left enough room for a fender. You can see I cut out an access door on the right side. I hope to find a piano hinge to tack in place for the door. To mount it I fabricated two brackets similar to those that hold the fuel tank. I made two backing strips and drilled/threaded two holes in each for the straps. These go inside the box and are plug welded to the front. 1/4" X 20 bolts hold it on. Here it is loosely in place. Since I made a mock up out of cardboard, it actually fits quite snugly. Here it is hanging as I tried to slide a fender in there. The fender will be bobbed and will have a kick stand clip on it. It will mount under the box and with brackets in the back. Here's how the right side looks without the door: Below is one of the axle adjusters. Having the adjusting bolts hitting just the washers worked until they were tight - then they would slip over the front edge of the washers and do nothing. It was just something I had put off. I notched the washers and then center-drilled some bar stock in the lathe. The tubes are only about .300 long. I laid the tubes in the notches of the washers and brazed them in place. Do this on some scrap aluminum so it won't stick. I didn't jig these. The pieces were small and wanting to shift around a bit but once the flux melted it was as if that held things in place. You can tap things in position with the cool brazing rod while you heat the parts. Once done, the back surface sits flush with the dropout and aligns perfectly with the bolt. I left the parts rough and didn't clean up all the excess brazing - it fits the look of the bike.

It Lives!

2009-06-13T18:56:00.000-05:00

Seat Update

2009-05-31T15:39:00.009-05:00

Got the seat this week. Took about a month longer than predicted but it is nice and really helps the look. The mock seat I made was almost identical in shape and width and only about 1/2" too long in front. Amazing how close you can get if you cross examine enough pics of parts on the web. I couldn't really sit on this thing up until now without the proper seat but now I have few excuses - I'm anxious to ride this thing. I brazed some tubing onto flat bar for the seat post then made some brackets to support the rear of the seat from the seat stays. This was a common way to mount them. I needed to braze some tabs on the seat stays so I "jigged" them up to keep them level. I used 3/4" flat stock with a few funky bends for the seat supports. Here's how they turned out. Of course I sat on it and it is loooooong. I needed a quick model so Linda stepped in for the deed. After a few choice comments about not trusting my welds, she committed enough to sit on it.

Pedal Solution

2009-04-19T20:58:00.005-05:00

These are shots of the pedals and crank "carrier" installed. The bottom bracket was already occupied by the counter shaft so I had to come up with another way to mount the pedals in a way that was more pleasing than just screwing them to the frame, etc. Though not functional, there were many motorcycles of the era that had cranks and pedals that were fixed in place. By the late teens, motors had enough torque that pedal assistance was no longer required on hills. Search for images and you will see examples. Some merely fixed the crank to the chainstays with a bracket. I think there was a problem breaking a 20-year tradition by eliminating pedals, and the crank, as the traditional form of foot rest. These Torrington pedals were nice and worn. I substituted the rubber blocks with some large diamond pattern blocks that look more the part. Here's a before and after shot. I like the larger and more open look achieved. Quite a bit more narrow than with the footboards, huh?

Test fire!

2009-04-04T18:10:00.001-05:00

Does it run?

2009-04-04T16:06:00.007-05:00

Linda took this pic after I rolled it outside to let it breathe a bit. Earlier I applied the decal on the right side. Registration to the white mask was close but I did have to make a few small cuts. No biggie. I wrapped the grips with herringbone twill tape I got from my late grandmother a few years back. It is dyed black with leather dye and dried overnight. I hope the grips take on a grimy, sticky look. Well, does it run?

Decal Love

2009-04-03T23:07:00.008-05:00

Okay so I worked on the primary guard, found some old rubber pedal block inserts to make correct looking pedals, and bought another two-stroke road bike. I guess it's time to get over this decal hump before the flame dies down and I lose interest. Worse comes to worse, I sand these decals off and buy white decal paper and go that route. Remember the decals I printed were on clear paper so they were somewhat translucent and the areas that needed to be white were not. I decided to make a mask and put down a thin layer of white paint behind the decal to help the colors stay true and to reveal the white lettering and drop shadows. White is a color that doesn't print on decal paper(unless you use an obsolete Alps printer). Thus the need for a mask. Registration could be tricky as I would need to keep this white mask slightly smaller than the decal except where the white meets the edges. I don't want a white border where one shouldn't be. What a pain!....... but with the obstacles I've already faced, I'm properly motivated to do this. After carefully cutting a negative mask from one of the paper prints of the decal, I sprayed adhesive on the back and somewhat arbitrarily placed it on the tank. I had to add in a few areas in the center of letters to allow the yellow to show through the in the end. I broke out the old Vega 2000 airbrush from the modeling days and mixed some gloss white pretty thin. A spray can would have been faster but would have crept behind the mask easier if and when it lifted at the edges and would have been thicker - leaving a harder edge. Also, I enjoyed digging out my airbrush and compressor. 175psi would be a little overkill on this part. After painting, I removed the mask and rubbed off some of the adhesive from around the white. When the paint had dried, I wet sanded it lightly with 400 and soapy water to knock off any edges. Off to the basement to see if I had any setting solution. Found two bottles that were about 13 years old. A third was the really good stuff but it was dried up. FYI, setting solutions take decals to a different level. The dried up stuff, for example, literally melts and swells the decal after application and, if you don't freak out and wipe it off, it shrinks it back down conforming it to about any contour you give it. It's crazy stuff. These two are much milder but they are all I have. I cut the decal oversized as the slight excess would be clear. After soaking the decal in warm water with a drop or two of Dawn soap, I slid it into place and tried to register it with the mask. Don't forget to use a microwave safe bacon pan for soaking and spill the water wherever possible. I rolled excess water out from under the decal with an old tee shirt. Then came the Solva Set around the edges with a small brush encouraging it into any bubbles at the edges. I'll let it dry overnight then check for silvering or bubbles. A pin prick or Exacto slice and more solution usually solves that. The other side of the tank may be a little off as I reused the masking template and a "peninsula" of letters can be off by a one or two mm. I reinstalled the positive part of the mask to help. If this happened(I have yet to apply the decal to the other side), I'll slice the letters of the decal apart where needed and shift them to fit. No biggie and as Dad used to say, "You'll never see it on a galloping horse." Below is a shot of the side I applied. Registration isn't perfect but better than I expected. Just wait 'till they both fade to white after about a month! I don't hope to deceive anyone into thinking it's anything but a decal..... or that this is actually a Cyclone!

Tidying up

2009-03-28T20:48:00.008-05:00

There have been a few things that I just couldn't put off much longer and I thought I'd get off the decal thing for a while. Here's a shot of the old exhaust and long dipstick tube: The original exhaust from the front cylinder passed back along the top of the motor where the back cylinder tee'd in. Together they dropped down the back. I knew I wanted them to drop down individually but didn't want soot directly on my foot or on the clutch or countershaft. Here's what I came up with. The front pipe: The rear pipe: I hope it sounds better.... and louder! I kept the outside line of each pipe the same length. They should rust pretty quickly and fit in again. You can also see the cropped dipstick tube. Here's another shot of it: I also fabbed a cover for the "primary drive." It is actually quite similar to the cover found on the street version of the Cyclone with the exception of the clutch poking through. I don't mind my foot hitting the spinning clutch as it is smooth and to cover it completely would have put the cover in the "too wide" category like the ill-fated floor boards. BTW, notice they are no longer on the bike. Somehow, despite measuring twice, I came up short on this cover and had to graft in 1/2" to the length to prevent rubbing. I added the 1/2" strip to the apex of the large end so as not to create a step in the cover's taper. The cover attaches to the motor in two spots and onto a standoff welded the bottom of the left chain stay. Here's the back side of it on the bike. There's 3/8" to 1/2" clearance for the counter shaft pulley.

... and the drama continues

2009-03-25T11:50:00.004-05:00

Everywhere I turn there is incompetency! I don't mean to sound arrogant but the older I get the more I notice this. Am I alone here?! I finally found a laser printer at an undisclosed location - neither a print shop nor a copy center. I was able to get a copy or three done. I chose to practice with the least favorite decal sheet on the first tank I built that's still in bare metal. So what's wrong with the above picture? That is NOT the white decal paper I ordered. It's clear! Not only are the white drop shadows invisible (as white is actually printed only on an Alps printer), but the whole thing is translucent and bland! I thought to stripe the white drop shadows by hand but the remainder would be too muted. Looks like I must reprint after buying white decal paper - dare I order from the same place? I might have a dented tank if I allow a second chance and am let down again. Another option is painting a white backdrop for the entire logo, using a paper mask cut from a regular paper copy of the logo, then applying the decal over that. I shouldn't have to do that and that puts me back into the effect of a vinyl decal - any scratches would reveal a white base.... and all too thick IMO. If you want anything done right - don't even try it in the first place!!!!!!!! I am beginning to celebrate the pride and snootiness of anyone who perseveres with a project and rises above the masses. You deserve the attention you earn!

The closer you get the more problems arise!

2009-03-22T00:52:00.007-05:00

........ it's like some waiting ghost that loves to spoil things the more you are seeing the end in sight. "Walk away from the light..." The decals have turned into a major pain. There are two kinds of water slide decal paper - one for ink jet and another for color copier/laser copier. I went with the latter. Apparently home ink jet printers are going the way of the dinosaur and I have read many online posts of others using color copiers at Kinko's, etc. with success. I thought my biggest issue would be UV damage over time and what clear coat might be effective to help block it. Actually, I can't get that far yet! After a total of I'd guess 12 hours cleaning up that image in Photoshop I might be forced to hand-paint this logo after all. Kinko's wrinkled three pages, Office Depot says they had jams before with decal paper and that their color machines were the same as Kinko's(I opted to pass). A local sign company tried but their ink was water based and never dried OR they had an ink jet(wrong for my paper) and wouldn't say so. Two more sheets gone. The Kinko's copies made almost one full logo before jamming. The unfinished part was yellow powder that smeared but the completed part of the logo was not only nice and bright but water proof as well. The sign company's showed the black and grey but the red beaded up as if on wax paper. Two days later it still smears to the touch. They did almost convince me to go with thin vinyl logos.... almost. That will be a LAST resort. Vinyl will last longer than any other part of the bike and might show it. If I was going with a thick clear coat or an overly glossy street rod look it would be fine. Here are a few of the mishaps. To the left are the color copies on paper I had them do each time (as a test). Kinko's was significantly brighter than the sign company's. Then you can see two from Kinko's. The employee tossed the first one. Next are the still-wet ones from the sign company. I ran water over the corner of a Kinko's copy and it stayed true. The ink from the sign company's copy just ran off like water - even the set-looking grey and black. They look almost like the reverse side of decals don't they? That's how weak and faded the red is. More issues. After some time-consuming fabrication of the floor boards, I think I will ditch them in favor of pedals. A friend said, "They look a little big for the bike." That's all it took. I have to agree but on the original street bike and stripped stock racers, they were closer in as the motor was quite a bit narrower. I think it might detract from the theme of the bike. The floor boards themselves are not too wide but the brackets are..... and I made them wider yet to allow room for the boards to fold up out of the way or collapse if/when the bike falls over. What do you think? Any last votes to keep them? I made a new stem bolt today. I basically brazed a "cap" over the existing turned down bolt and then milled the eight sides and turned a radius on the end. Looks much more like the original and better fits the beefy stem. Oh and BTW, a Mesinger Motorcycle Racer in high upturn brown is on order with Larry Heilman.

Cyclone!

2009-03-14T02:01:00.009-05:00

Psych! Okay, this is a low resolution image of what has taken me about 8 hours in Photoshop to reconstruct with enough detail to print. You didn't think I would post the 32MB image did you? I sure would have loved to stumble upon one of those too! If you need the image, just ask. We'll barter. ;) I'm waiting for some decal paper as I feel I must have water slide decals on this tank - thin, detailed, and easy to chip and weather. Hand painting would take too long and vinyl would look funny IMO. The "Joerns Motor Mfg. Co." text isn't perfectly accurate but I decided to reproduce it and the associated drop shadows rather than try to fix up the scan I had. I'm okay with it as is. I am hoping a light coat of clear will block enough UV to maintain some color. Much thanks to Kevin Hulsey for sending me a high resolution image he had shot at the 2007 Legend of the Motorcycle Concours D'Elegance in Half Moon Bay, Ca. Until then, I was unable to enlarge and visualize the decal in enough detail to Photoshop it. Tonight I worked on those floorboards shown earlier. Here are a few shots: First, I removed about .060 for an inlay leaving a .250 lip around the edge. Here I have already removed the Dykem and masked for the spray adhesive. I used some "rubber" floor runner from Home Depot as the inlay for the boards . It's unusual for me to find something to meet my needs so easily. In this case I had already produced the inlay so I was really fortunate to find a rubber mat that fit my need so well. Rant: Seriously, I don't think you know how rare this is. A buddy and I have often joked about our typical visits to a home building center for the one-off odd DIY piece we seek. "May I help you find what your looking for? Says the vested helper. We then explain how we are needing some do-hickey we once saw there, what we think it was for, and how we want to modify and re-purpose it for something else(insert completely random and unusual DIY project here). At this point the "helper" always says, "Oh we don't have anything like that around here." Except they do have it but are just incapable of visualizing our purpose! It's gotten quite old really! I could describe "a pointed object with a handle and a flattened tip that you turn by hand to tighten screws with......." and they couldn't show me a screwdriver! Once an elderly, limping employee in his 80s offered help as I was looking overhead at flexible spa tub PVC tubing for yet a different application(aquarium). He actually refused to get it down for me saying (in a grumpy old man voice), "Aw, that wouldn't work." And hobbled away shaking his head. I felt it endangered him to climb up the ladder so I decided to pick up my jaw and laugh. Bought it the next day and guess what has been working for me for years? Now when I go shopping it's like this: Helper: "Hello. What can I help you find?" Me: "No!" End of conversation. End of rant. Anyway, with the help of a variety of simple templates I transferred the inlay shape to the rubber. The remaining 5' or so of rubber mat will be used to make some modified way protectors for the mill and lathe. Anything left will go in the garage or entry to reduce the amount of chips I've been dragging into the house. Sorry Linda. I cleaned the rubber and the boards with acetone and with a little 3M Super 77 contact adhesive I mounted the rubber. I ran a very small bead of black RTV around the rounded edges of the inlay to conceal any small gaps. Looks passable to me albeit a bit modern Harley-esque. Of course they'll have to fold so mounting them will be a whole post I'm sure.

2009-03-08T16:16:00.002-05:00

Okay. Compare this with the prior shot of the throttle mech. Using a bellcrank, another bend in the throttle cable is eliminated. Also, the opposing force of the return spring is isolated from the throttle pivot itself. Finally, by having the return spring on the same arm and close to the pull cable, there is minimal load on the bellcrank pivot point. It now works with little resistance, returns fully every time, and because of the different length arms on the bellcrank, it allows the throttle tube more travel than before for much better feedback. It's all hand-fabricated, including the bracket, cable holder, pull rod, and adjustable ferrules, except the bellcrank which I pirated from the original B&S parts. I might replace it later with a more cast looking part. I am much happier with the way this works!

More stuff

2009-03-07T00:21:00.007-06:00

I put a radius on the fins of the flywheel today. Now each fin is like lathe tool bit - curved with a little relief and about 25 degrees of rake! Sure they aren't pointed any more but now I just have another 1/4" before I get chewed up. A guard is in order for sure. I sealed the tank today as well. I used Por-15 and that tiny little can easily flowed throughout the whole thing. It looks pretty much like thin metallic silver paint. They say not to save it after draining out the excess but to my surprise I got about 4/5 of the can back! I decided to pop the lid on it and keep it for later. Who knows? If it looks the same when I open it again, I'll use it. Here are a couple shots of the floor boards I'm making. I decided on them as they were on the street versions of the Cyclone as well as on the "strip stock" racing models. I'm using 1/4" 6160 and I'll build some nice supporting brackets for them. I came up with 13.5" X 4.5" as that looked about right. I might try to checker them using the mill or maybe adhere a rubber face on them - we'll see. Oh, and here's how I finished the throttle up. The tensioned return spring is way too strong but needed for now. If left this way the throttle plate pivot will eventually wear an oval shape into the carb body, make it difficult to modulate, and eventually cause total failure. I will try to mount a small compression spring in the hand control to push the inner cable "plug" back to the idle point. Oh, and I started it today too! I jacked around with a charger for a bit but when I used cables from my car's battery, it fired right up. With a bypassed vacuum fuel pump, lightened flywheel, no air cleaner, and no muffler, it fired right after a few cranks. Though I'm not done, I sure thought the combination of mods would make it difficult to start - especially since the carbs are different on gravity fed B&S models. The throttle worked as planned as it scratched it's way backwards on the driveway. I am developing an honest fear of this thing.

......and more throttle..........

2009-02-28T01:55:00.005-06:00

.......... and it still won't be completed. The throttle is mounted on the handlebar but what to do with that cable? I made a "fairing" of sorts for the cabel to exit. I can see me at the first show I take it to. It looks wobbly so a guy tries to help and grabs the bars breaking this little piece off! It's held on by two countersunk 6-32 screws that I turned down from electrical plate screws. I always hated those things, always had a surplus, and saw them as useless for anything else so threw most away. I just didn't want the cable coming out through a rough hole. I don't know if I like it at all. I might, if fact I'm pretty sure, go with something simpler and smaller like a little sheet metal fairing. The cable housing is from vintage bicycle brake cable. A quick slice down the side with a knife and the colored coating comes right off. Of course there isn't much protection from grime but this won't see much road use. I needed to build a standoff or two to keep the cable attached to but not rubbing on the painted frame. I could tape it up as many original photos show. Tape is quickly removed and replaced in a race setting and firmly holds the cable but why not waste an evening?! An easy solution would be the zip tie and fuel line standoff. That works great but isn't something seen on a BTR........ at least not on this one. I knew there was nothing out there to meet my exact needs (what's new?!) so I'll make my own. Taking the idea from vintage bicycle cable clamps, I made the clamps from 18g steel strips 1/4" wide formed over a piece of 1 1/8" tubing then drilled and tapped to accept one of the 6-32 modded screws mentioned above. I made one with an extra looped piece to hold the cable housing. Works perfectly and the cable housing is nice and tight. Securing the cable housing well - especially at the carb - will keep the motor from revving when the handlebars are turned. Here's how it looks on the frame.

Bruce Dickinson says, "More Throttle"

2009-02-25T09:34:00.004-06:00

I'm using a wedge arrangement to hold the throttle into the handlebar. After building that, I cut the right side of the bar to a slightly less than arbitrary length and it fit with little fuss. The bolt securing the wedge is center drilled and chamfered so the throttle cable will easily pass through. Here is the brazed wedge, throttle inner shaft(with brazed-in plug), and bolt: I'll have to drill the bars for the cable sleeve to exit and mount it all up. Here's what it'll look like from the rider's view:

Internal Throttle

2009-02-21T01:58:00.010-06:00

Well, I could use the Honda monkey bike parts for a $50 internal throttle but frankly it and the Vespa setup look a little spindly. Nonetheless, guys are using these parts, still available from Honda, on their daily drivers. I could drop between $80 and $300 for a proper internal throttle but there just aren't many out there for 7/8" bars and those are the most expensive. Using a 1" throttle on 7/8" bars would be the easiest and save some time but would compromise appearance. I would have to configure a lead-in tube of 1" just to mount it. Plus that would certainly not be in keeping with my subconscious masochistic need to say, "I built it myself." Unable to find pics of original 191Xs internal throttles, I studied several commercially available models and, after several mental iterations, came up with a plan..... sort of. After halfheartedly starting, it became more apparent what all I would need. I ordered some bearings(in duplicate) and played with the parts I had made. This helped finalize my plan. Here are some pics. I didn't feel like photographing all of it as it was of a few weeks and each step was unlikely to be used in the end. Indeed I had to remake the end plug and the outer grip(cut the helix the wrong way!). Here I'm milling the 5/16" slot for the cable "plug" to slide in. Machinery to cut helical grooves is outrageous and, unless used for commercial production, wouldn't be needed very often. Here's how I did mine. Twice! Once in the wrong direction! This allowed me some practice so I was a little more careful the second time. Not that the first one wasn't smooth enough - it was. Maybe someday I will use it for the left-hand grip for ignition or something. Something not shown that is very important are witness lines. I did the first (incorrect) helix with two scribed lines. This one I did with one(shown). One center line was better for placing starter holes (I used a stiff center drill for that) BUT I did go back and scribe two outer lines before I went past this stage. Why? You can't mill up to an edge you can't see and a smooth edge is where the bearing does its work. Best would be to scribe 3 lines. A center to start your drilling and two edges to make sure you don't go "outside the lines". The layout was very basic. First decide how much cable pull you need. I think I settled on 1" needed so I planned for 1 1/4" cable pull. Next decide how twitchy of a throttle you want. I didn't want a 1/4 throttle as the Briggs was likely to lag and, with the clutch, it could be difficult to modulate. I went closer to a 1/2 throttle. Basically, you scribe lines around the tube in two places representing idle and full throttle. This tells you the beginning and end of the groove. In my case they were 1 1/4" apart. Arbitrarily mark points on those lines 1/2 the circumference from each other(of less if you want a quicker response). Connect the intersections with a flexible rule and scribe your center line. Scribe your outer lines and you now have a guide to cut. Of course you must consider bearing placement, cable slide travel, etc. but 1/3 to center of the tube will be close. I stacked two tiny bearings on a post tapped into the cable slide. These bearings ride in both slots so a turn in the helix forces the bearing to roll down the straight groove in the inner tube. I bored the ends of the outer tube to hold needle bearings and added a roller bearing on the end. This is held to a plug on the inner tube with a c-clip in a groove so the outer tube doesn't slide off the end(!). Okay this is more confusing to write than to do so look at the exploded view and ask questions if needed. I'll place a thin piece of sheet over the groove so the two small stacked bearings down slide off their post and wrap it in black cloth tape like you see on the old racers. There are many ways to do each part but this is what I did. Total cost was about $20 in bearings and about a full day in the garage.

New faces

2009-02-18T13:19:00.011-06:00

If you followed the JockeyJournal link, welcome. You all inspired me to keep going on this project further than I would have this year. I decided to leave my comments here as this is MY journal and unless "on topic" my comments might be deleted there. No harm and no foul as it's not my forum but I was disappointed with admin. A member had asked for cafe racer pics and this is certainly not a junky one. Here's the pic I posted: This pic was rapidly deleted(without comment) and, when I reposted it with a caveat, it was quickly kicked again. Per the mods rules, "While we will let a few Jap based threads roll every now and then,......." so there will be some Jap content allowed. There were a few pics of Hondas in the thread but likely less than 1%. Therefore, I thought mine would be a good addition and would spawn the creative process without offending the Jap haters. Close observation will reveal DG heads and DG swingarm - two highly sought after period pieces that lend to a true early 70s look. I understand their reasons for a focus away from Japanese bikes as they are perceived as modern and quite frankly most of the modded ones are hacked. This is why I belong to no Jap bike forums other than the USA 2-strokers.com. That's JMO but it is also my opinion that many a good HD or Triumph frame has been devalued forever on the JJ using a cutoff wheel and about $10 in tubing just to "fit in" with the aforementioned crowd. Many of you guys are very talented fabricators but many, like those of some Jap-bike forums, are comfortable hacking away and create some very dangerous things. I suspect we will see a new business of softtail conversion kits in a few short years to turn back and "undo" many of the altered frames of the style. JMO as this is my place to freely speak - and without hypocrisy as I have always offered to assist those who can't do it right. If you belong to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kccaferacers/ you know I have yet to delete a thread or edit comments even when I disagree with them. Comment away. Anyway, it is just too much to try to keep this log up to date and post there as well. Perhaps I will post an occasional update pic and certainly one of the finished bike there. Y'all are good guys.

Back at it

2009-02-18T09:32:00.006-06:00

Sorry for not posting much lately. I realized I was putting all my efforts into updates on the Jockeyjournal forum and neglecting my blog. Not fair to you following or to myself. Sorry. Here's a pic when we rolled it inside the other day to apply some pinstriping. These were my two helpers. I was tempted to bring out the old brushes and do it "right" but I am really rusty and never got really good at pulling lines anyway. It's aggravating wanting to be good at all your hobbies but knowing you can't dedicate the time to do it all. The other option was one of the Beugler-type tools. Stripers mock these but they are a fair tool in the game. They aren't cheap but I picked up a vintage(40s or 50s) model for a song on Ebay last year. It's hardly as refined as a Beugler but would work and as well as anything of that period. What I ended up doing was buying a Testors enamel paint pen from the hobby store. It actually worked pretty well with less of a commitment in time(lazy I know). I really haven't seen "authentic" striping on the Cyclones. Shorty Tompkins over-restored bike is the only one but I liked them and they looked very period. I did polish the valve covers of the motor yesterday just so it wouldn't look too old sitting in the freshly painted frame. Remember, I do want it all to age together quickly but this shouldn't hurt that. Today's intro pic is what it looked like yesterday morning. The bearings for the internal throttle sleeve arrived yesterday. I got sick yesterday so we'll see what I can get done this week. I have to wait for weeks for the seat to be made so this will easily drag into summer. No worries. Tidying up the rest with throttle, brakes, wiring, and external engine mods will keep me and this blog busy in the meantime.

Progress

2009-02-10T17:58:00.004-06:00

I started thread on JockeyJournal.com as there is a Tool giveaway for a "Winter Build" winner. I've gotten very positive feedback so far. We'll see.

Engine turning 101

2009-01-23T23:21:00.008-06:00

First I should say I'm not the happiest with these results but from 10' it'll look killer! These are the "engine plates" I made earlier. I knew I would be doing this to them since the beginning. Engine turning is one of many names (all somewhat incorrect for this application) referring to a decorative overlapping pattern of swirls. True engine turning involves cams and precise lathes and good eyesight and is seen mostly in fine watches. The layman's engine turning is no less attractive and can be found on many vintage race cars and is maybe most popularly known from the Spirit of St Louis cowling. There is a lot of info out there but practice is about all you can do. Those who say it's simple are likely happy with anything they get 'cause this isn't a cinch. It is mechanically easy to attempt but just not easy to get perfect results. First you need the base metal as shiny as is reasonable. I have experimented a bit and every shortcut seams to cut into your final results and you can't go back on this stuff. You have to play a bit. Some use lubricants, some use lapping compound, some use wooden dowels, some cork, and some use Cratex sticks. 3M pads for some, wet-dry sandpaper for others. You see what I mean? I wasn't happy with the dowels, corks, or mounted Cratex stick. I used a stainless crimped end wire cup brush. Recommendations are to use a stainless brush with a very fine wire (.06). If you can encapsulate the wires all the way down to their ends all the better to keep them from spreading out under pressure. I used a zip tie and some masking tape. As far as spacing, there are many patterns. Again you have to experiment. I chose to overlap about 1/3 along the row and about the same between each row. You also have to offset each row by a chosen amount. I went with 1/2 the distance used between each circle. Looking at the pics, I would go with a little more offset next time. That tends to give more of a diagonal pattern. There are indicator jigs people use on a drill press but I used a mill. Once set you have to apply equal pressure with each disk. I started dry then added some 40wt oil about half way through on one side and added WD40 after one row on the second side. I used 360RPM on one side and 930RPM on the second but 1100+ is recommended for aluminum. I got different results but they all showed "ghosting" and some galling where patterns overlapped. I think I was going a bit deep. Here's what it will look like on the bike: And from a distance:

2009-01-11T14:14:00.003-06:00

Reworked the stand a bit yesterday. Planned on redoing it with channel steel but the tube stand is more what the Cyclone class B stand looked like so I stayed with it. The factory race class machines of course had no mounted stand. I bent the legs wider adding a new cross bar. I also added gussets. The bottom 1" or so on each leg is a solid round plug to decrease wear. I turned a shoulder on each plug to fit snugly in the legs then brazed them in.

Chainline

2009-01-06T09:26:00.003-06:00

Here is how it looks on the bike. The 41 chain afforded much more space and the chainline was correct with very little adjustment. I moved the inner axle nuts around and may have added a washer to the right side shim but that was it. Throttle and brake linkage and cable, foot boards, and wiring will wrap up the trial fit of everything.

Sprocket stuff

2009-01-02T18:26:00.016-06:00

Well I hope everyone had a great Christmas and a good New Years celebration. I slept through the latter. I have been fitting the sprocket with the Worksman freewheel acting as a carrier. Pics are easier than words in this case(a hard thing for me to admit). I bored out the center hole of the sprocket to a friction fit on the freewheel. As you can see this entered into the original bolt pattern of the sprocket. I decided to use these "partial" holes as locators for four pins(turned down some socket head bolts) tapped into the freewheel sprocket. A slight taper on them helps with location. I would also use four sets of teeth to bolt the sprocket to - thus the sprocket carrier term. Since the teeth aren't that long, I brazed up some half step spacers to complete the surface under the mounting nuts. They are a combo of a smaller and larger washer. I could have ground them to the same diameter but just didn't care to. All in all this will give me eight points of contact with the freewheel. I then used an indexer to locate eight holes symmetrically around the sprocket and made eight 1 1/2" holes. Here's how it all fits together. A quick word on sprocket/chain sizes. It is often said that any #40 or #41 sprocket/chain combo works. Indeed these are both 1/2" pitch but the roller width of a #40 chain is 5/16" and is too wide for the 1/4" #41 sprockets. It would work but these are shortcuts that make for a hack job that will soon fail. A loose floating chain will at best wear out quickly. There is a .0065 inch difference in the roller diameter but that will be okay. In my case the narrower the chain (as long as it's motorcycle size) the less trouble with interference with the seat stay or bottom bracket. My advise would be go with the common #41 sprockets that are common with the jackshaft kits and use a 420 motorcycle chain. This keeps the pitch at 1/2", the width to 1/4", and the rollers to 5/16" Everything matches perfectly, is the narrowest reasonable combo, and is stronger than needed for such a project. An alternative would be to use true #40 sprockets(wider than the kit sprockets at nearly 5/16") and #40 chain for a thicker look that is still stronger than the #41 option. Remember without cush drives on these things, chain wear could be an issue. Whatever you do, don't run a solid rear cog(without freewheel) as the motor breaking will likely unscrew your cog from the hub in quick order likely with violent results.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-23T18:06:00.003-06:00

From the even more obsessed contributor Ed. Thanks! And Merry Christmas to all.

2008-12-23T09:44:00.005-06:00

After trying the latest bars, I tried another set, and finally came back to the originals. I had to braze them on as the stem bolt through them was hardly enough. That's okay - I like the look a lot better this way - it's more of a cast look. I scuffed the bars with emery cloth to get rid of that new chrome look. 1" bars are difficult to come by unless you are looking at modern metric or Harley stuff. The new problem will be fabricating an internal throttle. Cheap and expensive 1" versions are readily available but the only 7/8" option would be the Honda CT-70 Monkey Bike throttle, which would work and is often used for Brit chops, etc., but which might be a bit sloppy. We'll see what I come up with. I also plug welded the bottom bracket bearing insert for the "countershaft". I will cut the remainder of the jackshaft once the chainline is determined for sure. The wheels arrived yesterday and I finally got a look at them this morning. They are plenty strong but will add a challenge, which I was anticipating, of making a sprocket carrier. I will likely use the existing freewheel cog, turn off the teeth and make a carrier of that. The chainline along the right side is close and looks like it will work with this idea.

State of the Project Address

2008-12-14T00:48:00.009-06:00

So here's what is looks like at this point. I'm still waiting for the new 1" handlebars to arrive as well as the wheels. The jackshaft in place but I have yet to weld it up. I have to double check the offset needed between the pulleys to allow for the shift as they each expand(one way only each). I had to make a spacer for the crankshaft under the clutch as it was not seating against the crank. Also without a spacer the O.D. of the clutch would rub the case. There was also a gap between the end of the crankshaft and the outside of the clutch so I had to make a spacer so as not to have a 1" gap under there. I bought a larger stainless bolt and rethreaded the crankshaft as 9mm isn't the easiest to find. Really there should be only slight axial loads on the clutch as it open/closes so this bold/spacer setup is just to keep it in place while the woodruff key takes all the burden. Here are those parts and where they go. My plans were to move the engine a bit more to the right. It felt balanced already but without those fins on the flywheel and with the pulleys as the new "meatgrinder", I decided to shift it about 1/8" to the right. I know that's not much but every bit helps get that jackshaft shorter(i.e. right shifted). I decided to remove the outside mounting holes and bosses from the case to clean it up a bit more. Here's what I removed and how the block now looks.

IBT is useless!

2008-12-11T02:12:00.003-06:00

I resisted up to this point complaining again about a Chinese tool but the performance of IBT (the bearing distributor) put me in a bad mood today over a petty delay. My lathe chewed up a reduction shaft bearing but that wasn't even a surprise as it is Chinese made! I tightened the shaft a while back where I determined I needed to oil the bushing more. Since the liberal lubrication, it has disintegrated in short order. I wondered why the ratchet clutch on that reduction shaft had been slipping and the chuck stalling more and more lately. The pulleys were probably 1/16" closer than they should've been due to the wallowed out bearing. May I bore you for a moment? It started with the freezing rain on the last of three days of little sleep and three 13-hour nights at work with an added few hours of classroom CE time(in the hospital for 16 hours last night) and the theft of a $170 stethoscope(was not actually mine but was in my keeping for our whole unit - okay, I was slowly claiming it as my own!). I thought I would drop by IBT, their headquarters no less, on the way home for a few bearings and convert the dead shaft from a bushing to bearings. I figured out I could bypass the shaft and run the chuck at higher speeds for the work needed. Also thought I'd grab a bearing to convert the top slide shaft to a bearing mount - a mod I've needed to do for a while. BTW, that iron dust from the flywheel job was really a mess. Gummed up everything! I figured I would disassemble the carriage and clean/adjust everything when doing a few mods. I was hoping to get a lot done on my next few off with new Worksman wheels, new 1" handlebars, Brooks saddle, correct Comet belt, a vintage pin striping tool(for the down and seat tubes - I have brushes but the tools always intrigued me), and new lathe belts and cross slide bearing conversion kit planned for delivery soon, oh and $250 of Enco odds and ends that arrived today(Linda, you shouldn't be reading this). Kevin Hulsey also sent me a higher res shot of the Cyclone tank emblem which I blew up and copied a few times for painting templates. First IBT didn't have the 12mm X 18mm sealed ball bearings I wanted so convinced me to get them in needle bearings. Fine, they aren't subjected to swarf and I wanted to get the lathe going again. Well, they didn't end up having those either. Mind you these bearings in sealed ball in RS or ZZ are all over online. They referred me to a bearing company closer to my house(though I paid IBT and spent about 30 minutes there) for the bearings they sold me on which they didn't even have. For the top slide bearing I asked for a 5/16" ID and that the other dimensions weren't as critical as I would make a block for it - anything around 3/4" for the OD was okay and width 5/16" to 3/8" would be fine. I just checked and the one they gave me is a 3/8" ID! Who orders the ID of a bearing as "not critical"?! I specified 5/16"! Not really a big deal but $18 and 1 1/2 later I have a shaft running on needle bearings possibly on a non hardened shaft and nothing for my conversion. This will likely give me just enough time to turn a new shaft and thread it to replace the one that will crumble. Those of you guys in the country, don't complain for not having access to all the "big city" resources. If you have UPS delivery, you will have delayed but just as good access to what you need nowadays. If it's closer,it's more expensive than the additional shipping so..... I did enjoy boring out the sprocket shaft for the bearings. You would think the bronze bushing would run on a hardened shaft but on this lathe who knows. It certainly wasn't pollished. There are plenty of pics on the web of Chinese taps and twist drills spun around due to not being hardened. I will surface harden it and replace the needles with balls and get the right top slide bearing online - $5 in shipping is worth less to me than another hour running around rewarding the idiots that wasted my morning once already. Sadly, I see our society going this route where human contact is limited. Actually, maybe it's better if I limit my contact to idiots. I added some acetone to the primed tank to check for leaks. There were a few as suspected but not many and not bad ones. I plan to hit it all hard again tomorrow.

Lightened Flywheel

2008-12-05T02:37:00.013-06:00

Okay, I didn't do this to lighten it and I doubt it will run any better with less weight. If you've read back a ways you'll see pics of what the stock flywheel looked like. Without the ugly shrouds covering it, it was a spinning cheese grater! The fins are needed for weight but for cooling they are now useless, ugly, and scary. It was also dangerously close to my right shin - or where I suspect my shin will reside. They had to go. Here's what I cut off. I then turned the remainder down on the lathe. One day out in the winter weather will make the freshly machined surface look like the rest. Here it is back on the motor. Notice how much narrower the motor appears now. The jackshaft visible in this shot has not been shortened yet. I'm waiting for the wheels to arrive before I decide which side to drive it from. I have a feeling it will be right side drive but, if so, the sprocket will obviously be much closer in than it appears now. Measure twice - cut once. Music of the day: Never got to see them live but these guys were/are always the real deal and always sound good live.

"Copper Bike"

2008-12-04T19:10:00.009-06:00

I stumbled upon these on Flickr - a project also from a Ed. See Ed's project in a previous post. Obviously Ed has a passion for BTRs and a vision for doing things the right way. I'll let the pics speak for themselves.

Jackshaft

2008-12-02T01:22:00.003-06:00

So there are several ways to run this thing. I turned the bearing carriers down to the size of the 2" tube. Once the chainline is figured out, I will plug weld this into the bottom bracket. The pic above is what the setup would look like if I ran the chain on the left side of the bike. Since I don't have the Worksman wheels here, I can't determine the chainline for spacers but it is pretty close to where it would be. If I bought their 3/4" bearing wheels (with .125 inch hub material), requested by the guys making early auto replicas (http://www.smallcarplans.com), I could make my own sprocket carrier for the left side BUT there would be no brakes. I am planning on a rear drum and brakeless front. Since I don't know how robust their sprocket mounting configuration is, and since the drum will be fixed on the left side, I will likely run the chain down the drive side. I would rather have the pulley and driven gear on the same side of the bike so that the opposing forces will not twist the frame as much under torque. More about that as I get to it. Here I am cutting off some of the fins on the flywheel. They are a definite hazard turning 3000 RPM right in front of one's right shin. A small guard should be easy to fashion around the thinned flywheel. After this I will clean it up on the mill. I will leave some material there, not because there is any cooling effect (without all the shrouds), but because the engine needs the weight. Since I'm adding the clutch to the other end of the crankshaft, I'm hoping I will offset the weight reduction enough that I don't lose too much torque or create starting problems.

New Bars

2008-11-30T02:26:00.008-06:00

It seems that I'm slowly redoing every part that I at one time felt was adequate. Because of the stem to bars brazing issue, I knew I would want different bars in there. I didn't like the idea of using my one shot on brazing the stem to bars that look obvious as flipped bicycle bars - similar to the Michealson bikes as they might be. Anyway, rather than splurging for a new 1" die for the JD2 bender, I decided to use some 7/8" clubman bars that were hanging on the wall. These are a thicker wall tubing and, once cut apart, allowed me to weld up what you see above. The center section is 1" scrap and is plug welded to the bars. Ironically, I used every bit of the clubmans except for the 90 degree elbows(<1" on each side wasted). The width is arbitrary but I knew I didn't want them too short. Any opinions? I think it looks more period than the previous bars and stem for sure. They are also more ergonomic and create a less aggressive posture......overall more comfortable. Here's another shot or two.

2008-11-29T03:01:00.000-06:00

These are stainless bolts. I have turned the heads to remove any markings. You can do this with a file or even with a belt sander but I like the look of them turned on a lathe. If the heads were taller, they would look even better. The washers are aircraft washers - thicker than usual. I got them from Airparts Inc. here in Kansas City. I would think most major cities would have an aircraft building place. It's worth looking a place like this up. They have tooling received from the aircraft industry. The tooling is mostly used but they are retired far before their useful life is up and they are quite inexpensive. USA-made end mills are like $3-$5, reamers $2-4, etc. It's at least 1/4 the price of new USA tooling. They also have fasteners, AN fittings(new for a couple bucks each), safety wire, Chromo tubing, 6160 plate, and basically most things you need for aircraft maintenance. My grandfather used to say, "If you can't find it at Ace Hardware, then you don't need it." I'll admit, Ace/True Value has more random stuff than large home improvement centers but they are expensive and I'd rather get bulk aircraft quality stuff. 25 new washers of about any SAE size are about $2 so I just grab a few baggies everytime I go. I need to make a list so I get stuff I don't already have. Man, am I rambling or what?

Oh, I found this choke cable there for $1. It will be a good period-looking sleeve where the throttle cable exits the handlebars. I would think that you could strip some bicycle brake cable housing and use that too.

Okay, here's the plate I made to cover the oil filter mount. There is a channel milled in the back that allow the oil to bypass from the filter feed to the return. I mentioned it before but you can see how ugly the filter would be by looking at the older motor posts.

It really stuck out there, wasn't needed, and didn't look the part.

Random stuff

2008-11-26T02:47:00.002-06:00

Linda snuck out and took this. I am using a facing mill with a pilot guide (made from an old screwdriver) to mill down four bosses on the engine case. It cut very smoothly and cleanly. These bosses were interfering with the Comet 40 series clutch. The clutch still needs to be spaced out too far from the block but but every 1/4" helps! A few new friends have been following along and encouraging me to finish this thing. The first is Ed. He found my pics and noticed how similar our projects are. It is amazing how similar they appear. Would it be cool to have a get-together with several replicas and race them around a horsetrack? Well it would be to me. The Lifan motor has a full tranny and should really go. Check out his version of the Indian bars. Nice idea. I'll have to steal that idea on a later project. I like some of the little details he uses. I hope to keep this blog updated with the progress of others as well. Another is Patrick from Belgium (Where the Trappist Monks hang out and brew beer!). Here is a link to a cool site that featured his bike more than once. It's a killer 1948 Harley bobber. I dog on (new)Harleys a lot but not these! I'd ride one in a heartbeat. http://www.knucklebusterinc.com/features/2008/09/04/patricks-1948-harley-wl-part-2/ While you are there, surf around that site. It's pretty cool. Patrick also sent a link to pics of his 1925 Moto Lady, a Belgian marque with a 147cc motor. This is one of the company's earliest models and they build motos up until the beginning of WW2. He says it's the oldest one known right now. 2-stroke technology wasn't what it is today but it sure is neat and with plenty of the original parts. Nice keeper! http://www.hesy.be/foto/thumbnails.php?album=13 Here is the Lady's fuel line. just what I was planning for my project. Ironic. BTW, thanks to those that help by expressing interest. I'm always interested in seeing what you guys have going on. Feel free to leave messages on the blog here as well. Dave

Stem build

2008-11-26T01:52:00.000-06:00

Well, I left the Wald stem on the project far too long. It looks too bicycle-ish and puts the bars forward a few more inches on what is already quite a reach. I jacked around with various bits of tubing and wasted half the evening. Finally I looked again at some online pics and can't see any other way to make it look similar to the original than to drill through the center of the bars. This to me is principally wrong and goes against common sense engineering. I'm confident that the bars used back then were of some significant thickness. To strengthen the bars available today, I would likely need to braze them into the stem. You'll see what I mean by following along. I haven't posted a boring step-by-step record of anything in a while and that's the kind of stuff I like to see so I took some pics of the stem build. This is a simple project but one that requires you to think about process order. Remember, I am NOT a machinist. Here's how I went about it. I bored a hole 1" in diameter in the 1.25" solid round using a mill. Try that with a drill press. Finding center is so much easier on a mill. Once the hole is bored I center drilled the piece. Notice this piece is not properly held. Something that long should be supported along it's length. I chose to go easy and since little axial force is applied in center drilling, it worked fine. Push to hard and it could walk the bit and damage the tool, the stem, or me! Fair warning. I bored it on through with a nominal size for the stem bolt. I had to reach into the top hole to center drill the other side before continuing the bolt hole. I left the chuck turning while I snapped this pic. 5 tries later, I got a shot with the bit visible through the side. :) Next I cut the head of the stem from the bar stock. I considered turning it all from a solid piece but that's a lot of chips! Here I'm boring the bottom side for the shaft. The jaws didn't like this so perhaps I should have cut the stock then bored the 1" hole. It worked but it sure doesn't look like it. I left a small lip inside the stem head for the shaft to butt up against. I brazed the shaft into the stem head then sleeved it with another tube. I didn't have the wall thickness needed at the time to make it of one tube. The two tubes are brazed to each other and to the head. I cut the angle for the stem wedge prior to brazing the tubes together and gave it a final pass on the belt sander to match them up. Here's how it turned out. Feel free to comment. It is much better looking than the Wals stem IMO but it won't look right or function if left this way. Several issues: I need to make a larger stem bolt head as per the original and I will probably turn the fork nut down so it doesn't look so spindly there. Shortening that will drop the stem making it effectively stiffer as well. As it is, there is no clamping action on the bars but there is some slop that will only get worse as the hole in the thin bars elongates around the stem bolt. I need to either braze this set of bars to the stem or bend a new set of bars and braze those in. What's amazing is how many things get changed from the mockup to the end product. Though reach is shortened by 2-3" inches it still feels very long!

2008-11-24T16:39:00.000-06:00

This is what I found. I rounded the lever a bit. Hopefully it will dull up quickly. Wow - my welds don't really look that bad in person........ do they?

2008-11-24T12:03:00.000-06:00

It's starting to look like it belongs in the fleet! Here is one of the brackets. 5 all hand formed from 1/8 stock. Remarkably consistent considering I used no jigs or mandrels. I finished stitching up the tank, adding the filler neck, and fabbing the brackets. I'm off to find a NPT tap to add either the petcock I have or, if I find what I'm looking for, add that one. I want a small brass job but not the little cheapy ones with the stainless rod as a lever. We'll see. Next will be the jackshaft.

2008-11-21T23:37:00.000-06:00

Now me with a sunburn, here is the new tank tacked up and sitting in the frame. I don't use the auto darkening helmet like I should for tacking. It's just too dark to see and when manipulating everthing between tack welds it's just too much of a hastle. As simple as the Cyclone tank looks, and it is, it still isn't easy to form those parts on all four corners. The hard part is done. I really dread welding it all up - maybe I should wait for a friend to move his tig to his new house as what I hate the most is grinding down all the mig welds. I have yet to install the fuel filler and and outlet bung. I altered the locations of the brackets from that of the original - no real reason other than to eliminate one. Remember this is not a perfect replica.............. it has a lawn mower engine! Not so funny story: Before tacking it, I took one of the rear side panels over to the bench sander to trim some of the front radius when I saw the tank(top, bottom, and middle sides tacked up) slide off the other end of the bench. It was sitting on plate steel with a 90 degree magnetic welding clamp holing it on it's side. It landed right on the nose and wadded it way out of shape... and after all that anal retentive prep. I had to cut a few tacks and dolly it all back. Still think it added some distortion. Only one bracket is made so far so I'm far from done with the tank portion if this thing. If anyone can make water decals let me know!

Tank and seat update

2008-11-20T03:11:00.001-06:00

Well, I built the first tank with 20 gauge sheet. It fit really well but was warped a bit too much for my taste. A friend thougt it was salvageable but I felt I had learned too much from the first one not to apply it to another. The second one is cut from 18 gauge as it was a bit tricky to be consistent on the welds with the 20 gauge. With metal that thin and a MIG there is little room for error. Pulling gives a good bead but prevents you from seeing the fine joint. Pushing can give you a hole pretty quick. I don't like the idea of spotting the entire thing. a) cold starts = leak city, and b) it takes forever. Here are some pics of the second tank in progress: Above you can see all the panels cut, rolled, deburred, and cleaned. You can see the four spacers bolted to the bottom panel. They are center drilled and tapped on both ends for 1/4 20. There will be two more in the back but I wanted to get the tricky curve set before I made the last two bent spacers. Here are the top and bottom tacked together. You can see my dedicated powder coating oven under the workbench. Used to be an over/under. I compressed it into one oven. I ordered one of Brooks new B190 saddles. It's the largest now made and should fit the bill. It is a compound spring variety but unfortunately comes only in black. The site didn't mention it but it is now on backorder. I have since seen that it's that way anyplace I've looked so I might be waiting a bit..... 3 weeks so far but my card was charged the next business day. Cheap Chinese tool report: Well I bought another one. This time a 3-in-1 sheetmetal machine. Sliproll, sheer, and finger brake all in one. 350lbs of instant crap. Why don't I learn? I had to build a block to hold one end of the top roller in as it would jump out of it's channel under any pressure. The cam bolt that held it was completely inadequate. The roller works okay even on 12" of 18 gauge(typically rated for 22 gauge). The corners are more rolled than the center but that is easy to remedy. I have little expectation from the sheer but the finger brake could be very useful. Oh and the air shear cuts great when it doesn't lock up. I have disassembled it numerous times, filed the planetary gear teeth, and added a longer locator pin as the gasket would spin and block off the air orifaces. It is just amazing how close they(Chinese) get to a functional tool but equally amazing that they can't take that last little step to correct problems. Heck, even cleaning the casting sand/grinding dust out of the parts would be a huge inprovement and might even allow them to see that the tolerances are way too loose. JMO

Tank mockup

2008-10-28T16:26:00.000-05:00

Most board track tanks are fairly simple. Some of the early ones were basically riveted boxes, others nicely contoured and soldered. Many early tanks contained a separate oil tank within them - some with oil on one side and fuel on the other. The Cyclone was simple in appearance but does have several unique curves. I mocked this up in hard cardboard(not corrugated) and a glue gun. Plenty of gussets keep it from flexing - important when trying to take measurements or fit a piece over a weird angle. In the end what this does is allow you to see the shape in 3D. Once the shape is acceptable, you can make templates by laying paper over the tank, adding creases, etc. to conform to the curves. Once unfolded, these templates allow you to see the shape needed in steel. The folds will show where shrinking and/or cuts should be made. This is just basic pattern making. You can also use the "buck" you just made to trial fit some of the new pieces although a buck is typically hardwood and would be used to form the metal. All in all, this tank won't require lots of shrinking or forming. A little rolling of a few parts is all that will be needed. These tanks were primarily long and skinny. Adding a baffle or two in there will help prevent sloshing fuel from upsetting the bike. Baffles would also limit cavitation at the stopcock when a low fuel level shifts around. Baffles could also limit flow a bit in a rupture situation(God forbid). It's unlikely that I would ever fill the tank completely but remember, 2 1/2 gallons of fuel is about 20lbs and if you have ridden lightweight motorcycles you know that a full tank can be felt by the rider. It's good practice to build it properly rather than doing just what's needed to get by. JMO I have also revisited the seat idea. The Mesinger "Motorcycle Racer" is the quintessential board tracker seat and maybe the most attractive but I am finding more and more examples that didn't use it. The picture below is of the Michaelson racing team(c. 1912-1914). These bikes are all wearing what looks like compound sprung saddles. I don't know the production years of the "Racer" seat so perhaps it wasn't even available at the time. Certainly it wasn't the only option. Brooks, in fact, made saddles, bags, and even rifle clips for motorcycles at times issueing separate catalogues for bicycles and motorcycles. They even list saddle models made for "speed work". If you are interested, go to http://www.brookssaddles.com/brooksengland.html These are pdf versions of most of Brooks old catalogues! Check out some of the options. Really cool stuff. The Mesinger isn't absolutely necessary and, based on these findings, I might feel justified to venture into another easier option. The proper look is still imperative so no everyday Schwinn seat will do.

2008-10-25T15:05:00.000-05:00

Mounted the engine. A neighbor came over and we started it with the engine in the frame last weekend. It ran well. Still have to configure the jackshaft and Comet 40 series convertor. I'm a little disappointed that the motor is so wide but unless I scrap the twin idea, radically shift the motor, or put a smaller go cart clutch on there I will have to live with it. A buddy reminded me that it isn't really a close replica other than the overall shape/concept and he's right. It's the challenge of making it all work together with the Cyclone primarily as an inspiration. There are many things I would change already if trying to make it more accurate. I battled the idea of scrapping the frame and making a new more accurate one with better proportions to the 26" wheels but, come on, I would never finish it. I'll save those lessons for the next one! I did a little smoothing of the main tube intersections and added the spring perch/rear brake bellcrank mount to the bottom bracket/seat tube. This will act as more of a gusset than anything else. I've seen this perch on all Cyclone street bikes and BTRs and the only one that is without the perch is the Cyclone BTR that recently sold for over $500,000! I found the article that mentioned it's provenance and that, although very original, the rear end had been rebuilt at some point. The lack of the rear spring perch on this popularly photographed BTR had confused me until that explanation - it was unused so simply left off the rebuilt rear triangle. The seat was formed by bending plywood(original Mesenger seats had plywood bases) using the kerfing method. It isn't complete by any means as I will shape it before padding and covering it. I just wanted to see if it added to the lines of the bike. I have yet to see a bicycle seat that looked right and Mesenger repros are $500. I might spend that if building a full sized 28" wheel frame but don't want to drift from the DIY feel of the project....

Been a While!

2008-06-05T10:18:00.000-05:00

Well, can you find it in there?
As usual, the bike work picked up a bit in the colder weather but dropped off as soon as it got warmer. We started cycling earlier this year so that and the other hobbies(mainly vintage racing bicycles) have kept me distracted. My fiance was in a cycling wreck recently and required surgery. Linda and I will be married in August and then be off to Italy for a while(cycling a bit I'm sure......... or I'm leaving!) Not sure if I'll get time to do much to it before then.

I have started getting e-mails about the project and I see why. I googled "board track racer replica" and my blog was the 4th listing. Trust me, I still want to see this beast finished so all is not lost. Anywho, I did end up finishing the kickstand and purchased a used B&S Vangaurd V-twin engine last fall. The project is currently displayed, bachelor-style, in my dining room(see above). It has been buried by a few vintage lightweight race bikes(other current hobby) and has gotten little attention.

As for the progress before the break.... here are a few pics of the front fork:

Here is a closeup of the front truss mount. I have seen a few similar to this on antique bikes but I still like the idea of a tripple tree.

The kickstand:

When not in use, it folds up and will lay under the seat. On the old factory road bikes, they would usually clip to the back of the fender

A little about the motor I'm using. I really wanted a twin, and if I couldn't be authentic in appearance, I'd be authentic in theory. I found a 12HP Vangaurd(read bulletproof!) on the local CL and decided that was it. The rear hub will not likely take that torque so I'm leaning toward a MTB hub, using the disk brake holes to mount a sprocket. That will be a project in itself. I also bought a Comet 40 series torque convertor and will need to fab a jackshaft mount onto the seat tube.
The twin was stripped of it's shrouds and what wasn't needed was removed completely. The electric start is a nice option that might have to stay! Of course, that will necessitate hiding a battery, etc. I have a trick or two in mind for that. I'm looking forward to fabricating pipes and such for it. The more I type, the more I realize how much there is to do. Depressing!
I ran the motor on the ground and I like the twin sound.
That flywheel sure is ugly, heavy, and dangerous. I need to think of a vintage looking shroud if I want to keep my pretty shins! There is a growing support network for racing these twins and racing parts are out there. Should I bother with a different flywheel? I think 12HP is way more than I need anyway so why add a bunch of billet shiney stuff and introduce a bunch of tuning woes? Just keeping it upright will be enough work!
Here's the motor in the frame. Can you say wide?! Looking like a chopper build! I will of course create an oil filter bypass and remove that.

This bike is starting to look really uncomfortable! Thanks to those following along. Keep prodding me to finish!
Dave

2007-05-10T15:15:00.000-05:00

Here's a shot or two with the engine plates and modified fork in place. You can see I made this frame "lugless". As it takes shape, I have to remember my goal - it will have the correct "lines" that so many motorized bicycles don't have but there are many, many details that have to be left out due to time and weight concerns...... okay mostly for impatience sake but I digress. Let's face it. I tell myself, the average Joe, even at a bike show, won't know what it is much less that it isn't a lugged and brazed frame. I do have to keep reminding myself how much more there is to do and decide where to stop. Should I now fabricate fake frame lugs? Replace the "engine plates" with bent tubing? It was never intended to be a knockoff to fool anyone - it is scaled down afterall. I still need the stand and fork trusses among many other things. Still considering finger gussets at critical frame joints or subtly boxing in some areas. My neighbor has been seeing it and hearing me talk about it all winter and when he saw it yeterday like this he was still thinking it was a bicycle project. All I could say was, "Well, I guess back then that's really what they were."

First mock up

2007-04-26T17:33:00.000-05:00

I just had to put together what I had collected to see how it sits. The front end is lower than planned but I sort of like the look. I may just widen the fork and raise it a tad. Rake is only about 3" also. Wonder how a stearing damper disguised as the oiler would look? J/K. I have to trim the down and seat tubes and add the "cradle". I eventually want to make a yoke - get rid of the bike stem and make a better mount. A triple tree setup is an option and is seen on many racers. The stock Cyclone front end may not have had the fork tubes extend to the top yoke but this seems to have been retrofitted as an "indian-like" modification to many racers - not just the Cyclones. I picked a bike to model that has few examples and there aren't that many pics of the Cyclones for reference. I have seen several frame variations as well. Apparently there a handful of production racers, there were street models(even more rare today), and street models modded to racers(by the factory or by a privateer, I don't know). In addition, I sense the factory experimented with each racer built as each was a "one off" so few were identical in setup anyway. Good thing this isn't a very technical build. Truthfully, one could build a looped frame and, depending on motor, tank, and paint, call it anything. Remember this is not a Paul Brodie build! At one point or another just about all manufacturers crossed over the same points of style and technology. BTW, I'm up in the air on engines. Found a few old 30's Brit singles but I don't know if this is deserving of one of those. Perhaps the B&S single would be along the lines of the original scope of the project - to do what has been done over and over but to do it better with the "right" proportions and "correct" look.

Rear Wheel mounted!

2007-04-21T23:59:00.000-05:00

Well mocked up anyway. I fretted about getting this thing lined up without a full frame jig but got it spot on the first time. Okay the calipers say it isn't spot on but it is way too close to alter - I might never get it closer! I guess all that measuring, marking, anglefinding, etc paid off. Here are some shots. First the dropouts tacked in(albeit poorly). Here you can see the seat stays mounted to the seat tube. I actually ended up grafting in the top bends of the donor bike's stays(about 6" down). I hated to do that as I had some nicely bent 3/4" tubing I had done myself BUT I fishmouthed them a bit too much and they appeared as if they would be too narrow for the balloon tire. I'm sure I can find plenty of reasons to bend different tubing aroud here. I will likely have to put a brace across the stays near the top(almost like a brake caliper mount) as I just don't trust anything from that donor bike! Hey, if I bend that, it might look like it was on the original 1915 version. Don't let me forget to do that! Here's what it looks like. Now I get to start on the fork and soon I will have a roller!

Some progess

2007-04-08T00:49:00.000-05:00

It's been two months since I've posted. Hadn't really done too much until I got the top tube, chain stays, and seat stays bent. I used a standing heavy duty conduit bender and torched the .120 1 1/8" DOM for the top tube. I don't recommend this hack method but I got lucky. The 1" die was actually 1 1/8", the 3/4" die was 7/8", and who knows about the 1/2"! What junk some of these things are. I had to modify the smallest 1/2" die to fit the 3/4" tubing. The 3/4" tubing is thin wall so you have to be really careful with that unless you have a proper bender. Thin wall likes to crinkle on the inside of the radius. Here is the top tube. It's all just tacked for now. I hope to have a buddy tig it for me when I get it together. The mig might penetrate enough but if I'm riding it........ The bend doesn't look too bad considering. Here are some shots laying out the chain stays. The Workmate was leveled after the frame was secure. The plywood is only for marking and for horizontal layout. I struck lines on each side of the main tubes and reverse engineered what I needed from my known rear axle width of 4.227". Vertical setup will be off a known level surface that I'll set up then. The chainstays will actually be 10 degrees from horizontal and milled with slots for the dropouts. You can see the dropouts which themselveswill be oriented at about a 20 degree angle. It sure would be nice if it was all horizontal but I want it to look correct. Remember, those shortcuts add up and you end up with a generic looking bicycle mod IMO. Speaking of bicycles: Here is one of the few parts taken from a bicycle - the bottom bracket(for the crank). This and a 70's fork. I will gusset the bottom bracket well before it's done. Some racers had no gussets there and some did via some funky suspension brackets. I suspect these to be class C machines - racers prepped from street frames and not production racers. I welcome the bracket for the extra support. After I struggle through this part - mostly trying to keep it all even, I will address the fork mods. That will be a different headache for a different post.

Proportions

2007-02-03T20:06:00.000-06:00

After a few tack welds, you can see the shape coming together. You can also see how low the frame is - it appears to "hang" between the wheels and not over them. This proportion is one of the fundamental problems with most of the replicas I've seen. At risk of offending someone, I will finally show what I mean. I have not posted many other replica pics as they belong to those who have been invited to view this site. Now compromises do have to be made, like what is comfortable and ride able, whereas I have never really cared about that. Maybe that's why my back always hurts so much! I'll also say that these guys do great work and offer some really neat stuff, I just have a different vision for what I am making. Here is the 08 racer from Simpson Motorbikes: http://simpsonmotorbikes.com/index.html I took the liberty of using Photoshop to quickly Me-ize this bike. Here is is with a bit more rake, flipped bars, a lowered seat, and adjusted frame. Now that even looks old! Simpson has some cool stuff and now even offers a conversion kit for the Whizzer engine with OHV external valve gear! Very cool! Let's see this "retro" stuff on an "old school" TV chopper! Did I mention I now hate those terms? Here is a video of the exposed OHV running. Don't forget your oil can! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leOrnYozVdY Too bad I don't think it will have the torque needed for this project though some motorbike forum member did build a V-twin Whizzer motor. Found this next guy on Metalshapers Association. http://allshops.org/ Great site if you want to learn frustration. Some very creative members there. Anyway, this guy never returned my e-mail inquiry so............ Here is his "Ace" motorbike: There are people all over the web asking about this bike. I like it's proportions better but I just can't get away from that engine shroud! Notice he uses standard BMX 26" forks for the rear wheel stays. I felt those were a bit thick at 1" but they do give a nice heft to the thing. A few months later I was cruising Ebay and found this from the same guy: Same construction but built loosely to look like a Flying Merkel. I like the one posted earlier much better. For some reason, people replicate that one, or that style, a lot. Here are a couple pics of some from www.Firebikes.com. This guy builds some weird bikes but is gaining some hard-earned attention. I couldn't save his pics(smart) so here are the addresses to his gallery pics. The first is another Merkel replica using the Chinese 2-stroke bicycle motor. http://www.firebikes.com/gallery3.html In the same gallery page is a similar black pedal bike with shaft drive - kinda cool IMO. Here is a one-off BTR replica he did. You be the judge on this one! Another Chinese 2-stroke grenade but I like the tank shape.

Engine Plates

2007-01-29T19:08:00.000-06:00

Let's start on the engine plates. I drove to two places looking for some 6061 plate as my 3' piece is now somehow 24". Second place I found some decent drops. $26 later I ended up using what I had left - sharing the diagonal cut helped. I will remove an inch or two off the bottom of the plates as they would drop well below the hypothetical "loop" of the frame plus they will look a little bulky below the engine block - I want to keep that pretty low slung in the frame. There will be four mounting holes(narrower than scribed) that will mate up with bungs on each of the tubes. I'm not sure if I'll wait on those till I get the frame tacked up or if the plates would help align the tubes. I will also add a tube to bridge the down tube and seat tube for added strength - it will be concealed under the plate. The Dykem wasn't really necessary at this point but the flashback to model airplane dope days alone was worth it! I also mounted the stock 26" forks just for kicks. I knew I would have to widen the crown and add an upper triple tree and trusses but I didn't think they would be that short. I'm beginning to see why many of the "replicas" look so awkward.

"Mockup of the frame"

2007-01-28T19:50:00.000-06:00

The modified notcher is making great fishmouths now. Perfect angles are another story. I bought some larger size end mills in case I needed to touch up a few cuts but it may not be worth the extra time - they are pretty close. A friend asked today if I was going to braze it. Well, the notches aren't that perfect. I have considered making a tube holder for the cross slide of the lathe that would allow more precise notches but, again, I'd like to see how close this comedy of errors will be fitting basically by hand. Even modern frames are straightened at the factory after brazing so it should be fun trying to straighten this .120 tubing once welded! If I decide to make additional models I will have to build a jig and revisit the notching method. Anyway, here are a few pics of the main tubes. The top tube is missing as it has to be bent. A friend has "committed" to buying a bender soon so ......... he can use my stuff if I can use his right?(you know who you are - hint, hint) I didn't hit my lines well before the pic but everything is pretty close. The angles are what concern me the most. You can immediately see the gap where I will build plates to replicate the "Marion" frame under the engine. On the Indian and HD, the engine, after about 1915, was a stressed member on most racing models. These plates will carry the motor and then be mounted to bungs on the down tube and seat stay tube - same principle. Putting the earlier-style bend in the frame would leave little room for adjustment - something very much needed in this mock up.

Back on Track

2007-01-26T15:58:00.000-06:00

Okay, some shimming and a little of this and...... Now we're talkin'. It is as close as it can be now but there is a strange twist in the body of the notcher. The piece shifts as you tighten the angle adjustment bolts............. I'm wondering if the bushings are even in line with the bearing block. Geez. I should be done by now!

Trouble?

2007-01-25T17:35:00.000-06:00

Okay, anyone who knows me realizes that I cannot go too long without a rant about something - usually about something which bothers only me. In addition it is usually unprovoked and random. This time it's cheap Chinese tools. My parents started buying me tools when I was young - mostly Craftsman. Most of them I still have today. While I have worked around those who buy only Snap-On, Mac, etc., I can honestly say I have never broken a socket or wrench made by Craftsman, and believe me, I have tried! There are much more expensive and elite tools out there but even with misuse and abuse Craftsman have held up well. I have never even returned one for replacement. My point? Well, a lifetime guarantee is no good if you are replacing a tool every week - even if for free. Wait, that wasn't my point at all. Okay, the Chinese import boom and crap dealers like Harbor Freight, Cummin's, and WalMart have helped many people, who could not have otherwise afforded it, get involved in DIY projects using their cheap tools. It has also put some pressure on US manufacturers. Some stuff is passable and some is laughable. I have a HF lathe and a Grizzly mill - both Chinese imports. These would be examples of having "cheap" tools or never having any at all. Waiting to afford a Clausing or Bridgeport would put me close to retirement. For what they are, they are, IMO, when carefully modded and adjusted, "passable". But I'm no machinist! I don't mean to imply the "made in the USA" means it is always better. There is some real crap out there - it's a world market now and there is enough crap for all of us to sell. Back to the subject of this blog. A few weeks ago I picked up a tubing notcher at HF. It appeared to have a better mount than the earlier versions I had seen. I took it apart, cleaned it, lubed it, and adjusted it. I then mounted it to the drill press table using a center point in the chuck to line it up perfectly with the arbor. After a few more minutes of fiddling, I tried to make my first 50-degree fishmouth cut in the downtube of the BTR frame material - 1 1/8" .120 DOM. Am I the only one who sees this isn't going to work? This is not distorted from the camera angle. It was that far off! This thing is self-centering and will just need to be shimmed but it's really irritating that I have to spend half a day figuring out what is centered, figure the shim stock needed, go get some, and reassemble this thing just to get it to do what it is supposed to do. Dare I check the protractor? Not a chance. I knew better and never even looked at it. I guess my point is you get what you pay for - either in cash or your time (didn't I hear that before somewhere?). I suppose the Chinese to English translation was incorrect. It should read "Useless" or, in the King's English, "Crappy" Along the same lines, here is the rear of a Chinese-made mountain bike I cut apart. Again, this is no camera distortion. Not only are the seat stays not symmetrical to the post but the hole for the rear brake caliper is nowhere near parallel to the wheel travel and not even in the center of the tube - had to be hand-done. It all looked much worse on the bike. I wouldn't have let a clown ride it! Can you imagine if this entire project from beginning to end was done like this? Don't chuckle - it might be!

First Part Made!

2007-01-24T13:43:00.001-06:00

This morning I turned out the head tube. Here, I'm cutting the 1 1/2" heavy wall tubing: Using the lathe, I faced each end and then bored each for the bearing cups: And finally the completed head tube:

A Few Authentic BTRs

2007-01-24T00:37:00.000-06:00

These are all I can access at work right now. I'll add more later.

More Thoughts

2007-01-23T10:57:00.000-06:00

I never revealed my true real-world intentions with this project. Do I want an exact replica museum piece? Do I want a nonassuming(yeah right) everyday-use moped? Who do I think I will fool? Where do I think I can ride this? What cop wouldn't pull me over? Ultimately, I want a discussion piece. I enjoy people saying, "What is it?", "Where did you get it?", "How did you do that?" "Why is this sitting in your house?" This is a huge reason we are into cafe racers - well, not the last one. I'm not near dillusional enough to believe I will have a bike that will keep up on today's roadways. I also doubt I will actually be able to pedal it far - the tubing alone weighs a ton. I am crazy enough to think I will learn more than I want to about making it work and learn how better to use my tools to make other bike projects. I need to get some rest but I forgot some pretty relevant info. This project is actually going to be about 1/93 scale. This is for several reasons. Cost is the ultimately consideration no matter the project or compromise considered - cost in time, cost in patience, cost in materials - all weighed against the usefulness of the end product. The cost of perfection is often not ever completing the project. Otherwise, do what Brodie did. Skill may be my greatest downfall there. 26" bike parts, new or old, are cheap. Cheap compared to motorcycle parts (and who has heard of a new 26" or 28" motorcycle wheel?) and certainly cheap compared to authentic antique motorcycle parts. I came up with 93% by first deciding to use a 26" wheelset. That left me with a standard or scale to use to extrapolate from an image of a true BTR. This gave me a place to start - What would the wheelbase be? The trail? Head angle? Chainstay angle? Dropout plate dimensions? About how much tubing would I need? Bla Bla Bla. This does nothing to reveal structural considerations - elasticity, yield strength, deflection..... I'm pretty much limited to what they came up with back then. I'm basically trying to find out what geometry they used, not what I think would be good, that's all. The rest is only for discussion's sake. This is yet another reason I went with the heavy wall tubing. If I changed the geometry to support the load differently I would alter the overall appearance of the bike. I won't be using cast lugs either. Fillet brazing isn't the same but a better fit for the project. One real comfort is that not much has changed in the world of bicycle geometry over the past 125 years. I'll have to trust that the design and relatively crude construction methods used then will allow me to at least go around the block and stay upright. Check out this board track racing bicycle of the 1890s: Precious little has changed in road bike geometry. Okay off to bed. Tomorrow I hope to cut something metal!

The Mission

2007-01-21T15:00:00.002-06:00

The goal is not to replicate a perfect BTR that is a side-by-side knockoff of any particular model. That was done to perfection by Paul Brodie here: http://flashbackfab.com/pages/excel00.html His fabrication of the Excelsior BTR is second to none. Nor is my goal to functionally duplicate the tried and true Whizzer or any number of motorbikes created during and after WWII - they have their own following. Whizzers were even produced under license again in 1999 or so. My goal is for a bike much more realistic for a BTR - a "scooter" of sorts, that can funcion as a bicycle, albeit a very heavy one, and as a motorbike. These terms, "scooter" and "motorbike", are common in the motorbike conversion crowd where the goal is to meet state regulations that would allow inexpensive and non-restrictive registration of these things as "powered bicycles" - essentially plated as mopeds. Among most state's regulations are one, that the vehicle must be operable as a bicycle and two, that the engine must not exceed 3HP. I'm sure this would be much easier with a standard cruiser frame and perhaps this is why it has been seen so much. Technically, I should be able to qualify within these guidelines(with no HP numbers on the motor) but I imagine I will meet neither goal entirely. I do plan to keep the cranks and drivetrain of the bicycle - it works and it just looks right. Just like the cafe racers we like, by the time you make it look right, the state thinks it no longer "looks" street legal. One of my favorite BTRs is the 1914 Cyclone. There are only about 10 Cyclones in existence of which 3 or 4 are are street versions. Apparently, the street versions are so rare, one owner actually converted a known BTR into a street version! I have seen many BTR replicas but honestly most just fall short IMO. There are a few that look really nice but they are few and far between. Here is a nice one from a member of usa2strokers.com in Mexico: He used a prefab frame and used a Whizzer 150cc motor. IMO, most others I see are just out of proportion or attempt to stay with a true cruiser bicycle frame with too short of a wheelbase. It's a pain to fab a frame but I think it's necessary to get the correct look. Depending on my satisfaction with this first attempt, I might add a front drum brake - perhaps with an internal dynamo for added lighting - and then experiment with vintage types of suspension. I like the Crossbow "Monark" fork http://www.crossbowcycles.com/forks.html but, just like the early HD springers, J and JD, I think the forks appear to bend back. I'm guessing this was to lessen trail with the rockers involved but who knows. Next, I'll show you what I have so far.

Here's how it starts

2007-01-21T13:38:00.000-06:00

Well, I tripped and fell and there were these parts in my living room. This is what I'll start with: - Wheels are industrial bike parts. The spokes are .100 as opposed to the .070 - .080 found on most bikes. - The tires are Kenda - proven to be an okay tire and the only alternative I could find to more expensive tires. Coker makes a 26" white tire that is a 4-ply clincher and has the period-correct button tread but runs over $200 each...... maybe once I perfect this one. I have yet to decide what to do for brakes. The rear coaster brake is there but will be useless. - The fork, from a '70s AMF, is too narrow and will need the crowns widened to fit the balloon tires. I'll also have to add trusses and redo the axle slots. - The frame will be overkill. The tubing is .120 1 1/8" DOM. Heavy! My rationale is that this is basically a bicycle frame, no double downtubes, etc. The oversized tubing will add some rigidity and absorb the cruelty of MIG welding better than say 4130. If I'm wrong, the "before" pic you see might look very similar to the "after" pic. - The powerplant is as yet up in the air. There are some neat Briggs & Stratton conversions out there but most some look like just that. The Chinese 2-stroke bicycle kits are very affordable but hardly look the part and don't possess the torque to open a twist tie. You have to pedal from each stop before they can pull(and that's with a 30lb. bike) - not sounding like much of an option. Ultinmately, I would like to shoehorn a B&S Vangaurd 22HP 90-degree V-twin in there. Add a torque-a-verter and it could be downright scary. Rumors are of Cushman conversions doing 70mph+, at least in theory. We'll have to see.

History of everything motorcyclic!

2007-01-21T12:13:00.000-06:00

Well, I got my first motorcycle at about age 31, a 1968 BMW R50. I rebuilt it in a girlfriend's garage but was evicted soon after our breakup - fortunately it was at a stopping point. It moved to my sister's garage where it sat basically completed. I then bought another older bike - a two- stroke that sat in a friend's garage until I bought a house. After I was moved in I decided to buy and ride a sportbike, a Yamaha R6............... for a while - long story with a very abrupt ending. After that learning experience, I got back into the older bikes - specifically cafe racers. Of particular interest are the Yamaha two-stroke road racers of the 70s. I bought a '73 Yamaha Ta125, a production road racer which is my only true race bike. Here is what I ride now: I have about six bikes now and the newest is 1976. For some reason my interests keep growing backward to the roots of motorcycles racing - where contemporary technology is alway tested. Prior to street sport bikes were the cafe racers. Prior to cafe racers there were dirt trackers and such. Before that? Board track racers! Board track racers were generally factory built, and often sponsored, motorcycles that had no brakes, no clutch, and no throttle! An ignition cutout switch was about the only control a rider had. At the turn of the 20th century, bicycling was huge in America and worldwide for that matter, as was racing them on velodromes - banked circular or oval tracks made of boards - 2X4s stacked side by side. Similar to bicycles, early racing motorcycles caught the eyes of Americans when they began being raced on similar tracks. Around 1908, tracks began springing up everywhere. One cannot fathom how popular this was - at least as big as NASCAR today. Every major city had a "Motordrome." Few know there was one right here in Kansas city. It took up many city blocks and could park over 20,000 cars! Some of these tracks had banks of up to 60 degrees to keep the every more powerful machines inside the rails. Speeds of 100mph were not unheard of. Motorcycle companies who made a name in racing sold more street cycles. Harley Davidson and Indian were two such companies that made a name for themselves and lasted through this innovative era and on past WWI. Well racing being what it is, many lost their lives - some were spectaters hit by a machine or rider flung out of the "bowl". One reported story was of two riders and six spectators killed in one crash. Public outcry brought displacement limits but, just like NASCAR today, progressive technology kept speeds high and the venues dangerous. Within a decade, such racing moved to dirt horse tracks. Dirt track racing is alive and well today. Harley Davidson and Indian were two companies that made a name for themselves and lasted through this era and on past WWI. If you have read this far(and I doubt it), you may see how my interests have evolved to building a board track racer replica. An actual BTR would run over $100,000. One with racing provenance, double or triple that! Now I like authenticity but I can't justify that this year. This leads me to the subject of this blog - building a BTR replica. I hope to chronical the building of this trumped up scooter. I always liked seeing such build blogs. Who knows if I will finish it? Maybe I will end up with just an unfinished heavy bicycle frame in my garage...... oh, wait.... I already have one of those.