Project Humble Beginnings-XS2

[drgonzo]

I bought a cheapo pair. The clutch side had an "extra short" adjuster. I put the stock adjuster into the new replacement. Food for thought. Maybe this helps.

Thanks, I already returned the levers I had after trying all to he adjuster I had on hand.

 

[drgonzo]

Aluminum sign material is surprisingly hard to bend. Well, without proper metal working tools.

 

[drgonzo]

I've been working on the bike a bit. Couldn't stand that old, flaking paint and lack thereof, so I DA'd and sprayed a little rattle can primer. Nothing permanent just something easier on my eyes. A fresh coat of primer really accentuates the multiple dents..lol. Been working on my seat pan. This is the prototype. The final one will have a slightly wider rear section. Mind you it's not really intended for a passenger. I used jack nuts to mount the seat pan. Did a rough mock up with some foam mat I had on hand. I am going to go a little thicker than that though. Gave her a fresh oil change and filter cleaning. A clean piece of cardboard says no more drip from the sump plate. Anyhoo, here is where it's at now.

 

[drgonzo]

Has anyone here successfully installed a set of MotoLana 'British Style Footpeg Rubber British Style?' If you did, how did you do it? I just split one of mine while attempting to install it. I tried the heat gun on it and still an unbelievably tight fit. EPIC FAIL! Jeeze, took a month to get here..lol.

 

[Jim]

No, haven't tried one.... but boiling water works best for stretching rubber.

 

[drgonzo]

Thanks Jim. Like an old Football mouth piece I reckon.

 

[Jim]

'Zackly...

 

[toglhot]

Geez you blokes in the states get your bikes cheap. I paid $2000 for this POs, and it wasn't even going. I thought it was a bargain, so grabbed it real quick. What coil are you using?

 

[Kevin Werner]

Geez you blokes in the states get your bikes cheap. I paid $2000 for this POs, and it wasn't even going. I thought it was a bargain, so grabbed it real quick. What coil are you using?

The fact that you have fewer available and your relatively higher Australian minimum wage probably distort apples to apples comparisons.

 

[toglhot]

There was a very lucrative business of filling shipping containers with old Brit bikes and shipping them back to Australia some years ago. I assume it's still happening. Many, many years ago, bikes were quite cheap in Oz, back in the 70s people were practically giving away Brit bikes, no one wanted them, not any more though, now they cost!

 

[drgonzo]

Plus, I bought it almost 12 years ago. I had seen it in the swap meet for a couple of days and on the third and final day decided to snag it. When I got over to where I'd seen it the guy said he'd just sold it for $150. I tracked it down a couple of rows over and offered the guy $200 and it was mine.

 

[drgonzo]

Emblems, I had to have some tank emblems. Really brings out the dents in the tank.

 

[drgonzo]

Cleaned up the shop today so I took a pic.
Moto Lana is making good on the split foot peg rubber. I installed the remaining rubber by opening the inside up with my die grinder and a long reach burr.
A fellow a couple of streets over is bringing his '68 BSA Thunderbolt for me to prep and start after sitting for three years. I figure new plugs, clean the carbs, check the valves and give 'em a good shot of oil while I'm in there. Any advice is appreciated.

 

[drgonzo]

The Thunderbolt turned ant to be Lightening!

 

[Jim]

A napkin dispenser?!?
Shoulda been standard equipment on all Brit bikes.

 

[drgonzo]

No doubt a popular option.

 

[Jim]

Any advice is appreciated.

Engine is most likely wet sumped after sitting that long. Lotsa kicking with the plugs out will get the oil back in the tank where it belongs.... or crack open the return line at the bottom of the case and drain it.

 

[drgonzo]

The BSA went home and I've been tinkering with the XS2 again. I seemed to have a clutch issue. For one, not enough adjustment at the cable so, I pulled the clutch. Everything looked good. I blasted the steels and put it back took the bike for a longer ride. The grabbing was gone but the adjustment wasn't right still. I pulled it out and started measuring. My stack was almost 31mm. Back in 2010 at Roebling Road Raceway, near Savannah, GA the clutch started slipping so we removed all the rubber dampers and added a steel and a fiber, then shimmed the springs with spark plug washers.. All seemed right. Seems racing can, in some way,s be more forgiving than street riding. After my longer ride, 12-15 miles, I noticed I could not roll the bike backward with it in gear. More investigating revealed I had the thicker steels with my 7 fibers. I pulled some thinner steels from a 447 motor and reinstalled everything and suddenly my adjustment was back to normal, I took a short ride around the neighborhood and everything seemed right with the world. When I got home and came to a stop in first gear with the clutch pulled in, I could not roll the bike backward. What gives? Is this normal? Seems out of whack to me.

 

[drgonzo]

Back on humble beginnings. Finally got the, not backing up in gear thing sorted. It was kick starter related. After re-tensioning the clip spring and carefully installing the kick start mechanism, all is well. Back to the THIRD version of the seat pan.

 

[drgonzo]

I'm going to revive this project in 2024. I've been distracted by this...