Fun With Dubs - Bastard Electrics

My Bay is a bit of `special' - Audi 80 watercooled engine shoe horned into the engine bay. Of course, cooling this needs a radiator, so theres a huge BMW radiator and two cooling fans, one on each side of the rad.

In case you've forgotten what it looks like:-

Now as the electrics were put together by a colour blind fuck wit, some of them don't work, and tracing the wires is a pain where red turns to blue turns to brown within the first metre of wiring.

So I'm gradually working my way through the systems and fixing connections and making things work. Recent successes include reversing lights which had a lot more chance of working once the switch was actually connected to the battery and the lights themselves.

This afternoon I was looking at radiator fans. The one behind the rad works off a manual switch in the cab and also a thermo switch. After figuring out what does what it seems to be OK. But the rad on the engine side was kaput. 12V made their presence known but no turny fan.

Nothing left to do but take it to bits:-

Of course the first thing I did was lose one of the tiny nuts that hold the motor case together. I still haven't found it. Stripping the motor revealed no damage so I gave it a good hose out with electrical cleaner, reassembled and put 12V on it from a spare battery. Success. I now have a working fan (with only three casing screws...).

Next its find out why one of the relays under the dashboard is consuming power, and then its time to weld the chassis (and probably burn the fucker to the ground).

Keep tuning in for more fun.

Sunny Saturday

Usual activities for a sunny Saturday.

Bought a set of these beauties in the week:-

And bought a set of horns for the VW -  the Type R horn for snails it would seem. Fortunately I'm fitting it to a vehicle which isn't that fast...:-

Fitted the new horn and then found that the battery was flat. Hmmm...I suspected that I had a parasitic drain but thought that the battery was just shagged so changed it. More investigation needed.

While charging the battery....:-

...I got on and serviced the Velocette. Changed the gearbox oil, lubed the cables and chains, greased the swingarm pivot and pumped up the tyres. Ready for action now.

Vans and Motocross

Been doing the usual shite.

Fettling continues on the VW camper. The brakes now work thanks to the new servo and master cylinder. Bleeding them was the usual chore.

The steering box now has new seals and no leaks.

There seems to be some of the electrical bits not working now though. Investigation revealed a shagged horn:-

In other news I managed to get a surf in at Porthcawl. Nice waves til I realised I had drifted down the beach and had to climb out on the rocks. Was well knackered by the time I dragged myself out.

Rode over to Yatton Keynell on the 1930 Ariel to watch a vintage motocross. Loads of nice bikes, the latest being air cooled monos:-

Bultaco Pursang

A family of Maicos

The line up for practice:-

Great to see old bikes being thrashed.

Fun With Dubs

A box full of steering. Sadly its not full of oil although there is some in there cos its leaking out.

There doesn't appear to be any slop in it either, which is good. Need to get the drop arm off so I can change the oil seal, clean it up and put it back on the van, but its resisting. Even a hydraulic puller hasn't moved it. Might have to cut it off and get a replacement. Grrr.

Name That Tune

1920 Airyole

In an unprecedented burst of blogging frenzy, and with an afterthought of `who the fuck reads all this shite anyway', I have finished my 1920 Ariel fork links and decided to check that the fork blades I got from Australia actually look somewhere to close to being the right dimensions.

They needs a couple of spacers but generally look good. They are the right length and everything. Need to get on and make some fork spindles now.

(and for those that care, the stuntplank trolley is a PP Caballero Dragon and Bats)

Hunt for the Missing Compression

Last time I was out on the 1954 Velocette MAC it was pitifully slow, and uphill it really struggled. Being overtaken by Welch on an MZ 150 was the last straw.

A compression test revealed all of 50psi. Valve clearances aren't tight, so apart it came.

Taking this bike to bits is easy. I have stripped it so many times when I was having main bearing problems that I can have it down in no time.

Popped the valves out of the head.

No real signs of damage. Valve guides are good too. Probably need lapping in but thats easy enough.

Need to pop the piston off the conrod and check wear and ring gaps in the barrel

Other than some carbon the piston looks OK. No burning or seize marks. Barrel is unmarked too.

So I reckon a top end tidy up and some new rings and we'll be back in MZ beating business.