jse

bag of Haggis

Put the centercase gasket on dry and you do not have to set the timing, it's set mechanically and, under normal circumstances, does not change. Jon Probably ought to expand on the timing issue. Provided you marked the stator plate position, just set it back to it's original spot. Even if you didn't mark the stator, you usually can tell where it was by the depressions the mounting screws made on the plate so just center the depressions over the screw holes.

That insert is a dowel used for alignment and there should be one on the left side of the case also. The threads will ne down in the bottom of the hole. The sidecover gasket will have two larger holes on the left and right to fit over these dowels so don't worry, you're normal.... Jon

I'd probably do that as a start also. I'd also use a caliper to determine the exact depth of the hole and sometimes you can get a capscrew that is just slightly longer that will capture a couple of threads at the bottom. There is not much outward pressure on the pump body so you don't need much capscrew torque to hold it in. That sometimes will get you by to ride until a permanent fix can be worked out. There are three capscrews on the pump, two short and one long, the longer one always goes on the bottom. Jon

I too have only used race fuel in my bikes since the 90's, especially my fiberglass tanked TY. Not sure about Ethanol, but have a lot of experience with Methanol and it is quite corrosive and must be flushed from the complete system before storing the race cars for any length of time. Not quite sure what the advantage is, environmentally, for Ethanol, as I understand it takes a little over a gallon of fossil fuel to produce a gallon of Ethanol. Fertilizer, tractor fuel, processing etc. and trucking as it has to be batch shipped rather than in long distance lines. I always figured Ethanol was for drinking, not driving...... Jon

The bearing and hub quickly normalize in temp as the hub temp drops and the bearing temp rises so it's usually not ever a problem (and the temp differential is small). If you use a big socket that just fits inside the hub and attach a long extention to it you can tap the bearing in easily. The long extention makes it simple to keep the bearing straight when driving it in. Jon

This morning our little 8-page local newspaper carried the news. Who ever thought that anyone in NorthEast Oklahoma (besides me) heard of an Irish band called Thin Lizzy. NE Ok does have a long history of Blues players, but it just gives you an idea of how far-reaching Gary's influence was. Jon

I usually just snug them up tight also. The torque setting are 13-18 ft lbs (18-25 Nm). As long as the Nyloc nuts are in good shape they should hold. A handy tool to make is to thin an old 13mm (1/2") spanner and then you can just lay the bike over and check those front fasteners now and then. The thin spanner fits in between the bolt head and the shock mount and allows you to hold the head of the bolt and tighten the outside nut. Jon

From the part numbers it appears that the clutch basket is the same on both the 97 and 99 (both #MO3210002). The numbers, however, are different for the clutch packs. The 97 uses a straight fiber/steel combination and the 99 uses a combination that includes a "mixed disk" (a steel plate with fiber on only one side). Since it is a possibility that the two packs could interchange as complete units I also checked the numbers of the inner hubs (where the steel disk "teeth" engage) and they are different for the 97 and 99. I then checked the pressure plates and they also are different numbers for the 97 and 99. So, according to the numbers anyway, you should be o.k. on swapping the hubs but you might run into trouble with the 99 and 97 clutch packs being compatable. Jon

Colin, I'll see what I can find.

The "JTX" is the 1997 model, what year is the "TXT" model? I'll cross-reference the part numbers if you have the year/model of the TXT. Jon

I thought the frame swap question had been answered and I was answering TooFastTim's question regarding my example of "possible vs. practical". My thought is that both swaps are not practical but I wouldn't describe either one as "stupid", considering the desired result. Jon

Provided you used a durometer on the slicks to make sure they were the same hardness (and thus had the same "bite"). Even then counter rotation of the engine would "load" one side of the car and you had to be ready for it. Even then it was always an "interesting" ride. It was built for show purposes only but heck, who can resist making sure everything works correctly..... Jon

You probably mean the centering spring bushing tab broken. The spring bushing (where the spring resides) really does look like a top hat though, maybe we'll have to be more specific about which "top hat" we're talking about in the future, the centering spring top hat or the servo cylinder top hat. What Ormplus refers to is the centering spring assembly that slides on the end of the shift shaft. Part of it looks like a top hat with a thin bar across the "top of the hat" that slides into a slot on the end of the shift shaft. If you are lucky, the end tabs of that bar will break off from the "hat" when the shifter takes a big hit and save damage to the shift racheting mechanism in the shift drum. I thought about, that but since there was no mention of the shifter flopping around and still able to shift one way, I assumed the centering spring was the problem. Jon

Kev, It's probably that the shift drum centering spring needs adjustment. This video (towards the end) should help: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A80n7zq80n8 . Jon

Dom, Good description and that's pretty much how I do it too. I usually use a wrench on the flywheel fastener to turn the crank over and shoot for a clearance of 1mm (.039"). I don't remember a squish clearance being mentioned in any manuals but Dom's 1mm/2mm range is what I would use. If you use the old gasket thickness as a guide, I'd use about 20% thicker on the new gasket to account for compression. Same "trick" as a re-torque on the head fasteners. Heat cycle the engine a couple of times and re-check the cylinder base nuts just to make sure you don't get future leakage on the outside gasket sealing surface of the transfer port, which is fairly narrow. Jon

I rest my case.......

All swaps are possible, but the question is, is it practical. I was once involved in putting a supercharged 500CI big-block Chevy in a Honda 600 Coupe. It had huge shock value, as intended, but was horrible to drive, even in a straight line. I would think you would be better off to sell your 09' and buy the 2011 as a complete unit. Jon

President Obama opens new areas to offshore drilling By Juliet Eilperin and Anne E. Kornblut Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, April 1, 2010 President Obama's decision, announced Wednesday, to approve new oil and gas drilling off U.S. coasts for the first time in decades reflects a high-stakes calculation by the White House: Splitting the difference on the most contentious energy issues could help secure a bipartisan climate deal this year. In what could represent the biggest expansion of offshore energy exploration in half a century, Obama announced that he will open the door to drilling off Virginia's coast, in other parts of the mid- and south Atlantic, in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and in waters off Alaska. At the same time, he declared off-limits the waters off the West Coast and in Alaska's Bristol Bay, canceled four scheduled lease sales in Alaska and called for more study before allowing new lease sales in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. What Interior Secretary Ken Salazar called "a new direction" in energy policy amounted to an offshore political gerrymander in which the administration barred drilling near states where it remains unpopular -- California and New Jersey -- and allowed it in places where it has significant support, such as Virginia and parts of Alaska and the Southeast. Some conservative critics questioned whether the policy will have any real impact on energy production, while liberals decried the risks to the environment. But the White House's key audience -- undecided senators who will determine whether a climate bill succeeds on Capitol Hill this year -- suggested that the move had helped revive the legislation's prospects. A string of senators, including Alaska's Mark Begich (D) and Lisa Murkowski ®, Louisiana's Mary Landrieu (D), New Hampshire's Judd Gregg ®, and Virginia Democrats Mark Warner and James Webb, praised the strategy. They have urged the administration to use a climate bill to help boost domestic energy production, through expansion of oil and gas drilling and nuclear power, and Begich and Gregg said Wednesday's announcement made them more optimistic about a deal on the bill than they have been in months. Noting that Obama has also offered recent support for more nuclear production, Gregg said such moves show that the administration is "genuinely trying to approach the energy production issue in a multifaceted way and a realistic way, rather than listening to people on their left."

That's as clean as the TY ever gets..... Here's a couple of other mod closeups: Flatslide bell modification/ stock floatbowl drain on flatslide Extended rear of stock peg to move wieght back without extending complete mount any further Fabricated caseguard from aluminum Clutch cable end threaded and nut added to reduce flex in ferrule area to make clutch feel more direct Cut curve of u-bend tubing added to vunerable part of exhaust bend for better rock protection Jon

Brian, I looked around for a list but found nothing specific. Shan has a lot of clubs under links on the T&E website. Jon

I'm pretty sure the TY are what's known as "damper rod" forks and usually take 15 to 20 weight minumum due to their design. ATF at approximately 7.5 weight would work in a cartridge fork (like the aluminum Marzocchi's) but is probably too light for the TY's. And I agree, ATF is good stuff and seems to work for a wide range of applications in Trials bikes. Jon

Hi Andy! As you have found, it can be really confusing, especially for the early models as I don't think there were hardcopy owner's manuals available (until early 2000 maybe?) (I never got one with my 96' 370). From my experience and all the information I have gathered, here's what seems to work well in your 97': ATF (Dexron automatic transmission fluid) or a light, non-synthetic motor oil. ATF is around 7.5 weight and a lighter viscosity oil works better with Trials clutches. I always used the Dexron in my 96' with very good results and changed it about every 10-15 hours of use or after a wet Trial. The factory recc. is 700cc's but 650cc's seems to give slightly better clutch action for some reason. From what I understand, the reason full-synthetic is not recommended is that the factory that makes the fiber plates (in Germany, I think) has reason to believe that moisture reacts with some synthetics and creates an acid condition that may attack the bonding agent holding the fiber to the steel plate. Putting oil back in the engine is a real pain. I've always used this funnel/hose thingy I made that attaches with a wire to the fuel cap. It has saved me countless spills. The drainplugs are aluminum and strip easy so use a new Allen wrench or cut 5mm off the tip of an old one. Allen tips wear with use (the flutes round off) and most complaints of poor capscrew material stripping out is really the result of a poorly maintained tool. http://www.trialspartsusa.com/tech.html has a lot of good information for your bike and will prove helpful. Jon

Cylinder head screws_ 8 to 10 ft lbs 11 to 14 Nm Cylinder nut__________18 to 20 ft lbs 25 to 27 Nm I usually tighten the head capscrews by hand as most torque wrenches don't read well at those low settings. The trick is to heat cycle the engine (riding sessions) a couple of times and re-torque the head fasteners. They use copper washers to seal coolant so they will compress a little at first and this will avoid o-ring leakage in the future. Jon

Awwww, that guy doesn't know squat! (actually, it's one of my old articles ) You might try backing off the damping on the shock a little to start. I'm guessing your son has the Sachs shock and they usually have a nut-like damper screw on the lower front of the shock body (7mm head I think). Sometimes a little more spring preload will give more bounce but be aware there is a point of diminishing return, as far as traction in concerned, so don't overdo it. Be very careful when adjusting the damper nut on the shock (or any suspension adjuster) as they are usually very fine thread and strip/snap easily. What class level does your son ride and how much does he weigh (stone/lbs)? Jon