charliechitlins

I've always known this as an "English wheel". Maybe it's not called that in England! Always wanted to have a go at one! That and the shot bag and hammers. That stuff is a fast-dying art. Thanks for the tips on the butt welds. I'm pretty handy with a hammer and dolly (even used a shrinking dolly...with mixed success), so I look forward to giving it a try on someone else's Jaguar (pronounced 'jag-whar' here in the states)

Dirtrider, Could you explain this process? I once saw an old body man doing this. He (probably erroneously) called it 'hammer welding'. It as a long time ago, and I didn't know enough to ask the right questions about what he was doing.

Don't forget cutting.... A gas cutting torch is an amazing tool. I've been getting by with gas alone for 20 years. Some day I'm sure I'll buy a MIG, but I only get a treat with that kind of price tag once every few years, and there always seems to be something I want more (247 Cota). And gas welding is just very cool. You get intimate with the material and the process...and there's actual fire...much more like blacksmithing. The ability to braze is also indispensible to me...joining dissimilar metals, repairing cast iron, filling in dents, dings and pits....brass can run a bead like a weld or flow like solder. I also think that gas welding is more like 'real' welding, meaning that the understanding of metal that you gain from gas welding will make you a better MIG welder. I don't think it would work anywhere near as much so the other way around. It's like learning to play acoustic guitar befor electric. Of course, 'gaining understanding of metal' with a torch, sometimes means melting a hole in something and ruining it. Although, I have also seen very experienced TIG welders step on the pedal and blow a big hole in a piece of metal that contained some little mystery that couldn't be known! My advice: Get a gas rig this year, and a MIG next year!

Never sell. Always accumulate. Find somethiong else to sell if you need money. Like the lawnmower.

I have actually thought this...but it takes guts to actually put it out there in public

I know I should stick to mechanical advice, but this one's pretty easy. Turn the bars almost all the way in whatever direction feels most comfortable (left, for most folks)and hold the front brake. When you're starting, it helps to put the front tire in a small furrow or hollow in the ground. Keep your weight on your feet and make small corrections by turning the bars. This takes much less energy than shifting weight. A slight tweak of the bars in one direction will make the bike move in the other.

I use a sealer that I get at an aircraft supply...of course their insurance company tells them to write "Not for use in aircraft" on the label. It stays slightly flexible and is alcohol resistant. You do, though, have to prep the tank with acetone or MEK. I don't know how that would affect the plastic.

Fresh plug, of course. At around 1/2 throttle, that could be the needle. I like to get out on the road, get the problem to just begin to happen, and reach down an move the enrichener (choke) a little and see if the problem gets better or worse. This tells me what direction to move in with jetting and needle position.

I've always thought that the paint and stickers peel because of fuel and fumes seeping through the plastic. I wonder if a good sealer inside the tank would stop that.

The starter jet is not critical to the way a bike runs, as are the main and pilot jets, so they're not too picky. I drill them. I have a very small pin-drill index, and I find the largest bit that fits, then go up 2 sizes.

The sneaky way to check for cylinder wear without a bore gauge is to use that "wear edge" mentioned by HondaRS. Put the ring in the bore and use the piston to push it up from the bottom until it is very near the top of the bore, in the un-worn part. Measure the ring gap. Push the ring down into the bore using the piston (you're using the piston so the ring will stay square to the bore) and measure the ring gap again. You can do this again near the bottom. The tricky part is remembering your High School math and translating the difference in circumfrence to figure the difference in diameter. Remember, pi-r-square...no...pie are round, cornbread are square. Although...they all knock.

What I was thinking was: sometimes a brake plate just has a slot the fits onto a boss. This allows the whole plate to wiggle a bit so the plate will center when the brakes are applied. I thought this could be accomplished with my bike by having the brake stay (or torque link) ride on shoulder bolts rather than cinching it rigidly on both ends. HondaRS--I'm sorry...you lost me. But I am interested. Could you send or post drawings or pics?

OK---it's been a while, so bear with me... I've noticed that the brake stays on this Montesa are solidly fastened to the bike on one end, and to the backing plate on the other. I assume that precautions should be taken to be sure that the backing plate is aligned with the drum, but would it help to allow the backing plate to float a little so the shoes will be able to square themselves to the drum? I have also noticed that the front stay is made of particularly soft stuff; maybe it has enough flex to allow the shoes to center.

OK....OK...I deserved that.

How can you tell? Is the dipstick pushed all the way in?

Yeah...RS and Martin...I'm with you. Thanks for the advice. I think good sense will prevail. Although...I'm still looking for that modern ignition (will mount a condensor up on the coil in the meantime), and the Mikuni conversions I've seen have a vulnerable-looking air cleaner clamped to them. Anybody got any tips for retaining the stock, tucked-safely-up-under-the-seat airbox?

I found some gloves at a welding supply shop that you would think were trials gloves if they said Hebo on the back...which gives me an idea...I'll find a Sharpie... Anyway...they were under $10.

Thanks, VC. A little work with the flame wrench, and I've got it all sorted out. For the time being, this is looking like a 'rattle-can restoration', but I want to get it all sorted before I really get into it.

I'll post a few pics as things progress. No restoration yet. It will be a rider for a while. I'll get it sorted and spend some time with it...maybe restore it next winter.

The pictures are in chronological order. The second one is after I tried to turn it into a trials bike. It STILL weighed more than my Sherco!

It was a total restoration.

Thanks for the tips. Actually, I am fairly familiar with the restoration process, as I used to do it for a living, and I still do as a sideline. In this case, I was looking for a particular bike, and they are very scarce here in the US. Even if I was to find the right bike, it could be thousands of miles away, and shipping is expensive and a hassle. Here's a pic of my last project:

My swingarm looks bent in where the axle goes through, and the axle was showing quite a few threads outside of the nut after it's tightened down. The right side plate where the axle goes through is definitle at an angle to the tubular part. I'm wondering if I have the correct spacers. Could anybody out there give me some measurements? Axle length? Swingarm width (at axle)? Spacer width?

Is that around town, or on the highway?