Fresh Meat

This is what I've always wanted. Wasn't sure how my wife was going to react to the proposition of living in the bike shed but, apparently, she's an understanding wife...she understands that I'm obsessed and have been for years. She, also, understands that I've had several of these bikes since before I had wives, children or any idea that bell-bottoms would go out of style. She likes motorcycles and did ride a '68 Bonneville for about a year. After some inconvenient stalls at traffic lights, she now rides a push-button bike. Naturally, her old bike reverted back to me. Although generic looking from the shop view, the living quarters are as nice as any place I've lived. Although I didn't consider it before, one of the major advantages, to me, besides being 80 feet from work/machine shop, is I have no grass or yard to tend to. Zero...zilch....all concrete. Five minutes with a leaf blower every two months and the "yard" work is done.

Now that I've got my shop and starting to set it up, I'm obligated to get things done. Guess that's what inspired me to get on with the Norton project. I'm, also, finding myself doing more thorough maintenance on my other bikes (changing out brake fluids, etc.) because its so much easier/comfortable to do as compared to my old crowded basement shop. I have two brothers, two sons and seven employees that ride and I encourage them all to use this shop, as well. If you're in the neighborhood, you're welcome to use it, too.

Now, I that can keep all my riding/camping gear in one central location, it eases the pain of "getting ready".

If you want to add peashooters to your bike to enhance it's appearance and set it off from the crowd.....



Z

zackybilly1 said:

After some inconvenient stalls at traffic lights, she now rides a push-button bike. Naturally, her old bike reverted back to me. Although generic looking from the shop view, the living quarters are as nice as any place I've lived. Although I didn't consider it before, one of the major advantages, to me, besides being 80 feet from work/machine shop, is I have no grass or yard to tend to. Zero...zilch....all concrete. Five minutes with a leaf blower every two months and the "yard" work is done.

Z

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I don't know how many times I've missed working on my Norton because of yard work. My girlfriend and I had a deal.......I plant the garden, trim the trees and do all the shovelling of snow in the winter and she's supposed to water the plants, weed and mow the grass. Yeah right. Guess how many times shes mowed the lawn this year? None!

I'm starting to think a concrete lawn is the way to go.

We waste a fair bit of time on yard work but my wife enjoys her garden. I warn you guys about extending your garage, my wife nabbed half of my extension and I have my latest project in the yard until I figure out how to stack these things. Today I want to get another spare Goldwing engine under my storage rack and move one tool cabinet, as well as a little time on the Norton.
A machine shop next door??????? Wow, envy is rife. I had to turn a spacer for my Chang front wheel in my half inch drill mounted in my vice last week.

Coco,

I recieve the fork brace and must commend you on your packing job. Very well protected. Hopefully, tonight I can start tinkering with it. A few quick measurements indicates the bores of the brace are in the same plane and the seal holders measure out the same. There is some differences between the eccentric sleeves. One is .004 smaller on the ID and .005 bigger on the OD. I will further study it tonight. You've done your part, now it is my turn to do mine. Once I solve the mystery, I let you know what I find.

Thanks,

Z

zackybilly1 said:

Coco,

I recieve the fork brace and must commend you on your packing job. Very well protected. Hopefully, tonight I can start tinkering with it. A few quick measurements indicates the bores of the brace are in the same plane and the seal holders measure out the same. There is some differences between the eccentric sleeves. One is .004 smaller on the ID and .005 bigger on the OD. I will further study it tonight. You've done your part, now it is my turn to do mine. Once I solve the mystery, I let you know what I find.

Thanks,

Z

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Maybe the slight difference in eccentric adjusters is why I could not align it perfectly. I got the brace really damn close but it just wouldn't sit perfectly square while sitting on top of the seal extensions. Glad it arrived ok.

As far as packing......I like to pack things how I'd like to get it. I figured all that polishing and grinding done to the brace, it should be packed well enough not to get scratched up.

What a nice place to work in, I am stumbling over stuff and other bikes when I work. You look like you could choose from upstairs down stairs? Gimme a break! How cool is that. Someday I just want a shop that has room to work in and not have to move stuff into corners and such. Oh and the bikes are outstanding! Good job. Sorry if the workshop has me jealous, Chuck.

On a nice day I find the best place to work on them without be crowded is in the back yard. In the winter sometimes I put the car in the driveway to get decent clearance to move around. I thought I planned my shop extension to give me more room but my wife thought differently.
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Cookie said:

On a nice day I find the best place to work on them without be crowded is in the back yard. In the winter sometimes I put the car in the driveway to get decent clearance to move around. I thought I planned my shop extension to give me more room but my wife thought differently.
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No offense but those are some ugly naked bikes.

Nortons look a lot better all apart. Goldwings look like trucks in comparison. Did you ever know anybody who bought a wing for the looks?

Cookie said:

Nortons look a lot better all apart. Goldwings look like trucks in comparison. Did you ever know anybody who bought a wing for the looks?

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Honestly you're the only one I've ever heard of admitting to owning a 'Wing. :wink:

And I have four. Of course I know lots of Goldwing owners, one guy from this board rides one to Norton meetings I understand. I won't make any cracks about actually running.

Coco,

Good news, bad news.

The good...deburred slits in eccentric sleeves and slits in brace to allow rotation without snagging. Put a static crank balancing box (steel box w/ knife edges +/-6" apart) across the fork legs and it rocked. Bumped trees around until the tubes were parallel according to the box. Locked the tubes/trees down there. Installed the rubber boots, brace, seal holders w/ eccentrics, top hat and steel busings on from bottom and installed snap ring. Hosed it all down with WD40. Installed sliders on to bushings and made up seal holders tight. Held brace up out of the way. Everything slide freely...independently. Installed brace on seal holders. Slide assembly to top of travel. Rotated slider until they were each in there loosest position and noted eccentric sleeve slit oreination relative to the fork tube (sharpy). Rotated sliders to normal position and installed axle. Turn eccentric slits back to noted oreintation. Tighten pinch bolts on brace. Travels slick as a gut and falls under its own weight. I'll check it again when the wheel is installed and again, with cartridges installed w/o springs. I like it. I'm going to wait until everything has checked out before I install the rubber boot on top of the eccentric sleeves as it looks like something I only want to do one time. PS...used your seals (thanks). I had "Seals that last...w/ moly" but they are not canned seals and would have required a back-up washer and a means to hold it all in (snap ring groove).

The bad news...I'm back to gazing out the window, waiting on parts.


Horton...in my last shop (basement), I had to roll five bikes out to work on one. Many times I would go down to work on one and look at all involved in doing so and would turn around and go back upstairs. I had painted myself into a corner with motorcycles and related junk.


Cookie...I, also, ride a late generation Goldwing and love it. It is fast and I run it hard. Its a crotch-rocket on steroids to me. I'm lucky to get 5K out of a set of tires. I just missed an opportunity to pick-up a low-mileage '06 that went under water for a few minutes (local lake dam broke and washed the guy off the road in his neighborhood...water subsided quickly, insurance totalled it, lost contact with the guy). At any rate, I wanted to strip it and make a cafe bike out of it. Sorry I missed that one. I could have really made a spectacle out of myself on that one.

Z

Awesome! Glad it worked. The old "parts waiting polka". Doing that right now for two rubber headlight grommets. It wouldn't be so bad if I was waiting for something cool but alas........just two rubber grommets.

I never did the WD40 thing, I just used some grease lightly applied to the seal retainers and inside of eccentrics. I bet I could have gotten it to fit eventually but I'm too damn impatient! I never thought of lightly deburring the eccentric slits either. It probably would have made life a bit easier. No problem about the seals. I figured it would be best to just leave them be instead of damaging them trying to pry them out.

Cookie said:

Nortons look a lot better all apart. Goldwings look like trucks in comparison. Did you ever know anybody who bought a wing for the looks?

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And please don't mention the "Rune", that was one fugly two wheeler :!:

Jean

Coco said:

Awesome! Glad it worked. The old "parts waiting polka". Doing that right now for two rubber headlight grommets. It wouldn't be so bad if I was waiting for something cool but alas........just two rubber grommets.

I never did the WD40 thing, I just used some grease lightly applied to the seal retainers and inside of eccentrics. I bet I could have gotten it to fit eventually but I'm too damn impatient! I never thought of lightly deburring the eccentric slits either. It probably would have made life a bit easier. No problem about the seals. I figured it would be best to just leave them be instead of damaging them trying to pry them out.

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Check out Canadian Tire for the grommets, I found something that worked well, it was a grommet for a PCV valve, nice rubber and cheap, just the way I like it (cheap)

Jean

I'm convinced the Rune is evidence that Martians have visited earth.