Blood, Sweat, but no Tears

The plan today was to add a few more layers of Carbon Fibre cloth to our numberplate, and fabricate some aluminum brackets for the plate, the headlight, and the various other pieces we will need to attach.

We set up a work area for the carbon fibre first.  We once again went through the process of cutting the dry cloth, measuring out the epoxy resin and hardner, mixing it well, and then wetting out the cloth after putting a thin tack layer on the backside of the original piece.










This is a bit tedious, but in order to make sure we didn't have any de-lamination, we likely erred on the side of too much resin, rather than not enough.  As we will be trimming the piece, and drilling holes and a headlight cut-out in it, we want to be sure that it does not have any frayed edges or come apart.  As usual, we then needed to walk away and let it all dry and cure properly.








Meanwhile, 2 other students were doing some figuring.  Some alloy angle was purchased from Home Depot.  This is a cheap and simple way to get strong, straight brackets, but they do require a bit more time with finishing.  Students had to work with some imperial measurements, as this is construction-grade, so everything is in inches.

Marking mounting holes for drilling.  A spring punch was used to allow for an easier time with the pilot hole.

Drilling...

Cutting the drilled pieces to size.  The bandsaw comes in handy here, ensuring a straight cut each time.

We did have a few broken bits, hence the blood in the title.  The student pressed on once first aid was administered.  In evaluating their own work, the kids realized that some of their brackets just weren't up to snuff... the holes on opposing ends weren't perfectly aligned, nor were they centred in the bracket face properly.  No problem!!!  It best to do things a few times and get it right, than cut corners and say "good enough".  The more practice with the tools, the better the finished project will be.  We will end up with "extra" brackets, but the ones on the bike will be be as close to perfect as possible.

No session this week; next update soon after the 10th...

Bending Metal and Making Sparks

With our newly-modified exhaust from Cycleboyz, we needed to fab a bracket in order to mount it to the frame.  This would have to be a custom piece, and we'd also have to start from scratch.  These things always start with some eyeball engineering, a lot of staring and figuring, and finally a sharpie marker to mark the first bend.

While that project got underway, we went back after the electrical system, specifically wiring up some proper turn signals.

Battery first...  Once that was hooked up we needed to figure out why only 3 out of the 4 turn signals were working.  We were able to have a chat about positive wires, negative wires, currents, and shorts (the electrical kind, not summer wear!)

Meanwhile, on the exhaust front it was a case of measure, mark, bend a bit, measure again, twist, tweak, tap, hammer, etc, etc.....  The end result was a bracket that had 2 90+ degree bends in it... sorta like an "N" on its side, but not as sharp a bend.  With curves like that, we are hoping steel will do a better job and be more durable... bends like that tend to weaken aluminum to the point where it cracks and fails.

More electrickery... the boys got a chance to learn how to use a new tool... a spring-loaded wire stripper.  We'll need to lengthen some wires and of course add some ends to them, but we at long last finally found out where our problem was.  All 4 signals work as they should, with a hearty "click" from the signal relay.

Hammertime!

Yes, we do get to use some neat, delicate tools that do their job with finesse, and other times, well, we need to bash some metal around a bit, too...

Next step, some proper hardware and we might just start it up to see if it runs!

Increasing our Carbon Footprint

Not necessarily a good thing, but we are having some fun with carbon fibre on our project.  The end result might be a bit of "Mad Max", but we'll give it a try and see how it looks.

Rather than go with a traditional headlight, we are going to have a real "racer" look with a front number plate with a headlight cut into it, offset to one side.

Sorta like this...

However, we are starting with an oval numberplate shape, and using an aluminum one as a guide, we are going to replicate it in carbon fibre.  We came up with 2 options... one that uses a concave (female) mold, and another that uses a convex (male) mold.  We'd make 2, and see which one turns out best.  Prior to this meeting, Mr. S already made a female mold using fibreglass matt.

And we're off.  The pieces of carbon cloth were cut, and we spent some time polishing the molds with release wax, to make sure the epoxy didn't stick like cement to whatever we used for the mold itself.










We glued the male mold onto a piece of glass to ensure it was perfectly flat, and allowed a good surface for the excess carbon cloth to adhere to.











After 3 coats of wax on each mold, we then did a final coat of PVA release compound... as you can tell, we REALLY didn't want the carbon to be glued to the molds permanently!











Next step was to "wet out" each of the pieces of cloth with the epoxy resin, making sure it soaked the cloth, without being overly thick.  We were going to start with 3 layers of carbon.











Placing it on the molds.  We made sure that each layer was well adhered to the waxed surface of the mold, in order to follow the subtle, but important contours of the piece.

And now we wait... patience is required as once the 3 layers were put on each mold, it takes 8-12 hours for the piece to cure.... and then the REAL test.  Will it actually come off the mold???

In other news, our friends at Cycleboyz have come through again, tig-welding a stainless steel tab to our new megaphone muffler.  Will go about fabricating a bracket/strap in a future instalment.

No Session this week...

Waiting on some parts to come in, so no session this week.

Back on 2 wheels... for now

A bit of mechanical and electrical this week.  The rebuilt forks from last week needed to be refitted in the triple clamps, in order to ensure they were oil-tight and ready to go.  While that was going on, another student was testing some aftermarket dash lights to ensure they worked, as well as determining the color of each.  We are not sure yet how many of these dash lights we will use on our project, but we do have 4 -- red, yellow, orange, and green.

Just exactly how does all of this go together...?  Wheel, spacer, speedo drive, axle, washer, nut....

Once on two wheels, we repositioned the bike and re-installed the exhaust headers.  The main reason was to test-fit the new muffler (not shown).  We went with a megaphone one from Dime City Cycles (like our first project) because of the price and quality.  We made a few sharpie marks on it, and Mr. S will make another visit to Cycleboyz to see if they can weld on a bracket for us.  Being stainless steel, a tig welder is required, and their quality of workmanship is excellent!

Torquing down the exhaust manifold nuts.  The key here was to make sure the exhaust header was properly seated on the gasket, and that each side of the flange was tightened down to the same extent.  The headers are used, and the previous owner of these parts over-tightened things somewhat... there is a very slight curve to them.  Not that much pressure is required, especially if the gasket is in good shape!

Forks!

In order to accomodate Mr. Sheppard's dentist appointment, the Cafe group met a day early to finish off the front forks.

 The first step was properly cleaning out the fork tubes... some varsol and compressed air took care of the old oil and gunk still remaining in the forks.  It was a bit stubborn.

Next was the internal components themselves.  Springs, spacers, bolts, shims, pistons, etc.... all were cleaned and inspected.  The good news is, all were in decent shape, and could be reused.

Ready to be re-installed.

Next the boys attacked the fork bottoms again, using wet sanding, and scotchbrite pads.

Once complete, the fork oil was measured out and added to each fork leg (after some time sussing out the reassembly steps).

Once together (with new seals, of course) the forks were test-fit back into the triple clamps.  The retro boots were left over from the XS650 project, and fit these forks a bit better.

As always, the pics don't do it justice, but the forks look far better than they did.  Another few hours may have resulted in  a better sheen, but the bike is meant to be ridden, so we'll leave it as is.

3rd Time's a Charm

We are now on our 3rd set of handlebars.  And I think this set might be workable.  As always, the first step is the "out with the old", in that the handlebar controls needed to be removed from the flat drag bars, prior to the superbike bars being mounted.

We got a nice set in black.  A shallow rise that should make for a more comfortable ride as well, with the rider not stretched out a mile over the front axle.  However we STILL have the handlebar controls fouling on the edge of the tank, but by a minimal amount.  The plan might be to extend the bar lock stops on the frame, to stop things hitting the tank.  That will be a more involved process with the welder further down the line.

Next step was to remove and service the front forks.  Both were leaking from the seals, and while the sliders were in good shape, the lowers had seen better days.  When we removed the internals, the oil inside was just rank... perhaps original to the bike, it was long overdue for a change.








For now, we were waiting on new seals, and we needed to attack the fork bottoms.  They had seen better days, and while our last project saw them polished, we were going to employ some elbow grease and "scotch-brite" them.

 Step one was wet sanding with 320 grit paper.  There is quite the process to achieve the desired results, and more work needs to be done.  But after about 30 minutes...

This was the result.  A uniform, "dulled" finish.  Next step is the coarser of the two scotch-brite pads.  We may need another session with the 320 grit, however.  That will wait until next week, with a pair (as in 4) new "fresh" arms!

The "after" pic of step one.  Better, but we noticed that it was easier to "stain"... perhaps some polish is in order, and in fact that is the last stage of this process.  We also need to really clean out the interior cavities of the forks, both the sliders and the bottoms.  Varsol will be needed to cut through the soupy old oil that is still clinging to the inside of the fork surfaces, damping rods, springs, etc...

And We're Off!

Cafe Bike v 2.0 got underway yesterday, with two students working on the bike.  To start, we needed to come up with a different handlebar solution.  The clubman bars put the rider's arms too far forward and down to make for a comfortable ride.  The handlebar controls needed to be removed, the clubman bars swapped out for the "drag bars" donated by Transcanada, and the control all reinstalled to test fit...
And we still have a problem!  Now the drag bars foul on the edge of the fuel tank when they are turned.  Need to try something else...

With these old bikes, the forks are known to be pretty spindly and weak.  The fender is actually a key component to stiffen up the front end.  Removing the stock fender necessitates a fork brace.  However the stock fender did not suit the lines of the bike we envision.  So what we decided to do is "bob" the fender, shortening it up at the front and the rear.  After Mr. S did a rough hacksaw cut, we went about grinding the correct profile.  The  profile is still rough, so we'll clean it up/finish it off with a belt sander, grinder, file, or a combination of all 3.



With the different handlebars, the front brake line was now too short.  We needed to drain the brake fluid out of the front resevoir, reposition the master cylinder, and then measure for the correct length of front brake hose.  As we have not determined the final handlebar choice, this is still on hold.

Some electrical investigation was next.  Some wiring had already been done, and the battery moved to behind the seat.  We needed to check what lights and systems worked and what needed rewiring or reconnecting.

At first glance, things look pretty good.  We are missing some indicators, and the turn signals need some work, but the correct wiring is in place and there appears to be little that needs to be rewired.  For example the brake light works, but the running light does not.  Is it the bulb or the wiring?  We'll have to do some digging...

Stripped down

Once all the excess parts were stripped by Mr. S (still in his garage, while the first Cafe bike was being finished), the seat was test fitted.  The previous owner had started to fabricate a cafe seat to fit on the oddly-shaped frame.  It fit well, and the attachment points made sense, so it was sent off to be coved.  At this point, the work in Mr. Sheppard's garage stopped as the draw for the XS650 was underway.

Here we go again!

We are about to start our second Cafe project.  Awhile back, Mr. Sheppard stumbled across this monstrosity sitting in a barn... it's a 1979 CX500.  An unlikely candidate for a cafe conversion (at first blush, anyway), but it has been done before by others.  While the kids finished up the XS650, Mr. S spent some time digging through the acres of plastic, ditching the seat, saddlebags, highway bars, forward pegs.,.. essentially everything that made this into a cruiser.  Thankfully, some Cafe parts were also included with the bike itself, and it appears we will be able to use some of those in our build.  Already TransCanada motorsport donated a set of drag bars... it appears that Cafe/Clubman bars won't work with the long tank.  The rider would have a real uncomfortable stretch to the bars.

We Have a Winner!

Andy Barbour of Winnipeg was the lucky recipient of the Cafe Racer.

On Saturday, Sept. 13, the bike was delivered to Andy and turned over to him.  He was understandably thrilled, having owned an XS 650 in the past.  We had a good visit, talked about old and new bikes, and we reviewed the machine's setup.

Andy tries it on for size... and it fits well!  After a bit of choke and 2-3 kicks, the machine fired up and idled nicely.  A great end to our first cafe project.  Thanks to all who entered the raffle, and again those businesses who supported us from near and far.  Stay tuned, as we will be starting another project shortly!

The Draw...

The big 'ol box of tickets...

Mrs. Gilchrist and I get ready to pull the winner...

Here comes the ticket!

And the winner is: