Back at It

Now that school is back in full swing, the TCS Kids' Cafe is back working on the XS650.  Over the course of the summer while the bike was hanging out in Mr. Sheppard's garage, a few templates were made in order to accommodate the frame modifications, as well as mount the rear taillight and turn signals.  Starting with cardboard first, the goal of this session was to create the finished pieces out of aluminum.

Using the cardboard piece as a guide, we began measuring cut, fold, and drill marks in the aluminum.

During the course of this process, we used some of our mental math skills, and discussed the relative ease of working with the metric system.  "Half of 40mm", is far easier to calculate in our head compared to "half of 1 and 5/8 inches"!

 Starting with pilot holes, the students drilled out the various mounting points for the tail light brackets, frame mounts, and turn signals.

We also discussed how it is far easier to mark, punch, and drill holes (pilot holes or finished holes) on a piece you are working on prior to final finishing or bending.

The aluminum sheet we used for the battery and fuse box mount was a bit thicker than the taillight bracket -- like most shears, the material is cut by stepping down on a foot bar to operate the cutting edge.  The students needed a bit of "help" from Mr. Sheppard... both girls were too light to cut the material!

The tail light bracket on left, with the cardboard template on the right.  The larger "keyhole" needs to be finished later; the wiring for the tail light passes through the material at that point.

One hour's work:  the tail light bracket is 90% complete, and the battery bracket has been roughly cut out.  Final finishing will be done once it is test- mounted to the frame.  Note the cardboard template... irrefutable proof that Mr. Sheppard (occasionally) eats Froot Loops.

Some pictures...

This is an example of the great work Cycleboyz did over the summer. You can't tell, but there is a weld joint there somewhere -- it has just been grinded down smooth.

You can see the shape of the extended loop, which follows the curve of the fibreglass seat.

One possible solution to the DOT-legal tail light quandry.  The rear light is mounted independently from the seat, to the frame loop itself. White cardboard template is for a mockup proof of concept.  Aluminum will be used for the final step.  Licence plate hung below, and turn signals mounted to the side tabs.

View from the rear.  Square light looks pretty good, perhaps round would be better?

Mr. Sheppard welded a steel tube with a nut welded to the end, to mount the tail light and licence/turnsignal bracket.  Wires should be able to be tucked away out of sight.

The bike will be heading back to the MCI shops shortly.  A few tabs needed to be welded on -- one for the rear brake light switch, and one for the rear brake pedal return spring.

September Startup

I'll be adding some pictures shortly of some of the work that was performed over the summer break.  The rear seat loop had to be finished.  Mr. Sheppard tack-welded the old loop into place, to test the concept.  The bike was dropped off at Cycleboyz (check out the link to the right) for "proper" welding.  The frame needed to be sleeved, with a rosette weld and seam welds holding the loop on... and that was after custom-bending the 7/8" tubing to match the seat hump.  As usual, the workmanship was impeccable, and once again, Cycleboyz donated their time and material to the project.  An amazing group of people!!!

Speaking of donations, Mr. Sheppard got an email from Dime City Cycles.  A real groovy bunch of folks who have been building Cafe Racers for years, and have been featured on "Cafe Racer TV".  Jason Paul Michaels from Dime City has agreed to supply us with a stainless steel reverse megaphone muffler, and is throwing in some other stuff -- t-shirts, stickers, and a banner -- for the Kids Cafe Crew.  Awesome.  Check out Dime City Cycles at:  http://www.dimecitycycles.com/.  We'll add a permanent link to their page and online shop to the right.

Pictures to come shortly!

Summer Break

Due to the busy nature of June, we've decided to stop the work on the bike in order to allow students to focus on final assessments and projects.  For the summer, the Cafe bike will be heading back to Mr. Sheppard's garage for storage.  During the summer break, a bit of work will need to be performed... now that its running, the focus will be on finishing the safety requirements to allow it to be certified for the road, and some professional welding work is required for the rear frame loop.  For both, the bike will spend a short holiday at Cycleboyz in Brandon for the welding, and while there Mr. S will grab a copy of a MB road safety form.  Knowing what is expected ahead of time will prevent unforseen issues coming up when it is ready to go on the road.

Our timeline has changed, obviously.  For those that are following, it makes sense to take another school year to properly finish the bike and turn out the best project we can.  As such, the 2013-14 school year will be spent finishing up the cosmetic elements of the bike (which can be tremendously time consuming), having it ready to roll and raffle in the Spring of 2014.

Check back periodically over the summer, as when the specialized work is completed, updates will be posted.

See you all "full time" in the fall!

It's Alive!

Over the course of the last few weeks, it became apparent that less and less was standing in our way of getting the bike actually up and running.  This past Tuesday approached with only a wee bit wiring to finish, and some oil to be added to the engine.  A fuel and a spark and by all accounts, it should go...

Step one was finishing off the wiring.  With adding fuel to the mix, we didn't want any exposed wires causing a short or a spark.  Heat shrink connectors are a wonderful thing...

A final check of connectors, some fuel added to the tank (the kids did a great job rebuilding the petcocks as there were no leaks!).  And we gave it a few kicks, hoping for the best.  To our enjoyment (and with some surprise) the bike fired up.  However a noticeable leak presented itself behind the oil filter cover.  The bike was shut off and the issue addressed.  We fired up the camera for start #2, and trained it on the suspect cover to detect any leaks.  The (second) moment of truth...




It is alive!  Nice to know that at least it runs.  While there still is a weep, and a million things left to do before it can be raffled off, this is a huge step forward for us!

More Wiring

With the signals working, the next step was to try to clean up the wiring a bit more. 

With some fiddling with wires, we were able to produce a spark, so at least all of the ignition components are in working order.  Next we need to ensure the switches work as they should.

 The next step was fabricating a proper muffler mounting strap.  A fairly straightforward process, but it did require some accurate measuring and drilling to make sure the two mounting bolts lined up properly.

Next we began the process of fitting the front seat mounting studs.  Like the rear battery tray, we are going to weld in some shouldered m6 nuts into the frame rails, and then fix the front end of the seat in place.  The holes were drilled and the nuts put in place; Mr. S will come in on another day and do the welding.






Finishing the wiring will be the next step.  Tedious, and in fact Mr. Sheppard came in on his own a couple of evenings to work on things.  Really, at times a one-person job due to the cramped nature of the bike. 

Signals next

We snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.  After spending most of the session flicking the turn signal off and on, we came to the conclusion that the turn signal relay was not the right type for our application.  We got a "click" out of the relay, but no lights.  Not knowing a lot about relays, we guessed that there might be too much resistance in the relay unit, and decided to try something different. 

While Mr. Sheppard rooted around the boxes of spares for another relay, the tailight mounting bracket was modified to accept the turn signals.

With the signals then mounted in the bracket, and everything re-attached with the replacement relay (over 40 years old), we got ready to test again.  Note the size of the turn signals.  These are DOT approved.  Yes, very large, but we don't want any hassle when we go to get the bike saftied.  The new owner may swap them out for something smaller...
The student in the pic is grounding out the terminals on a bare part of the frame.

Left.... got it!

And the right one works as well!  Next up, ignition system.  We will search for that elusive spark, and then go about properly bundling and connecting the wires in the harness.