did you figure out why your viton seals leaked?

Suzuki416 wrote: Wed Jun 23, 2021 11:48 pm did you figure out why your viton seals leaked?

Nothing definitive, but I reckon being stored dry in a garage that was a freezer in winter and a sauna in summer probably didn't do them any good. Most likely the gasket goo I put in there though!

mechannibalism wrote: Mon Jun 21, 2021 10:57 pm Thanks for the pics, your shop is looking good. nice job on the sprocket! I would just add I thought the extension on the shifter is a bit sketchy I would add a nut on the backside of the bolt to lock it down.

There is a nyloc nut on the back of it, just can't see it very well in the picture


So I've been busy with the bike when I've not been busy doing jobs round the house for the wife
I've also booked a track evening at cadwell for August, so I need to get this running right! (track days don't half book up quick now!)

Out with the front wheel.



And out with the forks.



These S hooks I got ages ago keep coming in handy, keeping the tension off the brake lines.



And into the vice. Damper bolt at the bottom loosened first, then the top nut, top nut taken off by loosening the nut underneath it, pull out the damper bolt and damper (making sure I don't get oil everywhere), then the spring and drain the oil into a pan. Prise out the dust seal, ping out the circlip and slide hammer the oil seal out the way!









The oil was minging. And this has been in about 6 years, two of those unused. Hate to think what forks that have never had an oil change are like



All stripped, cleaned and inspected, upper and lower bushes still in good condition, nothing looking worn.



I did find this little nick in one of the stanchions, dealt with by taking the raised part and any sharp bits using some wet and dry with wd40.





After never having a proper oil seal installation tool, improvising with tape wrapped punches etc, I thought I'd make one out of a lump of brass I got out of workshops scrap bin.





I made it so it seats the upper bushing and the oil seal without damaging anything. Plenty of weight in it so it's like a slide hammer.





Back in with the circlip and the push in the oil seal.





Stick the damper back in and torque up the bolt.



While filling with oil, pull the damper rod up and let it drop down bleeding oil through it.



Topped up with oil and excess removed to correct fill height using a syringe, easier than measuring!



Washers, spacers and nut stuck back on.



And back on with the top nut.





Repeat for the other one and there's two refreshed forks.



Stick the forks back in, torque up the triples and then the top nut, dial back in the settings and job done!





Onto the brakes. They only needed a good clean and new fluid, nice and easy.











Still have to balance the carbs, angle the handlebars correctly, tidy up the reg rec spacers and give everything a good once over

Nicely :)

Which track evening are you on mate? 9th perhaps? May see you there!

CMSMJ1 wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 10:33 am Nicely :)

Which track evening are you on mate? 9th perhaps? May see you there!

23rd Aug unfortunately! Can't believe how far in advance I had to book

It has got mad for trackdays. There is a classic bikes day on the Saturday 28th - suspect that is also full, but you might get a reserve if you were so inclined.

Nice work on the forks

Did mine back in May, but replaced the bushes as well as plenty of silvery tint to the oil. They did look a bit worn but not sure how much there really was, but once back in and dialled in, maybe be a placebo but they feel better than they have done before.

Made myself a fork vice, after 40 years of just clamping forks on the caliper mounts, fraction of the price of a pro one and worked spot on

Love the lathe - they're good solid bits of kit the Boxford (only slightly jealous....)

CB1pod70 wrote: Wed Jul 28, 2021 11:55 am Love the lathe - they're good solid bits of kit the Boxford (only slightly jealous....)

Yeah it's done me well for the short time I've had it so far. I'm still surprised the wife wasn't bothered when I bought it!

After sorting the front brake I thought the rear could do with a bit of tlc too. So that got stripped, cleaned and fresh fluid.



Old fluid in the top syringe.



While refitting the front wheel I remembered something that I've been meaning to do for ages. The front brake lever effectively preloads the front brakes as you fit it, causing them to rub ever so slightly. Made pushing the bike around a pain. So I profiled the contact point to get rid of the issue.



Once the front wheel was on and the lever sorted, I wasn't happy with the feel from the front brake. Turned out I still had a bit of air in the system. Tied the lever back overnight and the next day I exercised it to release the bubbles that had made their way to the master cylinder, sorted.



Onto balancing the carbs next and I have finally bought a carbtune after previously always borrowing one or a set of vacuum gauges. It was second hand and didn't have any of the brass adapters with it. Not a problem I thought, I can make some!
This lathe keeps coming in handy









Adapters and pipes fitted to the engine.







Away I went balancing happily, turning the engine off after a few minutes so I didn't get my hand burnt, then the starter motor just stopped working. I got a click from the solenoid and nothing else.

Checked battery voltage, all good. Checked earth's, all good. Checked fuses, all good. Starter solenoid is not that old and was new from Rick O, so I wasn't suspecting that. Went to test resistance in the starter cable and found the motor end of it was proper rusty. So much so that when I went to remove the cable from the motor I could not get the nut undone.



After snapping the cable off at the ring terminal I found the cable to be in fairly good condition. So I stuck a new ring terminal on, filled with silicone grease and heat shrinked over the crimped part.





I still couldn't get the nut off the starter motor and ending up breaking the post retainer inside the motor. Whipped it apart to look at what I'd have to replace and checked it over with a multi-meter. Turned out that the rusty terminal wasn't the main problem, the motor armature was shorting to the shaft.



A new starter motor later and balancing was back underway.

Turned out I couldn't get a consistent reading anyway. So I resorted to the drill bit method.



Still didn't solve it.

Started checking everything over, gauges etc and I noticed that the vacuum hoses were collapsing when they got hot with the heat of the engine. No wonder I couldn't get a good reading. So I replaced the hoses with some reinforced tubing, over kill really, but it worked.



After that faff and a burnt left knuckle I ended up with this. Good enough I thought.



Whipped off the carbtune and gubbins, stuck everything back together after polishing the reg/rec spacers and put some fuel in the tank. Good to go for Cadwell!

Or it will be, as I'm writing this I realise I still haven't set the handlebar positions yet...

Looking good. You might want to consider replacing that 35mm lug with one the proper size for the cable though, it's way too big. 16mm should be about the right size.

MadMotoUK wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 7:09 pm Looking good. You might want to consider replacing that 35mm lug with one the proper size for the cable though, it's way too big. 16mm should be about the right size.

I did think it was too big, all I had at the time though!

I've got a 16mm one on order now thanks