Satin or gloss black?

When painting the Can-am engines I normally go for satin black.  To take a quick break from the engine internals, I thought I'd clean up the oil pump cover and give it a quick coat to see what gloss looked like.  Gloss is fine as long there are few imperfections in the surface but, because of the corrosion, I might not get away with it.

Hope there's metal under that corrosion.

Oof! Needs a bit of a clean up!  So a quick wire brush and I was left with this.

Time to get the rough wet and dry out.  I used an 80 grit to get rid of the worst of the corrosion and start feathering the paint edges.

Corrosion evident on the outside too.  Oh well, it'll add to the aged look! 

Time for the 320 wet and dry.  Looks like I'll end up with bare metal so 320 will be near to finish on.  If flatting off a painted surface, you need to end up with 800 grit to avoid the scratches showing through the paint.

Time to degrease and lay on the paint.  I did the underside and let it dry before turning it over and painting the side that matters.  My favourite aerosol engine paint is PJ1 Fast Black.  It goes on thick and the finish is superb.  I'm using Septone engine enamel but it does take a little more effort to cover compared to PJ1.

Unsure as yet whether or not I like it.  Might flat it off and use satin black instead. 

Decisions decisions.

Engine strip... yet more.

The clutch is off, the kickstart ratchet and idler gear exposed... so let's delve deeper.

The emulsified oil left in the gearbox has actually kept the internals fairly well protected.  Nothing horrendous as yet.

The kickstart stop screw can be seen poking through here.  It has a 17mm hexagon head and does look like a sump plug from underneath.  If you undo it to drain the oil, the kickstart ratchet is immediately released!  Always remember to undo the Allen bolt sump plug when changing the oil.

That leaves us with the disc valve cover.  The little plastic gear (oil pump drive) in the centre of the crank unscrews by hand.  Then it's time for the air gun to remove the crank nut and gear.

The disc cover is held by four screws, but take a little care when removing because they are always very tight.  An impact screwdriver is probably the best way to remove these after so long.

One disc valve.  The rusty stains actually wiped off with a rag and WD40!  The crankcase surface the valve runs on is in excellent shape too.  Just a little light pitting, and for Magnesium cases, that's pretty good.

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Engine strip continued.

Time for the clutch.  This is a slightly different setup compared to the average Japanese bike.  Normally the pressure plate can be removed and the plates taken out but on the Rotax engine, the aluminium hub needs to removed too.

First remove the six screws from the pressure plate.

Now remove the plate and the springs behind it.

This leaves the centre nut and its tab washer.  Hit the tab back with a chisel and a hammer and remove the nut.  You'll need a clutch locking tool to lock the hub and clutch basket together unless you have access to an air gun.  Luckily I have an air gun!

Now the centre hub can be lifted out.

The plates can now be pulled out together.  Just as well because these are stuck together.

The clutch basket can now be removed, taking care with the order of the bearings, shims/spacers etc. on the gearbox shaft.  Refit them into the basket in the correct order and put a zip tie around to keep them in place.  If the engine is apart for several months, you'll be glad you did.

One clutch removed.  Next we'll get the kickstart ratchet, idler gear and disc valve cover out.

Engine strip time!

I was going to leave it until the frame had been painted but couldn't resist a little peek inside.

As you can imagine, some of the Allen bolts were tight/corroded and were difficult to get moving.  When undoing any Allen bolts, make sure any crud is removed from the socket head and that the Allen key fits properly.  The Allen key/driver must bottom out in the fastener or it will slip and it's all too easy to round off the inside, then be left with drilling the head off - a pain anyone can do without.

The first surprise -  no oil pump!  Plenty of corrosion though.

Time for some warmth.  Magnesium cases so plenty of care too.  It's surprising how gentle heating can free up the bolts.

And considering the water content, not in bad fettle.  The oil pump drive on the inside of the cover would have been getting a hard time without the oil pump to hold it in line.  In fairness, I'm impressed so far.

Tools of our trade

I really should continue with the tools we all need day-in, day-out.  Let's have a look at a few of the basics.

Spanners  
These don't have to be expensive to get some real quality.  There was a time when the cheap stuff available was likely to leave you with skinned knuckles when used on anything more than Meccano.  However, I'm pleased to say that a lot of the cheaper brands are quite capable of everyday use. 

If you do want the best then you'll want Snap-On - lots of money, lots of quality.  I also use SK, Kamasa, Trident, Britool, Draper, Stanley, Teng, SP, Sidchrome and the list goes on.

The combination spanner set on the left (open one end, ring the other) is a low-cost brand sold by SuperCheap Auto.  Ranging from 10mm to 19mm, I've found this set to be great so far but I do only use them at home.  The longer combination spanner in the picture is a Snap-On, long 10mm, and for home use is probably overkill due to the cost. 

The 16mm/17mm ring spanner is made by Trident, I've had it a fair few years and, again, has been superb considering its cost. 

The metric adjustable (doh) on the right is another Supercheap Auto special and is ideal for those huge, stubborn nuts but be careful on smaller stuff as they will slip and ruin the fastener. 

Wherever possible, use the ring when initially undoing or finally tightening.  The hexagon on a nut or bolt will become rounded if too much torque is applied with an open-ended spanner.

The best ring-type to use on very tight fasteners is a six-point.  This matches the nut or bolt's hexagon and has far less chance of slipping.  Cheaper makes are usually only available in 12-point so care is needed if it needs a lot of force to get moving.

Always use the correct size for the actual fastener.  If you are working on Japanese bikes, you'll want metric spanners.  An old Brit bike?  Whitworth spanners are your friends.  Some sizes will match each other.  For instance, a 5/8" AF spanner is pretty much the same as a 16mm metric and a 9/16" quite close to a 14mm.  Just be careful if it feels a little slack.

Tenterfield, QLD to NSW

Trip on!  Two bikes, two blokes and a drinking session in the tavern at Tenterfield.  Bring it on.

We left at 10.30, Saturday morning from the Gold Coast and headed to Beaudesert, Boonah and then Warwick.  So good to get out of the Gold Coast city life and get on the cliched "open road".  Following someone enables you to sit, cruise and check out the countryside.  All makes for a great weekend.

Love to see the older-styled buildings in the countryside.  Character and a real "wild west" appeal.  Fantastic.

The roads are great out here.  A mix of long, open straights with some great bends chucked in when you least expect it.  Keeps you on your toes and interest level high.  After a few hours of riding south-west, the temperature dropped rapidly.  With only a T-shirt under the leathers, I was beginnging to wish I had a paddock jacket.  A quick stop off at a friend of Dave's and I spy a couple of potential restoration projects.

Only a few k's to go now but a diversion to a "must-see" in this area was next on the cards.  The sun was going down rapidly and the kangaroos were beginning to get dangerous - bouncing across the highway on their way through the fields.  Driving at night is hazardous out in the sticks and I didn't particularly want a 'roo across the fizzog so progress was steady.  We soon arrived at the local tourist attraction.

And we didn't have to ride to Egypt!

A few pics and we were off.  Another 15 mins to go and we could book into the Tenterfield Tavern on the New England Highway.  Get in!  A quick stop for a breath test and a licence check thanks to the local gendarmerie and we were there!  Thank f...

Not a bad place to crash actually.  Great little motel rooms and a decent sized pub.  A quick shower, a walk across the carpark and the ale began to flow - this is what it's all about!  A great night icluding a couple of Guinness's in another pub and I was well away!  The next morning my head wasn't the best but thankfully the local cafe was open for bacon and egg rolls!

So back on the road and was it ever cold!  Dave told me that the section between Tenterfield and Drake was superb and he wasn't wrong.  Incredible bends, quiet roads - this is Gixer heaven.  For 35 k's I cracked on at my own pace, stopping only when i got to the Drake hotel where I was glad to blow my streaming nose and get a coffee.  What a great hotel!  Walking in to be greeted by the incredibly friendly owners and to have these beauties sat in the bar.

Honda CB1100's, Harley's and a Yamaha IT400.  Awesome, every pub should have bikes in!

Once warmed by the real fire, we were on our way again.  I love seeing the country by bike.

Heading for Byron Bay and then back up the coast to home, we were back by 1pm Sunday afternoon.  Quick blast, great weekend - why can't I be on a permanent holiday?

Beautiful restoration - BSA M33

While I was getting the MOT done on the military Bombardier, this awesome BSA M33 pulled up.  I got chatting and took a few pics but didn't get the fella's name!  After owning this since '72 I was lucky to witness its first ride out in nearly forty years!  What a fantastic job he's done!

He's just waiting on the tank badges and she's complete.  An absolutely beautiful bike and a restoration to be proud of. 

Time for me to start looking for an M20 project.