A Student Budget Bike

[catbed]

any updates, im enjoying this!

[gustovh]

I love this thread!
V

[duaneage]

Bikes offer more fun per turn of the wrench than cars do. But a common misconception is they are economical when the reality is bikes do cost a bit to maintain properly. Beyond higher mpg and lower insurance costs they use up tires faster, take expensive oils, require special tools to service and they do NOT tolerate even a minor accident very well. I spent 90 dollars on brake pads and I am about to drop 130 on brake lines next.

But few things are as rewarding as rescuing an ol' GS from the junkyard and tooling down the highway.

[BentRod]

huh.. well. you are going to get a little scared by this, but I use 3$ a L oil, baked my brake pads so i could recure them, and ride on chenshins.... like i said... Student budget

I'm presently scralling out ideas as to how to outline the next bit.. and how much time line to cover..

Will be back at it soon.. I'm really glad you are all enjoying this

[spyug]

This thread takes me back almost 40 years when i first got my drivers licence. I didn't have a bike as my parents wouldn't alow it...too unsafe ( my old man was a dirt track racer and tuner..go figure)but i did have a 1960 Morris Minor.Clapped out 4 banger with no brakes to speak of. 50 mpgwith a top speed of 65 mph downhill with a tailwind. .It took me everywhere and back again...in most cases.

Back in those days I knew nothing and couldn't afford any parts to fix it up. It ran strong but with a god aweful knock that never went away. If you hit the brakes too hard she went sideways. I quickly learned to use the gears to slow me down to stop. The guys at the wreckers became my best friends and in time I could take her apart in my sleep.

I learned more with that old clunker than any other vehicle. It taught me to be self sufficient and trust in my own skills. It taught me to use my head and be flexible and willing to try new things. It taught me to think ahead and have a contingency plan. I learned more about being prepared with that old Morris than I ever did in Scouts.

I think these old bikes that we all love take me back to my days with the old car. The sense of freedom and self reliance is the same. The wonder of wether the trip will work out or not or what problems you might encounter are the same. The satisfaction of making it back to home base running on fumes....priceless.

Thanks for this thread BR...great stuff for us old sentimental farts.

Cheers,
Spyug.

[argonsagas]

After trying to understand what "cronical", and a few other words, actually meant, the story unwound rather well and I quite enjoyed it.
(Yes, I know, I am picky.)

It was definitely a very interesting read. Keep us up to date, please.
I hope everything turns out well.

[spyug]

Hey go easy on him after all he's an engineer not an English major:-D

All he needs to know is how to speak "sign, cosign, tangent, and maybe a bit of newton/meters and a smattering of kilowatt/hours. Pretty close to bike speak don't you think

Anyway its all good stuff.

Cheers,
spyug

[Mysuzyq]

All he needs to know is how to speak "sign, cosign, tangent, and maybe a bit of newton/meters and a smattering of kilowatt/hours. Pretty close to bike speak don't you think

Cheers,
spyug

Actually Spy, I think once he gets his degree, and is comfortable with sine & cosine, his " sign & co-signing" days will most likely be behind him, given the high demand for engineers currently..... no doubt, due to the booming petroleum industry.
Tony.

[Ironriot]

huh.. well. you are going to get a little scared by this, but I use 3$ a L oil, baked my brake pads so i could recure them, and ride on chenshins.... like i said... Student budget

You're forgetting the part where you paint it all with rattle cans. That's what gives it soul and makes it a student budget bike

[argonsagas]

You're forgetting the part where you paint it all with rattle cans. That's what gives it soul and makes it a student budget bike

That can actually work quite well.

I did the 1100G with rattle cans and was amazed at the quality that resulted.


Later, however, I learned that it is NOT impervious to gasoline, no matter how much clearcoat you use....


Of course, it could be used for making signs, as in a sign of sine...
and your reason for doing it? Just B cos

[duaneage]

That can actually work quite well.

I did the 1100G with rattle cans and was amazed at the quality that resulted.


Later, however, I learned that it is NOT impervious to gasoline, no matter how much clearcoat you use....


Of course, it could be used for making signs, as in a sign of sine...
and your reason for doing it? Just B cos

It is but, You have to cure it for a few weeks. I used engine clear coat and it resisted gas pretty good. 2 parts are better though.

[Mysuzyq]

Of course, it could be used for making signs, as in a sign of sine...
and your reason for doing it? Just B cos

Without going off on too much of a tangent, here's one that was amusing to our teenage minds......:roll:.

αQ B cos U R 2 secC .

Sorry Bent, on with the chronicle!

Tony.

[BentRod]

and on we shall go. I really should be studying Heat and Mass Transfer, but I'm bored so here is a little side note.

Caught Red Handed, Rattle Cans, Bondo, and a Little Luck

Or not. One of the episodes I went through was painting my tank, which, as previously stated, looked... sexually abused. Not to make light a very serious issue, but that is how it looked, sodemized. Needless to say I didn’t want to ride with that look between my legs, so I repainted. For those of you just tuning in to the timeline of catastrophic repair, and who can stand my spelling, this, like any other undertaking went badly. And if any of you cool new guys think your restoration project will go any better, think again. Learn from my mistakes, but think again.
Step one, find the cheapest stripper you can. No Orange, not that kind. I mean like a sanding block or a wire brush. Two methods I found to be very effective. 1, a sanding block and your best friend’s little brother, tricked into doing hard labour, and 2, a brass wire wheel on the end of a good power drill. Now, I can already hear people calling contradiction. Yes I have little to no money for this project, but yes, I own a nice power drill. In fact I own an 8Amp De Walt Hammer Drill, with about 2500Rpm and 45000Bpm, because I am a male, and an Engineering student, so when it comes to power tools, money is no object.

So lesson number one, don’t wear loose clothing, but don’t strip paint in the nude, and don’t be afraid to ask someone else to hold the tank for you. Stripping paint from the top part is easy, but eventually you have to get all the little nooks and crannies, and you start having to apply more and more pressure, and you start finding more and more interesting ways to hold the tank still. A couple that did not work out: between the thighs, and under you arm. Now the first one sounds stupid, course not between your legs, but if you try it, it actually looks and feels rather reasonable. But! Under no circumstances should power tools and your groin be in the same vicinity. One close call, a quick check to make sure nothing is missing or broken and a new pair of pants, and I was on to the second position.
Then Disaster strikes. While holding the tank under one arm, the wire wheel catches my shirt, ripping the drill from my hands. I thought I could hold on to the tank, but I dropped it the instant the wires made contact with a rather sensitive chest area. Let me tell you, ya think you’re really tough, and ready for anything when your 20, but you get a couple cuts and scrapes on your left nipple, and you are out for the match.

So now, in addition to original pings and bumps that the tank came with, there is a massive dent down the top left edge… SHOOT!! Bondo it is! And boy is that stuff amazing. 3 layers of it, and the dent is concealed well enough that I don’t really care anymore. I figure that the paint will fill in the small inconstancies. Also while at the hardware store, I picked up more sand paper, 600, 1000, 1500 and 2000 grit, as well as a rattle can (Tremclad!) of automotive primer, Gloss black, Gloss Red, and Clear Coat. I also picked up acetone, lacquer thinner and Muriatic acid. I use the latter three purchases to acid wash the rust out of my tank. Sort of like what they do at a radiator shop.
I set the tank on a table and went to work, painting 2-3 layers primer to start. I can’t really say how many layers I put on, because some spots were really thin, but I didn’t want to go over them for fear of drips. And that was how I went about painting all surfaces of that tank. I did 3-4 layers of red, then made stickers out of masking tape by taping onto wax paper, and then cutting out the shapes I wanted. I put on the stickers and then did about 4 layers of black + Drips.. I kind of lost my patients and got ahead of myself. But that seems to be the way it always is? I sanded between layers with 1500 grit, and then, after pealing the stickers, did 7 layers of clear coat, sanding with 2000 grit every other layer. I think it turned out well enough… but the gaps left in the bondo hadn’t gone away, they were WORSE! I should have done another layer of that too.
I cannot tell you how long this took all and all, because I really don’t know. I had to deal with my final exams, as well and I was trying to pick up this REALLY cute redhead, who I now have the privilege to call my girlfriend.
I will leave that story for next time though, in Perks, Pros and The Glory of Riding a Motorcycle.

Kevin

[BentRod]

so here is what I planned for the tank

and a fender

And here is the finished, or semi finished product.
Tank:

[BentRod]

and fender

as a point of interest, that is a map of all the Ontario breweries under the fender.

And, on the bike:
before:

After:

Enough photos for everyone?