Cases are now bead blasted so assembly can start as soon as I get the plating back… I did debate Cerakote, but decided to leave them bare as I am going to polish the outer cases. I did buy some new bead, they came up really nice! I have also taken the wheels in for powder coating and the frame and swinging arm for dipping to remove the paint. I think it would have been OK to allow the stripper to go inside, but as the fuel is in the frame, and the oil tank is the swinging arm I played safe and blanked everything off… that took ages as there are some strange threads in places! I did use the apprentice to do some of the bead blasting but the hourly rate was far to high and she takes long breaks…
all the parts are back from plating… another superb job! I love to visit this company… they are easy to deal with and SO helpful. There were some really small parts in this batch and I said I was worried that they would fall out ot the drum… The guy took me into the factory and showed me just how small the holes in the drum were, which took away my concern. However, the smell of hydrochloric acid was overpowering! they have a flat fee per barrel… so one bolt, or 100KG is the same very reasonable price! I went for silver this time instead of gold…
The engine is starting to go back together… all I have replaced is gaskets and seals as everything is in superb condition as you would expect from low miles and a good service history, I did take the heads apart and grind in the valves and replace the stem oil seals, its all very nice in there. One nice touch is the stem oil seals came with a nice little seal protector to slide on the valve to protect the seal as it goes over the collet lands. I really need to slow down... this is supposed to be a winter project! However, the garage is my happy place... its difficult to keep out of there now riding season is reduced, although the weather has been kind this year and I went for a ride the other day... Another potential project bike came up the other day but I am definitely at capacity! something needs to be sold before anything else comes...
I always tend to have some around! I hate putting stuff out… in particular powder coating. I have had some SHOCKING jobs come back over the years… Then I found a company that were very good, and used to do a 50 mile round trip to take stuff in… But then their quality went downhill, and the timescales to get things done went silly… So when I came to get these wheels coated I hunted around for a company to do it, and ended up at City Wheel Refurbishers in Birmingham… Not only were they cheap (£30 a wheel) , but the finish is superb! They also dipped and lightly blasted the frame and swinging arm for me which is also a superb job! So much so I will be taking a few more parts over in the next few days…! I have assembled the wheels with new bearings, the plated bolts and also 6 new springs which sit under the radial discs. I had to destroy the old ones to get them out… Last update for a little while... we are off on a family holiday this weekend to celebrate a big birthday.... I will be 70 :tsk