Author Topic: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop  (Read 186115 times)

Mr Larrington

  • A bit ov a lyv wyr by slof standirds
  • Custard Wallah
    • Mr Larrington's Automatic Diary
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #350 on: 01 February, 2018, 01:25:27 am »
Early ones had a metal plate welded to the side of the main tube with a crappy sidepull bolted to it.
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #351 on: 01 February, 2018, 03:27:43 pm »
The epitome of 'cosmetic' . . .
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #352 on: 15 February, 2018, 09:22:44 pm »
I managed to sqeeze a couple of hours in the workshop this afternoon, playing with Aramid (Kevlar)...



...Carbon fibre, and epoxy resin.  :o



Dunno if it will work okay - I didn't get the chance to set up a vacuum bag (I couldn't find the mylar that stops it sticking) or put pressure on other than rolling & stippling.  :-\

I used some of the offcuts to reinforce the old seat as a 'Plan B'.



I am Grandson-sitting tomorrow, and off to Manchester for a wedding at the weekend. It sounds like it's going to be a busy week at work next week, with colleages off sick etc.

I started putting bits on the frame last weekend, but it was too cold and I gave in when I found one of the front brake mechanisms seized.  >:(

Although I had a cleaver idea for moulding a tail fairing, I bought a rack-pack from Phantasmagoriana OTP, and I think I'll go with that. As I won't be using panniers, I'm considering designing my own 'low level' rack to sit just above the chain and cable line...


...and made from Carbon fibre.  :o
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #353 on: 11 April, 2018, 09:24:35 pm »
With lack of indoor workshop space at home, the wet weather has been a major holdup.  >:(
The couple of dry weekend days we had, were spent trying to work on the allotment.

Assembled a bit more tonight to get the seat position right before cable-ing and chain-ing up...





The old, patched seat is pictured, because I did a little resin work on the new carbon one to try to remedy some minor faults.

It's getting there...

 :thumbsup:
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #354 on: 11 April, 2018, 11:10:22 pm »
'Cheetahs at Wing in July? Or Silverdale in September . . .
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Mr Larrington

  • A bit ov a lyv wyr by slof standirds
  • Custard Wallah
    • Mr Larrington's Automatic Diary
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #355 on: 12 April, 2018, 11:11:36 am »
Or at Betteshanger in also July?  The BHPC is trying to assemble as many Burrows machines as possible at the Worlds as it's The Man's 75th this year.
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #356 on: 14 April, 2018, 08:59:34 pm »
I'm hoping to get it down to Betteshanger for the Burrows bikes/trikes meet.  :thumbsup:
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #357 on: 14 April, 2018, 09:24:44 pm »
I had hoped to have an afternoon working on the Windcheetah, but a stuck float valve on the allotment mower stole my time.  >:(

I decided to use a bargain XTR rear mech as the LX one it came with was knackered:



... that's gonna confuse anybody else who rides it - it's a 'rapid rise' mech  :demon:

This evening I just had time to do a couple of jobs  - put the original Campag crank bolts in, that I had mislaid when I wanted to fit the cranks, and swapped the gear shifters around as I realised I had them round the wrong way.

I got a bit of old crash-mat out and had a go at cutting a full length seat pad out, so that it could be weighted down in the seat to take a bit of shape before I work on it more tomorrow...





...or I might decide to just go for a bike ride.  ;D
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #358 on: 15 April, 2018, 07:37:56 pm »
Oh BOLLOCKS......

 >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Paul

  • L'enfer, c'est les autos.
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #359 on: 15 April, 2018, 08:31:18 pm »
What? What?
What's so funny about peace, love and understanding?

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #360 on: 16 April, 2018, 11:24:29 am »
You can't leave it like that?   :o

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #361 on: 16 April, 2018, 09:45:42 pm »
Welding is a process where pieces of similar metal are melted together, and often more of the same metal is added as a 'filler'

When welding a thin or small bit of metal to a chunkier bit, the chunkier bit conducts more heat away from the weld area than the thin bit, and this can lead to the problem of the filler only fusing to the chunky bit in a small area.

This is exactly what I feared might happen when welding the 3mm end plate to the 15mm dia rear axle I made.  :-\

On Sunday, I assembled the Windcheetah and rode it round the garden. However, on reaching a small kerb, I kicked on the pedals, in a low gear, to get the front wheels to climb it, and broke the weld on the rear axle.  :facepalm:



I really ought to have arraned to have some mechanical means of locating the plate on the axle rod, like the hexagonal other end, so that the torque would be less likely to break the weld.

Tonight I loaded the seatless Windcheetah into the car - A Fiesta!  :o  and popped back into work to do a quick repair.

First I cut some slots with a cutting disc on the angle grinder, so that I could use a washer as a 'key'...



...then welded it up...



...followed by cutting the rest of the washer off and tidying the weld a bit.



I'll try this repair out for a bit, and if I think it will hold this time, I'll use some filler to tidy it before repainting.

I've still got to do some work on the seat-pad, but the next step will be to do a few short rides to find any other fuck-ups challenges...  :-\

If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #362 on: 17 April, 2018, 07:13:02 pm »
I've just got back from a couple of trips around the block (about a mile each).  :thumbsup:

I needed to tighten the front shifter up a bit, after the first lap, as it was slipping down the gears a bit.  >:(

It all seems to be working fine. a bit of rubbing noise from one of the front wheels on turns, which I need to look into further.  ???

It tracks straight, hands off,  and the handling is quite twitchy, which I think is normal  rather than an issue of increasing the front wheel size. 

Seat pad still needs some work trimming the shape and rounding over on the router.  :o



If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #363 on: 17 April, 2018, 10:21:06 pm »
BTW, that's the carbon fibre/kevlar layered seat that I made, on it now.  :smug:
 It's a lot stiffer than the original.
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #364 on: 17 April, 2018, 11:17:03 pm »
Hats off to you. Fabulous job!

VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #365 on: 17 April, 2018, 11:25:57 pm »
Hats off to you. Fabulous job!

Seconded   :thumbsup:

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #366 on: 17 April, 2018, 11:48:27 pm »
QQ. Which rims did you go for and what length spokes please?

What do you mean, "lazy bastard"...? :)
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #367 on: 17 April, 2018, 11:49:17 pm »
BTW. Wanna rack?
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #368 on: 18 April, 2018, 12:34:22 am »
406 rims - some 'V' section 'Salco' ones - I bought these as a pair of front wheels years ago, and one of them had to be stolen from the 2 x 4 lowracer. Spokes were 155mm 2 cross pattern.

I'm still unsure what to do about luggage. I want to carry a few essentials, rather than a pair of panniers, so am aiming for a rack-pack maximum (I have a carradice one).

I had a few ideas, but hadn't realised how much room the cables and chain took up behind the seat.

I have lots of materials at my disposal - stiff and flexible composite boards; carbon or Ali tubes; strong waterproof fabric (yellow  :D); etc...

...but I'm lacking ideas.  :-[

Also, because I've been oogling Wincheetahs and luggage systems, I think my seat needs to lie back a bit more - I guessed at the wrong pair of holes to use at the rear, so will be drilling some more ASAP.  :facepalm:

I also want a mount for a flag and rear light. The seat has mounting holes for reflector/Vistalight type mounting, but I use mostly Smart or stretchy band mount lights.
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #369 on: 18 April, 2018, 07:08:16 am »
That's looking wonderful wobbly John  :thumbsup:.
the slower you go the more you see

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #370 on: 18 April, 2018, 10:25:48 am »
That looks fantastic - chapeau!
I love the ghetto key applied to the axle stub - make a slot and then weld in a T piece. :)

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #371 on: 18 April, 2018, 11:18:16 am »
WJ, you've even got the rim decals lined up - I can't stand it!

ElyDave

  • Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society member 263583
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #372 on: 18 April, 2018, 03:14:59 pm »
Great idea on the seat cushion. I'm finding the cruzbike stock material a bit squishy and was wondering what else I could use. I was thinking about butchering an old camping mat i have
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #373 on: 18 April, 2018, 05:13:42 pm »
Great idea on the seat cushion. I'm finding the cruzbike stock material a bit squishy and was wondering what else I could use. I was thinking about butchering an old camping mat i have

Ventisit.  I mean, closed-cell foam is lovely when it's  a) cold  and  b) pish[1], and it's easy to work with as a way of contouring the seat underneath the pad (I've got a bit of old camping mat doing just that), but the rest of the time something that allows a modicum of air circulation is so much better if you're going to be riding for more than a couple of hours.  Ventisit is also firmer and more breathable than the pond filter stuff.


[1] It's lovely when it's cold and dry too, until you get off the bike with your soaking wet back and promptly develop hypothermia.

Re: Tales from the Wobbly Workshop
« Reply #374 on: 18 April, 2018, 09:14:49 pm »
BTW. Wanna rack?

Yes, I may be in the market for a rack - Howmuch?

I'm getting frustrated at chain/ cables/ wheels being in the way of everything I consider doing.  >:(
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...