"Bad Idea" low budget build

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elwood440
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#361

Post by elwood440 »

SLOW progress

I decided to go with the flat for now. If I really hate it later, I'll pull it and shoot some clear on it, but for now it is what it is. Still WAY nicer than brown/rust. Besides, if I really can't live with it, I can always go with a delkovic set later. I have a feeling I'll be just fine with this setup though.
that's not so bad
that's not so bad
IMG_2298.JPG (96.82 KiB) Viewed 345 times
even less bad.
even less bad.
IMG_2300.JPG (88.98 KiB) Viewed 345 times
robin1731 wrote:I use the flat on mine. By the time you get the chrome shields on and the muffler mounted it doesn't look nearly as bad.
You're right Robin. anim-cheers1

I cut slots in the newly welded extensions with my hacksaw, and the inner weld area needed a little finessing with a grinding bit to get a nice fit with the headers. This pic is after the saw, and before the cleanup.
slots!
slots!
IMG_2297.JPG (97.26 KiB) Viewed 345 times
I am using a single layer of leftover wrap from my other bike as a gasket between the pieces. I ran a bead of high temp gasket goop around the header to "glue" it down. It fits perfectly snugly in my fabbed extensions now.

And I got my headers wrapped. They look okay. You can still see the dent in the one, but not as much as before. In the pictures the wrap is still wet. The color looks a little darker than I figured on, but I like it. The light colored wrap on the end is my "gasket"
that's a wrap!
that's a wrap!
IMG_2301.JPG (190.94 KiB) Viewed 345 times
My lower engine mount bar is the long one from the engine guard kit, so I had to adjust its position to get the header in place, but here it is mocked up. This is where the boss (SWMBO) needed to pull me out of the garage to perform other tasks. :roll: :roll:
almost there
almost there
IMG_2303.JPG (113.99 KiB) Viewed 345 times
As soon as I can get another hour or two in the garage, I will add the donut gaskets and finish tightening up the exhaust. At that point I will be able to try to fire it up.

(2) Harley chrome exhaust clamps - $19.80
total so far - $2715.25
83 GL650i parked for maintenance
79 GL1000 "Bad Idea" current ride
I do all my spannering myself

"There's no excuse for the things I'm about to do"
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robin1731
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#362

Post by robin1731 »

You say you put the wrap on wet. Did you start the bike then while it was still wet? That's what the instructions say to do. And get it good and warm.

.
1976 Goldwing Super Sport
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
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elwood440
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#363

Post by elwood440 »

no start yet. I just soaked it so that it would flex/stretch easier. I've not seen instructions to "cook" it while it's wet. If needs be, I can re-wet it when startup time comes around.
83 GL650i parked for maintenance
79 GL1000 "Bad Idea" current ride
I do all my spannering myself

"There's no excuse for the things I'm about to do"
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BikeMaine
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#364

Post by BikeMaine »

I wrapped mine last summer, the first 3 or 4 times that I rode it, they smelled terrible. So I recommend not to run it inside your shop for awhile.
Kevin
1982 GL1100A
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elwood440
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#365

Post by elwood440 »

FIRE IN THE HOLE!
alive.jpg
alive.jpg (74.67 KiB) Viewed 291 times
Lots of adjustments to make still, but it runs! After a bit of gas line priming and flushing with a squeeze bottle, it roared to life on the first try! I checked the exhaust temps with my laser thermometer and confirmed that all 4 are firing. As it warmed up, the smoke out the tailpipe was intense! Like a 2-stroke! That cleared up after a short putt around the neighborhood though. (of COURSE I had to ride it around before doing any testing :mrgreen: :crosso )

And the maiden voyage was an interesting one. I started out very gingerly, as you do learning a new bike, and (of course) by the time I got halfway around I decided to give her a blip of the beans.. Well that turned interesting, because it had started stumbling by then. It hesitated quite badly, so my wrist remained in the "go" position longer than it should have. By the time it caught, I nearly came off the back! :shock: Good gravy this thing can pull! So I came to my senses and continued on at a reserved pace. Then it stalled. I re-fired it and went a little further and it stalled out again and wouldn't re-start. By that time I was one corner away from the house so I just pushed it back to the garage... where I discovered that I left the petcock OFF! :oops: Well no wonder! I'm confident the next test ride will go better.

So anyway, next up is testing and adjusting. I plan to balance the carbs of course, as well as do the running charging system tests and make controls adjustments, but other than checking for leaks I'm not sure what else to check out. What am I missing? I plan to change the oil and do a compression test after a couple hundred miles. Is there a checklist somewhere of things to test?

I am just elated that it fired up without any head scratching. Gonna be knees in the breeze time soon! crossy.gif
83 GL650i parked for maintenance
79 GL1000 "Bad Idea" current ride
I do all my spannering myself

"There's no excuse for the things I'm about to do"
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Easter
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#366

Post by Easter »

Congratulations!! By coincidence I fired up my current project (81 CB900 K) last evening also. Didn't go for a test drive though, too rainy. Supposed to clear out tomorrow so we will see if anything else works beside the engine. Mine had been sitting so long that the cylinders were dry and had so much compression or resistance that I had to pull the plugs to get it to turn over. Thought my battery was bad. Finally started up and sounded good.
Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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ericheath
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#367

Post by ericheath »

Been a long time in the making. It had to have felt good.
Whatever I suggest here should be given ample time for a moderator to delicately correct. I apologize in advance.
77 WING, 1200 engine with 77 heads, cams, gl1100 foot pegs, Magna V65 front end, 764A carbs, [-gone Suzuki M109 monoshock--, replaced with gl1100 shocks] gl 1200 swing arm, gl1500 final drive, wheel and rear brakes Valkyrie seat, Meanstreak tank, Sportster pipes, Power Arc ignition off crank.
77 Wing. black
83 Wing, in pieces
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elwood440
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#368

Post by elwood440 »

ericheath wrote:Been a long time in the making. It had to have felt good.
It did. :-D It will feel even better once I get it all adjusted to my liking. I may start racking up the miles this year.
Easter wrote:Congratulations!! By coincidence I fired up my current project (81 CB900 K) last evening also. (snip)
Thank you, and Congrats to you as well!
83 GL650i parked for maintenance
79 GL1000 "Bad Idea" current ride
I do all my spannering myself

"There's no excuse for the things I'm about to do"
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elwood440
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#369

Post by elwood440 »

Fine tuning

I fired it up again yesterday and did a few miles around the neighborhood to get to operating temperature. Startup was like a mosquito fogger again, but went away again once it warmed up. I'm assuming that's pretty normal for the first few starts, but will be concerned if it keeps smoking this much. I will also be listening closely for knocking. (thanks Gord :roll: ) I first did a vacuum leak test with the unlit propane, and then I did a carb sync with a borrowed 4 cylinder balancing tool. The temp gauge seems to be working correctly, and the fan did kick on so that's that sorted.
IMG_2330.JPG
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#1 seems a little high still.  I fixed that after this pic.
#1 seems a little high still. I fixed that after this pic.
IMG_2331.JPG (133.19 KiB) Viewed 239 times
The tour of the neighborhood felt decent. It didn't pull as hard as I figured it would off the line, but by 4k it started acting like a rocketship. :mrgreen: Brakes work nicely, two fingers and one toe will throw out the anchor. And as a bonus, the rear shocks don't feel as bad as I thought they did. There is still a pair of Hagons in my future, but these will do for now.

The charging system checks out good, provided the regulator gets full voltage. It's overcharging a little because it's not getting full voltage at the moment, but I did find the ignition switch to be at fault. I do plan to upgrade the R/R to a modern one at some point, but until then I am looking at replacement switch guts. I already went thru this switch and cleaned and greased it and it's still got resistance.

So it looks like I'm going to buy some ignition switch guts and need to put a couple tanks of gas through it. After that, I will read the plugs, change the oil, re-check timing, valve clearance, compression, and re-torque head bolts.

It's looking good for spring.. :crosso crossy.gif :orange dancr
83 GL650i parked for maintenance
79 GL1000 "Bad Idea" current ride
I do all my spannering myself

"There's no excuse for the things I'm about to do"
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gltriker
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#370

Post by gltriker »

action1 tumb2
Cliff (74yrs ;) )

Keep your eyes and ears open and you'll learn something new, everyday. tumb2

New users please visit our "Shop Talk" for common tips and help: <---jdvorchak
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^^^^^^^click up here^^^^^ :oldies

RE: a thorough fuel tank cleaning
"And your carbs will thank you. They no longer live down stream from a sewage plant." -gregforesi tumb2
"Can't see the paint when your looking thru the handlebars..........." -Oldewing ;)
"I'd rather Ride than Shine" -RAT tumb2 Me Too!!

Cliff

'75 GL1000 home built trike; http://www.ngwclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=39996
October,2017 BOTM :shock: https://nakedgoldwingsclub.com/forum/page/Welcome

previous rides:
1953 H-D Servi-car, naked, 1969-1978 (serial#53G1559 committed to memory!)
1980 CB900 Custom (triked) 1997-2003 .... R.I.P.
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Sugs
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#371

Post by Sugs »

Awesome that you have her running, great job. If your oil level is a little high, that could be what's causing the smoke on startup. My '79 would do that until I made sure the oil level was just below halfway up the site glass.
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#372

Post by doubleminded »

looks fantastic
Future owner of a oldewing.#12 in my goldwing history.
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elwood440
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#373

Post by elwood440 »

Thanks all. anim-cheers1
Sugs wrote:Awesome that you have her running, great job. If your oil level is a little high, that could be what's causing the smoke on startup. My '79 would do that until I made sure the oil level was just below halfway up the site glass.
I just had that exact thought about 10 minutes ago. I was thinking how I spent a few minutes on the ground last night looking for leaks, but I didn't check the oil level.
83 GL650i parked for maintenance
79 GL1000 "Bad Idea" current ride
I do all my spannering myself

"There's no excuse for the things I'm about to do"
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BikeMaine
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#374

Post by BikeMaine »

Sugs wrote:Awesome that you have her running, great job. If your oil level is a little high, that could be what's causing the smoke on startup. My '79 would do that until I made sure the oil level was just below halfway up the site glass.
Agreed, If the oil level in mine is 1/8" above the level line on the sight-glass, mine will smoke on start-up too.
Kevin
1982 GL1100A
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Re: "Bad Idea" low budget build

#375

Post by Vermonter »

I had basically the same stainless steel headers, made by Mac I think. Mine also had dents like that. If you want to fix the dents, this is how I did it; I bought a Steel ball-bearing the same size as the inside diameter of the pipe and welded a washer to the ball bearing. I tied mechanics wire around the washer and fed the ball bearing into the pipe. I had a buddy heat up the pipe with a torch while I yanked the ball bearing through with a hammering motion. It only took maybe 5 minutes to completely hammer out the dent with the ball bearing.
1979 Honda GL1000 (bobber?)
1951 Chrysler Windsor Deluxe (Project)
1987 Toyota Blue Marlin Motorhome
1985 Toyota Pickup Custom Cab Dually
2017 Toyota Tacoma SR5 4dr longbed
2005 Honda CRV SE (Wifes)
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