And the worst I did find. Bone-dry bearings in the linkage had deeply scored the hardened steel bush/spacer/shaft that runs through them. And being from Cagiva, this part is nowadays ‘unobtainium’ - you can’t buy it anywhere. Spin one up on a lathe, then? Well, once the part is made the steel needs to be hardened - not something that’s really feasible in a home workshop, at least not if you want the part to last. Continue reading ‘Ep 14, Dremel on a lathe: Rear suspension overhaul part 1′
Author Archive for Waz
The winter months are a great time to catch up on bike maintenance, so I have finally removed the rear suspension from my Cagiva Elefant 750. I bought the bike secondhand a few years ago and was prepared for the worst when I finally got round to this task.
Nick and Pete from Team Garage Night on Exercise Autumn Wander
Here at Garage Night we’re between episodes at the moment. We nearly filmed one on bleeding Etienne’s DRZ brakes, but we started the night by helping BMW Noel with fitting a rear shock. He’s off riding Africa from top to bottom so the job had to be done.
The shockie job ran late, so we put the camera aside in the interests of getting both bikes finished and out the garage door.
We will get round to a brake bleeding episode. In the meantime, we’ve competed in Exercise Autumn Wander 2009 run by army blokes in the Salisbury Plain area. Here’s a video giving a decent overview by one of the other teams. Continue reading ‘What Team Garage Night did next: Autumn Wander 2009′
We did it! Mountain Madness 2009 is done and dusted, with Garage Night “satellite squad” the Mushman Candidates placing FIRST in the under-650cc class and 2nd outright on points.
Trent and Pete again teamed up with KTM rider and navigator extraordinaire James to produce an outstanding result - though scoring second overall for the second year running left them even more determined for outright victory next year.
Our not-so-hotly-competitive “official” entry Team Garage Night - myself (Waz), Richard and Etienne - placed 8th out of 14 in the over-650cc class.
Richard and I hadn’t ridden on dirt for years, and for the three of us it was our first outing as a team. Not making excuses - but it took us a while to find our offroad legs. Continue reading ‘Ep 13: Mountain Madness 2009′
Missed part 1 of our KTM fork conversion? Click here
This is it. After two years of theorising, trial and error, parts fabrication and emptied beercans, we’re ready to bolt the new forks on to Richard’s Beemer.
Last episode we discussed exactly what components we were using and the modifications being made to fit them up. This time round we’re actually installing the yokes, steering lock and stops, forks, wheel and brakes – everything that’s needed to get Richard’s “number one” bike back on its wheels.
Pete and Rich show off some custom bits that we made - a neat adapter plate set-up for the steering lock and a tidy steering stop that bolts up nicely.
As we post this episode, Horizons Unlimited Mountain Madness (the HUMM) is less than a week away, so Richard’s suspension will be getting a full workout as “Team Garage Night” (Waz, Richard and Garage Night apprentice Etienne) go up against about 150 other competitors, including last year’s second placegetters the Mushman Candidates - Pete, Trent and James. Continue reading ‘Ep 12: KTM forks on a BMW part 2′
We’re back with our much-anticipated special project: fitting a set of KTM inverted or USD forks to Richard’s BMW F650 Dakar.
Now that we’ve got Richard’s “number two bike” back on the road, it’s time to get cracking on “number one” - the F650 Dakar that he rode to Singapore in 2003.
While no.2 (also an F650 Dakar) is Richard’s daily hack, no.1 is the sentimental favourite because of its history. A while back Richard decided to turn it into something special and has been progressively getting things overhauled, powdercoated, polished and blinged up with stainless steel bolts.
But the big-ticket item is a set of KTM inverted or upside-down (USD) forks - the factory-fitted variety made by WP Suspension. Whenever we’ve mentioned this on ADVRider or other forums there’s been a big response - so this episode, where we explain the conversion, should prove popular. Continue reading ‘Ep 11: KTM forks on a BMW F650′
Garage Night TV has turned 10! Well, it’s our 10th episode, anyway. In this instalment, Pete replaces the rear wheel bearings on his Honda Africa Twin 750 - and gets a nasty shock when he finds what some previous mechanic has done in this department.
Sealed bearings. Great! They come from the factory with lots of lovely grease inside, and their own integral seals to make sure the grease stays in, and the muck stays out.
Right? WRONG! For me, the biggest revelation of this episode came when Trent popped open one of Pete’s new bearings and showed that inside was little more than a token smear of factory lubricant. So if you really care about those bearings lasting, it’s a good idea to check them - how to go about this is one of the numerous tips you’ll get by watching the video.
If there’s a lack of grease, you might consider adding some yourself. It’s not recommended to pack them solid, though, due to the possibility of overheating or hydraulic lock. There’s a bit of debate on this, but about 1/3 full of grease is one recommended figure. Continue reading ‘Ep 10: Replacing rear wheel bearings’
Watch Waz and Trent dismantle the wheel in Ep 3: Sand, heat and nipples and Episode 4: Wires, shocks and smoke.
A spoke wheel is a thing of beauty. Here at Garage Night, you can’t tell us otherwise. Cast wheels might be acceptable if you ride a road toad, but if you’ve got spokes, you’ve got class.
Just think, each thin metal spine is fragile on its own, but strong enough when laced together with a bunch of buddies to bear several times the weight of your bike when you’re full on the brakes, or keep your wheel from crumpling when you smash through a wash-out. And no matter how you try, for elegance of both form and function a cast or billet wheel can’t come close.
An old, neglected spoke wheel is NOT a thing of beauty, though - as I found when I bought a complete secondhand USD fork front end for my bike and discovered the seller had been less than honest about its condition. The Garage Night guys were never going to let me put it together in that state. So the wheel had to come apart. Continue reading ‘Ep 9: New spokes on an old wheel’
Missed part 1 of Chain and Sprockets? Click here
With the old chain taken off and consigned to the trash, Trent and Pete remove and examine the old sprockets, install the new ones and rivet the fresh chain in place on Pete’s KTM 950 Adventure.
Along the way, Trent discusses correct chain tension, the different ways a front sprocket may be attached to the countershaft, and why you should NEVER use a worn sprocket with a new chain - at least not if you want the chain to last.
Pete talks about how changing the sprocket ratio - in his case, the number of teeth on the front sprocket - has improved his bike’s driveability. There’s an interesting aside, too, on the possible negative consequences of going for a smaller front sprocket. Continue reading ‘Ep 8: Chain and sprockets part 2′
Trent and Pete are back from Mountain Madness 2008, and Pete’s KTM 950 Adventure is in need of a new chain and sprockets. It has actually spat out a couple of rollers - not something I have seen before, but an obvious sign of serious wear and tear.
You can really blow some money in this department by not keeping tabs on things. A chain that is lubricated and correctly adjusted will run smoothly with minimum wear. A dry chain that is too loose or too tight will not only wear prematurely itself, but move around on the sprockets and chew out the teeth.The sprockets will respond by putting further stress on the chain, since the teeth and the links no longer mesh properly, and you are into a vicious cycle that ends with you shelling out cash much sooner than you should have - or, worse, stranded by the side of the track. Carrying a spare set, are we?
It’s a key area of wear and tear on a bike, and especially a big trailie - so replacing the steering head bearings is one of the essential jobs you’ll have to come to grips with on a long trip, or just as a long-term owner. Pete’s KTM 950 came back from South America with knackered steering head bearings, and in this episode we show how to remove the worn-out ones, pack the new ones with grease and install them.
Most automotive and motorcycle bearings are in constant, full rotation during their life, so they wear evenly as they turn. But steering head bearings move very little when you’re riding - generally rotating just a few degrees side to side. This makes them particularly prone to uneven wear, especially if they are not kept properly adjusted.Think about it - you’re doing big miles, mostly in a straight line, over rough roads. Shock is transferred from the wheel, through the fork legs, via the triple clamps/yokes to the steering head bearings. Continue reading ‘Ep 5: Replacing steering head bearings’
Ep 13: Mountain Madness 2009
Ep 12: KTM forks on a BMW part 2
Ep 11: KTM forks on a BMW F650
Ep 10: Replacing rear wheel bearings
Ep 9: New spokes on an old wheel
Ep 8: Chain and sprockets part 2
Ep 7: Changing a chain and sprockets
Ep 6: Mountain Madness
Ep 5: Replacing steering head bearings
Ep 4: Wires, shocks and smoke
Ep 3: Sand, heat and nipples
Ep 2: Beads and bearings
Ep 1: Bikes, Blokes and Beer
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