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Aargh posted:For foam molds and shaping there's a blue foam we used for form studies and design mock ups back when I was at uni. It's really fine grained, it cuts and sands very well (though i imagine the airborne sanded bits are toxic as poo poo and ill be coughing them up for years yet). Unfortunately I've no idea what its called or where you would get it these days, a Google on foam and design and a few other terms should get you something pretty good. Blue foam is still just extruded polystyrene insulation foam. It probably differs depending on who the specific supplier is, but in my experience the blue foam is generally denser and more rubbery than the pink foam. Blue foam is softer, smoother and better for more detailed work; pink is rigid, cuts faster and doesn't clog sandpaper as quickly. They're both plain old EPS though and you can get both at Home Depot. EPS is chemically inert at room temperature, so if you inhale the dust you'll cough it back out eventually with no real health effects, but the gases produced when you cut it with a hot wire or burn it aren't something you should be breathing. Just for completeness' sake, green foam (florists' foam) is incredibly soft and grainy and shouldn't be used for anything but rapid experimental form studies, and white foam (like what your cooler is made of) is basically satan in extruded thermoplastic form. Sagebrush fucked around with this message at 01:00 on Jun 8, 2012 |
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Jun 8, 2012 00:57
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Completed a ride challenge for another forum.Halfrican posted:And the challenge is, throw your bike in the back of a truck/van, some sort of animal is in the picture on or around the bike AND the truck/van has to be parked in front of a food place. Grocery store, fast food, restaurant... you name it. gnarlycharlie4u posted:
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Jun 8, 2012 03:20
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^^^^^Stuff like this is why I don't play the riding game. It's more fun just doing my own thing on the bike than running around looking for landmarks or completing random as hell tasks. XYLOPAGUS posted:How are you tracking mpgs? I've been resetting my trip gauge every gas up for a rough average mpg on the ninja 250 and I'm getting somewhere on the low side of 50 - 60 mpg. My guess is the main reason for this is high winds in the area. I just plug my numbers into Fuelly.
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Jun 8, 2012 10:19
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Sagebrush posted:Blue foam is still just extruded polystyrene insulation foam. It probably differs depending on who the specific supplier is, but in my experience the blue foam is generally denser and more rubbery than the pink foam. Blue foam is softer, smoother and better for more detailed work; pink is rigid, cuts faster and doesn't clog sandpaper as quickly. They're both plain old EPS though and you can get both at Home Depot. The blue foam is just insulation board that is not from Owens-Corning because of their trademark rights in pink as a color mark for insulation. Insulation foam is pretty awesome for making shapes. Cuts easily, sands easily, and it's cheap.
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Jun 8, 2012 16:02
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Gnaghi posted:^^^^^Stuff like this is why I don't play the riding game. It's more fun just doing my own thing on the bike than running around looking for landmarks or completing random as hell tasks. Eh, when it's open-ended and you basically can look something up on Google Maps and then go on a ride you hadn't considered before, it's a neat idea. "Your bike in the back of a truck, with an animal somewhere, in front of a fast food place" is some kind of spergy RPG fetch-quest poo poo.
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Jun 8, 2012 16:20
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Sagebrush posted:Eh, when it's open-ended and you basically can look something up on Google Maps and then go on a ride you hadn't considered before, it's a neat idea. "Your bike in the back of a truck, with an animal somewhere, in front of a fast food place" is some kind of spergy RPG fetch-quest poo poo. Agreed. It was poised to be a threadkiller. Fortunately for me most of the miles my bikes have seen have been in the back of a truck, so I'm well versed in that area. Is this what it feels like to own a Harley? Today I (re)started a new project. http://gnarlywrench.blogspot.com/2012/06/launch-cancelled-motor-paint-no-go.html <- click for more/bigger pics     
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Jun 8, 2012 17:33
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:Agreed. It was poised to be a threadkiller. Fortunately for me most of the miles my bikes have seen have been in the back of a truck, so I'm well versed in that area. What grit did you use to prep the alum for painting? If you have scratch marks, you should be able to wetsand those out with some finer paper (800/1000/1500) before polishing.
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Jun 8, 2012 18:09
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Tamir Lenk posted:What grit did you use to prep the alum for painting? If you have scratch marks, you should be able to wetsand those out with some finer paper (800/1000/1500) before polishing. I media blasted then hit it with some 400 grit. I have 600/800/1000/1500 but I'm not sure I care enough about someone else's bike to spend weeks sanding it. Edit: the 1000/1500 is wetordry. I bought that for colorsanding the clearcoat. It's REAL nice. GnarlyCharlie4u fucked around with this message at 19:03 on Jun 8, 2012 |
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Jun 8, 2012 19:00
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Put 5 of the 8 pieces (4 side covers, fuel tank) of Becktastic's Zebra plastics on my DRZ. TODO: * Buy 6 radiator cover bolts to attach the "wings". (I had a 5 gallon tank before) * Swap out the yellow tail plastic for the white one. * Swap the yellow front fender for the black Acerbis one that came with the bike. * Enjoy owning an awesome Zebra DRZ without the guilt of feeling like a copycat. * Immediately feel guilt over the pins in Beck's arm that made owning * Get over self, Raise a toast, "Zeb's dead, baby. Long Live Zeb!" and enjoy once more.
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Jun 8, 2012 21:13
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:I media blasted then hit it with some 400 grit. I have 600/800/1000/1500 but I'm not sure I care enough about someone else's bike to spend weeks sanding it. What kind of media do you prefer for aluminum motor parts? I just started using soda media and had pretty good luck with it on cylinder heads. You do great work btw.
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Jun 9, 2012 07:18
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My parts finally came in Thursday, so Friday I did some wrenching. Here we see the cause of my 3 weeks of bikelessness. This belt had 14,300 miles on it. I tried to get a closeup, but it was a blurry mess. The whole length of the belt looked cracked and a bit dry rotted.  Please ignore the foot. I didn't get a pic before starting, but this is with the new belt on but the 3 covers, heel guard, and the swingarm cutout removed.  I was having a hell of a time trying to get it on until I backed the axle out more and remembered how I used to walk de-railed bicycle chains on as a kid. Revision H belt. My old one was an E. No clue if the newer design will equal longer life.  I also ordered a clutch cable bracket. The original was made of wire and one side had broken off.  The new bracket installed. Thanks goes out to Marv. The video he posted about Sportster clutch adjustment showed me how to slacken the cable to get this on. Before I didn't know there was an adjuster under that boot.  Old shifter rubber.  New hotness.  All buttoned up. They say on Buell specific boards that the belt can be replaced on the side of the road. While technically accurate, I sure wouldn't want to try it. 
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Jun 9, 2012 10:39
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velocross posted:What kind of media do you prefer for aluminum motor parts? I just started using soda media and had pretty good luck with it on cylinder heads. You do great work btw. I'm not entirely impressed by GnarlyCharlies finish, so I'll try to answer this the best I can. Sorry, Charlie  '70s and '80s UJMs aluminum engine parts are covered by some really nasty, hard and persistent clearcoat. Soda-blasting won't do poo poo to it other than somewhat polish the dings where the clear-coat is worn off. Sand-blasting it will do approximately the same to it, only difference is that it'll wear deep groves where the dings used to be. The only media I've had success with is glass. Glass-blasting will leave you a somewhat clean and even surface to work with, and it will blast through the clear-coat. De-grease the parts carefully before sandblasting. Then wet-sand it down to grit 800 and Dremel-polish it with Autosol or something similar and it'll look like a loving mirror. In my opinion there's no real reason to re-apply clear-coat. If you keep it clean and use a good wax-shampoo weekly, it'll stay shiny and sexy. For bikes parked outside and/or washed less than weakly I'd probably use some removable clear-coat like MotoPlast.
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Jun 9, 2012 13:12
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Gnaghi posted:^^^^^Stuff like this is why I don't play the riding game. It's more fun just doing my own thing on the bike than running around looking for landmarks or completing random as hell tasks. Our riding game is not nearly that specific, and the challenges are mostly things you can do while out riding.
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Jun 9, 2012 13:36
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velocross posted:What kind of media do you prefer for aluminum motor parts? I just started using soda media and had pretty good luck with it on cylinder heads. You do great work btw. I do what I can and hope for the best. I use two different sized grains of baking soda to blast stuff. @120psi I've not had trouble getting through the clearcoat on these motors, it won't take off any metal though. Protip: decide if you really want to paint BEFORE you rough sand everything or it's going to look like dick (see above)
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Jun 9, 2012 14:29
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:Protip: decide if you really want to paint BEFORE you rough sand everything or it's going to look like dick (see above) True, but clear-coat won't fix that. Wet-sanding at grit 800 and polishing with Autosol before painting will. GnarlyCharlie4u posted:@120psi I've not had trouble getting through the clearcoat on these motors, it won't take off any metal though. Looking at the first picture you posted, I'd say that's a loving lie
Sir Cornelius fucked around with this message at 14:42 on Jun 9, 2012 |
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Jun 9, 2012 14:38
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Sir Cornelius posted:True, but clear-coat won't fix that. Wet-sanding at grit FTFY and I know it won't. You missed the part where I said it's not my bike and my friend said to leave it that way, rough sanding marks and all. The motor I posted never had a clear coat. It was all black motor paint (cb750F) which was way harder to get off than any clear coat I've removed. The baking soda still made short work of it though.
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Jun 10, 2012 21:11
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Put the carbs back on, put 'er together, and warmed 'er up and went for a ride. Still running like crap at idle, but it's running and I can start diagnosing a bit more when I have some more time. Methinks the engine/carb boots are on their last legs anyway. Pro tip: these bike tire wrenches were super handy for the airbox/carb boots: 
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Jun 10, 2012 21:32
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Completed all my maintenance on the WRX. God this bike is easy to work on. I probably went overboard but at least now I know when everything was done (oil, coolant, brake fluid, spark plug, air filter). I made my skateboard wheel sliders, threw on a skidplate I got with the bike, flipped the horn so it doesn't look silly hanging off the bottom and dumped the mirrors for a "Third Eye" bicycle mirror. Turns out the Third Eye mirrors are the same thing as the Dual Star mirror but half the price. Also Dual Star never answers their goddamn phones so you can't get one anyway.    Afterwards I went for a ride and noticed the engine sounded weird as hell, like a howling noise. I thought maybe it might be the spark plug since a CR9EIX was in there instead of the CR9EK that's supposed to be, but it turns out it's the skiplate! Apparently they're notorious for reflecting the engine noise back up to the rider. I might end up taking it off cause it's pretty annoying, probably hell on the highway.
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Jun 10, 2012 21:48
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This weekend has been pretty nice for riding, which means it's also pretty nice for painting my buell.  The front cover is "done". Did it with hand tools only. No power sander or buffer. I plan to go over it once with a buffer on a cordless drill now that it's on the bike and I have something steady behind it. I am mid wet-sand on the airbox cover/"tank". It's not a perfect job, I messed up a couple spots right went I started with the clear, but it's way nicer looking than the old paint job. Acrylic enamel is pretty easy to work with and I think next time I try something similar, I can improve my results.
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Jun 10, 2012 22:23
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Did the valves, but I was too conservative and now they're super-noisy. Now that I've done it once before I think I can do it way faster next time, but it's a pain in the butt of a job and on my bike (SRX600) the valve inspection panels and engine/frame placement were designed by a sadist. I don't think I ever want to own a four cylinder bike, especially not one that uses shims. Lubricated the throttle cables, which was a bitch as the screw for the throttle housing had the consistency of chewing gum and it had to be drilled out after the head was ruined. This does make a nice, noticeable difference though. Replaced the steering head bearings. It does make a ton of difference, in fact the bike feels (delightfully) twitchy now. However, it's quite the job, solid day of work. I think I should have taken a more relaxed approach and just methodically taken everything apart, instead I tried to take shortcuts by taking off only some things, in the wrong order, only to have to remove the other parts anyway. In the end the actual bearing replacement wasn't that much of a hassle, but I was drat lucky that 1. the lower bearing race could be chiseled off the stem without ruining the dust seal and 2. that we found a piece of piping of the exact right size to hammer on the new one. Also replaced the front brake light switch, at least that was easy. Next up is front tire and wheel bearings.
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Jun 10, 2012 22:40
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Gnaghi posted:Afterwards I went for a ride and noticed the engine sounded weird as hell, like a howling noise. I thought maybe it might be the spark plug since a CR9EIX was in there instead of the CR9EK that's supposed to be, but it turns out it's the skiplate! Apparently they're notorious for reflecting the engine noise back up to the rider. I might end up taking it off cause it's pretty annoying, probably hell on the highway.
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Jun 11, 2012 11:08
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Yeah there are a bunch of things people have done, from duct tape to bedliner to dynamat. I just have to pick one.
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Jun 11, 2012 12:38
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Shot some paint on my second outfit for the bike. I am excited about the new nerd bait . . .    
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Jun 11, 2012 16:03
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Replaced the notoriously lovely 690 LC4 automatic cam chain tensioner with a manual one. Instant improvement on engine clatter! Unfortunately adjusting it made me realise that my cam chain and guides really need replacing. Also, one of my valves is out of spec, slightly too loose, which makes me wonder if the (also notoriously lovely) valve rocker roller bearing is nearly hosed. Ugh, I seem to have gotten to that point of the bikes life where every minor operation reveals something else to do.
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Jun 11, 2012 17:48
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Tamir Lenk posted:Shot some paint on my second outfit for the bike. I am excited about the new nerd bait . . . I don't know this symbol, and no Google results for "white winged sword on green background" and such. What is it? VVVVVV ah. I have literally never played any Zelda game. Sagebrush fucked around with this message at 17:58 on Jun 11, 2012 |
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Jun 11, 2012 17:56
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Sagebrush posted:I don't know this symbol, and no Google results for "white winged sword on green background" and such. What is it? ElMaligno posted:No its not Zelda, its WH40k. Dark Angels. Oh Warhammer, I'm an idiot. GnarlyCharlie4u fucked around with this message at 18:23 on Jun 11, 2012 |
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Jun 11, 2012 17:57
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No its not Zelda, its WH40k. Dark Angels.
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Jun 11, 2012 18:02
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Hah. One of the results, with a picture that looked kind of like that but reversed colors and more stylized, did say something like "I bleed Dark Angel green" and other WH40K fanboy crap but it wasn't quite the same logo. (no offense)
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Jun 11, 2012 18:07
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Put some Oberon bar end mirrors on the Bandit:  They're a bit smaller than the stock mirrors, but work really well because they're further out. And they look a hell of a lot better.
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Jun 11, 2012 19:28
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Gnaghi posted:Yeah there are a bunch of things people have done, from duct tape to bedliner to dynamat. I just have to pick one. Every few weeks a thread pops up in the DRZ section of thumpertalk along the lines of "HELP I INSTALLED A SKID PLATE AND MY ENGINE IS NOW MAKING THIS HORRIBLE SCREAMING NOISE". Apparently its both the engine noise being reflected off the plate, and the vibration of the plate itself. The DRZ dudes recommend dynamat, but I cant see why bedliner wouldnt work.
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Jun 11, 2012 19:33
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My luggage arrived! And a shot of the Uly with the greenified airbox cover on: 
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Jun 11, 2012 20:05
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Changed front tire today. Shop didn't have Roadriders so went with Sport Demon. Avon's marketing was true, the Roadriders area supposed to track grooves less, the Sport Demon hunted noticably more on poor surface. Made an absolute dog's breakfast of the swap. Rim is scratched to hell. After what seemed like a full day, the Sport Demon was finally on. Wrong direction. Fourth tire I swap ever do, second time I do that. Since there are only two ways to mount a tire, the data indicates I am just as good as a random monkey at this. Got 27,000 km out of the Roadrider, with still a few thousand left. Pretty decent value. Don't care much for the orks in space thing, but whatever the symbology it looks amazing! Ola fucked around with this message at 23:32 on Jun 11, 2012 |
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Jun 11, 2012 23:27
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My 4 year old helped me clean and lube my chain this evening. He spun the tire and I did everything else. Before shot. Maybe I should stop using chain wax and use oil like everyone else?  Here it is more or less cleaned with degreaser and omg WD-40!  Then I put on more wax because  It is covered better than it looks. 
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Jun 12, 2012 01:10
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Crayvex posted:My 4 year old helped me clean and lube my chain this evening. He spun the tire and I did everything else. Its hard to tell from that pic so you may have done it aswell but you don't need to spray the outside of the link plates, just spray the wax in between the plates and the link bodies, all you are lubricating is the o-rings. spraying the outside just attracts road dirt and crud to stick to your chain
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Jun 12, 2012 01:16
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New mirrors, not sure I like them. They are a little wide, but the visibility is much better. I have some Renthal bars on the way (Bikebandit shipping ). If they will work without bar end weights I will probably get bar end mirrors. Love them on my CB.Also ditched the wind screen that shot wind right at my throat. Edit: Those signals are pretty terrible. OEM  Aprilia  
BlackLaser fucked around with this message at 01:48 on Jun 12, 2012 |
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Jun 12, 2012 01:45
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echomadman posted:Its hard to tell from that pic so you may have done it aswell but you don't need to spray the outside of the link plates, just spray the wax in between the plates and the link bodies, all you are lubricating is the o-rings. spraying the outside just attracts road dirt and crud to stick to your chain
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Jun 12, 2012 01:47
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Ola posted:Made an absolute dog's breakfast of the swap. Rim is scratched to hell. After what seemed like a full day, the Sport Demon was finally on. Wrong direction. Fourth tire I swap ever do, second time I do that. Since there are only two ways to mount a tire, the data indicates I am just as good as a random monkey at this. Still haven't learned how to read an arrow, huh?
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Jun 12, 2012 01:56
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KARMA! posted:Still haven't learned how to read an arrow, huh? Hehe, the first time I could blame it on being distracted by you. Now the evidence indicates it was me all along. Thinking about painting an arrow on my tank so I can look down and be reminded which way is forward.
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Jun 12, 2012 08:34
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echomadman posted:Its hard to tell from that pic so you may have done it aswell but you don't need to spray the outside of the link plates, just spray the wax in between the plates and the link bodies, all you are lubricating is the o-rings. spraying the outside just attracts road dirt and crud to stick to your chain The wax does help keep them from flash rusting and looking like rear end
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Jun 12, 2012 12:46
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Ola posted:
Heh. I don't really play 40K anymore, but wanted to do a green bike and like to add random icons, gimmicks, etc. to my poo poo. Looking forward to pulling her up to the local game store and having my pick of blow job offers from all the sweaty neckbeards. Of course the true nerds will know to scold me for using the stock Dark Angels icon and green scheme on a motorcycle instead of the Ravenwing symbol on black. Perhaps there will be a fist fight? 
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Jun 12, 2012 16:50
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