Sidecovers

Arai helmet

Found this helmet yesterday in a country town.
Kind of fitting considering the original colour scheme of my 71 bonneville.

Loud pipes save lives

All this work and all this money has left me a little disappointed.
It dawned on me this morning that the sound of the bike is pissweak. What's the point of having a british twin, let alone a rebuilt one if it sounds like a bloody honda.
On the way home I dropped into see Phil and get some oil when he said "you know the main problem with your air filter.... is your bloody mufflers. They are really restrictive".
That was it, I went back to the workshop and grabbed the old thunder-tubes.
Awesome.
I am stuck between really really loud sausages, and really quiet dunstall replicas. I wonder if it is possible to de-baffle the dunstalls, or add some kind of baffle to the bangers.
The Dunnies are all welded up and I cant see any way in.

Finished.... For now

Head on Collusion

Just didn't have enough oil in the tank.
All seems ok in that dept now.

Today I torqued down the head and fitted the rocker boxes.
Having a double thickness head gasket made gettign the right squash tricky. I ended up with about 1mm with the bolts finger tightened down.
I am guessing the double gasket will squash maybe twice as much as the single, so hopefully there is enough pressure on my orings by the time I have re-torqued the head down.
The 71 has black orings at the top and squared white seals at the bottom AS WELL AS big red orings inside the tube.

Chainguard is on.

To go -
torque rockers down
attach rocker oil feed
fill gearbox
carbs on
new throttle cables on
attach speedo cable
attach and adjust clutch cable
adjust clutch
tank on
pipes on
kick the bastard

spring has sprung in Melbourne

engine in, chain on, wheel aligned, electrics connected, breathers setup, pegs on.... and oilways connected.

I have primed the case with 120ml oil as well as filling the return tube. The tank is full.
The head is not on yet.
When I operate the kickstart lever by hand (on the lift) oil bubbles up out of the return tube, so I guess the scavenge part is working.
Currently searching the forums for a static test for the intake part of the pump.
So far found a very recent one by GPZ saying to 'crack' the dome on the relief and hope for oil dribbling out. I tried this by hand and had no luck. I had to leave and open up my bar, so I will try again tomorrow.
Spring is in the air around here so I am hoping to be on the road again soon.

GAME ON MOLES

Ok, the head is in the building.
no more excuses, it is time to get it together. I got more bits and pieces done while waiting on the head, such as re-mounting the ignition switch, replacing brake switch, etc etc.


For now the bike will run without any stock sidecovers. The early oif (oil in frame) came with a 2-part side. Half air box and half just a tin cover. There are oldy worldy style fibreglass ones availablebut for now the naked look will suffice.
Tomorrow the engine goes back in the bike and the hed goes on. can't wait.

Early triumph

Today I picked up the head from Bryce at Early Triumph (Upwey, Melbourne).

Normally sticking exclusively to pre-unit Trumpy's, he was kind enough to guide me through and project manage the required outsourced machining. Having him send the work out to his favourites, pick it up and check all tolerances was a great boost to my confidence.
Dion, in the middle of shot, is working on a ratty pirate bobber, and is getting the engine completely rebuilt.




Me, Dion and Bryce

Moving ahead

Stator Stuffed

Next I inspected the stator, only to find it had been shredded at the back by the primary chain. Got a new one today.
It looks like the previous owner had not put the primary engine sprocket on fully (it was a very tight fit), resulting in the stator being too close to the chain. It also would explain why the rotor spacer was missing.... leading to the answer to the question... "why was the rotor spacer in the clutch along with the clutch spacer?".
Clearly it was left over so someone assumed it had to go into the clutch.

EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF THIS FUCKING BIKE HAS BEEN BODGED
and I am making it all new again. Cheerily. With a grin and a laugh. and a wallet.

Oil pump pic

Cranky and calm

Yesterday I picked up the bits from the machinist. As it is my first British rebuild I found a perfectionist pre-unit rebuilder who helped me farm out the work to his favourite perfectionist machinists.
The crank is a work of art... where me holding it is a student in the gallery and the vibration levels will be the gallery curator. We shall see.
The barrel is lovely looking. The machinist refaced the case-contact surface and corrected a cockeyed previous bore. In his words "this was done on the piss" (drunk).
Today I put the new bearings in and did a test run putting it together. Mainly to make sure I had all the case bolts.
 When they say bag and tag everything, for fukcs' sake listen. I put everything in little tubs with the sound knowledge that it was damned obvious what they were for. Let me tell you, I had a very big 80's, a wild 90's and gave the early naughties a good nudge. Short term memory is not my forte. What was I saying... ?

Oh yeah.
Me and Wes. I have a rebuild DVD from Wes at four aces. He is definitely the man. I play it over and over while I am working. I find it gives me confidence and really helps me picture stuff learned from the manual and parts books. Even how hard to hit a drift or where to point the blowtorch. Stuff you would take for granted if you were taught this stuff by an expert. Definitely a must have for the first time builder. fouracescycle.com

Sludge

Here's the contents of the sludge trap (oilway in the crank).

drumroll please - about to start the engine build

 

• The barrel is bored
• the crank has been blueprinted and dynamicaly balanced
• The conrods are on, the head is due on Monday.

I have

• scrubbed the cases
• replaced seals, bearings etc. 
• rocker boxes rebuilt.
• replaced 3 worn and broken gears
• touched up the frame paint
• flushed the frame/oil tank
• replaced oil lines and breather hoses
• replaced rear brake shoes
• added a rectifier/regulator to replace zener etc.
• straightened and painted the footpegs
• had plunger gear selector detente added to replace leaf spring type.
• sewed a patch on my jacket
  

LET THE GAMES BEGIN

All I have to do is assemble. The pricey stuff is paid for. The tolerances are (hopefully) perfect. The parts are ready. I have a fully equipped workshop, a haynes manual, an owners manual, a parts book and even DVD. I have rebuilt many 2-stroke motors including a custom racing Vespa. All this and I am still a bit nervous. I think it is probably the time invested as well as teh cosy of replaceing pistons that make the possibility of engine failure so terrifying.
Stay tuned for the good stuff in the coming week....

Me

Dirty and the dark lord

Plunger

I got the local triumph legend to drill and tap my gearbox case for a plunger type gear shift detente. In his words "you can't do it. Bring it in"
$135 for labour and peace of mind. You only get one go at this.
UPDATE; looks like a fuckup as the angle is off and the plunger tip just hangs on the edge of the camplate. Now i will have to totally strip it and have it welded up....then start ll over again.
VERY PISSED OFF RIGHT NOW

Peggy sue

Footpegs are wildly different in length. Can't logically see why the right one would be an inch further forward than the left, so will tentatively declare another rediculous bodge.
UPDATE
WELL I NEVER......it is norml and stock. still a bodge as far as I am concerned. Just a factory one.

On the bus

It is the first day of spring and o am riding the damn bus.
When I get the stuff back from the machinist I will be taking a bit of leave to put humpty back together.

The frame

Gears

New shoes for the dark lord

The old ones had plenty of meat. They were just in the wrong way. No surprises there.

A mixed Box and an Over-tyred kid

This is my last grumble about the cost of this stuff. I promise. Today I discovered some interesting stuff about my gearbox. I am typing down what I currently understand (or think I do) before I forget.
Ok, here goes. Please comment or email me with corrections.. derek at astralyte dot com dot au

IN the late 60's the company Quaiff built 5 speed gearboxes for triumph. Truimph bought the rights in early 70's and proceeded to make a very crappy version. Gears too narrow, hardening shite, etc. These are called a-series 5 speed boxes
. In June 1971 some T120's were released from the factory with 5-speeds. the engines and frames were stamped T120RV. Some say they don't exist. Some say there were 2-300 made to allow them to use them in 'stock' races. I have one of these bikes.
These boxes were blowing apart withing sight of the showroom and made redundant after 2 years and replaced with the b-series. Due to the general shiteness of the a-series very few remain as they have long since been replaced with b-series boxes.
There are many interchangeable parts, as the mainshaft is pretty much the same. The layshaft is different and can only accommodate a top-drive (5th) gear changeover. There are different levels of updates available, but none are my concern... YET
You can probably guess by now the great news I got today. Being a bit of a murphy's law magnet, I couldn't have guessed the crazy combo.
Mainshaft seems normal. Absence of serial numbers on most of the gears means They are (I can't remember now) probably quaiff or custom made????
The Third Main Gear with no remaining case hardening has 18 teeth. This is odd as the matching laygear still has the correct number of teeth. It is also suss that the mismatched numbers are on the same gear that is worn beyond the case-hardening. Perhaps mismatching has worn it, OR it is a custom gear that was NOT hardened as well as the genuine ones.
The third Layshaft gear is marked only with a small X instead of a serial number. This could mean it is a custom gear, or maybe has had the teeth re-profiled to fit the 18 tooth main 3rd.
The layshaft, driving Dog, 2nd, 4th and fifth are all A-series gears, which is diabolical news. To set this right (really and completely) will cost up to a thousand dollars.
In the meantime I have sourced a genuine B-series Main 3rd to replace my worn out custom one. I will assemble it and assess whether the profiles still match. On the bench my lay-3rd rolls ok with the other gears, so there is some hope.
I have also ordered a B-series lay-5th (high drive) to replace the chipped one. This is a straight change over. (famous last words I know).

Tomorrow I count ALL the gears as I have just realised that it may have a custom close ration conversion. Doubt it tho'.




Buying parts can be upsetting at the best of times, but when you have a kid with you the opportunity to pick the brains of the triumph guru goes out the window. Here's one solution....

Macgowan gears

3rd main has worn through the case hardening and the 5th lay has a chipped tooth. That is at first glance.
Just found out the cost of gears. Fark. !!!

SHOPPING - taking the plunge

The cost of rebuilding these things is phenomenal. Every little parts order seems to cost another couple of hundred bucks.
Today I bought clutch cushion rubbers, a couple of seals and a gear selector plunger setup. I decided to change from the leaf spring system that Triumph not so clevery adopted for a couple of years in the early 70's.
I am told the thing will change a lot better and have far less neutrals with the plunger system. I will take pics of the process.

Cleaning cleaning and more cleaning

Amazing what we do with our leisure hours on a Saturday. 8 hours of scrubbing parts and cases.
Today I ...
Stripped the clutch and inspected the cushion rubbers (see pic). Cleaned and did a 'practice' assembly with new friction plates.
stripped, cleaned and tested the oil pump - AOK.
stripped and cleaned the rocker boxes - awaiting o-rings to re-assemble.
stripped the oil pressure relief valve and the oil pressure switch.
cleaned and blew out the oil junction thingy.
stripped and cleaned the timing side cover.
Replaced the kickstart shaft and cotter pin. Unfortunately the cotter pin drives almost right through the hole. This is weird as ALL parts are new. Most odd.
cleaned out the oilways in the cases.
soaked and cleaned the primary chain.
Soaked the big chain.
Gazed at the empty frame wishing I could ride it.

My wife calls me lathey

I have to confess that I have had a lathe for 12 years and haven't used it... until yesterday.
My centrestand mounts were elongated by around 2mm, so I had to make bushes for them.
The first task was trying to ream out the holes. This proved difficult as access is impossible from either side. I welded a length of 8mm rod to a 9/16 drill bit, then tapered the bit at the blunt end up to the weld. I was able to then feed the drill bit backwards in the opposing hole then fit to the drill. Worked a treat.
Next I dusted off the old lathe and use a bit of logic. Drilled through the centre first, then put shaved a bit off at a time until it was 14.3mm. Used a parting tool to cut it off and bob's yer uncle.
Tapped in nicely. These were meant to be practice ones as I am not sure the correct internal diameter required. New bolts are on order as the old ones are all kinds of fifferent sizes depending on where you measure.

I also put some weld on the 'stopping point' of the stand then ground it back, replacing some worn material.

Sludge trap trapped sludge.

As I stated earlier, the sludge trap appeared to have never been opened, despite having had two top end rebuilds, a bottom end job all in maybe 100000 miles.
Well, the crank oilway was so restricted the bike was DEFINITELY on the verge of a stroke.

RIGHT NOW

my first post in the present.
Summing up.

cylinder - at machinist
head - at machinist
Crank - at the balancer
the rest - on my new lift (the scooter one proved a little small for the triumph, and I wanted air-hydrailic anyway)
clutch - seems ok, but i have new friction plates ready to go in. Tangs on steels seem ok. Ordered new rod. The square ended studs were very lightly tack welded on. As the welds were small (and two of them broken off) I will clean them up and pretend they never happened. I made a cutch screw tool by welding a washer to an old screwdriver , then linishing half of it off. easy.
centrestand - my big chance to sort this out. Today I found the holes in the frame very elongated, the contact seats worn away, the spring bent and the whole stand bent. Still deciding what to do about all this. I 'unbent' the stand (I am a blacksmith of sorts). I will explore making bushes to go into the frame holes, and reface the contact seat on the stand itself. nything to avoid welding onto the frame.
Fuel tank - I should strip it back and sort it out, but I won't. No time.
Gearbox - Look, the thing changed through the gears alright, so I am going to reasswemble as-is. Welcome comments as to "while you are in there you really should...." One third of one tooth on one gear is chipped.
Carbs - have alredy sorted out a pair of very well refurbished carbs . 930 concentric Amals. hand made slides and remachined air screws.
Rocker boxes - will clean up a bit and replace o-ring. That's about it.

big End

not too bad.
Despite all the talk from a p/o about rebuilds etc., the sludge trap appeared to have never been tampered with . Centre punch mark intact and not a mark on the screwdriver slot. The small ends have never been changed despite several re-bores, and the con-rods were on backwards. I am told this is not that relevant but does indicate that they have been removed at some stage.
The machinist reckons we may stay in spec on the journals as the ridging is very very shallow.
both crank bearings seemed fine. I cleaned them out thoroughly, lightly oiled them and they were smooth as.
I have ordered new ones anyway. Seems like the right thing to do.
cam bush movement is negligible, so they will stay.

The gearbox sprocket was a 21 tooth and each tooth resembled a surf wave. I have ordered a 19 to put back on. Normally I would have stuck with the long gearing to reduce vibrations at higher revs, but I have sent the crank off for dynamic balancing, so I hope to enjoy the best of both worlds sometime this year. I also expect to leave Marcus' 71 bonnie in my dust, but that is another story.

that all pretty much brings the story into the present tense. Tense being the operative word as I reassemble this beastie.......

Today I looked at the centrestand

What a mess. Pic of klaus. El presidente.

Sometime you gotta make a stand.

The top end came off first. It looked surprisingly fine with no scores, cracks or holes. Just carbon, and plenty of it. Upon further inspection I found the following. ....
Bores larger near the top
Ring gaps as big as 1.5mm. (should be 0.24) This to me means the wrong ones were installed and confirmed the dire need to pull the whole motor down.
Small end bushes very sloppy.
Valve stems tapered
Valve guides conical.
Valves were sealing very well.
One bent head bolt
One stripped rocker box bolt hole (in head).
Blue silicone inside the top of head around the valve stems.

I made the decision to get the head done professionally, and get the bore done with new pistons, rings etc.
MEANWHILE...... the big end awaits inspection.

In bits

The rise and fall of the dark lord as a daily ride

The bike ran ok. Pretty rich and not super powerful, but coming off a 150cc 50 year-old scooter it seemed pretty good.
In an attempt to tune the carbs up I rejetted, changed air filters to old style, changed to milder pipes, rejeted again.... I ended up getting some accurately re-machined amal 930's with hand made slides. Very nice, but still fouling plugs and backfiring.
A friend brought in his Bonnie of hte same year to my workshop for me to change his oil and his kickstart shaft. I rode it and was amazed at the available power. Meanwhile, with the quieter pipes, I could hear some whining sounds coming from my engine when hot. Power loss when hot led me to the fear of a spun main bearing or soft seized piston.
TIME FOR A REBUILD..... to be continued . Below is an example of the first Bike I owned. MIne was a very rough example that I used in the dirt only from 1982.

Initial findings

Testing the blog from telephone thing.
Things I had to do immediately.
1- change all fluids
2- replace front wheel. A p/o had bashed in a lh thread locking nut and cracked the hub.
3- New battery
4- rebuild forks, handle bar mounts, clutch cable, clutch mechanism, speedo mount,
5- steering head bearings
6- reline fuel tank to stop leak
7- front brake cable
8- rear brake shoes
9- replace blinkers
10- rewire switches
11- align rear wheel.
More when I remember ....

starting at the beginning

1988 - I am getting around on a yamaha XT 250 and decide that the Triumph bonneville is my dream ride.
1989 - I am getting around on a Suzuki Gsx750es and test ride a chopped and raked 59 thunderbird. Cant afford the asking price of 1800 bucks
FF>> many years and I am getting around on a 1959 Lambretta, have another 1962 Lambretta tv175 and two rare vespas. I own and run a classic scooter repaor workshop in Collingwood Melbourne, Australia.
I speak to a mate in a cafe and he tells me he wants an Enfield Bullet. I explain how I have always wanted a bonnie but could never keep up with the rising costs. As I am saying this the epiphany kicks in. Next day I sell two vespas and start looking for a bonnie.


MY BONNIE (the dark lord) was sold to me sight unseen from rural queensland. The seller had no knowledge of it but put me on to the guy who had it for 25 years up until two years ago. He sounded like he really knew his stuff and was very enthusiastic about the bike, the rebuilds, etc.

I bought it and had it shipped down to Melbourne, and so the story begins.....