FH - another tiny part, and a list...

 A tiny part that takes hours to make mainly because I made it twice to get it right - the linkage from the brake lever to the brake light switch, made from a piece of 1.5 mm thick stainless steel.

So what's next? There's a few things I can think of at the moment:

1. There is a leak from the inlet side rocker box oil banjo, but other than that the engine is finished
2. The primary chaincase has no oil
3. There's a dummy secondary chain fitted, and the end of the FERC is not fitted (and nor are any of the grommets).
4. There's nothing restricting oil flow to the FERC, but apart from that the oil system is finished
5. The dynamo is not proven to charge; the instrument panel wiring needs reworking and the ammeter doesn't stay in it's hole but other than that the electrics are finished
6. The 1/4" screws retaining the clutch dome are either too long or are supposed to be fitted with shakeproof washers
7. None of the frame greasing points have been attended to yet, including the one for the new swinging arm bushes. Actually, the two grease nipples for the steering head are missing - not that they will do a lot of good, because the felt washers around the steering column are also missing!
8. The number plate has no numbers
9. The rear section of the rear mudguard is missing a bolt, and the hole it goes through needs enlarging
10. The front brake hasn't been adjusted
11. None of the fasteners have been checked for tightness
12. The wheels and tyres are still untouched

That's it for the moment.

Charlie's Shed - polarising the dynamo

 The need for this post arises because I have wired the Huntmaster negative earth. The dynamo that came with the kit is probably the original dynamo which of course will be expecting a positive earth system.

What's a dynamo 

A dynamo is an electrical generator that provides a direct current using a wire wound armature moving in a magnetic field following a principle discovered by Michael Faraday in 1832. It needs a mechanical commutator to turn alternating current into direct current since the rotating armature generates a current which changes direction as it moves through the magnetic field. An important principle as far as we are concerned is that the faster the armature rotates, the more voltage and current is generated by the machine. Similarly if the magnetic field strength is increased, the voltage and current will also increase.

How does it work 

In the motorcycle dynamos that we are looking at, the armature consists of a number of coils of wire wound around a stack of sheet metal shapes. The wires are terminated in a number of copper strips at the end of the machine arranged into a cylinder. The magnetic field is provided by a coil of wire wound around a suitably shaped metal structure fastened into the inside of the machine. The engine rotates the armature and a current is generated providing a magnetic field in the field coil. 

You will note that the magnetic field is provided by an electrical coil, and consequently you can imagine that the machine will not work unless that magnetic field is present when the engine starts. This is one of the issues we have to address. 

When the dynamo starts it is disconnected from the rest of the electrical system by the cutout in the regulator box and consequently won't start to generate electricity. In practice the field coil pole piece remains magnetized at least partially, after the machine was last used and we call this residual magnetism. This residual magnetism provides sufficient field strength to induce a current in the armature as it starts to revolve. Of course as the armature starts to revolve it generates a voltage which raises the field current which in turn increases the magnetic field, which allows a higher current to regenerated - and so it goes on. The voltage will carry on rising and in practice is limited by an external voltage regulator which takes effect by limiting current to the field coils.

Why do you re-polarise it

In a world where a motorcycle dynamo is perhaps not used every day, or the dynamo is moved from one machine to another perhaps having been bought at an autojumble or perhaps having lain around for a very long time since it was last used, it's functionality maybe compromised by a residual magnetism that is in the wrong direction also weak that it is virtually non-existent and the machine will not work. 

Therefore we need to have a method of generating that residual magnetism or changing its direction. Changing the direction of the residual magnetism might be necessary because you wish to rewire the machine for negative earth or perhaps because the machine for which your dynamo or specified rotated the dynamo in the other direction than which you wish to use it.

How do you re-polarise it?

Repolarizing the dynamo is quite straightforward and is just a matter of providing a current in the appropriate direction through the field coils. If you disconnect your dynamo, and provide a temporary cable from the battery terminal (that is not earthed) to the field terminal on the dynamo, you can repolarize the field coil by touching the wire on the field terminal momentarily. That should be sufficient to change the polarity of the residual magnetism or to generate it if it has seeped away. 

It may be that the temporary cable is not really necessary. Disconnecting the wires to the regulator reveals the green field coil cable and a brown and white table from the ammeter. This brown and white cable is actually a battery cable, passing through the ammeter from the battery full stop therefore touching this cable to the field coil cable should be sufficient to polarize the dynamo correctly.

FH - voltage regulator

 One of the jobs on the list is to make the dynamo work. During the wiring up process I decided to make the bike negative earth to allow for fitting of things like USB chargers and other modern accessories, on the basis that this bike will become the universal machine. To that end, the dynamo will need to be repolarized, more of which later.

Another thing that I need to do is to fit an electronic regulator to match the VRLA batteries I have fitted. The late Ariel four-strokes were fitted with a Lucas RB108 regulator, and we will replace the inside components of one of these with a V-Reg 2b from AO Services here in Norfolk.

First we remove the aluminium cover, bending back the tabs and pulling out the inner parts of the regulator:

There are two steps to removing these bits. First you can undo two nuts under the Bakelite board to release the solenoids. You will also need to remove a single screw that retains the frame of the regulator.

The next step is to cut the wires and links leading to the four terminals. It's easiest to cut these to remove the obstruction of the solenoids before you take a large soldering iron to the terminals and release the little bits of wire that are left. You can then open the terminals ready to receive the wires from the new regulator when it's time to re-solder.

The V-Reg 2b has a couple of options for retaining the unit to the base; there are two bolts supplied which fit neatly into the old solenoid holes. The next job is to route the wires to the appropriate terminals and solder them up. I like to use an old-fashioned wire lacing technique to make a small wiring harness inside the unit. The lacing is wax coated linen thread tied with a clove hitch and reef knot to hold the wires together.

All that remains is to put the cover back on and close up the aluminium tabs as best you can. Alternatively you could use some hot melt adhesive to hold the cover in place.

FH - getting there

 A few minutes in the workshop moves the project on a little bit: the speedo drive locating pin has arrived from the AOMCC gearbox man:

It fits in this hole:

A look at the carburetter reveals that the float chamber gasket is actually there, but that the drip shield is a little distorted and a bit loose, which probably caused the spitting back. The main issue, staring us in the face (and highlighting the perils of long-term projects) is that the carburetter needle is still in the box of bits!

The engine idles now.

By the way, I have changed the 210 main jet to a 260:

A couple more problems are revealed - the inlet rocker oil banjo is loose, and the magneto earth button doesn’t work. The inlet banjo is an easy spanner job; the cutout requires a bit more investigation.

FH - a little more progress, and a big step...

 Well there's been a little bit more progress today. First off, I've finished the second of the finned exhaust clamp bolts:

Secondly I've been talking to people in the club about tyre sizes and whether I can get my desired tyre (Avon RoadRiders) in the size that I want. Having a look at the distance between the tyre and the chain guard reveals around 3/8" to 1/2" but also that this tyre, an Avon SM Mk11, is actually a 325-19. The front tyre, a Dunlop TT100 by the way is a 90/90-19 or 3.60-19. They are both from the 1980's.

I am hoping to buy Avon RoadRider tyres but unfortunately they are not available in the right sizes for this bike. The options appear to be to use a 100/90-19 for the rear (Avon's recommended replacement for a 350-19) and a 325-19 (original size) or a 90/90-19 for the front.

The next bit of progress is very small - it's just a P clip for the front brake cable. I've attempted to adjust both brakes but right now the front tyre is in the wheel clamp.

Lastly and very quietly and secretly I have hooked up the temporary fuel tank to the carburettor and started the bike. Unfortunately it will only start using Easy start, but at least it starts and runs. There may be some problem with the fuel supply or with the float bowl. It runs and returns oil and it runs nice and quietly so now I know that I have the HT needs the right way round, and the oil system is working properly, and the valve timing is correct and the ignition timing is more or less correct though it does spit back through the carburettor.

I think we'll have to wait 'til Monday to have another chance at it, but sleeping on it and looking at some of my pictures suggests that the float bowl gasket is missing. This will give you an air leak in the pilot fuelling circuit...

FH - exhaust clamps

You might remember that I brought some exhaust clamp screws from Draganfly that were the wrong size - my fault not theirs. One of the jobs I have on the list is to make some new ones and that's what we're going to do today.

The clamps are 5/16" CEI and have this 45 degree feature on the plain side:

I bought some 0.445" 303 stainless steel hex bar to make some new screws. The picture below shows the first one, prior to parting off:

I put the prototype screw in place to determine how long the hexagon needed to be in order to get access for the spanner, marking it with a Sharpie:

Here's the finished screw, parted off, faced off and provided with a tidy chamfer:

Lovely. Fitted with a dose of Copaslip.

I just need to make another one!

FH - head steadies

 A couple of hours in the workshop yesterday saw a few little jobs closed off. This was the worst:

Access is not easy, but the secret is a short open spanner.

The head steadies are now fitted with full size 5/16" nuts, which entailed lifting the rocker box (twice) to get them in.

Next up was the timing side footrest, which wasn't fully tightened up - doing that enabled the exhaust fitting to be completed on that side, with the exception of the finned clamp.

I fitted the speedo cable, to find that the locating pin in the gearbox was missing. The AOMCC gearbox man has them available.

I spent a while poking around under the instrument panel, where the ammeter has lifted out of the position and the cable routing is poor:

I've almost fixed these problems, but the ammeter is still out of position and the wire from the lighting switch to the dipswitch is too short; the feed from the ammeter to the indicator relay is badly routed and consequently too short, and the indicator relay terminals are almost impossible to reach.

The instrument panel is going to have to come off again.

FH - speedometer

The chronometric speedometer that appeared with the FH kit is definitely not Ariel – I was told it is from a police spec AJS Model 31 CSR! The rim has a 3/8" piece removed from it which looks very tidy, definitely not a bodge – maybe it’s to allow a police workshop to remove the rim for recalibration easily? I have no idea if it works or not. 

So – in order for it to become a S467/195, which I believe it needs to be to suit my ’58 Huntmaster/FH, it will need:

• An overhaul, including resetting to zero
• A new dial
• Probably a new rim.

Lastly it looks like the male thread for the lamp is spinning in the case – I guess it was swaged in or something, so that will need sorting out too.

As usual, I sent it to Russell Smalley at Chronometric Instrument Services - he's done all my speedos since the SQ4. His quality of work is excellent and very fairly priced.

It came back in about a week, thoroughly packaged:

It's got a used dial and needle, so that the appearance is in keeping with the odometer wheels. It's had a mechanical overhaul, new seals and rim, and a new bulb holder thread swaged in to the case:

Here it is going into the dashboard:

There's a stainless bracket I made for the indicator relay - which in this position makes it fiddly to fit the cable. I think there will be a bit more development needed here! 

FH - inching closer...

 The day seems to have disappeared again without too much workshop time but at least I've got a little bit done. 

The choke cable is now terminated to the right length, with a new nipple at the carburettor end. I didn't have the flat nipple that goes into the lever unfortunately and I didn't fancy making one on the lathe but I did have a little tiny one that goes in the choke slide.

There's not much to see here but at least we have a throttle slide and a choke slide that move independently of each other and don't have any slack in the cables.

The next little job is to make a couple of 5/16 CEI bolts to retain the finned exhaust clamps. Here I'm reducing some 0.445" stainless hex bar to the appropriate diameter for the bolts I need.

They're going to have a chamfer feature where they mate with the clamp - here is the chamfer on the clamp itself. When I have cut the thread on the bolt I will work out what the height of the bolt head above the clamp face needs to be:

That's all for a bit. I've got a 10-hour turn on the railway tomorrow which won't finish until after 11:00 at night, and then my grandchildren are coming for the weekend. Hopefully we will get the speedometer in the post either tomorrow or Saturday, so they'll be plenty to play with next week. I'll order the V-Reg2b voltage regulator as well, so we can convert the RB108.

FH - finishing the clutch

 Grabbing a few moments in the workshop, sorting out some knobs for the wardrobe I was able to give the FH a little bit of time clearing up the deck of the hydraulic lift and terminating the clutch cable. 

Over the years I've accumulated a collection of nipples and ferrules for cables along with a couple of adjusters and other bits and pieces which I keep in this little box.

The first job when terminating the clutch cable is to fix the pear nipple to the gearbox end, clamping the bare cable in the die and mushrooming the end, with the nipple in place of course.

You pull the nipple down to the mushroom the end of the cable holding it in the vise nipple down. Then you can use a large soldering iron to heat the nipple, dunk it in flux and apply some solder. Don't be tempted to use a gas torch because you will overheat the cable and ruin the temper. Probably the first time you will find out about this is when the cable breaks at a traffic light or while you're sitting behind a car.

If you are sparing with the solder you can make a nice little job without any extra work. You might need to run a file over the end of the nipple in case you've been a bit enthusiastic with the solder.

Hopefully you haven't got any solder on the shank of the nipple, stopping it fitting in the clutch lever.

I terminated the lever end at the handlebar with a brass nipple because I didn't want to use the diecast zinc nipple that was supplied with the cable. I have no idea whether the cable was properly terminated inside that nipple or not - perhaps I should cut it apart and have a look. 

Here's the bike as it stands today - I'm going to have to buy a new clutch dome or at least replate the original one shown here. For some reason the screws won't tighten down on the dome - it appears that they are a fraction too long or are expecting to use shake proof washers.

FH - little bits

 A short visit to the workshop today got a few little bits done. I've removed the oil tank and fitted a bolt into the seat base above it, and I've tightened up all the seat parts now so that is secure. Unfortunately in putting the oil tank back I cannot refit all the earth cables - I will have to remove the toolbox again to be able to get to the bolts. I do however have to order the voltage regulator to rebuild the RB108, so that will entail removing the toolbox.

Tidying up the bench I did manage to find the inspection cap for the gearbox so I have given that a bit of a polish on the wheel and refitted it.

I've terminated the HT cables and fitted the plugs so they are ready for first start - so that's oil, sparks, compression and a kickstart. All I have to do now is bolt the carburettor in place properly with some gasket sealant and I will be able to connect up a temporary fuel supply and give it a kick. 

This next bit is the rubber cable tie for the front brake. It doesn't fit properly because my mud guard with its repairs is thicker than was originally intended so what I've done is to increase the width of the groove in this rubber piece, so it should now fit.

The last bit today is just to record that the frame clip behind the oil tank has a new half inch long bolt specially made to complete the fitting of the oil tank.

FH - rear brake linkage

 Another little bit of progress today, the brake linkage has been reassembled after a bit of a struggle. It's good to know that you can actually get the lever and the linkage hooked up without taking the footrest off, and that without taking the exhaust off. 

It's quite apparent however that there is an awful lot of friction in the system. It has to be said that I have not lubricated either the cable or the brake lever, but the bell crank has been greased. The other point to mention here is that at some point in the not too distant future, these parts will all need to be plated.

 We'll see how we go over the next few days.

FH - where are we again?

Doesn't she look great?

  A few weeks after the last catching up post I'll write another one. It might be a bit boring for some but it's very useful to have a list of where you are and what you've got left to do, especially as there are some tiny things that get forgotten very easily - for example I've put the new gearbox inspection plug on the rocker box, and now I can't find the rocker box inspection plug...

I’ll summarise where I am in order to work out what to do next:

1. Engine: the engine is basically finished. Ignition timing is done, the oil lines are connected up and I have done the circulation on the power drill and proved that the lubrication system works properly. The next step is to finish the head steadies for which unfortunately I have to lift the rocker box slightly in order to get the nuts on. Thinking about this again, I just fitted the drive side exhaust and I'm well on the way to fitting the timing side exhaust and both of these interrupt access to the head steadies...
2. Oil System: the lubrication system is working as I said but I've realised the oil tank will have to come out because one of the seat bolts is missing; and actually the oil tank isn't bolted in properly. There's also a small leak coming from the return filter.
3. Fuel system: carburettor needs gasket sealant and the air cable shortening.
4. Ignition system: HT leads need to be terminated into their caps, and the plugs need to be screwed in.
5. Gearbox: so today I have put the kickstart case back on as you will have seen in a previous post, but I seem to have lost the inspection cap. I need to fit the gear position indicator, fill the gearbox with oil and solder a nipple onto the clutch cable but then we'll be done.
6. Clutch: I'm fairly confident that the clutch is completely finished, apart from fitting the dome.
7. Chains: primary is in, tensioned but not oiled; secondary has a dummy fitted.
8. Exhausts: the timing side is fitted but the drive side is still loose. Both of the finned clamps need to have screws made up on the lathe.
9. Electrics: the electrical system is more or less working with a couple of exceptions. The instrument panel is waiting for the speedo to come back from Chronometrics, the battery is still wired negative earth while the dynamo has not been flashed to suit. The voltage regulator enclosure still contains the original RB108 components which will need a modern conversion to suit the VRLA batteries.
10. Control Cables: the throttle and front brake cables are finished; the air cable needs the nipple moving about half an inch and the clutch cable needs both nipples replacing and the inner cut to suit.
11. Wheels & tyres: these are parked until the machine is running. I might have a look at the front brake shortly, just to clear it out before I am tempted to ride the bike around the yard!

That about sums it up. Cables next?

FH - replacing the kickstart cover

 We are inching ever closer to starting the engine now; the timing case screws have all been cleaned out (and shuffled around in some cases - the 'medium' and 'long' screws are only 1/8" different and a couple were mixed up) so we need to get the gearbox together.

For the record, the rather mangled mainshaft tab washer is bent up against the flats and the 5/16" ball is fitted with the correct pushrod and mushroom, lubricated with Morris K400EP:

The kickstart cover components are assembled, though in this shot the spring is not tensioned:

Here we have the levers fitted, spring tensioned and the levers wired together:

The next step was to turn the cover over and apply some Wellseal to the gasket face. I stuck the gasket to the Wellseal, and applied some more to the gasket. Because I'm using oil in the gearbox, I'm going to ensure that there is some grease around the main leak path which is the speedo drive in the bottom of the kickstart case. I've applied some Morris K400EP to that area slapping it in all around the gears before fitting the outer kickstart case. 

There's no pictures because this is a bit of a two-handed activity but suffice to say the gearbox cover went on very easily - much more easily than is typical with a BA or CP gearbox. In this next picture it's all screwed down with the new Acme stainless steel screws. 

It's looking great and I'm very pleased, though I'm a little bit concerned that the kickstart spring needs another turn.