Amazingly, it's 5yrs ago this month that i started this blog site. At the time i thought it a good idea as i was finding it so difficult to find information about building drag bikes.
Both my bike builds are fully documented on here and hopefully someone has found it useful. That would make it all worth it!
Those who call in here with any regularity may have noticed there has been a lack of updates recently. That's largely because i've hardly been to the cellar and hardly touched the bike since it broke at the last meeting. Other than the thwarted attempt to put the 1260 engine together for the summer nationals very little has happened. The 1260 build came to halt due to not having 2 extended tappet adjuster screws. I had borrowed them from that head to put in the star racing head which was away being welded. Unfortunately we had spent several hours putting it together before realizing this.
The summer Nationals meeting ended up being affected by strong winds and on raceday all the bikes only ran over the 1/8th mile, so i'm not that disappointed i missed it. Plus i didn't fancy our marquee blowing away - again! The downside i guess is losing the points lead, and having a chance to get the rollover prize money. That was won by the uber consistent Phil Leamon who beat Harold Wolfenden in the final.
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| Water cut GSX1100 base spacers/gaskets - any thickness approx £20 |
Of the stuff that has been happening, well hopefully i'll be picking the fully repaired Big block, and big valve head up from Roger Upperton at the weekend. On the way i'm calling off to pick up yet another GSX1100 i've bought. This will bring the total to .... erm ... well i think i've lost count but i'd guess at 6 or 7 in the past 5 years. But i recently counted my collection of gearboxes and was surprised to find i have 9, so maybe 6 is a bit conservative.
I also bought a GS750 bottom end very cheaply a few weeks ago. I thought it useful for the oil pump gears, and the straight cut crank and clutch gears which ill keep. the remainder is being sold on eBay.
Water cutting has been back on the agenda recently too. I had the base gasket CAD files i posted on here a while back cut, one out of 1mm and one out of 2mm aluminum. I wanted to check the fit before having any more done. the verdict is they fit perfectly.
Base spacers or gaskets can be cut, with any bore size or offset for very reasonable prices. If you need one or cant find the right size then contact me as i should be able to help. bikerphil@gmail.com
Next up for wattercutting.....
I've had a new back wheel cut out of thicker and stronger material. The old one wasnt made from the right material and was a touch on the thin side for peace of mind. The new one is 6082 T6 @ 19mm thick and I've added radius's to corners where before there weren't any.
It's not too bad ... but not a lot different to all the others I've had. I pulled the engine out at the weekend and dragged it off back to the cave. The rest is making it's way onto eBay. There are one or two good bits, like Dyna coils with silicone leads, and brand new shocks, chain and air filters.
On the way back from collecting it i picked up my freshly blasted cases, which have also been bored for the big block. As it happens i also acquired a boring head for the mil so that's now another task i can undertake myself in future .... not as though I'll break these cases .... they look far too nice!
