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Actually it's pretty good. The factory steering stops match up to the trees pretty well. I suppose I could pinch my thumbs if I wasn't careful, but the bars don't actually hit. (the forks do come really close to the tank at the front, though...)
I managed to finally get the shock mounts welded on, and finished welding the gussets all the way around... My rear rim is trued up as well, but I'm having some trouble trying to lace the front hub up to the new rim... Hopefully that's just down to me suffering from sleep deprivation and being delerious, and once I get caught up on my sleep it'll resolve itself.
That's it for now.
So.... After trying to lace up an 18 inch YZ250 rear rim, and then a high-shoulder 18 made for an XS650 front hub (which should be identical to my TX500 front hub) I have come to the conclusion that my spoke set, also from MikesXS, has to be mismatched. The inners are too long, and that leads me to believe they are for a 19 inch rim. I hope I am right, and that I can get the right ones in exchange..... (or alternately, that I'm just putting the Damn thing together wrong and don't have to exchange anything... )
FINALLY! With a little help from Big Rich, I was able to figure out what I was doing wrong, and finish lacing up my front wheel. It's all together, and all the spokes fit! Now I can move on.....
Today I busted out the grinder and got busy, starting with the neck. I used the stem from the Hyosung trees to protect the new lower race while I ground a little off the bottom. That way, the lower tree didn't bind on it when the bearings were tightened up. Mission successful. I also decided the fork lock needed to go. Now I just need to fill the hole it left....
Since I had the grinder out anyway, I removed the sidestand from its original location, so now I can put it where I need it, so it holds up the bike but doesn't get in the way of my shifter.
Just for shits and giggles, I cut a tray for my electrics out of 3/16" thick aluminum, while I was working....
That's all for now!
Thanks, DreadRock! It means a lot coming from you, your bike is awesome... Seriously, if you get the itch to fit USD forks, the Hyosung forks are a really easy swap. Damn near made for it...
Not much to report, and no pictures right now, but I threw a coat of black paint on the swingarm, re-mounted my sidestand, and picked up some LED bar-end turn signals. Working on getting the frame painted, but not finished with prep yet. I have a few spots that need welding yet, and I ran out of wire, so maybe this weekend I'll start clinking some more paint. Later.
I had my best friend over helping me out with the re-assembly of the engine yesterday. Things took an interesting turn. It seemed to be going well, but when I started torqueing down the cam caps the intake cam seized. As long as the last cap was loose, it was free, but once that last cap was tight, the cam wouldn't spin. After a very thourough examination, I discovered a speck of dirt. The cam and saddle are both galled. A little emery paper and all is good, right? Nope.
Cam still won't spin. Nearest I can tell, the cam must be bent, or the rockerbox tweaked, or something. So I'm just going to replace the whole bollocks. On the plus side, all the valve seals are now viton, and all the valves are lapped.
Stay tuned!
I bought a new camshaft to see if that was the root of my problem. It was..... Partially. The old intake cam locked up solid. This one spins, but it's still tight. So now a rockerbox assembly is on its way to me. If that doesn't solve the problem..... I'm burning the fucking thing.
In the meantime, I also bought a trucklight LED headlight, a Danmoto gauge.... And this:
I'm tired of having a bike in the garage and not being able to ride. So now I can. And when the TX is done, I can sell it.
Yeah, sorry.... The whole busted motor thing really got me down.... I'm so close, and I am just shy if making it out to Road America for the AHRMA races.... So I guess I wasn't in a picture-taking mood. When I pick the new bike up, I'll be sure and show it off.
The Danmoto gauge arrived from China yesterday. Still waiting on the LED headlight lens, and the rockerbox.... And my front wheel is sitting at my brother's work, where I had the true done. Pretty much the only things I need to buy yet are tires/tubes/rim strips, and a muffler of some sort, and it's time to start final assembly. No hurry now, though, as I have the Hyosung sitting in the garage ready to ride. I missed my goal of the AHRMA races next weekend, so looks like I've got a new target of the Rockerbox gig in August. Cake.
Got a few more things in the post today! First off, the new rockerbox assembly. As soon as I looked at it, I found out what the problem with the old one is- the cam caps are numbered to keep them from getting mixed up. Guess someone didn't get the memo. All the caps on the intake side are duplicates of the exhaust side.
My LED headlight bulb showed up, too. If it looks familiar, check out p71sohc's build thread and you'll know why. I'm thinking of trying to find an rxx/2 series BMW style shell for the headlight and gauge, but the stuff I've found is really pricey.... Maybe I can find a fiberglass or plastic re-pop, or mold a gauge opening into my stock headlight shell...
That's it for now....
First time I've slowed down enough to take a pic of my new bike since I bought it. My buddy Jake, his fiance and I are up at the AHRMA races at Road America for the weekend... What a way to start the day. Progress on the Yamaha will continue when we get home.
Dreadrock, it's really nice. Power is great around town, but I gotta admit she struggles a little over 80..... Heh. Not that it should matter.... Braking is awesome, though. Suspension is really good, too. Obviously I like it, it's the same bike the front end for the Yamaha is off of. Lol.
I kinda forgot, too, I did have a little update... This is the LED headlight behind my rock guard...
Oh, and thanks brad! Lol. I like to think everything looks better from the seat....
I took this pic while I was up at Elkhart because it gave me ideas on how to mount my headlight. Since my new forks are 51mm in diameter, I can't think of any better way than to make up a tubular (or round-bar) mount right off the trees. Let's see how this turns out....
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