$50 mod thread

[Wahoo650]

My uncle was a HUGE Vera Lynn fan- that's all you ever heard on the stereo at their house when i was a kid. He's been gone a few years now- good memories refreshed, thank you.

 

[TonUp]

No problem...for me, most of the charm of cafe bikes is the real and ersatz memories they evoke. A purist would scoff at someone sitting next to their CB550 listening to Vera Lynn (not the Pink Floyd one) on their iPod while parked at an overlook, but that works for me.

Alas, I'm wandering further and further away from the $50 mod thread...

 

[marla_do]

anyone have the instructional video for the stainless break lines mentioned here? what does X7', X2 ect mean? Thanks

http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=6496.msg178737#msg178737

 

[Swagger]

@marla_do: X7, X2 are the number of items.
eg: seven feet of bulk braided line, two banjo fittings etc.....

 

[GK]

Ok, dont know if it has been done before(haven't read all 71 pages), but this is a quick and simple valve spring compressor for the cost of a spanner and a set of C clamp locking pliers I had laying around the shed.
I cut the ring head of a 25/32 spanner (who uses that size? ???) and welded it onto the C clamp making sure that when the pliers are in the closed possy that the spanner head is square to the other end of the clamp and there it is, a locking clamp that holds springs down securely while you pop out the collets with a magnetic screwdriver (or your fingers if they are that dainty).
Took me about eight minutes to remove all collets and springs and more importantly will only take that long to reinstall without flying collets and springs all over the shed floor

 

[GK]

The best part is it is a one handed operation so you can use the other to take the pics ;D

 

[GK]

Ok here it is locked in position with the little suckers just waiting to be plucked out

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

And my addition of a cheap valve spring compressor for the recessed spring pocket on the Shim and Bucket style heads... Thanks to "FRANK" on www.CB750C.com
I was also worried about marring up the aluminum bore and saw where the 35mm film canister was used to protect it. Haven't see one of those in a decade!
I found Franks solution and located some scrap 3/4" PVC pipe I had that was just the right diameter.
First I cut a notch a little more than a quarter of the way around in a small 3-4" long piece and I had my adapter...

I was also worried about marring the face of the valve and had found a pop bottle screw on cap fits the pivot foot of the 6" C-clamp. So now I was all set.

With the cylinder head blocked on its side, I gave it a test and badda-bing badda-boom it worked like a charm. Very easily compressing the springs.

With the notch I had cut in, I had enough room to work. Used the "window" in the notched section to reach in with my magnet and out came the keepers.

This little tool is friggin slick! The only real input I'd give is to make sure you get the length right. You want it and the notch long enough so you still have room to work when compressed, but short enough to give you some slack once the C-clamp and valve spring tension is completely released. Also, when you use it, to put the "window" opposite of the cam journal adjacent to that valve to give you the most room to work.
Don't forget, once you have the springs out be sure to remove the steel seats. Most could be pulled out with my magnet, but a couple were held in by the surface tension of the oil under them. Put the magnet back in and using a rubber tipped blow gun and a quick blast of air loosened them so my magnet could grab them. PIECE-O-CAKE!!

 

[RoadRash]

Here's my cheap, ghetto welder's mask I did tonight. Those that ever bought one of these HF welders know about the "Mask-On-A-Stick" that comes with it. Lot of good it does when you have to weld with one friggin hand! SO I decided with a little elastic, some washers, rivets, and who can't forget duct tape, voila! Ghetto mask!:

 

[Lurchorama]

I just stumbled across this thread. My head is now swimming with a whole heap of new ideas!! Awesome!

 

[crazypj]

Ok, dont know if it has been done before(haven't read all 71 pages), but this is a quick and simple valve spring compressor for the cost of a spanner and a set of C clamp locking pliers I had laying around the shed.
I cut the ring head of a 25/32 spanner (who uses that size? ??? ) and welded it onto the C clamp making sure that when the pliers are in the closed possy that the spanner head is square to the other end of the clamp and there it is, a locking clamp that holds springs down securely while you pop out the collets with a magnetic screwdriver (or your fingers if they are that dainty).
Took me about eight minutes to remove all collets and springs and more importantly will only take that long to reinstall without flying collets and springs all over the shed floor

I like that enough that I'm going to make one for 360

 

[StoopidEngineer]

Here's my cheap, ghetto welder's mask I did tonight. Those that ever bought one of these HF welders know about the "Mask-On-A-Stick" that comes with it. Lot of good it does when you have to weld with one friggin hand! SO I decided with a little elastic, some washers, rivets, and who can't forget duct tape, voila! Ghetto mask!:

I've seen full-time welders in China use setups like this before. Sometimes they customize their cardboard "welding helmets" by drawing faces on them. If this works for you, that's great man, but if you're going to spend any real amount of time welding, I would really suggest you pick up a decent helmet with an auto-tinting shield. The first time you flash your eyes too many times with this thing will lay you up for a day or two, and if you miss work because of it, you'll wish you had just spent the coin for a real helmet.

But that's pretty hardcore man, and I definitely salute the get-it-done attitude!

 

[RoadRash]

How am I gonna flash my eyes with it? It's not like the lens falls off. Function no different than a standard welder's helmet.

 

[StoopidEngineer]

Even using a regular helmet (flip up, position/adjust, flip-down) for long enough periods of time usually winds up irritating my eyes, just because I always want to start my bead while I can actually still see a little bit, so I do the "close my eyes as soon as the arc starts, while flipping my helmet back down" maneuver, which still gives me two free hands. Yours just looks like it'd be ever harder than that to use because it doesn't flip, but if you can make it work, then more power to ya dude.

All I'm saying is that an auto shield helmet was some of the best money I spent when it comes to welding. If you like your setup, and want to possibly improve it a little bit, you can buy a replacement lens for an auto-tint helmet from Grainger (or Northern Tool) or whoever for like 8 bucks.

It's the same thing with wearing earplugs/headphones...the older the get, the more I become concerned about losing things like my vision/hearing.

 

[RoadRash]

Yeah, I use an auto-dark at work. Defintely handy and the moment one is in my budget, I'll be plunking downthe cash. For now, this'll tide me over.

 

[crazypj]

Even if you buy an expensive auto dark welding mask, your more likely to have problems long term as there is a delay before they go 'black'
I believe there is a cumulative effect on retina (I don't think any research has been done, too much money to be made selling them)

 

[RoadRash]

I agree with you. All those split second exposures have add up.

 

[ambiguous]

anyone have access to these pictures or another DIY for this?

get aluminum sheet not to heavy not to light - think bendable but not flimsy - $10-20
pop rivets - $2
3/4 inch foam - $5
upholstery vinyl - $14
poly glue - $4

1 - original seat base- cut off rear 1/4
2 - make sure to use cardboard for the templates on the rear section (don't want to screw up expensive aluminum)
3 - mark template shapes on aluminum for cutting, don't forget to leave extra to fold over for pop riveting
4 - pop rivet together
5 - cut down original seat foam to fit
6 - cover the whole thing in 3/4" foam
7 - make seat cover using vinyl best way is to layup paper over each section of the seat for templates again leaving 1/2" extra for sewing the pieces together
8 - steam the cover by throwing it in the dryer with a wet towel, it will stretch easier over the base
9 - start gluing the cover on starting from the rear and working forward. (i found bulldog clips best for hold fabric in place while drying)

now you have a seat that bolts right up to your frame for under $50

mine has a few ripples because i skipped the heating of the vinyl before mounting it...

maybe next time

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

No chemical tank cleaning for less than $50! 8)
http://www.customfighters.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53071

 

[patrickshofner]

wow....after reading every page of this thread (took me 2 days haha) i'm not sure about how much my wife will be seeing me this winter