604 replies to this topic

[johnR]

Gearbox temporarily fitted to block and timing backplate painted.  I put the clutch together and tried the duplex sprocket on the crank for size. It's a tight fit so I suppose when it comes to aligning both sprockets l'll need to heat it so I can get it off again to shim it if necessary as when fully in position I'm not sure I'll be able to get my puller behind it to remove it.

 

 

As no-one seems to be able to identify the washers/shims from my last post I can only assume they're not mini components at all but in that case it's a mystery why they were with the other parts! I didn't want to bolt everything together only to have to take it all apart again to fit them somewhere in the depths.

[GraemeC]

The crank sprocket shouldn’t be that tight - is it an easier fit if you remove the key?

[jonlad]

Lovely looking engine and box!

 

Mine was tight, though it wasn't duplex, I found that if I span the key round 180 degrees it sat down in the slot better and the sprocket would go on easy.

 

Worth a try!?

[johnR]

Couldn't move the key but with running it on and off a few times it's easier and I can lever it off with a screwdriver so now waiting for the shims to finish the timing chain.

As you may have noticed in the problems section I had an issue with the SW5 cam binding caused by the ballbearing that caps the internal oilway being a fraction too far towards the end of the cam and contacting the oilpump drive tang.  Grinding the end of the tang a little freed it off. 

Now I need my clutch casing and rocker cover back from blasting and the head back from machining and we're not far off!

[johnR]

Clutch casing and clutch fitted, vented rocker cover primed - cant decide whether to go with traditional green or satin black as I have on the 998 at the moment.
I've re-checked the diff pre-load and in fact it's fine at about 001" - I guess tightening it all up settled everything into position fully reducing the gap I was measuring before.
There appears to be a slight issue with my head - it has been skimmed by .070" at some point and we are struggling to get the CR down to 10:1 - nearer 11 atm.
I need some spring washers for the wok bolts and the shims for the crank sprocket to arrive to move forward now.

[Vinay-RS]

What about wrinkle black? It looks rather period but also slightly modified.

Any more pictures of the bike in the background? Looks pretty cool (also I know nothing about bikes ).

[johnR]

Yes I do like the look of wrinkle black - just that when I tried to wrinkle paint my heater panel it didn't come out very well at all - operator error no doubt!  Bike is 1975 R90s that I bought in 1980 - great useable classic, 125mph, 0 - 60 4.8 secs, can cruise all day at 100mph. 

Edited by johnR, 10 April 2018 - 08:33 PM.

[Vinay-RS]

Love it! That bike is beautiful. 

 

Yeah, I had a similar problem when I tried to use wrinkle paint the first time (I also made the mistake of choosing the coldest day to try painting a rocker cover). The second time around I placed it in the oven before starting, between coats and after painting it. The rocker cover looked pretty good at the end. 

[johnR]

Having fitted the timing chain I started to check the cam timing but found several factors making life difficult - first of all the assembly lube means the followers don't drop as the cam lobe does and have to be pushed down and secondly because the pushrods lean against the side of the block channels it's difficult to get the DTI directly in line to get an accurate reading. Am I missing a trick to do this?

Edited by johnR, 12 April 2018 - 11:48 AM.

[johnR]

Looking at videos I think my Dti is a bit spindly for the job - MiniMania's seems capable of holding the pushrod upright as the pointer is almost the same size as a rocker adjuster - think I'll look out for a tophat shaped piece of plastic that I can use to centre the pushrod.

Edited by johnR, 12 April 2018 - 12:02 PM.

[GraemeC]

The end of your drive does look very fine.
You could wait until the head and rockers are on then measure off the valve spring top hat?

[johnR]

yes I did consider that - but I imagine with the valve springs in place it will be more difficult to make fine adjustments to the positions of the cam etc

[GraemeC]

I don't think so - especially if you're using a long enough bar to control it.

[johnR]

I decided to leave it to the experts and took the engine in to the guy who's doing the machining - the head will be ready next week.
The 123 dizzy with 16 pre-programmed settings seems to be the one most people recommend, then I need to decide on the air filter system for the twin carbs and the exhaust. Meanwhile the car failed it's MOT on failed steering rack boots (Unipart, 10 years old although only on the car for 2 of those)not enough water from the pump up Mk1 windscreen washer and some emissions adjustment required.

[johnR]

Fresh MOT obtained, although I still need to work on those washers - might have to change the hand(finger?)pump for an inline electric one.
Then because the MOT station is in the middle of nowhere accessed by muddy country lanes I had to wash and polish it then tuck it away again because the weather has returned to being shitty.

I spent a pleasant half hour listening to mini videos trying to decide what exhaust to go for once the new engine is ready - I think the RC40 single box side exit has the edge atm - I realise I might get fed up with the noise on a long trip but it can't be anywhere near as bad as the Cobra the mini replaced was on open pipes!

Edited by johnR, 18 April 2018 - 07:57 AM.