Red: Cork

Used some cork to act as pads under the seat.

Red: Engine Mock Up

Had the whole afternoon to paint the cylinder jug.  Wasn't sure about the orange, but it actually seems to work.

Red: Brat Seat

Red: Slim Seat

Cut a new minimalist seat last night and topped it with one layer of foam (from an eBay package no less!).

Looks ok for a mock-up.  Next I'll have to add a thin sheet of metal so that you can actually sit on it.

Spares: Early Shift Shaft

Got the shift shaft from the same eBay seller where I got the Early case (it's from the same engine).  As suspected, the early shaft does not have the "shoulder" on it, and slides easily into the Early hole.

Also bought the primary gear for $5 and the seller threw in a (broken) kickstarter assembly.

Disassembled the tensioner guide for fun.

Red: Gold Chain for the Lady

Mounted the Late engine into the frame (went in much easier this time).  Added the new (used) front sprocket.  Stole the shift pedal from Viola.

Seemed to shift ok sometimes, but would hang up other times.  Though I later realized that I may be missing the 6mm washer for the roller guide.  Need to check that.

But even then, feels like the pins and the fork aren't quite "aligned".  Like the drum can get stuck in a place where the fork can't reach it.

Moved on to the chain.  Ended up breaking the chain 3 times.  Called Motion Pro to ask if they recommended grinding down the rivets and they said they did, just because it prevents overdue stress on the chain breaker.  So I used the grinding attachment on the Dremel and that worked just fine.

Finally installed the chain with the rear wheel at the #2 tick mark using 100 links.  Everything seemed to roll smoothly.

Garage: Chain Breaker

Got the new Motion Pro chain breaker and chain press tool.  Tested it on Viola's old 428 chain and it worked like a charm.  I did not grind down the rivet first but that didn't seem to matter.

Spares: Baked Crankcase

Was looking forward to swapping over the shift shaft from the Late engine to the Early, but got stymied by the fact that the shafts are not interchangeable!  The Late shaft seems to have a 12mm shoulder at the base, which is too thick to fit the hole in the Early crankcase (which is about 11.5mm).

So I ended up ordering the shaft from the same eBay seller that I bought the Early case from.  But then I figured I might as well try installing the countershaft bearing in the Late case.

Things did not go entirely to plan.

So I tossed the case in the oven at 200 degrees.  Meanwhile, I'd had the bearing in the freezer for a few hours.  Clymer recommends sprinkling water on the case to see if it sizzles, but it never seemed to get that hot.  Perhaps I didn't wait long enough - though Clymer could have given a "baking time".

After about 30 minutes, I thought I'd give it a try to see where we stood.  The bearing dropped in easily... but only halfway.  Then it stuck there.  Wouldn't go in and it wouldn't come out.  Clymer didn't mention this scenario.

So I put it back in the oven for awhile, tried again, still wouldn't budge.  Back in the oven, and then I got a bit desperate.  I used the cover of a thermos, which had the same diameter as the outer race, and tried to pound it in.

And amazingly, it dropped right in after a couple gentle whacks.  I got so excited that I flipped the case over to make sure it was seated... and it dropped right out completely!  D'oh.

I then tried to quickly reinsert it, but I guess the heat window was already closing.  Couldn't get it in.

Back in the oven, tried again.  Managed to knock it in askew, and now stuck again.

Finally gave it 30 minutes in the oven, then whacked the side that was out of balance with a socket, and finally it went in again.  Hope it's fully seated.

Good lessons learned.  Probably damaged both the bearing and the case.  Tricky operation.

Red: Lock It Down

I got a bit nervous knowing someone could jump the fence, open our now completely silent garage door, and basically walk away with the Red bike.  So added a new lock, just for that bit of extra security.

Spares: Early Engine Cleaning, Part II

Full frontal assault on the Early crankcase.