Rat Bike Project

[willedoo]

The airflow in and out, but particularly intake air, has to take a lot of undesirable paths on a flathead V8 which restricts effeciency and performance. The trade-off is that it contributes to that unique sound they make. Cool sound at the cost of performance. Even stock standard they sound good. I think rodders mainly use them for looks and effect.

[facthunter]

The Main problem with Flathead motors is the Heat near the exhaust port cracking blocks and distorting the Cylinders causing excessive Cylinder Blow By and oil contamination. The Large combustion chamber area and volume makes them impossible to get High compression Ratios.  Nev

[willedoo]

This is an interesting video featuring an original, unrestored 1948 Indian Chief.

 

 

[facthunter]

It's not a good idea to Put a Bike like that back into use without a complete strip and Inspection> Fair chance you will damage it in some way. also the Indian Tooling was Worn out during WW2 and the Postwar bikes were not a good standard. They went broke a few years later with some badged English Made Bikes wearing the Name. The BLACKHAWK Bigger inch variant is quite troublesome but by some regarded as the one to Have. There was a "Brockhouse" Brave and various "Badged" Royal Enfields made at the  Redditch Factory Before they Migrated to INDIA . Later revived by Polaris Made Models..  Nev

[willedoo]

This bike build project will have to progress in tandem to the shed renovation project. Until the 6x6 metre workshop space is properly sorted not much mechanical work can go on. There's a fair bit of structural alterations needed in there. A few more steel diagonal braces will have their brackets relocated so shelving and benches will sit against the wall better. One set of braces will be removed and the timber frame wall between the steel upright shed poles will be upgraded to a bracing wall to compensate for the loss of the diagonal braces. That section already has a timber wall frame attached to the poles, which also serves as a wall for an attached 3x3 metre room, so it's just a matter of fitting some more tie down and adding bracing ply. If I put bracing ply on both sides of the wall, the kN of bracing should exceed the original diagonals.

 

In the short term, I've been clearing out the attached 3x3 metre room to put some shelving in to hold components for the bike project. As per the attached photo, the inside wall is unlined, so I'll insulate that and cover it with bracing ply, paint the wall, then put the shelves in. Before the shelving goes in, the adjoining wall at right angles to it (the one mentioned above) will have the corrugated iron cladding removed and be replaced with bracing ply (it's the rear side of the wall where the steel diagonals will be removed). In a fit of madness years ago, I fastened that corrugated iron internal cladding with roofing nails instead of roofing screws, so that's added a lot of extra work to removing it.

 

 

[Jerry_Atrick]

I have a question.. Once it is done, which of your helmets are you going to wear when riding it? 🙂

 

 

OK.. I'll get my hat and coat as well.. I'll shut the door quietly.

 

 

[onetrack]

He's going to wear his rat bike helmet - fitted with a German spike, of course.

 

[nomadpete]

I'll bet he's got just the right war surplus Russian ejector seat for it, too ...... ready to go!

[willedoo]

4 hours ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

I have a question.. Once it is done, which of your helmets are you going to wear when riding it? 🙂

 

[willedoo]

1 hour ago, nomadpete said:

I'll bet he's got just the right war surplus Russian ejector seat for it, too ...... ready to go!

They might not fit inside the copper boiler/sidecar body. There's a MK.2E Martin Baker (or part thereof) in the shed that might be narrow enough though. Sans headbox, but the main seat is there.

[onetrack]

Be assured, that helmet will protect you extensively on a rat bike - from spears and lances, of course. 😄 

[Litespeed]

Looks suitable for mad Max chariot

[Marty_d]

Put a bit of sheepskin inside the ear flaps and you'll be toasty in winter!

Re the ejection seat, might make the passenger nervous.

[willedoo]

I need to make up the inside part. At the moment it's just an empty steel shell and is like putting a bucket on your head. A mate of mine is a leatherworker and does a lot for the medieval reenactment fraternity that he's a part of. He said the inner liner is a stand-alone separate part and not built in like the leather strap harness style you see in some flight helmets.

[willedoo]

1 minute ago, Marty_d said:

Re the ejection seat, might make the passenger nervous.

Didn't 007 have one in the passenger seat of the Aston Martin, or am I imagining that? I remember it had the pop up bulletproof shield at the back.

[facthunter]

IF you were Roger Moore you'd need a Bullet proof REAR WINDOW in your DB 4 too. Nev

[Litespeed]

It was the Aston Martin DB5.

Don't worry the passenger will be nervous anyway.

 

[facthunter]

Not much difference in the look. Nev

[Litespeed]

2 hours ago, facthunter said:

Not much difference in the look. Nev

True but Sean Connery looked  the part, not Roger Moore.

[Marty_d]

Roger Moore (sounds like a porn star name) was the least "action hero" type of any Bond.

I think the best was the last, Daniel Craig. Some of the fight scenes, especially in the first of his, were excellent.

[facthunter]

Yeah Many of those  Film are pretty childish by todays standards. Some of the Music is good. I think it was by Paul Barry. Nev

[Litespeed]

I agree Daniel Craig, was the best action bond and a far more rounded character, not a shallow cad like Moore or  a more serious but still brutish and chauvinist Connery.

 

 

The best old Bond was in my humble opinion, is  George Lazenby a school mate of my dad in Goulburn.

Lived a block from each other, he was a playboy in real life and didn't play the studio game nor want to be stuck in a role. Pity he was offered to continue in the role for more bond films.

 

He was the Bond that was not brutish to women, showed his emotions and married only to see her killed at the end. 

 

Much more the Daniel Craig  character but back 50 years.

 

I am still a Connery fan but never saw a Moore film I liked.

[facthunter]

Connery is not a Bad actor at times. Nev

[willedoo]

The man who would be king is a good old movie. He was good in the hunt for red october as well.

[willedoo]

Picked up some ratty bike bits today. 2x 1984 model CBX750F Honda 4's. One assembled that's a potential runner and a second complete one in bits, motor with a stuffed crankshaft. There's bits and pieces there I can use and might part some of it out eventually. All the plastics and fairings are there (in the back seat). It cost bugger all.