Winter projects anyone?

mschmitz57 said:

Were the HR tanks all fiberglass or did they make them in steel as well?

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Late Hi-Rider tanks were steel.

ashman said:

I don't get the chance to do winter projects here as we can ride all year round :lol: but thats is why I have 2 on road bikes so when need to do anything on my Norton I still can ride my Truimph Thruxton around while the work is been done, but I have just brought a lathe and milling machine for my workshop and will be making a set of alloy rear sets for my project bike (1960 Manxman Caferacer) and maybe some alloy triple trees, just got to find some billet alloy.

Ashley

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Hey Ashman

I wish I was back in Brisbane sometimes. I do miss the great weather. It's not winter projects here but summer projects. When the temp get close to 50 deg C in summer, it's just too hot to ride. winter is perfect weather and some great roads...

Dean
Aussie in the U.A.E.

Ride ,ride, ride. My poor Norton has languished for a couple of years now. I got rid of the wuss BMW so am going to go through the Norton to make sure all is well. Check valve clearances, oil in primary, and plugs. Ream out idle jet with the new .016 drills I got. I have about 6 of them affixed to toothpics and 1/8" dowel rods of various lengths. Squirt some oil down the rocker boxes to lube the cam a bit as I have an oil cutoff on there now. Battery seems to be up. Check tire pressures and I am ready to roar off. I put a new Michelin rear tire on some months ago and all new rubbers on the pegs. Looking forward to it but I am sure I want to add a period Avon or Northway fairing to keep the wind away. The one thing I really enjoyed riding the BMW was the wind protection. Here in the bay area, winter is my favorite time for riding. I am good down to about 55 degrees. With a fairing less. The weather has finally turned and we are getting nice 70 degree days now. We certainly need rain but all we get are teaser storms. We only get about 15 inches of rain per year. Everyone let their lawns die this year.

A. - get yourself an electric vest. Extends the season a lot , between 100 and 150 $ , if you need the luxury of dialed in heat. But the best no-brainer part for Brit bikes is it is not polarity conscious. Hook to battery with a bleedoff wire that is fused and enjoy the warmth at only 2 watts draw. Even a stock Norton can handle that. :wink:

Electric vests are great, but a 2 watt model might not cut it. Mine draws 35 watts and worked well Thursday on a late season 380 mile ride from Vancouver to Lillooet BC and home. You probably mean 2amp draw or 24 watts? That still seems a bit low but some vests may be in that range.

Glen

Yes , correction : 2 AMP draw. Use 2 this time of year ,one for the wife with dial switch for heat level.

mschmitz57 said:

J

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That looks like a High Rider tank. Were the HR tanks all fiberglass or did they make them in steel as well? I really like the proportions of the tank/seat. Very cool. The HR tanks were reminiscent of the Atlas tanks.[/quote]

LAB is correct ,I think. This steel HR tank came from the US already powder coated with repro side panels I had painted to match. I read somewhere that some Atlas tanks were only 21/2 gal they I think would be similar. This build came about when I was visiting my mate Ronnie ,a commando man for years, and we were larking about with a frame and an old HR tank and we thought a white seat would give it a "continental look".
Sadly Ronnie died suddenly earlier this year in his mid fifties.

J

Although not a Norton my winter project is a 1969 BSA Firebird Scrambler that I bought this past Spring, just like this one won-bsa-yahoo-t9523.html. All powdercoating and new zinc plating is done and reassembly is almost complete. My first BSA and compared to a Commando a little more complex and archaic in design IMHO.

Still fun to do and will add to my Brit bike collection.

Winter projects? The missus just ran the rototiller out of oil. "It stopped running, and now makes a funny clicking noise when I try to start it!" :roll: It's a good thing I really don't have anything planned for the Norton!

Nathan