I'm not sure if this will be a trophy bike or not, so I'm just entering it in the JFF class. I'm sure I'll be asking lots of questions -- like how the jackshaft comes apart if that stupid little pin won't come out...
Capguncowboy's 1970 Rupp Roadster - JFF
I'm not sure if this will be a trophy bike or not, so I'm just entering it in the JFF class. I'm sure I'll be asking lots of questions -- like how the jackshaft comes apart if that stupid little pin won't come out...
Luck is one thing -- Money is another! I've been stockpiling parts for the past 2 months (most of which aren't even in the initial picture). I'm about tapped at the moment and still need to get a few things from BlackWidowMotorsports. Hopefully, I'll have the frame stripped down by the end of the week. I am still torn between powercoating and paint, but I'm leaning towards paint so I can try out my new gun. I might get a buddy to help me with that since it's my first attempt, and I hear metallic is more difficult to spray than non-metallic paint.
I like paint versus powder coat because I can do it myself. It is more satisfying to me. If you use a 2 stage product you won't have to worry about it being metallic to much. There are no big panels to paint, so overlap isn't much of an issue. The base goes down almost like primer. observe flash time between coats (2 or three of base and clear) and you'll be good.
A painter once showed me a trick to know when the next coat goes down. Get a piece of scrap tubing or a body panel and shoot it when you start painting. After a few minutes, touch the spare panel with the tip of your finger. When the bike is ready for another coat, you will just leave a finger print and there won't be strings of paint from your finger to the test panel. This insures all the solvents have left. This tip alone has improved my painting more than anything else. Also don't paint when the humidity is more than 60% or so.
Good luck with the money deal.
A painter once showed me a trick to know when the next coat goes down. Get a piece of scrap tubing or a body panel and shoot it when you start painting. After a few minutes, touch the spare panel with the tip of your finger. When the bike is ready for another coat, you will just leave a finger print and there won't be strings of paint from your finger to the test panel. This insures all the solvents have left. This tip alone has improved my painting more than anything else. Also don't paint when the humidity is more than 60% or so.
Good luck with the money deal.
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It's actually an NOS from a seller on ebay. I bought a used arm and he couldn't find it, so he upgraded me to this one. Awesome guy for sure
I ordered 10 sample powder coat colors yesterday, including a few different shades of metallic orange, green and blue. A local shop gave a really good quote for the labor and offered to do the tank and tons for free, so it looks like I'll be going that route.
Is supposed to be a little warmer this weekend so hopefully I'll be able to get some work done
I ordered 10 sample powder coat colors yesterday, including a few different shades of metallic orange, green and blue. A local shop gave a really good quote for the labor and offered to do the tank and tons for free, so it looks like I'll be going that route.
Is supposed to be a little warmer this weekend so hopefully I'll be able to get some work done
I got my color swatches from Prismatic colors today. I am still torn between powder coat and paint, but this cured my decision making ability for original color vs custom color. Here are the samples I got:
I'm leaning towards one of these three colors, with the light green being my least favorite. I have plenty of time to make up my mind though. When is the deadline again? :laugh:
I'm leaning towards one of these three colors, with the light green being my least favorite. I have plenty of time to make up my mind though. When is the deadline again? :laugh:
I finally got some wrench time this afternoon. I had pulled the shroud off of the engine last night. It's cracked all along the head :doah: I put up an ad, but if anyone has a 1970 Shroud, I could certainly use it.
The flywheel was really stuck. Most of the time, you can get them off by tapping the shaft with a block of wood. I ended up putting a puller on it and even then it still wouldn't budge. The impact gun got it off of there though. I was really afraid it was going to crack the flywheel, but after soaking for 16 hours, if it wasn't going to come off, then there wasn't much I could do about it.
This is what I found.
The engine wasn't producing a spark and I'm pretty sure it was the corrosion on the points. Oddly enough, everything inside the housing was really clean, but I had already picked up a new set of points, a condenser and a coil. I swapped them all out and set the points. While I had the stator off, I cleaned the old paint and grime off the block.
Once I got that done, I started on the other side. I still hadn't removed the TC driver. I was dreading it because the last time I tried pulling one of these it snapped in half. After some careful soaking and removal of the other pieces, the rear driver half just slid right off. I danced for a few minutes to celebrate. Then I realized it didn't matter and I needed a new rear half anyway. Apparently, this bike was ridden A LOT. The previous owner(s) wore the rear plate all the way through to the back bracing. I would never have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. So, it looks like I'll be on the hunt for that part. The rest of the driven looks like it's in surprisingly good shape with little to no wear or corrosion.
Another thing I noticed -- there are hairline fissures all over the crank case cover. I'm hoping they don't go through, and it doesn't appear they do. Are they defects from the cast?
I attempted to remove the crank case cover, but it's not budging. I got it gapped about 1/8" and it stopped. I have a feeling it's just binding up. I might put a puller on it and give it a hand-tighten turn and see if that helps.
Hopefully, I'll have this thing done this time tomorrow. I've never worked on an engine's internals before, so this should be an adventure to say the least. I did pick up a new piston, rings, seals and gaskets. After looking at the valves, I might order a set of those as well. They looked pretty rough.
The flywheel was really stuck. Most of the time, you can get them off by tapping the shaft with a block of wood. I ended up putting a puller on it and even then it still wouldn't budge. The impact gun got it off of there though. I was really afraid it was going to crack the flywheel, but after soaking for 16 hours, if it wasn't going to come off, then there wasn't much I could do about it.
This is what I found.
The engine wasn't producing a spark and I'm pretty sure it was the corrosion on the points. Oddly enough, everything inside the housing was really clean, but I had already picked up a new set of points, a condenser and a coil. I swapped them all out and set the points. While I had the stator off, I cleaned the old paint and grime off the block.
Once I got that done, I started on the other side. I still hadn't removed the TC driver. I was dreading it because the last time I tried pulling one of these it snapped in half. After some careful soaking and removal of the other pieces, the rear driver half just slid right off. I danced for a few minutes to celebrate. Then I realized it didn't matter and I needed a new rear half anyway. Apparently, this bike was ridden A LOT. The previous owner(s) wore the rear plate all the way through to the back bracing. I would never have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. So, it looks like I'll be on the hunt for that part. The rest of the driven looks like it's in surprisingly good shape with little to no wear or corrosion.
Another thing I noticed -- there are hairline fissures all over the crank case cover. I'm hoping they don't go through, and it doesn't appear they do. Are they defects from the cast?
I attempted to remove the crank case cover, but it's not budging. I got it gapped about 1/8" and it stopped. I have a feeling it's just binding up. I might put a puller on it and give it a hand-tighten turn and see if that helps.
Hopefully, I'll have this thing done this time tomorrow. I've never worked on an engine's internals before, so this should be an adventure to say the least. I did pick up a new piston, rings, seals and gaskets. After looking at the valves, I might order a set of those as well. They looked pretty rough.