This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.
Messages - Fazerider
Pages: 1 ... 4 5 [6] 7 8 ... 89
126
« on: 09 February 2019, 11:06:09 pm »
[... The LED fluorescent replacement tubes are not very bright and they don’t seem to last any longer than fluorescents, though at least the fittings last almost forever as it’s 240 straight onto the LED tube. But what I notice at work is when they try to save on price by buying cheap, the reality is it costs them a fortune.
That’s surprising. I replaced the two 4’ fluorescents in my kitchen with LED tubes a few weeks ago and feel like I need sunglasses in there. The cheap bulbs are downright dangerous as well as short-lived. Some I got off ebay had fake CE markings (spacing between the letters wrong) so I took a look at the circuit and realised that if one of the LEDs went open-circuit the capacitor which was rated at 35V would have about 10x that across it. Sure enough, a few months later the lamp died and a minute later there was a bang which blew the top off leaving exposed mains dangling out. 
127
« on: 09 February 2019, 09:32:09 am »
US 1950’s biker culture all seemed a bit irrelevant to me, Laurie Taylor seemed to be trying to categorise all motorcyclists as Marlon Brando wannabes. The question “Is there such a thing as a middle-class biker?” was particularly silly. That we’re principally white and male though, is something the programme could have explored better. Hollywood stereotyping doesn’t seem a good enough explanation, yet the PhD from Manchester didn’t get beyond that. What was interesting was her point on safety: that other road users find us intimidating so ignore us to reduce the stress… rather like the peril-sensitive sunglasses from The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy. 
128
« on: 04 February 2019, 11:31:05 pm »
A few years ago someone on here (Deefer?) did report that the 1000cc motor can be shoehorned into the 600 frame. Can’t recall the details, but since I find swapping the standard motor hard enough I was amazed that it is possible to ft the bigger lump in there.
As to whether it’s a good idea… sure, if you want an engineering project. Otherwise, no.
129
« on: 04 February 2019, 09:42:16 am »
HSS bits of that length are hard to find.
I had a pack of extra long masonry bits which I’d bought ages ago in a poundshop. The shaft of the “6mm” one was 190mm long, but tungsten carbide head was too wide. So I just hacksawed that off and used a round needle file to deepen the flute at the tip.
130
« on: 31 January 2019, 04:09:03 pm »
Well, the original nut that holds the drive sprocket on isn’t up to the job, but once it’s replaced with the new, thicker nut it’s reliable enough.
The gearshift mechanism is prone to wear which means false neutrals when you’re expecting second gear, but that usually only makes itself a nuisance at moderately high milage (80,000+ in my experience).
Other than that, it’s a gem IMHO.
131
« on: 27 January 2019, 11:14:31 am »
All the cars I’ve ever owned have had such a sloppy gearchange that the lever position is no indication of whether it had been left in neutral… depressing the clutch when starting has been second nature. I well remember watching, at the age of 9, my mum start her Triumph Herald on the driveway and demolish the garage doors as a result of having left it in gear. 
132
« on: 21 January 2019, 10:57:40 pm »
Lack of time meant I only got back to this yesterday and only for a couple of hours.
I’d ordered a 10mm x 1mm tap which extracted an astonishing amount of grit from the plug hole. That explains why it needed so much torque to get the plug out… I was surprised it didn’t shear off.
With the plug hole blocked off to stop debris dropping in it was then possible to clear the drain hole between the two plug wells. No way would an air line have done the job, the passage was stuffed with tight packed oily grit and needed a long drill bit to dig it all out.
Still have to persuade plug 2 to come out in one piece then I can clean out that thread... and then there's the right hand half of the engine, which is likely to be worse.
The right side will most likely be worse. The bike leans to the left on the side stand so the left side of the engine points down and has a chance to drain whereas the right side points up so all the rain water and dirt collects on that side around the spark plugs. Take your time when you're undoing those plugs and clean the area as best you can. Sometimes working the plugs in and out with a bit of oil helps to clear the threads
Yes, I’ve left a mixture of oil and WD40 soaking plug 2 which I only managed to shift by half a turn before my courage ran out. The force needed to move it that far was alarming. On the upside, it was a pleasure to screw plug 1 into its lovely clean hole: smooth and easy all the way in.  I wish Yamaha had drilled independent drain holes for plugs 2 & 3, the fact that the outermost plugs are in the way makes clearing the passageways very difficult. I bet practically every FZS600 out there (apart from Fazersharp’s) has them blocked. Even better, of course, would be if Yamaha had devised a seal that completely closed the area off from rain and dirt.
133
« on: 21 January 2019, 09:49:17 am »
Lack of time meant I only got back to this yesterday and only for a couple of hours.
I’d ordered a 10mm x 1mm tap which extracted an astonishing amount of grit from the plug hole. That explains why it needed so much torque to get the plug out… I was surprised it didn’t shear off.
With the plug hole blocked off to stop debris dropping in it was then possible to clear the drain hole between the two plug wells. No way would an air line have done the job, the passage was stuffed with tight packed oily grit and needed a long drill bit to dig it all out.
Still have to persuade plug 2 to come out in one piece then I can clean out that thread... and then there's the right hand half of the engine, which is likely to be worse.
134
« on: 19 January 2019, 04:23:03 pm »
Improbable as it sounds, I reckon that salesman was talking bollocks.
135
« on: 12 January 2019, 11:49:03 pm »
The reason to wait a few minutes after warming up is so that most of that oil drains back into the sump.
Just for interest the increase in volume is :-
Volumetric expansion coefficient of engine oil is 0.00070 per deg C
Oil capacity say 2.7ltrs = 2,700c.c.
Lets say temperature difference from cold to warm is 40 deg C
Change in oil volume = 0.00070 x 2700 x 40 = 75.6c.c.
To use a previous measuring scale that’s about three normal egg cups worth.
I’ve no idea what that difference in volume represents in terms of height in the site glass and never bothered about it. Maybe I’ll have to check the oil level when cold and then again when warm after standing a few minutes and see if my calculation theory is total garbidge. 
The calculation sounds ok, but it’s only half the story as the aluminium alloy cases expand with heat too... so the sump gets bigger.
136
« on: 12 January 2019, 10:06:33 am »
There’s a cat near me that is in the habit of taking a dump on paths and lawns rather than burying its turds in my garden like most of its kind. I’ve trodden in it or put the lawnmower through it on about a dozen occasions and they are the most revolting faeces I’ve ever encountered.
Christ knows what the bastard eats… ripe Parmesan cheese and diarrohea to judge by the stench.
137
« on: 09 January 2019, 01:59:46 pm »
I get about 100k from them, but I don't weigh much so they probably have an easier time.
YSS is probably a better bet than a used low milage shock (if you can't stretch to the preferred option of a converted R6 shock).
138
« on: 09 January 2019, 01:53:10 pm »
Rather than faffing about running the engine for a specific length of time and then letting it stand for a specific length of time, I prefer to just check it when cold... mine likes it filled to the top of the window, any less than that and it gives the dreaded red light.
139
« on: 28 December 2018, 02:21:45 pm »
An incorrectly routed cable can result in it getting brushed by the heads of the brake disc bolts. Once they’ve worn through the insulation that can give some crazy readings on the speedo.
140
« on: 27 December 2018, 12:17:11 pm »
So long as the gasket is intact and clean I’d be inclined to leave it in position.
Taking the barrels off can mean a lot of fiddling about to persuade the pistons back.
141
« on: 25 December 2018, 01:55:55 pm »
Wow! That looks absolutely stunning. And it's good to hear of a Fazer brought back from the brink when so many are being scrapped/broken every year. 
142
« on: 22 December 2018, 02:22:27 pm »
Yes, pic is now visible, I'd use the one on the right.
I do prefer to chock the front as it's more stable, but often use an old car battery on the pillion seat as well to reduce the stress on the downpipes.
143
« on: 22 December 2018, 11:11:39 am »
Can’t see the greases you’re choosing between. I use a light moly and go for the in-between quantity: generous but not packed solid.
Even with the front wheel out the centre of gravity is forward of the centrestand so you'll either need to support the front or stick something heavy on the pillion seat.
144
« on: 21 December 2018, 06:41:26 pm »
Also shotguns have an effective range of maybe 100 metres (depending on load), so the chances of being in the right place are pretty slim.
With enough people around the perimeter of the airport, spaced at say 75m apart, we could get it 
If it was that easy I'm sure they'd have done it. Drones can reach many thousands of feet in altitude and fly for miles: projectile weapons don't stand much chance of shooting it down unless you happen to be near the launch or landing area.
145
« on: 21 December 2018, 03:13:34 pm »
Take the opportunity to remove the exhaust studs and replace with stainless steel. Search the forum for exhaust studs.
 Definitely a good move, did mine while still in the frame, not easy but not impossible either.
Stainless studs with plain steel nuts, or, Stainless nuts on plain steel studs.
Stainless with Stainless is not good because of 'Galling' (Cold Welding) can make it impossible to undo.
Stainless steel turnbuckles on a yachts standing rigging are a disaster, they are strong and fine until you need to adjust or remove them.
Had a survey done on Zara (Yacht) last spring ready for the new season (Insurance requirement) and we had to take the mast down for the survey and to replace a navigation light head, ended up having to cut all the turnbuckles off with a disc cutter as they refused to shift.
6 new turnbuckles at £47 each and a lot of work. I put one of the old turnbuckles in an engineers vice and attacked it with a set of 24" Stilsons, all I managed was to twist the 60 mm long x 10mm stud around like a candy twist and snap it off, no sign of movement on the threads. Don't need galling on an exhaust stud.
It's worth putting dab of copper slip on the studs before you spin the nuts on, I remove the stud nuts one at a time, not all at once, each year and reapply copper slip to each as a part of my winterisation service, they come undo with no problems at all. 
Using different grades of stainless steel is supposed to go a long way towards avoiding the risk of galling. I used A2 threaded rod for the studs and A4 dome nuts and haven’t had any problem. Though admittedly, I do stuff the nuts with Copaslip too which would probably be adequate protection even if you used the same grade of stainless for both nut and stud.
146
« on: 19 December 2018, 04:44:05 pm »
By coincidence I'm also trying to clean up the top of a 50,000 mile FZS600 motor.
The drain hole continues in a straight line through the outer plug well to the inner.
This means that Plug 1 (4) needs to be out in order the clear the hole all the way to Plug 2 (3)… so debris and water from the inner plug well will drop into the now open outer plug hole.
I'd done a reasonable job of blowing all the loose muck out of the way before starting and now have plug 1 out. Despite the cleaning there is a lot of dirt that didn't shift and is poised around the hole. I plan to get the vacuum cleaner on it tomorrow to stop that gritty crap landing on top of the piston and then find a way to temporarily block the hole. I guess cutting the top off a spare 10mm bolt and then putting a slot in it will do the job.
147
« on: 14 December 2018, 05:46:33 pm »
Mine (bought new in 1998) came with Bridgestone BT57s.
I think in later years they used Bridgestone BT010s.
148
« on: 13 December 2018, 10:23:20 pm »
It’s misfiring horribly below 4000 rpm, the plugs are seized in the head and 2nd gear is worse than useless… so I’ve bought it a replacement engine. Hopefully arriving tomorrow. Unfortunately one of the less accessible exhaust studs is sheared so I’ll have to figure out how to extract that before I find out if the engine is good. 
149
« on: 11 December 2018, 01:07:32 pm »
The click you get is presumably the starter relay activating. If the contacts, or the starter motor commutator, has a bit of dirt/glazing then that can be enough to stop it spinning up.
150
« on: 03 December 2018, 10:16:29 am »
I took the bike to Chilworth in Surrey yesterday (for a look round the gunpowder mills and a sweaty climb up to St Martha's church). The bike fired up instantly, despite not having been used in a couple of weeks, but only on two cylinders. The others chimed in increasingly often as the miles went by, but even at the end of the run it was rough as hell at low rpm.
Pages: 1 ... 4 5 [6] 7 8 ... 89
|
Show Posts