Had a minor catastrophe

 Hello everyone, 

Progress has been slow on the bike for the past couple of weeks. Managed to get a few pieces in place but that’s about all. 

Went out to Shipchewanna for a few days, ran up into Michigan and went to the Gilmore Auto Museum, which was pretty cool. Came home and had some things to take care of and then….

Catastrophe struck!! The little plastic water line for our ice cube maker in the fridge broke, luckily I was still awake when it happened but, I was outside and I’m not sure how long the water was spraying!! I got it shutoff but it ruined our floor in the kitchen and part of the dining room. We had 10” wide southern yellow pine plank floors and this buckle was not the worst of them!

I waited about a week with fans and a dehumidifier running before I ended up having to pull it all up. 

At least I won’t have to pull up the underlayment. I guess we’re going to go with some kind of tile, and at the same time we’re going to do the mud room, laundry room and the powder room.

So, with wood cutting and this project it looks like the bike will get shoved back for a month or so.

That’s ok, I’m going to order some parts while I’m waiting, so when I get back to it they should be here waiting.

Went to a couple of concerts this past week. Saw Daryl Hall and John Oats last Thursday and last night saw The Doobie Brothers! Both were really fun concerts! 

As far as this week goes, kind of the same old same old. Mowing, weed whacking, weed pulling stuff. Might do a little on the bike, if I can squeeze it in.

We’ll, I guess that’s all for now.

Talk to you soon,

TVI

Kind of a slow week

 Hello everyone,

I fought a summer cold for about 10 days, and finally got over it in the last couple of days. 

So, that being said, I didn’t get a lot accomplished this past week. I did get the pickup truck fixed and back running again. That took awhile but it’s done.

I also got a few parts ordered for the bike. The linkage for the sidecar brake to the bike is here, I need to make the holes slightly bigger and I got the bike brake return spring and it’s installed. I’ve got some parts ordered to mount the headlight and, when they come in I discovered that I have a piece of the front fork assembly on in reverse. So, when I get those parts in I have to take the front end apart anyway to install the slider covers. Then, when I reassemble it all the pieces should be on there and not have to come off, plus I can get the front brake cable installed and make sure it’s long enough. I stuck some 4” risers on the bike and it feels more comfortable at that handlebar height.

I’ve been doing the mowing/ weed whacking thing. That is an almost full time job here!!

We’ll, I think that’s all for now.

Talk to you soon,

TVI

Well, I got a little excited

 Hello everyone,

So, for the first time in a very long time I have a summer cold. Seems weird but, still have it. 

At the moment I still don’t have the parts for the pickup and I was going to sand blast the side car frame before I put it on the bike. We’ll, I couldn’t wait to do it so….

I stuck it on there so I could get a feel of what it is I’m actually building. I’ve only driven one sidecar in my life and that was around the block many years ago.

I like it so far. That said, I had sandblasted and painted most of the parts to mount the body on and so…

Now the body isn’t bolted down yet, I think I mounted the rear holder upside down. I need to swap it around and see if it levels the hack out some. I still have to put on the new tire, it’s shorter by about an 1 1/2”. I just have it hooked on there, no settings or anything, but I’m really starting to get a feel for what I’m creating here and I really like it!

I’m thinking that, I’m a little ahead of schedule, but there is still a mountain of things to do.

Today I’m house sitting at my oldest son’s house. He had a new pool installed and I’m here to let the electrician in to finish up the install for the pump.

Hopefully in the next few days I can do a few things on the bike. The parts for the truck should be here on Wednesday or Thursday. I need it put back together because I’m still trying to sell it.

We’ll, I think that’s all for now.

Talk to you soon, 

TVI

Baby steps

 Hello everyone,

After getting the roller together, I took the solenoid valve out of the pickup. It’s a little different setup than what I saw, so the parts are a little more expensive than I had hoped, but, oh well, has to be fixed.

The top pic is the whole valve body and the bottom pic is the problem. The whole solenoid package has to be changed because the selector switch is part of that assembly. Plus, the cam plate looks kind of suspect.

Besides that I’ve been hanging a few parts on the Harley and blasting and painting some of the pieces for the side car frame. The whole frame needs to be sandblasted and I need to have the pickup closed back up before I do that. Parts should be here next week and hopefully blast the frame after that.

The next pic shows the difference between the 3 1/2 gallon tanks and the 5 gallon tanks. I think the bigger tanks fit this particular bike better. If I can get the smaller ones widened how I want them, the only thing it will change is the length of the fuel line between the tanks.

Well, I think that’s all for now.

Talk to you soon,

TVI

ROLLER! Two wheeled at least!

 Hello everyone, 

Yep, did it! First time this iteration of this bike has been assembled this far in 40 plus years.

I don’t think I’m going to use this particular front fender, and this view also shows the 3 1/2 gallon tank. I’m pretty sure I’m going to have those tanks widened. When you sit on the bike the bigger tank feels better.

Next up will be cleaning and attaching the sidecar fray.

But first, my pickup truck needs attention. Before we went to see my youngest son, I went out to start it and it wouldn’t crank. Checked out things and discovered it doesn’t know it’s in park. Apparently the selector switch in the transmission is a common problem with these trucks. So today, I have to drop the oil and the pan and see if I can change the switch with or without dropping the valve body. I’ll get it apart today and then order the parts.

Getting the bike this far has got me really excited, so hopefully I can keep pushing on. My plan is to have the bike a three wheeled roller by Labor Day. After that it’ll be wood cutting time. Not working should make it easier, I’ll be able to do that task during the week and not just on weekends as in previous years. Once the wood is done I should be able to start finishing up all the fitting up of all the parts and then start on the engine.

Well, I think that’s all for now.

Talk to you soon, 

TVI