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I’ve been tinkering every morning and on my one day off today I’ve battered some jobs on the Harley. I managed to get the engine out and split today. The great news is that apart from some staining and sticky bits of oil, there doesn’t seem to be any damage. After seeing the sludge and metal shavings on the sump plug I was expecting at some point to come across a pile of smashed metal and gunge. I’m happy with that. I gave it a clean, scraped all the gasket off, sandpapered and cleaned it again, then started the rebuild. Once I had the cases back together I got carried away and continued, I fitted the oil pump, the cam gears, a new gasket, a new set of allen bolts and the cam side casing. That was a huge relief as that had the one bolt I’d had to drill out and I was scared it was going to strip when I tried to tighten it. It was actually a mistake. They say to put the engine back in the frame before rebuilding because of the weight of an assembled engine. It’s only one casing and some cams. The relief of knowing the allen bolt has worked is well worth any slight extra struggle. I’m not being too precious with piston rings as I’ve ordered a new set. I’ll give the pistons a good clean, fit the new rings, then pop the barrels on. I’m in a bit of dilemma with the outside of the engine block. I’d like to strip all the bits of oil and paint off and respray it, but I’m scared of getting any crap in the engine. I suppose I’ll have to loosely fit the barrels and other casing, clean it, strip the paint, then mask the casings and spray. It’s a plan. Then take the barrels and other case off and fit it back in the frame, rebuild the bottom end, fit the rings, spray the barrels (I’ve already given them two coats of paint stripper), rebuild the top end, refit all the other bits, then I’m ready to start again. I’ve fitted a carb rebuild kit, I’ve got a new chain and sprocket set (had to order a HUGE socket to get the front sprocket off) and I’ve ordered fresh oil line, fuel line and a fuel filter. When it goes back together I’ll know the engine is clean and solid, and no crap will be getting in. I’m fitting new throttle and clutch cables. When I get it going I don’t want to be stripping it again for consumables. While I had the engine out I took the opportunity to wheel the rolling chassis out and give it a good clean. the difference is amazing. It’s only a cosmetic thing, but the difference between ‘covered in dirt, grease and accumulated oil’ and ‘a clean frame’ is very satisfying. I spilled quite a bit of oil at various stages of the strip so […]

I’ve had a hell of a day off. Happily, since I’m having to buy all my tools again but in imperial, and the Harley was £2,000 to start with, work has suddenly gone mad. 4 shifts, 6 shifts, 5 shifts for next week. I certainly can use the money but it’s making working on my bikes a lot harder. Anyway, I was off today so cracked on. My goal was to strip the heads, check the valves and the barrels, and check the cams for timing. I’d been doing 40 minutes or so before work to get all the peripheral bits off. I got stuck with one nut that just I couldn’t get the breaker bar on, and ended up rounding the head. That was on the front exhaust pipe. I was hoping I could remove the barrel with it attached, then work on it. I succeeded! Yay for small victories. I had to angle grind the nut then hammer it with a cold chisel to turn it. I stripped it down to the pistons without much further drama. But, as is the law, one allen bolt just would not turn on the cam side casing. I was wriggling it backward and forward, sprayed oil on it, it was seized solid. In the end I snapped the bolt. Balls. I had to drill it out. I think I’ve repaired it enough to accept another bolt, but I’ll have to wait until after the rebuild to find out for sure. I did an internet test on the valves. Poured petrol on them from the top, turned them over and looked for leakage. There was none. So valves are sealing OK. I checked the bore on the barrels. There are some marks, more like a shining of the cylinder than scratches. You can still see the original cross hatching under the shine so it can’t be deep. I don’t think it’s the barrels/ pistons/ rings. Hmmm, on a big screen they do look like proper scratches. Once I’d finally got the cam cover off I checked the cams. All the timing marks are perfectly lined up. I took them out and cleaned them, put them back and they are still perfectly lined up. Having a cam/ pushrod system is clunky but easy to work on. The bad news is I think this was a badly looked after bike, that went off the road for a reason. Someone had over-tightened an allen bolt to the point the allen key head snapped off in it. Then they’d left it there. Worrying. Then I dropped the oil and saw the sump plug. It’s a bit out of focus, but that was after I’d already given it a bit of a wipe. It’s covered in thick greasy/ oily sludge and, most worryingly, metal filings. I’m in a bit of a quandary. Metal shavings in the engine is really bad news. I’ve ordered some more tools and, when they arrive, I’m going to strip it right down […]

I’ve had some successes but a big problem. I’ve been working so I’ve not had the time to do too much, today was my day off and the engine start spray arrived yesterday so I did some work on it. I bought a cheap trolley jack with support cups to lift the bike up by the frame so I could take the forks off. It wasn’t what I was expecting. I thought it was a full length platform to lift the whole bike. Nope. It fits across the bike and just raises one end or the other. Meh. I can make that work for most jobs. Then I went to slide it under the frame and because of the raised cups it wouldn’t fit! I had to angle grind half of the raised legs off before I could even start. Anyway, I got the forks off, finally got the seal covers off and the seals out. I think they were due for a change. That’s the good. The bad is that I still can’t get it to start. I’ve re-gapped the plugs, really healthy spark now, I tried the engine start spray, nothing. I’m thinking it’s probably the piston a rings now. I saw a video today saying the compression pressure should be at least 150psi. I tested at 120 and 125. Then I poured oil into the cylinders to form a temporary seal and I was at 150psi. I’ve emailed a query about how much it would cost for a rebore and rings, and how much it would be for a 1200cc big bore and rings. I’ve managed to get another shift tomorrow, so that’s 5 so far for next week. I’ll fit the bits I’ve got coming and if I still can’t get it going I’ll start stripping the engine on my next day off. The only other options I can think of are the timing has gone out or the valves are leaking. I think it’s electronic timing, I can’t see how it can have gone out. I just watched a really helpful tip for the valves: take your head off, pour petrol into the inlet and outlet valves, turn your head over, if none has seeped through you’ve got a tight seal. That’s what I like. Simple, binary, tests. If it’s not too much more than a rebore I might get it big bored anyway. I’ve got a feeling my obsession with owning a Harley is going to wane when I get it on the road, crack open the throttle and unleash 49bhp of puny pretension. 67bhp isn’t going to scare me, but it might make the bike a keeper. To be honest, once I’ve got it running all I actually need is indicators and to fix the horn for an MOT. I will have to de-rust, oil bath and grease the chain, the headlight is shabby, and the tyres are so past their 5 year lifespan, but they would probably pass an mot. It’s mostly […]

Today I cleaned and washed the carb after it’s overnight soak. I put it back together (missing a part, dumbarse) and tried it. Still not running, so I started on the other jobs. I pulled the front brake off, stripped and cleaned it, put it back on then bled it. I tried to do the same with the rear brake but it’s got Torx bolts. I don’t know if Torx come in imperial but mine were slightly loose and the bolts are set solid. I didn’t want to strip the head so I’ve ordered some Torx sockets. In the meantime I bled the brake. I pumped the tyres up. It rolls forward and back now without too much resistance (other than it’s native standing mass, obvs) and the brakes both work. I remembered to test and both my brake lights work. Brilliant. I need to fit indicators but so far the only thing electrical thing that isn’t working is the horn. I’m happy about that because I hate electrics. When I put the carb back on I noticed one of the throttle to carb cables was slack. I was worried I’d done something wrong. I’m having issues with fitting the choke cable back in position as well. It’s one 17mm nut. What can possibly go wrong? Yet it doesn’t seem to want to work. Odd. Anyway, when I noticed the part of the carb I’d omitted (left it drying in the sun) I popped the carb off and rebuilt it. The slack cable came away in my hand. It had snapped in it’s sleeve. I’d already ordered a new set, but it was good to see it wasn’t me. I’m working my way through the peripheral jobs (it all needs doing) as I’m trying to get the engine started. I’ve ordered a cheap trolley jack (with support cups to position under the frame) and a fork seal and dust cover set. I’ll pop the forks off, drain the fork oil, clean inside and then put fresh oil, seals and dust covers on. I charged the new battery back up, held the choke open and tried to start it again after I replaced the carb, correctly. It didn’t go, but as I was rolling the starter off it did a little cough. I got a whiff of blue smoke! I thought I was going to be testing it out with my engine start spray today, I ordered it off Amazon specifically for the next day delivery. It mustn’t have been on Prime. It’s saying delivery on Tuesday, it’s Thursday today. After that blue smoke I got a rush to the head and ordered a cheap carb rebuild kit and a (whole) cheap replacement carb. If I can get it running I can relax and plod on with the jobs. One thing that’s bothering me is the oil in the air filter and that was clarted all over the jets. There shouldn’t be oil there. Today as I was trying to start […]

Day One: I dropped the van off this morning then cracked on with the bike. I’ve fitted the new battery, hotwired it, and I got lights, (low and high beam and clock and rear light, forgot to test if the brake is working) but no horn yet. The engine turned over nicely, sounded like good compression. I didn’t have any spark at the plugs though. I gapped the plugs and traced the wiring, the leads to the distributor were loose so I tightened them, SPARK! It still wasn’t firing so I took the air filter off and gave it a wash, then took off and stripped the carb. Oh boy. It’s not a carb design I’m used to, but I pulled the one obvious jet out. The top half of it was literally black. It looked like some oil residue that had solidified. I took the diaphragm out of the top and I’ve soaked the rest of the carb in Pinesol and Mukoff overnight. It might work. I’ve never seen the like though. I was just looking, you can get a complete, aftermarket, carb for the price of a carb rebuild kit. While I was searching for “oil in carb problem” online (bit worrying, I can’t think how it can have got there) I saw a top tip. Spray some of that engine start spray into the engine and press the start button. If it runs for a second or so you know the intake valves and outlet valves are working, your rings and barrel are good enough to maintain a working pressure, your plugs and the electrical system is all working. The problem is your carb. I’ve ordered a can of start spray. If it doesn’t run then I know I have more problems. You can strip it down to heads and barrels off with the engine still in the frame so it’s not too much hassle to do further investigation. Now I’m wondering which way I’m going to go with the bike. I’ve given it a brush and a wash and been at it with rust eater and metal polish today and it looks a lot better, superficially. But there’s the thing. Once I’ve got it running I can either run it as a scruffy heap, sell it, or strip it down to bare frame, and get every part back to original condition. Powder coating the frame £150- £350 New wheels £550 Tank and mudguards sprayed, say, £250 New stanchions £300 Engine respray? I’ll have to think it through. I’m making problems now. I’ve got enough on my plate just getting it running. Then I have to fit indicators, fix the horn, swap the headlight, take the forks off, drain, clean, put in fresh oil and new fork seals and refit, strip and clean the brakes, flush the brake fluid and refill it, and fit new tyres. Those are just the bare minimum jobs I already know I’ve got to do. On the bright side, apart from the […]