And It Begins ... again :-)

[79XS11F]

Being that I booked the WRONG time frame off for the rally :-( I have jumped in head over heals into the work on the hop-up 78 XS11. Yesterday I put the aircraft coating stripper to the the lower 1/2 of the engine and this morning I started the buffing process. It's looking good. As soon as this engine is a sealed unit again I will strip the frame.








Rob

[wa407mpp]

Question?

Having never had to pull the engine out of the frame of an xs1100. My book says to pull the engine from the frame you have to pull the head first, but it also says you have to pull the engine to remove the middle gear box, which is not true, so will the engine come out of the frame intact, or do you have to remove some parts. Bye the way thats one good looking engine.

[79XS11F]

The engine will go into or come out of the frame as a complete unit. They tell you to remove several components but that's to keep the weight down.
Rob

[xs11jack]

Stunned

Ablsolutely perfect. Looks like it just came from the factory. Good work, my man!! What will you use for a sealer?

[79XS11F]

I will not be sealing it with anything. It's normally painted from the factory. The polish I use is PH balanced and contains no ammonia. It leaves its own protective coating on in in the surface of the metal. So long as the bike does not sit unattended for extended periods of time it will be OK.
Rob

[xschop]

bling

Can you hold on for a second or two, I'm going to get my shades so I can take a better look .....

[79XS11F]

Hey chop ...
Yes indeed I do like a shiny engine. Of course the best stuff in on the inside ...
It'll look even better when I get that Chain Drive unit re-installed :-) I have the week off so I will be starting on the frame. If all goes well it will be ready for the wielding by weeks end.
Rob

[xschop]

smooth operator

Hey Rob, I just came in from a trip to the local auto parts store for some more electrical tape. I suppose even the O-ring chains make just a little noise. I almost forgot that I will design a chaingaurd (bolt on even) that will attach without having to remove the sprocket/chain...I think I will make it out of mild steel and flat black it too. I have shorts on (It's Friggin 97 deg. already!) I was looking down and thought my bare ankle is a little too close for comfort to the spinning locknut....

[79XS11F]

Yes I have been thinking on the back burner about a chain guard. In Ontario you can't get a safety without one and in any case you will want one to keep the chain oil off everything including yourself.
Rob

[xschop]

chaingaurd

Billet is getting to high to outweigh the cost of making them out of steel..I figure I can make them for about $35 worth of material. I will machine some 1/8" steel plates and weld tubes to them that offset down to the upper and lower housing bolts....will keep you posted...chop

[blue giant]

Looking Good Rob,

When do you want me to drop off my engine?

[Cobia]

What striper are you using?

Hi Rob,
Exactly what striper is it that you're using that leaves the engine looking so sweet? Man, I'd be afraid to leave it unattended looking like that. And also, what do you buff it with?

Many Thanks, Cobia

[79XS11F]

The paint is removed using aircraft coating remover. Strong stuff in deed. Then I wire wheel it using a coarse brass wheel followed by a fine brass wheel. I use about 4 different sized wheels of each grade. Then the whole thing is is rubbed down with Custom English Polish. It took about 6 hours across 2 days to get the cases to that point.
Next I will bag the bottom end and tape it off just under the fins and strip the top end. Because of the fins I will have to use a garden hose to clean the stripper off followed by the wire wheels.
Rob

[egsols]

Great work Rob!!!!

Hey Paul before you drop yours off swing by and grab mine, maybe Rob can give a volume discount?

Seriously though, Rob, what is running from your oil sender, is it like an extension for a pressure gauge?

[egsols]

is it like an extension for a pressure gauge

Rob,

Nevermind, my eyes were playing tricks on me, not used to looking at the motor stripped like that.