Getting Discouraged

[mack]

Nothing is going right. Sent out my my frame and parts for painting a few weeks ago, then discovered I forgot to send the wheels with it. Tried to find the painter and he quit his job, apparently he has marriage problems. He is taking some me time. No one knows where my stuff is, or him for that matter. If he doesn't have the stuff back to me by the end of this month, and I find him, he'll be attending his divorce via a video link from a hospital bed.
Worked a couple days trying to get the wheel hubs apart. After a few hours with a hammer and chisel I finally got the speedo fitting off and the inside is a solid mass of rust. I think it's had it. I'm soaking it in an ultra sound machine varsol bath now for two days and it's not loosening anything up. Are the worm gears brass? I can't distinguish anything at this point. Bearings don't look any better. I needed a break from that so I put the head back together yesterday to see how my valve lapping worked and just coated the stems with motor oil instead of the paste. Now I have to tear that a part again to do it right. I'm not looking forward to that because I have trouble with the stem keepers because my fingers are the size of sausages from cleaning and shining the rust off the engine and chrome. Haven't started making the wire harness yet and the carbs are still in pieces on a table. Any one have Mikes part number for the plastic floats that will fit a 79 special?
On the bright side though. I think my banishment to the dog house/ workshop for using bath towels on the bike and being smelly all the time is coming to an end. Wife seems to be preparing a list of things for me to do.

[tadtl1]

a list of things to do, eh?

Hi ,

Well at the very least maybe getting back out of the doghouse and with the wife will cheer you up and who knows, maybe time away from the bike project will help you get refreshed enough to carry on with it.

Swmbo here is getting fed up with my project too, boxes of parts laying around the living room will do that for yah !!

[tinman905]

Good luck with your frame .Look on the bright side at least he hasn't run off with your wheels too.
There is only one part number on XS650direct.com (mikesxs.com) Part #20-6502

Why do you want to put plastic floats in your 79 carbs? If you are keeping everything stock then it's brass floats you want.

I have a speedo drive unit here you're welcome to just pay for shipping .

As for the dog house we are all one "browning point " away from joining you and as you know you can spend the whole year building them up and one short moment to loose them all

[dbeardslee]

I've got a '79 with plastic floats, and I wouldn't have it any other way. They won't develop leaks like brass floats can, nor will they get squished if you put compressed air on the carbs with the fuel bowls attached. They're just a lot more durable than the brass floats. They pair nicely with viton tipped xv920 fuel valves too.

[Yard Dogg]

My recommendation on your wheel bearings, is to give up. Take it to a shop and let them pull em. I spent half of a day with mine and got nowhere. I made a puller with 1/2" threaded rod one socket on the bearing race, and one larger one on the hub, cranked it down and then smacked the living hell out of it with a tanger, then a wanger, then the big wang tager, and got nowhere. I tried PB blaster too, nothing. I don't know what kind of stuff the bike master at the shop used, but he said it was penetrating oil. He had em pulled and reinstalled in less than an hour. I could have killed him.

[crazy steve]

Nothing is going right.... After a few hours with a hammer and chisel I finally got the speedo fitting off and the inside is a solid mass of rust. I think it's had it. I'm soaking it in an ultra sound machine varsol bath now for two days and it's not loosening anything up. Are the worm gears brass? I can't distinguish anything at this point...

The speedo drive gears are steel; getting the drive gear out will allow to you to clean the innards, although you can't easily remove the driven gear as it's pinned in, so don't try. The factory grease is real heavy stuff and doesn't come out/off easy.

If the drive gear is frozen to the steel hub (it's held on with a wire clip), the unit is probably toast.

'78E opriginal owner

[fredintoon]

Nil Illigitimus Carborundum (Don't let the bastards grind you down)

Hi Mack,
your tale of woe reminds me that my XS11 problem is mostly that I can't kick my own arse to get it moving to fix the exhaust.
For you:-
Priority #1
Track down your missing painter and get your frame back.
Without the frame all you have is a man-size Connex toy.
Priority #2
Um, the speedo drive just lifts out of the wheel, what's with the hammer & chisel?
Priority #3
Here's a plan for the desperate to remove the bearings.
The bearing seals are shot, so rip 'em out with a prybar.
The bearings are shot so it don't hurt to destroy them.
Reach in with a small tungsten carbide burr on a Dremel tool and cut away the ball cage and remove it.
Scoot the balls all to one side, move the center race to the other side and lift it out. Catch the balls with a magnet.
Put the wheel in a press and press down on the center spacer to force the intact bearing out.
Flip the wheel and use a bigger arbor to force out the wrecked bearing's outer track.

[psycoreefer]

I think the problem is lack of a press. Thats probably how the "bike master" at the shop in Dogg's post got the job done so quick. I don't have one either, if they are stubborn you need 2 things, 1. A bigger hammer, and 2. some idiot to hold whatever your whacking at so you don't crush your own hand! Oh, and heat and oil usually help.

[Big Daddy Funk]

Been there... done that... got blood on the T shirt...

Chin up Mack, most of us have been in your spot. Lots of Ontario help available.
Rick

[mack]

Just venting

After venting I actually feel a bit better. Frames still freaking me out but I'll find him. Just been at this everyday for six months now and need to step away from it for awhile I guess. Snows almost gone, just anxious for my first ride in what will be 18 plus years. Thanx for the pep talk guy's

[Larrym]

It's good to be in Charge Sometimes.

Mack,

Yup. Dealing with a problematic service provider is always a joy, ain't it??

Here you have thought things through and decided that you have the resources needed to tackle an XS project others would walk away from. Then you demonstrate superb project management/organization skills by separating the overall task into executable stages and then starting/completing each one in the correct order. ( Pics of your parts laid out on shelves or hanging in your workspace was a dead give-a-way.)

So then you delegate a task out to a service provider who by all indications will do what he should do, the way he's supposed to do it, and do it in a timely manner. In a very meaningful way, the painter became part of the team.

And then he Flakes out on you???

That's one of my pet peeves. I feel for ya cause it's not you...it's really him. You're not the weakest link in the action chain.

Sadly, these flakes always seem to try to "explain away" why they failed to live up to what they already agreed to do. Try to get you to "understand" what happened and then to "accept" their well rehearsed apology. If you do either then technically you agree to be a willing partner in their shenanigans: no crime and therefore no victim. (Not one of my strongpoints to go along with being screwed...)

Stage one, "shock/disbelief" passed quickly, eh?? Then the Next stage, "WTF do I do now?/Disappointment" stage may last a little longer.

Fortunately, we're all biologically wired to respond effectively to real world events. The stage where you get justifiably furious enough to boot the guy's backside into doing what he originally agreed to or do whatever he needs to do in order to return your stuff by-the-end-of-today is actually quite pleasant in a very organic way.

Ya just gotta redirect different "management/planning" skills toward dealing with your service provider: Firing an employee and hiring another one.


You da Man, Mack. You da Bossman. Have fun wit' it if you can.