Pics of King Kong

[dbyers]

Hey where's the PIC's? You know there's a rule that you have to have pics of the new baby to share with us...

[MAXIMAN]

Welllllllllllllllllllll...............I've him tore apart. The carbs (as usual) were gummed up. We tried to get seafoam in 'em but to no avail. In the process we caught Kong on fire!

Thanks gawd pops had the brains to have fire ex right there. He hit it with a short blast and no damage.

We took the carbs off and tore 'em down. It was one of the worst cases I'd seen. One of the float needles was gummed into the seat so bad it took a pair of needle nose pliers to get it out.

Several jets were plugged solid. Then we broke two (2) of the posts that hold the floats. We repaired them with JB weld. It's supposed to hold up to gasoline but I'm not so sure.

Couple cans of carb cleaner and a strand of guitar wire later and they were in good shape. I guess we'll let the JB weld cure for a day then put the carbs back on the bike and see if it will go.

The bike looks very very good to be 25 years old. Chrome is about an 8. With a little chrome polish it will approach a 10. The paint is an eight and hasn't even been waxed. It'll take a few days to get Kong prepped but as soon as I finish I get some pics up.

The guy in NJ that had it kept it under cover and it really looks goods. I just hope my excitation over Kongs appearance hasn't skewed my judgement on his mechanical potential.

Cg

[prometheus578]

JB WELD

I don't know the gas proof properties of JB WELD. But I've repaired plenty o' carbs with other stuff, giving the repair several good coats of finger nail polish. (I use "Passion Red", which is what I wear when I go out in drag on Fridays) Anyway... finger nail polish remover is acetone, which gasoline isn't. Seals nicely. Can any of you Old Timers confirm this for me?

[bkr]

JB Weld

Hey MAXIMAN Have used JB weld on several float posts over the years , no problems. One has been done for 7 years and still going. Good luck on your rebuild.. bkr

[MAXIMAN]

Finger nail polish...great idea! Gasoline doesn't effect that ...like you said only acetone.

Hey MAXIMAN Have used JB weld on several float posts over the years , no problems. One has been done for 7 years and still going.

Yeeaaaaah!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks...good folk around here.

[fxrer]

Maximan,

Like bkr, I too used JB Weld to repair a broken post - has held up fine for 5+ years. I took the carbs apart last season for cleaning, and the JB welded post was unaffected and still strong.

Trick is to match up the fissure lines exactly, make sure it is still perfectly vertical, clamp it solidly, and let the JB set for a day. Then you can sand, or dremel, the high spots on the post, so the repair doesn't interfere with the float bowl and needle operation.

Best thing though was to read a previous post in this forum (mainteance section) about the correct technique to remove the float pivot pin - ie, use side cutter pliers to carefully wedge the pin out of the post. Then, the posts don't break.

[TopCatGr58]

I used some stuff called Magnum steel, came in a plastic tube, had 2 ingredients, that you kneaded together to get the material into an even mixture which started the catalyst action and eventually made it setup/harden. Just molded it around the post, and dremmelled off excess after it setup!
T.C.

[MAXIMAN]

Oh sheeeeeeeeeeet!

Now I really feel better...thanks Cat.

Seethe guy at NAPA told me Magnum Steel was a similar formula to JB. So I used it. Then after I rebuilt the posts/carbs I thought about it for a while. The JB dries hard an shiney. The Magnum Steel dries hard and dull. I feared they were radically different.

I could see my self riding Kong at a high rate of speed across Neveada. I was somewhere between Eureka and Austin headed to the rally in Reno when I suddenly smelled the strong odor of gasoline.

Then Kong started sputtering and cutting out. I realized he was drowning in gasoline. It dawned on me the makeshift epoxy post had dissolved in a Murphy's Law fashion. Of course it had to fail in the middle of nowhere...a place where I hadn't seen even one bar on my cell phone in 20 miles.

I pulled to the side of the road as gas poured out the overflow into the airbox and out onto the hot engine. I was rolling about 10 mph to a stop when the fire flashed roaring up in my face. That's when I woke up from the "daymare".

But now that TC says it will last, I can now daydream about pleasant things while I restore Kong.

Thanks!

Cody