From Restoration to the Mental Ward :)

[Ndog]

Man guys....this trike is keeping me up....too many ? marks on this restoration. Yesterday was bad, so many things go wrong each day. I have dumped a ton of money in this project and it just gets worse. Yesterday I destroyed one of my new swinger bearings while adjusting its position, stripped my rear caliper bolts and broke a tap off in my lower radiator mount. Need some help:

1: Hit inner cases with the buffing wheels and realized how many nooks and crannies there are...its gonna be LOTS of work to get different bobs in there and make the finish look consistent....thinking about blasting what ive done and just painting the SOB. What do ya think?

2. Taps and bits.....what the hell is up with junk taps and drill bits. I have tried 3 different brands from the local depot and they are CRAP. There is a pile of broken bits and taps on my floor. The taps just shear off under decent torsion. Not sure what to do.

Ive been working on this thing for 3 weeks now and there is still a bare powdercoated frame, boxes of parts and an engine in a bag :) Need to get going...damn!!!

Thanks

Ndog1

[ceaserthethird]

I feel your pain, Best thing to do is buy few can's of ~ PB Blaster ....

Soak the rusted parts and hit them with a impact gun, Works like a Charm !
take your time double check everything .

When it get's tuff walk away ...

Post some pictures of area's your having problems with - ( tip's will come )

[harryredtrike]

you have to be able to walk away.when crap goes bad,it can go really bad.save it for another time.it will always be there the next time.

[fabiodriven]

^These guys have the best advise, just walk away.^ I wish I did that as much as I preach it. Sometimes you just gotta leave it alone for a while before you start to tear things up.

As far as the taps and bit go, these days you really gotta spend some dough on stuff to get it to work. "They just don't make 'em like they used to" applies fully here. If you gotta deal with the crappy bits and taps, take it easy on them. By now you must have some idea of the threshold they have before they break.

[Dirtcrasher]

I'd paint that motor, I'd never want to try and maintain a polished engine myself....

Taps and drills; are you using plenty of oil and a variable speed drill. Lack of oil, too much speed, jumping sizes too quick, too much pressure and being angled are all things that can snap a drill or tap.

[scottp597]

My advice: Have a handy can of PB blaster and a portable torch. I find the torch can give you very focused heat and the use of wet rags make it easier to keep the heat where you need it. Soak nuts and bolts and apply heat on and off for awhile hopefully things would loosen up by then.

[Ndog]

Guys...I can't believe the support on this forum and the love for these trikes...thanks.

You inspired me to go out there and get this crap moving again...and I did. I will have a rolling frame by friday, just waiting on the swinger bearing I jacked!

Tomorrow I have to make a decision on the fate of my entire motor, so I can get to rebuilding it. As I said earlier, I have about 80% of it polished but the damn tight spaces on the inner cases are very hard to finish right. I am gonna hit them with the dremmel and the rotozip tomorrow and if it doesnt look right, im gonna have to abandon the polished idea and spray em.

My forks and triples I polished and my ESR stuff is real shiny too. I really want this thing to stand out. Any ideas on what might be stand out nice? Aluminum or chrome enamel spray maybe?

I promise I will post pics of this beast soon.

Thanks

[Mad-V-maxr]

Ndog, I found that my patience gets shorter when I get hungry. I get busy wanna get things done and dont eat at meal time alot.

[outtaline]

yeah that and sometimes you have to put the hammer down step back and drink a beer I know how these kind of projects are cause they are all I can afford to buy good luck remember torch hammer and beer are the best tools to a tear down

[AutoXer]

HIDE THE HAMMER!!!!! LOL That damn hammer in arms reach gets me in deeper and deeper almost every time

[CRAZY70MAN]

Try using heat on old nuts and bolts. Get area HOT and give it a splash or mist of cold water. Quick temp change contracts metal quicker and it shoud break free..... also keep a 12 pack near and take several 10 count deep breaths as you WALK AWAY as I never do and usually eff something up worse.....

[scottp597]

Is it me or whenever you start a small project on the trike you get the urge to ride it resulting in you hastily re-assembling it so you can take it out for a spin! That sums up my experience so far with this thing

[Thorpe]

You mean taking it for a ride without fenders or a seat? I have never done that, well, not today at least... I was in such a rush to ride my X, my buddy was reupholestering my seat, had my rear fenders off, freshly rebuilt and rejetted carb and a new pipe, had to take it for a spin, in the rain, brought it over backward, and trashed my fresh painted tank, new air scoop, new front fender, new grips, new bars, new lever and perch, and my light switch and grab bar... (but at least my new seat and rear fenders were ok) Nah... I have never ridden it partially, or hastily assembled... Yeah, a beer sounds good... Drink away my blues... (now I am bummed out thinking about my X I sold...) Keep at it, and it will come around...

[mmiguy2103]

you said you are buying oyur drill bits and taps from home depot, that right there is your first problem, all of home depot crap ois made in china. all garbage, as a trained tech i only use matco, snap on or some craftsman. as for snapping them might not be usiing oil? or enough? get your self a nice set of left handed drill bits and some extractors and use plenty of cutting oil and go slow,.

next thing i would invest in is a small oxy/act torch you can usually pick up the hardware for it including the torch for arouns $150-200 heat is your best friend. get those stuck bolts glowing and they will turn like butter. use some never seize on all your bolts when you put them back in expecially ones that will see moisture in their life.

and liek every one else says when times get tought take a break! lol go drink a beer and relax. nothign worse than going into a project angry.

[scottp597]

use some never seize on all your bolts when you put them back in

+1 on that!

[Dirtcrasher]

You guys can beat me up all you want but to me, Never Seize is a waste of $$ and sticks on your hands and clothes but doesn't do much else........

Waterproof grease such as "Bel Ray" does the trick at least as well. I put it on everything.............

And your exhaust?, ONLY stays un-seized for a long period of time if the never seize has nickel in it, otherwise it just heats up dries up and it's gone.

These are just my observations after 20yrs of experimentation........ :D

[outtaline]

I put saltwater on mine cause I'm too cheap for locktite

[tecat-z]

I agree. Anti sieze is a huge mess that doesn't perform as well as high quality grease. I very seldom use it anymore........:beer