I was in the shop Monday working on machining the spacers for the rear wheel and I heard something up in the attic. I thought it was probably a bird because I had the big doors open for a while and it's not that unusual to get a bird in there. I climbed the ladder and shone a light around but didn't see anything. However, when I went out there yesterday there was a big mess on the floor so I knew it wasn't a bird, but rather, another raccoon in the trap. The trap sits on some boards but the last couple of coons managed to get the trap off the boards and onto the insulation board and then claw around and poke a hole in it. I had placed a another piece of insulating board over the hole after the last one but this time I had a bunch of popcorn size pieces on the floor down below, along with some other "treats" to clean up. And then after mowing the yard, I came in the house and was sitting down to eat my supper and the wife asked if that was a tick on the back of my arm. Sure enough. Never a dull moment around here.
I took the Himalayan over to the farm that runs the CSA I signed up for yesterday. When I parked the bike I had a bit of difficulty finding a decent spot to put the kickstand down. Since I shortened it up, I was a little concerned about the bike falling over again, this time on the left side, rather than the right, especially since there were some pretty strong wind gusts. When I got home I made up a little plate to throw in my saddlebag for future use when parking on soft ground. The distance inside the round stock is a loose fit around the plate on the bottom of the kickstand. Should be just what the doctor ordered.
The spacers have the sprockets aligned as should be. I need to trim the fender for a little clearance and I might need to mount a piece of nylon or something on the front of the swingarm to prevent the chain from rubbing it. I'm going to go from a 56 tooth sprocket to a 66 so the rubbing block might not be necessary The spacer on the sprocket side is only about 3/16" thick, so I made it the same OD as the backing plate. I'll tack it on so I won't have to fumble around with it when installing the rear wheel.
I got a phone call from the boss man at the side hustle Monday. They had a couple of emergency service calls the past two weekends due to the same problem. They have about 100 similar machines in service, so the potential for a lot more service calls is certainly there. I went over that morning and the ace service tech explained the problem and what he wanted for a fix. I made a prototype and dropped it off later in the day. Yesterday I got a text from the boss and he said the part was perfect and he'd like 120 more just like it. The parts aren't too difficult to make but if I'm going to do any work for others anymore, I prefer a "one and done" rather than repetitious stuff. However, I'm still in need of a few bike parts and a ton of stuff for the jitney project - and it'll keep me off the bar stools.
2 comments:
I had a similar plate I used with an old Honda 650 Silverwing with sagging rear suspension. I attached a coiled plastic cord with a carabiner clip on the end to the plate. I clipped the carabiner to the handle bar so that I wouldn't ride off and forget the plate, also I could retrieve it with the cord without having to bend down and then just stuff it in my pocket. I enjoy reading your blog, keep it up!
I like that idea, especially not having to bend over after getting on the bike - thanks. Glad you enjoy the blog.
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