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Someone’s got to kick it off I guess.
BTW – are we “here” now and no longer “there” ???
The “Glemseck” project has grown a personality all on it’s own [ saying “build me, build me” ] and I appear to be persuaded that a second, milder, road bike might be in order. That does depend entirely on funds and goodwill – we’ll see.
It does seem to be practical to get a simplified version on the road sooner [ mild Flat Tracker + Weber 40DCOE ] while continuing with the Glemseck bike.
A couple of pix just to try out the new site as requested !
Might actually be TWO if KK has his way !!!!
We’re now looking at the original Tangerine Dream Flat Track version [ mild road ] as well as the Glemseck project which seems to be morphing into a Drag / Road bike ! Â The plan is to pursue the Flat Tracker – as in reality it was virtually all there before the moment of madness – in an effort to get myself a road bike sooner rather than later.
I have to realistic with the Glemseck project – there are quite a few bits which I will need to get made – which will eat up favours and money ! However, I have NO intention of cutting any corners with this project.
OFFICIAL – two bikes ….
yep, Kaptain Kwack to blame – he’s a terrible bad influence on me – FORCING me to do a second bike !!!
So, work now continuing on the “TD” Flat Tracker and when my pal comes back from a short break next week – it’s up to the garage with it and on to the ramp.
I have “found” where my spare [ !! ] IHI Turbo went to – a pal borrowed it a few years ago for a BMW Oilhead project we were working on. He’s dropping it off at the weekend. There is a good chance that it is one fitted with a carbon seal – which means it can be used for a suck through set up with an SU carb. Â Much simpler, and in my comfort zone of expertise.
Once I have the new frame / swingarm and “race” engine from KK, I’ll start mocking it up of the bench from where I left off.
I have a head start inasmuch as all the “whatifs” have been carried out on the TD.
I do like the exhaust I mocked up, so I will need to get another set of bends for the Glemseck !
It’s been very quiet in the shed recently.
I have a dear old pal who is currently fighting cancer and I’ve spent the past 6 weeks or so taking him back and forth to hospital and ferrying his wife to visit. That hasn’t left a lot of time [ or inclination ] to get on with my hobbies.
He has one final operation this coming weekend [ hackers allowing ] to try to save the situation – and a lung !
He was scheduled to have the op last Friday – the day the NHS was hacked ! So that didn’t happen.
The down time has given me time to think carefully about my options with the KZ project.
Without being morbid – his current situation does bring up the matter of mortality – and “useful time left” on the meter.
So I will concentrate on completing the “Tangerine Dream” to try to get myself on the road as soon as possible and at the same time putting together the turbo “Glemseck” version as time and funds allow.
His current bout of ops will have a 9 week recovery time, but he will be allowed home after a week, so that means I won’t be on the hospital taxi run for his Wife’s visits [ 36 mile round trip ].
Hopefully I will be able to report some useful progress from next month.
Update – my pal has now had his major surgery to remove asbestosis, tumor and re-inflate his lung !
9 1/2 hours on the operating table, and the procedure was a 90% success. The surgeons could not remove all the asbestosis due to the fact the lung wall was too badly damaged in one area.That means there is a small chance that a tumor will form in the future.
I’m no longer doing the 40 mile round trip twice a day [ ! ] to take his wife to visit – but he needs a lot of homehelp during the next 9 weeks [ at least ] of recovery ].
It was great fun moving his sleeping accommodation from the third floor of his house to the ground floor !
So I can now get back to my KZ project [s ].
Next task is to check out the stock wiring loom to see if I can simply modify it or whether knitting a new loom is the answer. As I’m running daylight MOT [ no lights – ‘ish ] ] and deleting other controls it should be greatly simplified.
Then it’s take the project off the bench and into the garage on the bike ramp – that will leave the space in the shed to get the “Glemseck” engine sorted and packaged with the turbo, Nitrous, etc.
Good news mate, good news. Hope your friend recovers quickly and well.
I can’t see that a new, reduced loom is beyond a man of your undoubted abilities, but best to try to dig out proper connectors instead of the ubiquitous red and blue crimps which are evrywhere but not really well suited for vehicle wiring. If you do use them though you really have to use the proper ratchet tool, not the 10p scissor tools o every poundshop display.
Which only leaves the small details of the turbo, the nitrous and the giant flames which we will want to see on YouTube. ASAP! 🙂
Thanx for the encouragement Lonesome !
Wiring and gearboxes – my two biggest “hates”.
That said, I have designed and knitted a loom for one of my Drag Race cars, which involved 3 stage Nitrous Oxide with various rev, ignition and retard controllers! Didn’t particularly enjoy it, but there was a sense of satisfaction when it all worked !
The Tangerine Dream road bike will be relatively straightforward with “delete” issues. The Glemseck machine will involve various engine management wiring / controllers.
So, I can get back to my projects now.
The good news is that on a recent visit to my old workshops to see my pal that took it over, he volunteered to have the KZ up there while he made various spacers, fab, etc. He makes parts for a couple of major classic car parts suppliers and has all the relevant machinery and skills to sort out my odd jobs.
First job will be making the spacers to fit the front and rear Borrani wheels so that the rolling chassis can truly be “rolling” ! Might even be able to get the high level exhaust system fettled and at the very least – tacked.
Plan is to get the bike up there at the end of the month [ he has a big job to complete ] and work can begin to take me to the finishing straight.
Well the move didn’t go as planned !
My pal has a major rush job for his main customer – has to be done. Looks like at least another 3-4 weeks.
In the meantime, the twin plug head conversion has been completed and I can’t wait to get my hands on it !
While I was sitting twiddling my thumbs waiting for my pal to clear his work and get the chassis up for the machining etc., I decided to look again at the intake / exhaust as this will be the last opportunity until he has finished his part of the work.
Anyone who followed the early embryonic Glemseck ideas, will remember that originally I wanted to use an Eaton blower. When I offered mine up [ 1 of 3 ], it was obvious that it was plain too big enough to fit without butchering the frame. Also – as I thought – the drive from the alternator side rotated the wrong way for the blower. Blower clockwise.
Of course when I found out I was wrong about the engine rotation – I had already moved on to the idea of a turbo. I have never made a secret that I am not comfortable with turbos ! Yes, I KNOW all about the benefits – but I’m also aware of the drawbacks and having built 5 or 6 blown twins in the 60’s [ Shorrock ] that would be my preference.
So, why bring it up? Well a blower I had already sold to a guy was returned to me as “the wrong one” – glad in a way as it was without doubt the best s/h Eaton I’ve owned. Absolutely NO snout play and excellent rotors.
Since I had it back, I never even unpacked it [ 6 weeks ] – until today.
“Well I’ll be blowed” [ forgive pun and insert your own expletive ] – ” It’s more compact than the other 2″.
Whizz out to shed, remove exhaust and Weber and offer the blower up ……………….. yes, that’ll do nicely.
At a stroke that relieves me of sorting out oil feed for turbo [ blower self contained ], and electronics / carb – and the main stumbling block, getting a turbo unit with the old school carbon seal. That will make the installation so much simpler, and relatively speaking the tuning set up far easier. Of course NO turbo lag, something I was a bit concerned with a twin – and boost from idle.
As I was going to have to devise an oil pump drive for the GSXR oil pump anyway, I’m no worse off AND I’ve already got all the pulleys.
One very happy Beachcomber.
Scrub that last request !!!
Seems I have the “big” intake manifolds – and now I’ve checked I find they are spot on to use as a base for the intake from the blower. Two tubes will come off the intakes to a circular [ oval if I can find the material ] plenum which will then shoot off with two curved tubes to the blower outlet.
I have now discovered an even more compact [ externally ] Eaton, with the same capacity. Checking that out now – if that works, that’ll leave me 2 to sell off !
So, Daughter Shelby’s BIG wedding over now [ Saturday ], just my eldest’s 50th birthday in 2 week’s time – and then my life is back to normal and I can have some “me” time !
The twin plug head is now ready [ thanx to KK ] and at the end of this month [ after birthday celebrations ] the bike IS coming off the bench and I can continue with the job of getting the chassis truly rolling. That is to say – wheel spacers etc. front and back to suit the Grimeca hub and the Borrani wire wheels.
Definitely going towards 60’s style Cafe Racer style now – Tomaselli clip-ons dusted off and polished, Manx tank [ dummy cover ] and the 7R race seat all going on. The Manx dummy tank will house all the electrics, Nitrous controllers, switches, solenoids etc. , while the fuel tank [ reservoir ] will be UNDER THE ENGINE ! Yes ……….. imagine a GP style belly fairing [ upside down Toblerone shape ], and then imagine that as a fuel cell – simples eh?
That means I have loads of space to hide all the ancillaries needed for the blower / nitrous. The 100bhp [ tee hee ] nitrous bottle will hide in the lower part of the top fairing.
BTW – are we “here” now and not over “there” ?
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