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Post by donkeychomp on May 21, 2018 20:12:55 GMT 1
Can't wait for next month's (this month?) mag to come out, reserved a copy and my local newsagent is a bike fan. He couldn't believe the quality of the work that went into the triple...and yes he voted! Alex
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Post by scooter on May 21, 2018 20:16:01 GMT 1
well done any bike this far modified that looks standard until studied is a tribute to the builder
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Post by bazzer5115 on May 21, 2018 20:45:39 GMT 1
Enjoyed the weekend,great to meet a few forum members in the flesh.Nice to see Mark’s LC,top class bit of engineering!!! The weather was superb(forgot my hat and the head is a bit sunburnt) Spent most of my time watching the flat track racing,wish I was a few years younger with a healthy knee and I’d be itching to give that a go. Some of bands were quite good,and the cider was going down well. Had a good time with the guys from the air cooled RD club. (Took my air cooled hybrid up) Surprisingly even the wife enjoyed it and all she knows about bikes is that they have 2wheels.!! I think me,the wife and my 2 dogs and bikes may go to a few more shows this year😎😎
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Post by yamark on May 21, 2018 21:06:26 GMT 1
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Post by donkeychomp on May 22, 2018 0:50:52 GMT 1
I liked the lot, apart from the street fighter (what a daft name). BIG soft spot for the Honda SS even though the mag said it had a 200cc pitbike lump in it, and that Z650 too as I had one. But the deserved winner by a country mile was the triple. If they did this survey 20 years down the line it'd still win.
Bravo my friend you deserve the win and perhaps a slightly larger cheque? LOL
Alex
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Post by dusty350 on May 25, 2018 21:01:58 GMT 1
I've had a great couple of days helping Mark with the triple. I went over to his on Wednesday as he wanted to get it up and running. He has only fired it up once before. He was under a bit of pressure as part of the deal when the bike won the Special build of the year is Jim Moore comes and does an article for the mag and gets to test ride it !! So Wednesday saw us adding coolant and gear oil, get her running, and then Mark taking the bike for it's inaugural ride up the road and back. Needless to say, this bike sounds fantastic when running. It starts easily, revs cleanly and ticks over steadily and evenly. There are a couple of issues - a coolant leak - probably from the middle cylinder, and Marks test ride indicated a slipping clutch, but all in all a safe, rideable bike for Jim to test. So today is THE day ! Jim turned up with Jase, the photographer, and hundreds of photos are taken from differing angles. There is obviously far more involved with getting the right pics for the mag than we realise. All the while, Jim is taking notes, and it's obvious he is very enthusiastic about the 550; 20180525_102806 by David Miller, on Flickr With the workshop pics done, we put the bike in the back of the van and drive off to the countryside for some location pics. Leafy Berkshire provided the backdrop for some static pics, and pics with the tank and panels off. I know we've all seen the rebuild pics, but each time you look at this bike, it blows you away; 20180525_130646 by David Miller, on Flickr We then did some action pics. I drove my van with Jase in the back with the back doors open getting different shots of Jim riding, literally a few inches off my back bumper !! Bumpy roads and Chelsea tractors don't make it easy to get the right shots, but Jase seemed pretty happy considering the terrible pot holes ! Final part was to get some action shots of Jim cornering. Jase knew the area from a previous shoot and directed us to a perfect bend. It's a short vid from my phone, but the 550 is alive and well and looking fantastic; VID-20180525-WA0003 by David Miller, on Flickr The smile on Marks face wont disappear for a good while yet I'm sure. What he has achieved is amazing. This bike got better and better the more Jim rode it. The clutch slip all but disappeared and caused no problems. The coolant leak isn't major but Mark plans to pull the top end to rectify it. Jim did comment on how much torque there was, and was genuinely impressed - he loves an Lc ! This bike is so right from the beginning and behaved so well - Mark has got it right first time. Jim and Jase were great - true enthusiasts and obviously very good at what they do, and it was a great insight into what makes such a great magazine. I'm counting the days till it lands on my doormat !! Well done Mark. Regards Dusty
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Post by donkeychomp on May 25, 2018 21:07:26 GMT 1
What a great little story. What issue is the bike going to be in?
Alex
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Post by dusty350 on May 25, 2018 21:10:44 GMT 1
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Post by dusty350 on May 25, 2018 21:13:19 GMT 1
Hi Alex, The next issue which will be out in a couple of weeks time Dusty
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Post by dono on May 25, 2018 21:32:18 GMT 1
Great report Dusty, lovely to see the little video, however I’m sure it would have been a better video if mouse was riding it... wish he had been more on it on the entry to the bend...she sounds frickin amazing, couldn’t say it enough times but bloody well done Mark! :-) cheers Dono
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Post by yamark on May 25, 2018 21:41:23 GMT 1
Unbelievable day- I'll never forget it. (I asked Dusty to post up the photo's for me).
Dusty was absolutely "Stella" today and Wednesday. Nothing was a problem, nothing was too much trouble. For those of you that don't know him, he his such a kind, warm, generous person and "one of my favourite people on the planet". Without his help, most of the shots that will appear in the mag wouldn't have happened. We used his van to transport the bike to the photoshoot location.
Dusty and I have seen a mock up of the front cover and, have seen a number of the images taken today (literally hundreds of pics). I can't wait for the mag to come out - for the first time, I'm wishing my life away!
The triple makes a much better sound when your next to it, the video doesn't capture the sound properly. It sounds mostly LC with a bit of H1 and kettle thrown in.
One of my best days ever- mostly thanks to Dusty. Dusty, take a bow, and Thanks again mate
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Post by dusty350 on May 25, 2018 21:44:59 GMT 1
Jim was aware it needed to be treated carefully and he rode accordingly. He did start pushing on a bit as he made more passes but was very sympathetic to the fact it's a newly built motor. It does show the potential though and he loved the torque the motor has. The bike definitely performed better and better the more he rode it . He went round that bend at least 10 times and got a bit quicker with every pass - bearing in mind also that Jase was trying to get good shots too. Dusty
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Post by donkeychomp on May 25, 2018 21:49:56 GMT 1
Just noticed the video...sounds fantastic!
Alex
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Post by dusty350 on May 25, 2018 21:51:33 GMT 1
You are welcome Mark. It was my pleasure and seeing your smile (and relief !) made my day Bask in the glory mate - she is a truly amazing bike And thanks for asking me - I loved every minute of it Dusty
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Post by mouse on May 26, 2018 7:53:53 GMT 1
Excellent! What a great day, so glad it all came together in the end.
After such a huge build it is pretty impressive that those are the only problems you have had Mark!
Well done on the vid Dusty, bike does sound great, i look forward to the write up
ATB Mouse
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Post by yamark on Jun 3, 2018 16:48:49 GMT 1
To answer the question of when Practical Sportsbike is out on sale - it's 13th of June. I finally have had some time to work on the triple. As expected, a few issues came to light, but the good news is the ignition, generator, gearbox, electrics and all suspension\brakes are working well. Also no oil leaks, no primary chamber leaks, no petrol leaks apart from a sticking float on the carb that feeds cylinder 1.
So the 4 problems are; 1) sticking float 2) clutch slip 3) exhausts leaking at the pipe\stub joint 4) coolant leak somewhere on the top end
So the float will be an easy fix, the clutch, I gave a little bit more free play and the problem stopped, the exhausts- I'll use a different sealer like high temp silicone. That leaves the coolant leak to sort out. The leak was coming from high up between cylinder number 2 and 3. To refresh your memories the cylinder head joint (weld) is between 1 and 2 and is holding coolant. So after inspection with a lead light, the problem must be either the head gasket on 2 or 3, or the welded side plate on the centre cylinder.
To start with, I turn the engine over so that the centre piston is at TDC - remember I can't drain the middle barrel so any coolant spilt as the head comes off won't find it's way into the crankshaft.
Carbs off, coolant drained, plugs out
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Cylinder head off - no signs of a coolant leak
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After the centre cylinder is removed, the trail of antifreeze can be seen on the side of the R\H barrel
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The culprit found, a porous weld
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I then wanted to confirm the problem, and sealed the water passages with some rubber sheet and clamped a slab of ali down on top of the rubber. I drilled a hole into the ali and fitted and sealed a Schrader valve. Then pressure tested and pasted some washing up liquid over the entire welded section
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After digging around, the little void appeared
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A better view of my cobbled together test method (I won't be phoning Dragons Den)
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The cylinder head, with it's Permatex in tact
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So I'll get the cylinder welded, and reassemble. I'm really pleased that my list of problems is so short and easy to fix. Yamaha took 2 years to develop the LC, I had 3 hours!
Cheers, Mark
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Post by Tobyjugs on Jun 3, 2018 17:05:42 GMT 1
Hi Mark in the second picture down it looks like you could have a gas leak. the bottom cylinder in the picture and the leak area is towards the center cylinder if you understand what i mean.
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Post by 4l04ever on Jun 3, 2018 17:20:02 GMT 1
If you need some more base gaskets, let me know. I now have 0.6mm available as well as the usual 0.15, 0.25, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.8.
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Post by dusty350 on Jun 3, 2018 20:25:49 GMT 1
Great detective work Mark. Well done for persevering - another reminder of how many hours of physical and mental effort that has gone into this. And your snagging list is amazingly short ! Dusty
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Post by steeley on Jun 3, 2018 20:42:13 GMT 1
Nice .
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Post by bezzer on Jun 3, 2018 23:35:20 GMT 1
Mark, Been a great build to follow, with a deserved result. Well done fella, not just for the bike, but for showing such humility, and for your own generosity with help, encouragement and advice for my own build.
Just brilliant mate.
bezzer.
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Post by veg on Jun 7, 2018 21:11:30 GMT 1
Fabulous news and for me there was only one winner anyone can bolt stuff together and pay someone to machine stuff I say that as someone who has relied on NK so no disrespect to anyone who does I put myself in that category, but what you have made and built is unique and the vast majority of it by hand. Thoroughly deserved accolade well done mark.
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Post by yamark on Jun 8, 2018 14:38:43 GMT 1
Hi Mark in the second picture down it looks like you could have a gas leak. the bottom cylinder in the picture and the leak area is towards the center cylinder if you understand what i mean. Thanks mate for a good spot - I'll be investigating further.
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Post by yamark on Jun 8, 2018 14:40:54 GMT 1
If you need some more base gaskets, let me know. I now have 0.6mm available as well as the usual 0.15, 0.25, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.8. Rob, your a star mate, I'm sure I have enough gaskets, thanks to your last generous delivery!
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Post by yamark on Jun 8, 2018 14:44:02 GMT 1
Mark, Been a great build to follow, with a deserved result. Well done fella, not just for the bike, but for showing such humility, and for your own generosity with help, encouragement and advice for my own build. Just brilliant mate. bezzer. No worries mate, always a pleasure to share info. Phone me if you need anything, don't ever feel your bothering me.
Cheers, Mark
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Post by yamark on Jun 8, 2018 14:47:12 GMT 1
Fabulous news and for me there was only one winner anyone can bolt stuff together and pay someone to machine stuff I say that as someone who has relied on NK so no disrespect to anyone who does I put myself in that category, but what you have made and built is unique and the vast majority of it by hand. Thoroughly deserved accolade well done mark. Cheers Veg, really kind
Mark
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Post by bid on Jun 8, 2018 22:46:29 GMT 1
increadible, my hat is off, and blown away, wow, all the best with her, dave🤪
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Post by yamark on Jun 14, 2018 20:06:56 GMT 1
I picked up a few copies of Practical sportsbikes July issue in the week. The write up was by the editor, Jim Moore - pictures by Jason Critchell (Jason also photographed the bike at the top 10 photoshoot). The feature on the 550LC (12 pages) is near perfect in detail and content. I couldn't have wished for a better write up.
Jim has very skilfully put the whole build story, knitted together with so many awesome pictures into his great mag. I also asked if there was any chance of my wife (Suzanne) being in one of the pictures, once again, Jim delivered (she is in the picture above the thank you section). I'm not sure of copyright laws, but here is the cover (PSB put the cover on Facebook before publication)
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And the biggest image of the bike
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I don't want to upset Jim and the PSB team by posting up any of the text, so I wont.
I want to thank Practical Sportsbikes for how professional they have been, but without doubt Jim Moore has been simply superb. You will struggle to meet a nicer man, who, as it happens shares our passion for bikes. He is a class act.
Jim also took the time to write to me, send a couple of copies of the mag, stickers, a CD with loads of images and a fabulous framed picture (Sue, the bike and me). All of this, when he must be very busy putting next months magazine together.
Lads, if you ever get a chance to have a magazine feature done on your bike - do it. But get it done by PSB.
Once again, thanks to Dusty for all of his help as well.
Cheers, Mark
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Post by dusty350 on Jun 14, 2018 20:37:10 GMT 1
Hi Mark They certainly did you proud. The magazine article is fantastic. And Jim is one of us, for sure Dusty
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Post by sbscnor on Jun 14, 2018 21:27:07 GMT 1
STUNNING BUILD and a deserved winner, it just looks like it came direct from Yamaha that way also good of Dusty to lend a hand. I met Jim when my 250 was in the Classic Bike of the Year competition and agree with you he is a knowledgeable and enthusiastic two stroke nut.
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