Right Footboard Rail, Foot Brake & Chain Guard Installed

Hi.

Today I have fitted the right hand side footboard rail with the foot brake rod and the chain guard. 

Here are some photo's.

Clevis Pin Installation

Hi

While installing the seat T-bar, I really battled to figure out how the clevis pin and the clevis pin retaining spring fit together - I could not get them fitted.

Google came to the rescue!  I came across a post on a Harley Davidson community web site that showed how the spring should fit.

Here is what it should look like.

Seat T-bar Fitted

Hi. 

I have fitted the seat T-bar. 

Zerk Fittings

Hi

I have / will replaced all of the zerk fittings on the bike. 

Seat Post Restoration

Hi. 

Yesterday I took the seat post apart, cleaned all of the old grease off with thinners, then cleaned all of the rust off on the wire wheel. 

I then used a makeshift ram rod to grease the entire seat post tube on the frame. I also greased and oiled all of the seat post components. 

Here is a photo of the reassembled seat post. I will insert the seat post back into the frame today and will also try to fit the seat T-bar. 

Battery Box Fitted

Hi.

I have just fitted the battery box. Here is a photo.

Fitting the Coil

Hi

I have just finished painting the coil and will fit it just now.  I have purchased a NOS coil to ignition timing wire, but that has not arrived yet.  As soon as it arrives I will fit the wire. 

Here are some photos. 

Season's Greetings and a Happy 2016!

Hi

I hope that you and your family have a blessed Christmas and a prosperous 2016.

All the best
Jacques Botha

Fender Restoration (Part 4)

Hi

The fenders have turned out to be a lot of work - partly because of the rust underneath the riveted parts.  This required that I drill the rivits out, sand the metal down to get rid of the rust, then repaint the previsousy rusted sections.  This after I have already painted most of the fender.  Which means that I have to sand the fender a bit (again!) with a fine grit sanding paper to ensure that the final coat of paint will be even.

The rear fender flap is finished.  Here is a photo - the paint was still very wet when I took the photo, hence the shiny look.

Coil Restoration (Part 2)

Hi

Yesterday I have managed to re-spray the coil.  The photo's were taken while the paint was still very wet - hence the shine.  Once the paint dries, it will be a dull desert khaki colour.

Pottering Around on a Sunday Afternoon

Hi

I spend the Sunday afternoon just pottering around on the H-D:

• I cleaned the gas shut-off valve;
• I fitted the new head nuts (only hand tight) and the throttle cable bracket onto the heads;
• I fitted the primary drive train;
• And I fitted the Air Cleaner cover plate tag.

Here are some photo's.

This photo shows the air cleaner tag, the coil bracket, the primary drive train and the new head nuts

The gas shut-off valve was really rusted and I cleaned all of the rust off.

Tank Restoration (Part 1)

Hi

I have started to work on the two tanks. 

The first step was to soak the tanks in thinners to loosed the thick layer of paint.  We then stripped the paint and used a wire brush to clean off most of the remaining paint.

I then applied the Rust Off to both the inside and the outside of the tank, to get rid of any rust.  The inside was very rusted, but the Rust Off has removed the rust.

Coil Restoration (Part 1)

Hi

Doepie has checked the coil and the spark plug wires and both are still in a good working order.  I have therefore decided to just repaint the coil.  To prepare the coil for painting, I have cleaned it on the wire wheel of the bench grinder.

Note the TA stamped on the side of the coil

Next step is to re-spray the coil.

Engine Fitted - It is Starting to Look Like a Motorcycle!

Hi

I have also managed to fit the engine.  Here are some photo's.

The Engine from the left hand side of the H-D

I have also mounted the coil mounting bracket (visisble on the seat post pillar in the photo above).

The Engine from the right hand side of the H-D

Gearbox Fitted

Hi

I have managed to fit the gearbox.  Here are some photo's.

The Gearbox from the right hand side of the H-D

The Gearbox from the left hand side of the H-D

Some Engine Parts have Arrived

Morning 

I have picked up the head studs and nuts from the post office this morning. 

Prepping the Fenders for Painting (Part 3)

Hi 

I am currently busy removing the bit of rust underneath the cable duct of the rear fender. 

I did sand it down, but there were still some rust below the cable duct. I have bought a rust remover and have applied that. 

 

 

I then used a MS Primer (grey) to prime the fenders.

 

 

Engine Rebuild Completed

Hi

Doepie has completed the rebuild of the engine and the Linkert Carburettor!  He sent me these photo's.  I'll collect the engine from him on Saturday and take some more photo's.

This is a really big milestone in any restoration - engine, gearbox and carburettor totally restored!  I am really pleased with the progress on the bike.

The Righ-hand Side of the 45 cubic inch (750cc) Engine
[Notice the original air-cooled spark plugs]

The Left-hand Side of the Engine

Engine Rebuild - Heads Fitted

Hi

Doepie has just e-mailed me some pictures of the engine rebuild.  He has fitted the heads (temporarily - I am still waiting for the new head studs and nuts to arrive).  Doepie had some head studs in stock, which I will just replace when the studs that I have ordered arrive.  He, however, did not have any of the head nuts in stock and used ordinary nuts to fit the heads - to prevent any dirt from getting into the engine.

The Engine with the Head Studs Fitted

The Heads Fitted (Temporarily)

Prepping the Fenders for Painting (Part 2)

Hi

I have been working on the fenders for a while now. The paint has been stripped and the fenders have been sanded down to the bare metal on both sides. All the rust has been removed on both sides.  To do that, I drilled out the rivets for the rear fender hinge, as well as, the fender brace.

This weekend I have filled some of the small dents with extra fine body filler and I have sanded the body filler down.  I am nearly ready for the first coat of etch primer to be applied.  I will sand the fenders again with a 600 grit sanding paper (to make sure that all the small holes are filled).  I will then paint the fender in the matt desert khaki and refit the rivets.

Harley Davidson's that Doepie are Building

Here are some photos of HD's that Doepie are busy building.

Engine Rebuild Progress

Hi

Doepie is making awesome progress with the engine rebuild.

Gearbox Rebuild Completed

Good morning 

I have just had a phone call from Doepie to say that he has finished the rebuild of the gearbox .

The gearbox rebuild involved the replacement of the bushes, bearings, all the seals, the clutch springs, the final drive sprocket with seal, etc. The casing has been bead blasted and some of the parts were repainted. 

The parts that were repainted were done in matt black or the matt desert khaki - as it came out of the factory (according to Bruce Palmer and his book 'How to Restore Your Harley-Davidson')

I will pick up the gearbox this morning and post some pictures of it. 

The Completed Gearbox - the backing plate of the primary cover is just turned around and should face the other way

Hooray! - the Engine and Gearbox Parts have arrived

Hi

The engine and gearbox parts that I have ordered a couple of weeks ago from Clements Trading in the Netherlands have arrived.  This means that we are on track to have the engine and gearbox rebuild completed and fitted back onto the motorcycle during December 2015.

Parts Required	Number Required
35204-41 sprocket with seal  NOS	1
35195-26 keys for sprocket	2
36042-41 bush for kick start	1
2432-41 lock washers on clutch release arm	2
37458-41 bush	1
37335-41 seal kit	1
37462-41 clutch nut lock washer	1
38075-4 clutch springs	8
35344-41, thrust washer	1
9090 rollers
9075 roller @ 2 for both sides    all rollers	1
35216-26 lock washer on engine sprocket	1
26550-38 oil pressure unit	Not Available
31071-37 generator gear (oil slinger type)	Not Available
23960-29 crank pin NOS	1
24060-26 crank thrust washers (thickest available)	2
24331-36 gudgeon pin bushes	2
9321 rollers drive side of engine full set, 2 sets rollers adjacent to one another	1
9241 rollers for crank pin	1
9301 rollers for crank pin has 1 set each side of conrod	2
32585-36 distributor horseshoe  1567-36a	1
9084 rollers +0004” oversize
Primary chain?	1
Linkert Carburettor Bowl	1

Used Harley-Davidson Horn Restored

Hi

My WL had a 6V car horn on when I bought it. I have managed to buy a used 6V H-D horn on eBay a while ago. It was a bit the worse for wear. I have stripped it, sanded it down to bare metal, resprayed it and assembled it. I just need to spray the face plate.

The Refurbished Horn

 

 

 

This is what the horn looked like when I received it.

The Kick Starter Ready

Hi.

I have fitted the newly arrived nuts and bolts for the kick starter and it is now ready for fitment to the gearbox. And the gearbox should be completely rebuilt by next week.

The Kick Starter with the new nuts and bolts

Some Small Parts have arrived

Good morning (South Africa time)

I have received some small parts that I have ordered from 45 Flathead Service in the Netherlands.

Some nuts and bolts that I have ordered, as the stuff on the bike was beyond saving

 

 

Fenders being Prepared for Painting

Hi

I have also been working on the fenders.

Update on the Engine Rebuild (Part 2)

Hi

I dropped off all the parts that I had to paint, as well as, all of the nuts and bolts that I had to parkerize at Doepie this past Saturday.  The engine is back from the Engineering works and it is looking really great!  All still disassembled.  Here are some photo's.

The Cylinder Sleeves with new sleeves, valves and the head machined to fit the heads.

The original Conrods with new gudgeon pins, machined to exactly fit the new pistons

Doepie's work bench - full of 45 parts

New standard sized pistons and rings

The one crankcase - stamped with the number 41 - 5652 (made in 1941)

The other crackcase - with the same number 41 - 5652 (the 41 is a bit faint)

 This means that the engine have matching crankcases!

The engine number (also a 1941 number)

The gearbox is nearly finished - just waiting for some of the parts that I have ordered to arrive

The generator - Doepie says that this looks like an original, as the wires were only wired with the twist in the factory.