Ventura

Well now! Its been a while since the DT got any attention, but we're on the last leg in earnest now! Since December I just haven't had the time or opertunity to get the engine rebuilt. But now, its well on the way! All new bearings, seals, clutch plates and a new gear change shaft (knackered splines) fitted. Looks like an engine again!!..................... Not a great deal of issues in the rebuild, and no little bits left over! Im glad I had the load of photos I took, three months ago when I stripped it down, to refer to as they proved very handy in reminding where everything went. So once the cylinder and head have their final coat of paint they'll be on and we're almost there. Getting excited now!! V.

In answer to your No1. Its here!!............... And for anyone touring the west coast of Scotland on a bike, its a must! V.

Great vid Blackhat. Thanks for sharing! Certainly helps to blow the winter cobwebs away! The "Pass of the Cattle" run should be on everybody's list of to-do's for sure. But be wary of the weather! This is the same road when we did it last year. Low cloud and howling wind on the day! Couldnt see a thing for most of the way!!.............. V.

John, as we speak Im on your doorstep (ish) in Holyhead. I work on that big (the biggest!) ferry to Dublin. Another Xmas at work!! What you need to do is take your barrel to Grampian Motors in Crosby (Liverpool) www.grampianmotors.co.uk They'll rebore it and give you a piston kit, while you wait, and will cost about £60 all-in. Job done! V.

There's quite a few. A lot depends on where you are? Giz a clue!? V.

Seems its on the Travel Channel 251 I've set record!! V.

These guys did my DT stanchions recently................ Rockrome (Engineering) Ltd 156, Sandy Road Liverpool L21 1AQ 0151 928 0080 Excellent job, came highly recommended and fairly quick service too. I think they charged £120 all-in from what i remember. V.

Vapour blasting man did a great job on the casings.............. All the bearings and seals are in hand so I guess I'll be busy tomorrow (Im going to have to time the use of the oven for when she's out at work!! Crank is already hidden in the freezer!! ) Wish me luck!! V.

Thanks Paul and Geo for your positive words. The C90 is a great little bike and has a great following, and fantastic fun to ride too! Believe it or not I spent most of today fitting a Yoshimura exhaust, pod filter and uprated rear suspension to it!! Have also welded a bung in the exhaust to fit an A/F gauge I have for setting up the jetting. Just need some sticky race tyres now and Im good to go!! Here ya go Geo............ Also took the crankshaft in today to have a nice shiny con-rod kit fitted. For anyone in the Liverpool area, Grampian do this (and the rebore/honing) while you wait. The crank was a ten minute job, £62 all in................... Casings are at the aqua blasters now and should pick them up tomorrow. Then let the rebuild begin!! V.

Well, the DT has had another burst of attention this week. Apart from the engine its almost complete now............. And yes, its still in the house!! The engine work continued in earnest today. Got it split and cleaned, with the casings off to the aqua-blaster man.............. I just hope I can remember how it all goes back together again!! V.

I'm still here Geo....... Just!! She's calmed down a bit now, but unfortunately it may kick off again later today as I'm bringing my next project home later! I'm entered into a Honda C90 8-hour endurance race early next year, so bought the bike to start race-modding it! Something tells me that TWO bikes in the lounge won't go down too well!! My best advice would be to be out when she gets home!! V.

Greetings F&E And welcome from another old Newbie! V.

Pleased to meet you!! V.

So................... Its looking more like a bike again now. Got all the wiring done, headlight and clocks back on. Just waiting to fit the original bars and back light unit. Oh, and the engine of course!! Getting there!!........... V.

In order of (my) preference.............. Hagons.... http://www.hagon-sho.../wheels2011.pdf Devon Rims..... http://www.devonrimc....com/prices.htm Central Wheels..... http://www.central-w...kes/spokes.html Ive used all three. In all cases I'd ring them to order and to enquire on availability. Hagons have a great database of spoke specifications for a multitude of bikes and usually will deliver within a week. To be 100% sure you could always send a sample of the 4 different spokes. Just to be sure!! I just paid £70 from Central Wheels, but their delivery time was far too excessive compared to others. Not so bad if the bike is in bits anyway, but not good if you're using it! V.

Well now! Working on the premise that Im already in the dog-house for using the dish washer for bike bits , I thought I might as well go the whole hog!!............. The DT is rolling again!! Got the wheels sorted and back on (albeit very loosely for now) and freed up some room in my shed so I can do a bit of sorting in there. Once I've tidied up I can then start on the engine. And maybe while the bike is in the lounge I can sort out the wiring loom in warm comfort!! NB.... If this turns out to be my last ever post then you'll know what happened when she came home from work!! V.

Great program!! Well worth recording! And amazing to see the great Dave Aldana racing at the grand age of 62!! And doing very well too. On Any Sunday....... The modern-day UK version!! V.

Thanks for the replies chaps. Ive had a look on-line and it seems there's a world shortage of PJ1 satin at the moment! But the Plasti-Kote BBQ is freely available (even B&Q has it) so I'll give that a go I think. Today Ive been doing a bit more cleaning of various bits and pieces. And found a very good, labour saving, method of getting the black plastics pretty spotless. Brought the airbox up a treat!!............ (NB... This method should only be used when the missus is out of the house for at least a couple of hours!! ) There may be dire consequences otherwise! V.

After a couple of weeks away from the bikes (unfortunately having to work for a living ) the DT project is slowly progressing again. The barrel and head have been aqua blasted to good effect and the bore taken out to +1mm and honed. Nice job.......... So, my question now to those who've been here before, which black paint am I going to use for the barrel/head? I've trawled the forums for advice and it seems that PJ1 satin or Plasti-coat BBQ paint is the preferred choice of many. Any advice or comment on this would be greatly appreciated, then I can make a start!! The wheels should be rebuilt this week so am keen to get them back on and get the frame rolling again. Need some room in my shed to get started on the engine tear-down! More to follow!................ V.

Washing up liquid works well, but you do have to keep reapplying. Its cheap tho! Or why not try an Oxford insert...................... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/OXFORD-HELMET-ULTRA-CLEAR-VISOR-INSERT-ANTI-FOG-SHIELD-/200661747601?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Helmets&hash=item2eb85f4791 Not too expensive and certainly does the trick! V.

Awful news! Marco will be sorely and sadly missed. V.

The new replacement seals are single piece, 12mm wide seals. Unlike the originals which were in 2 Individual (upper and lower) parts. V.

I had a look at those spikey things. Did you use pop rivets to attach them? I was a bit worried that it'd crack the edge of the plastic pan when riveting them on. In the end it was the roughty-toughty staple gun sorted it! Only pics so far are here, taking pride of place on the dining room table!! But why not eh! .......... Whatcha' think?? V.

Weimieman, your quite right, having a tardis to work in helps greatly! Good luck with the upholstery job. It really does take a heavy duty stapler to drive those staples into the plastic pan. Sure it'll work out fine, especially if you take up Nevs kind offer! Nev, I'll pm you some photos Ive taken of the bike lift and also the front wheel clamp on the hyd platform. With access to welding, cutting and drilling gear I'm sure you can knock them up fine. Ive just picked up the tank and plastics this evening from the paint shop. What a fantasic job he's done. Better than new! Photo's to follow!! V.

Well now, after a little time away, the rebuild has begun! The powder coating and the fork rechroming turned out great! So couldnt resist starting to put things back together a little. Swing-arm and yokes reconnected (with all new bushes and bearings) and very shiny forks loosely back in place...... Also managed to get the new cover on the seat....... And picking up the tank and plastics tomorrow. All good fun (so far! ) V.