Indian Tadpole

[Mr.B.]

Actually the big lathe can partially be seen in the foreground in the above picture with a window. I seem to remember it can turn pieces up to 12’ long and 3’ across.

Wish I could find my earlier post, those specs would of been fresher in my mind them. He told be once in awhile he would turn wood porch columns as single parts for old house restorations.

This is the best pic I can find of it…

That's not the owner in the pictures, he was just in his mid-50's and died young of a heart attack. I had just visited him shortly before he passed and showed him my Excalibur bike. And he told me he'd be interested in building one for himself...

He was descended from the original owners and had worked there since he was a child. A good guy! RIP Mark!

 

[fasteddy]

Got the crankshaft on the tri car motor drilled and threaded today. Threaded it 3/4" into the end of the crank shaft and it was an absolutely flawless effort. One could even say it was Fasteddy proof.

Used the pilot drill to set the depth and then the 17/64 or letter (I) drill and then tapped it. Just wrapped some masking tape around the tap at the 3/4" mark and stated threading the hole. With the guides there was no chance of it going off center and the tap went straight in like it was guided by a laser.

Of course just as I'm finishing up the treads with the tap my ever helpful brother looks over and says that it would be a good idea to stop because if the tap breaks I'd be ******. The kid always was a confidence booster.

Tomorrow I'll get the metal cut out for the jack shaft and set things up for the machinist.

Steve.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

As I was reading the 2nd to last sentence I thought about thread restorer / thread chaser.

Three pages of various views on the link below. This about what to use to clean rusted threads. But for just newly created threads I always just used the tap itself to have threads run smooth.

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/general/thread-chaser-tap-237679/

I never broke a tap, I had done something quite wrong using an easy out though. The gutter in the street where I had my previous truck parked was slightly graded for water run off. Not thinking about that, I lined up the bubble in the drill built in level and made the hole for the easy out. Part was was in the bolt I was trying to remove from the rounded bolt head on a drain plug in the oil pan. The last 1/4 of the drill went into the oil pan threads since I was betting on the level. Why was it the bolt would not come out I thought? So the easy out did not move the bolt, but backed enough so it was no longer in the pan threads.

Then I bought a Sears the Craftsman Bolt Out kit. Best tool to save my donkey ever! Still the pan threads were good and no oil leak.

I marked my socket and wrench with tape saying drain plug so never to round off bolt head at least for wrong standard or metric.

http://www.sears.com/craftsman-10-p...gclid=CIaA5s2F_84CFchcfgodggoG0Q&gclsrc=aw.ds

Others called Bolt Grip by Irwin are the same idea.

 

[indian22]

I wish I knew the whole story but I never asked my Mother what happened.

Steve.

Extremely interesting family histories Steve & I wish you knew the whole stories, but it's great you have such interesting bits and pieces of your ancestor's
success's & tragedies. My mind has wandered back to the tragedy of the Titanic many times over the years and now I have another caveat to reflect on. Thanks for the telling! Rick C.

 

[fasteddy]

I'm just doing some go backs to redo some of the things on the tri car that just aren't right.
I have a lot done on the camel back tank but for some reason Photobucket won't let me open up another album to put photos on. As soon as I can I'll post them.

Steve.

 

[indian22]

Steve,super glad you've felt up to getting some productive work time with the tri-car.

After all the dreaming, designing, building and spending you should feel very good about giving the extra effort to satisfy your expectations. It already pleases so many of us but in order for the project to be a success it must primarily please you.

What I hate about building, anything, for most customers, is having to satisfy them within their budgets and expectations when I know the project could have been so much better had their imaginations and expectations only been a little greater developed & it's not only a dollar concern but a quality one as well.

Building for one's self is so very satisfying and if other's also enjoy the outcome so much the better! Rick C.

 

[fasteddy]

Hi Rick, I have the enthusiasm of a 22 year old but the reality of a guy who's 12 days away from 73. The problem is that with all the close ups of the tri car available the i doting and t crossing has set in. Really wish I was able to say good enough and move on but that has never been me.

I could achieve perfect and still worry about how it could be better.

Oh yes. The customers with the Champagne Expectations and the 6 pack Beer Budget and the inability to understand the difference. All looks and no substance when it comes to a build quality. I always enjoyed the customers who felt qualified to tell you just how to build what they wanted or better still how you should have built it after you put more into it than they paid for.

I know your working with a different clientele but I used to tell people that I would build a piece of furniture with no money down and they could inspect it and if it was what they wanted they would pay me the agreed upon price. I did it for one simple reason and that was that it left me free to tell them to p*** up a rope if they gave me any nonsense about how it should have been done. Usually it was Mr. I could build it if I had time who did that. Mrs. was thrilled to have it done.

Of course they wanted to know why I didn't take a deposit and I explained that by the time it was finished enough people would have seen it that I could have sold it more than a few times to customers coming into the shop and if they didn't want it I'd call someone on the list and sell it but I wouldn't make a second one to satisfy the demand. It was theirs and theirs alone.

So true. The tri car is being built for me alone and those who enjoy seeing it built make the pleasure all the more enjoyable. If I make an electric tri car it will be the same but different. I could never build the same thing the same way twice. One of the few benefits of being me.

Steve.

 

[indian22]

One offs are what I do, that way I don't get bored during the process. When a client/customer starts off by telling me "that all you have to do...." I mentally double the price & triple the actual time he could expect completion, 'cause he's a problem I don't need in my life or those that work for me. I lose some work that way but not as much as one would expect.

Keep praying that you will find photos that inspire you to improve things on the tri-car keeps you thinking creatively and gives you something to work on that you love. Rick C.

 

[fasteddy]

There is a certain pleasure in doing that Rick. Morally it may not be right but oh the pleasure it gives. When I had the brakes done on the camper recently they asked if I was in a hurry. Nope and it took about ten working days to do it but they charged me 3 hours for what had to be at least 5 hours of work because it was done when they had down time in the shop and I waited I'm sure.

Nice guys don't always finish last.

I'm looking at the photos of the last 100% original Indian tri car that was sold earlier this year. The auction people took excellent close up photos of all of it and I was able to see in great detail just how it was put together.

As we said we're not out to fool anyone but we darned well want to make them stop and look. We're well on the way to achieving that.

Steve.

 

[fasteddy]

I got was able to get more done to the camel back gas tank this afternoon and the top of the tank is formed and the edges of the top are down over the sides ready to be soldered. Took a different approach from the first two I made. The first one no one saw because it was too small. The second one that I did was the one on the bike in the photos but it's not built correctly. This one came out as close to the original one as damn is to swearing. At least so far.

I'm going to make two more using the form/buck I just made just to have them. The one I'm doing now is the first one. No real reason to make more other than to show everyone how I did it. Maybe this will get other builders who would do an Camel Back Indian except that the gas tank is holding them back moving forward.

I still can't get on any of the photo storage sites so if someone could tell me how to move the photos from my computer to the thread I'd appreciate it. Computer skills are basic and the camera if it matters is a Nikon. I want to leave the everything on the gas tank thread.

Thank you all

Steve.

 

[silverbear]

I've enjoyed catching up on this epic thread. Pictures would be good.
SB

 

[curtisfox]

LOL ask little Johnny next door, always fun to try and get that stuff and they seen to know it by hart. Sounds KOOL ..........Curt

 

[fasteddy]

Curt,

Last household computer expert decamped to South Korea to teach English as a second language a couple of weeks ago. Another one is in Australia and the one still here is an Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer and so busy he doesn't have time to think.

Seems there are thousands of criminals and no wait time at the jail. Does make you realize the vast size of the lawlessness out there and the incredible stupidity of the criminals.

Steve.

 

[fasteddy]

Silverbear,

I wish I had the proper tools and Tinsmith's skills but so far it's come out a whole lot better than I expected. Did it somewhat differently than the last time but it was surprisingly easy this time.

Steve.

 

[fasteddy]

I have the top and the sides of the two camel back tanks soldered together and I'll make up a couple of forms to make the bottoms and the front ends of the tanks. They all went together easily and look like the original tank on the tri cars.

Still can't get Photobucket to let me start a new album.

Steve.

 

[indian22]

Great news even without the photos, I thought the original tank was pretty darn nice itself! Hope the photo woes are soon rectified & don't multiply cause I want to see both Fast eddy, Silver bear & Aniimoosh. (my Ojibwa sucks) up on three wheels, out by the lake dazzling the lady folk! Rick C.

 

[fasteddy]

Hi Rick,

I'm going down to the garage in a few minutes and I'll take a some photos of the tanks as they are now. The original tank may well go back on the tri car but it isn't (dare I use the word) "accurate". Of course the whole bike isn't accurate either but it would make it a little closer to the fact.

It would just be something to get it a little closer to the original and give those that know a little more pleasure in the viewing of it. Then of course the joy I receive from making them has to be factored in as well I guess.

Steve.

 

[fasteddy]

Here is a link to the new gas tanks I'm building. I only had a couple of photos of tri cars to work with when I build it and they were usually taken from a considerable distance and the gas tank looked like it had a rounded top. I welded a piece of bicycle fender to the top of the tank to get the rounded top look.

The new tanks look like the original Indian tanks with a flat top and a thin folded over seam along the top edge. I'll try and find a close up photo.

Steve.

http://s866.photobucket.com/user/sp...uild/DSC_0015_zpswc5o5ygx.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0

 

[fasteddy]

Here's a link to the most original Indian and tri car attachment left. It sold for $181,500.
There is a good photo of the gas tank and that is what I used to build the new ones.

Steve.

https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=...chair/&usg=AFQjCNEx5c6un75PfwF37bDlekkewUZ_Sw

 

[curtisfox]

WOW! That's awesome Steve, really looks like the original. You are getting there...........Curt