Excalibur ‘09

[curtisfox]

Scored a $25 1951 Wisconsin Model AKN at a swap meet this weekend...

Turns freely and has good spark!

Sometime soon I’ll change the oil & plugs, clean the points and see if it will fire up.

A little research shows it is a updated version of the AK I used on my first build, same bore and stroke but 3600 rpm’s to 2400 and 6.2HP to 4.1...

Perhaps a Excalibur BTR is in my future?

Also last Friday I got a all too brief opportunity to meet Forum member curtisfox-

Curtis next time you’re passing by lets go for a ride!!!

-Kirk

AWESOME to Meet you and see the bike in person. If any of you get to see this bike its AWESOME
So much more like looking at a old barn find exalent detail.
Yes next time if i get that way i would love to have a ride was so cold that day,sorry for the no notice on my visit,but just happen to be pasing through and had to stop....................Curt

 

[Mr.B.]

A good weekend for stuff!

Bought this nifty little Iver Johnson bicycle tool pouch at a flea market this... They also made high quality motorcycles from 1907 to 1915.

Bicycle Bill discovered this old buggy front suspension while fishing and helped me drag it home from a old farmstead about to be developed. I will definitely use those springs for an upcoming project!

The leafs have nice tapers in both in length and along the sides- They look a little more graceful to me than most modern springs.

Also, I came across this guide for creating patina on brass, bronze, and copper...

http://www.sciencecompany.com/-W160.aspx#31

-Kirk

 

[curtisfox]

AWESOME stuff, them old buggy springs got to be perfict for tadpole...........Curt

 

[fasteddy]

Mr B,
That is a perfect week end in my book. Amazing that the tool kit is still in one piece and with the instructions as well.
The front axle from the buggy is getting as hard to find now as the tool kit. Gone are the piles of scrap behind most farm barns that yielded untold treasures over the years and many wagon and buggy parts.

Not good enough to use but too good to throw out.

Steve.

 

[Moto pope]

Around our "neck O' the woods" scrap metal prices, and new collection stations cropping up all over, have prompted many farmers to glean all the stuff that has been collected over a century or more. A boon to them, but sort of sad for those of us who love the old stuff.

 

[curtisfox]

Yep what is realy sad is the fact that they are also scraping all the old lawn mowers and things with small engines on them, like Maytags and old Briggs. Motor Power Gone........Curt

 

[Moto pope]

Here's a story to illustrate: Several years ago, a friend and I were hunting on an old farm place the conservation dept. bought. Way back in the woods we stumbled onto an old stationary engine covered in limbs and leaves. It must have weighed a ton, but we vowed to return and drag it out. Internet research proved it to be an early John Deere used for pumps and farm work (in this case probably wood saw). By the time we returned (following spring) it was gone! It would have been a great restoration, but probably was melted down. Are you weeping yet?

 

[silverbear]

Nice find, Kirk.
SB

 

[Moto pope]

Professor Kirk (AKA, Mr B), hope you don't mind a question concerning "RT"? In looking through your build documentation, I noticed your chain tensioner was half of a 10 speed rear sproket derailer. How well did that work? Would you suggest that as a good option and any hints you learned toward its application? A personal note; you mentioned that a future x-caliber would look like a newly restored original... I plan just the opposite, my current will have a "slick" look, but am planning my next to look as if it were just dragged from a barn.

 

[Mr.B.]

I did use a sprocket from a old 10 speed derailer for Robert-T’s pedal crank chain idler-

Although I haven’t actually put many miles on this bike yet I’m confident it will work well.

With a drum brake and a free wheel on the rear hub it won’t get used much and will never be put under much stress. And with that big GX200 clone, you don’t really need pedals anyway!

I’m currently torn on finished or barn fresh looks...?

With Robert-T I just noticed the final clear coat has lifted in a couple of spots and now I’ll probably have to repaint the tank. I also constantly worry about getting dings & scratches.

But if that would of happened on X9 I would’ve just left it as extra weathering...

-Kirk

 

[Moto pope]

Thanks for the reply. I guess patina happens two ways, one is over night aka x9 and the other takes years of dings and father time with all his little gremlins. Either way, the add character.

 

[Mr.B.]

I made several little Excalibur ‘09 improvements over this winter and I’m now finally back on the road with 25 miles already racked up in just one week!

First I upgraded to a vintage New Departure coaster brake hub. The old Schwinn tandem hub apparently developed a axle problem and it had become hard to get the cones to tighten up correctly.

A little research found the vintage ND’s are often recommended by folks who build single speed mountain bikes and actually use them in mountain side racing.


A set of new old stock heavy duty brake disc’s made it even better!



The most important improvement was this Yamaha DT100/250 front drum brake. While the old Tomas moped brake had adequate stopping power the stamped metal cover plate just wasn’t up to the task and began to wrap and in turn bind and grind the shoes deep into the hub.

Freshened up with new bearings!



For the first time I feel I really have very good braking power!

I highly recommend something like this to anyone with a heavy or fast bike!!!

In order to make this new big hub fit I had to make a new set of rockers (set #6), but it was well worth it!





-Kirk

 

[Mr.B.]

I also tuned a little oak knob for the compression relief valve as it gets quite hot quite fast when the engine is running. This motor is still too stiff to pedal start on the stand, but opening the valve does make it easier to move the bike around when the engine is not running or to pop start it on the move.





And a little tarnished brass sheet hood for the taillight, simply screwed into the lens.



-Kirk

 

[Mr.B.]

And officially,

I have decided that my next bike project will indeed be a Broad Track Racer style using the new Wisconsin AKN engine...

I want to turn it around quickly, hopefully in time for the big Labor Day Davenport show.

Even though I’m at a point where I feel I could completely build my own frame I probably will use the rear triangle from this old prewar Schwinn girls bike in order to save a little time.



It has some nice rust effect and again to save time I’m going for another barn fresh look.

I’ll take style cues from racers of the mid teens so I believe I’ll call Excalibur ‘15

The final drive will be chain and I imagine I’ll use a rear hub from a larger motorcycle to provide a single but very stout drum brake.

Anybody know where I can get a slightly rusty Worksman front wheel and empty rim- Ha!

-Kirk

 

[Mr.B.]

Saturday Bicycle Bill and I made a last minute decision to attend the 3rd annual National Motorcycle Museum vintage bike show in Anamosa. http://www.nationalmcmuseum.org/vintage-rally-event-details-update/

There were several categories based primarily on British/European, Japanese, and USA made cycles, but there was also a open class “Special & custom pre 1988” and we felt like we could legitimately enter our bikes there.

As it turned out enough people showed up with motored-bikes that they created a new “motorized bicycle” category on the spot, I suspect it will be officially part of the line up next year.

Ha!, What’s that say about our hobby!

Bill’s bike took 2nd place and I got 1st with Excalibur!

The only down side was just after the winners were announced a large Harley rider on a large Harley backed into my bike and knocked it down on concrete- Ouch!

A gasp went through the crowd like you might see in a movie...

It caused several new dings and scratches, split the corner on my rear mounted tool box, and cracked the headlight bracket.

After inspecting I decided the new scuffs really just added to the barn fresh look and making a obvious (rusty) corner bracket repair to the toolbox will add to that too.

Making a new headlight bracket is really the biggest issue.

And besides the lady that hit it was literally shaking in fear as I inspected the damage. So I decided not to too hard on her as she was about to ride that big fat...

Bike home.

Someone later told told me as she was leaving the grounds she clipped a corner post, I hope she was just shook up and not normally that reckless- And that she made it home OK.

Anyway I wish I would made photos, it was a fun day!

 

[silverbear]

Well done, sir! How cool is that? And a new category of bikes recognized! And pretty cool, too, that you were gracious about that mishap with the extra large Harley girl. I'd love to see that show someday.
SB

 

[Lurker]

Nice job on the 1st place, you deserve it. I wish I would have been able to attend that show. My father lives about 30min from that museum and I have been there many times but it would be neat to see some of the bikes that would attend that event.

 

[Mr.B.]

The loudness of my bike has long been a concern. I’ve burned through two off the shelf stock Briggs Mufflers, both toasted in just a few hours each.

And also muffler #3 a homemade heavy duty version of the same, although it did last quite a bit longer I decided it was time for a better design.

With a little research I discovered exhaust gas and sound waves are actually two different things and modern muffler design addresses the latter with deflectors and cambers to bounce the waves back upon them self's for a canceling out effect.

So last week I basically copied a automotive design found on line and built it scaled down and thick walled. I actually made a drawing first, I should this more often, it’s much easier to fix mistakes with a eraser, Ha!







The white streaks are from my melted tennis shoe so this won’t be 100% finished until I make a shield...

But after a 25 mile ride I can say the results are good!

The tone is deeper, like half a Harley!

The RPMs seem better, I think this design has better flow.

It is still pretty loud at the highest speeds or up steep hills, but with the lower tone it’s still not as piercing.

And at Lower speeds, my favorite place to ride this bike anyway- It is definitely much quieter!!!

Also a couple pics of winter updates I forgot to show before...

A leather mud flap on the front fender...



And some little helper springs on the seat, surprisingly this makes a huge difference- From bottoming out to being much more comfortable!



-Kirk

 

[Mr.B.]

I’ve been looking for some rusty Worksman wheels for a ground up start for the BTR project. So far they’ve been hard to find or too expensive...

A while back I had spotted a complete Worksman bicycle leaning against a newer machine shed in a tiny little nearby river town. So Saturday Bill and I decided to go for a ride and approach the owner.

Our timing couldn’t of been better as we reached the shed there was a group gathered in front of it enjoying a nice summer afternoon with lawn chairs & beverages.

The owner turned out to be an very interesting and quick witted character named “Moose”. Retired and spending most of his tis time restoring vintage Allis Chalmers tractors, the shed was full of fine examples of his work!

The bike had come from a nearby John Deere factory and is a little rough- Notice the seat stays have been crudely welded and the fork is bent back. But the wheels are rusty gold!

After checking out our machines and spending a little time hanging and BS’ing with the group Moose suggested $25 for the Worksman.

Who am I to argue!

I’ve decided the old girls Schwinn frame I considered before isn’t really going to fit the bill and this Worksman is probably too small. So at this moment I’m leaning towards a more or less complete frame from scratch, but this time I’ll create a profile drawing first!



-Kirk

 

[silverbear]

I like your muffler and it definitely has that custom look to it. And nice score on the worksman. You could stretch the frame and put in an engine loop, unless you're going for a diffeernt look entirely. My Hiawatha tri-car is a frame like yours, but the front down tube was removed and a one from a 1950's girl's Schwinn welded in to replace it. The result was lots more room for an engine.
SB