Merkel Board Track copy

This has been an unusual year in the shop...business was slow to start, but is still continuing to keep me occupied most of the time...I'm not complaining, it keeps the wolf away from the door. In any case, I did get the opportunity to do a little more work to the Merkel project, it's not much, but the front end is starting to come together.
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Now that is the best DIY handlebar mount that I've ever seen!
Very strong designed forks there, and theylook great too.
 
You make the coolest stuff Goldy! There are so many components and work in that fork, it looks completely bulletproof. I just want to thank you for all the pictures, and inspiration, and ideas. When I see your work, it makes me want to make my work better, and I just really appreciate it.

Its still amazing to me that I can glean this information from all these motorized bicycle enthusiasts from around the world. But at the same time I get a little bummed that I will probably not ever meet you in real life. Nova Scotia is really far away from Los Angeles.

Thanks again,

Gilbert
 
I don't really consider myself a technophile, but I have to admit, that this plastic box from Hades is good for something besides wasting a whole pile of my time. Without it I would be a little short on ideas, or inspiration not to mention all the cool stuff you can get on line to help finish off these projects...sure makes the world a smaller place.
Thanks for the sentiments Gilbert, maybe if I win big on the lottery I'll send you a ticket :) In any case I would sure like to be in LA when its winter up here.
 
I really dig the shape of a Flying Merkel tank. This is going to be sweet. And you can paint it any color in the world as long as it's Orange! :)
 
Herm came out for a break from work last night and we managed to get a few more things done to the Merkel. Shortened the pedal cranks by 1.5", they just seemed too long as they were; not much in the way of ground clearance. After that we cannibalized an old BMX seat for the mounting springs and welded them under the new seat pan...it will be interesting to see what it will look like after it's covered in leather. Also drilled and slotted the engine mounting plate and bolted it loosely in place. Doesn't look like much, but we spent three hours in the shop last night just doing that little bit of work...never ceases to amaze me how much time can go into all this modification and fabrication.
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It does take forever to do all those mods, but its those little extra things you do that make your bikes look so authentic...... and i know its going to be worth the wait.

Im interested to see how your seat turns out.... im thinking of trying to make a seatpan myself at work. They have some 3mm (1/8) steel i could use. Is that what you used? .....At work we have metal rollers i could use to roll the seat. Is that how you did it?

Cant wait to see more of yor bike
 
harry76 said:
It does take forever to do all those mods, but its those little extra things you do that make your bikes look so authentic...... and i know its going to be worth the wait.

Im interested to see how your seat turns out.... im thinking of trying to make a seatpan myself at work. They have some 3mm (1/8) steel i could use. Is that what you used? .....At work we have metal rollers i could use to roll the seat. Is that how you did it?

Cant wait to see more of yor bike
Click to expand...

Harry,
Another possibility if the roller doesn't do what you want it to would be to find a tractor seat and if it is too big or the wrong shape, cut and grind it to suit your needs. Just a thought. They often have a spring deal under them, too, which maybe could be utilized somehow...Add some closed foam padding and nice leather... oh boy!
SB
 
Interesting ideas SB...I have seen people use an old shovel to get the desired shape too.
Yes Harry, used 3mm steel for the seat pan...could have borrowed some time on my neighbours roller, but I didn't feel like pestering him, so just used the vice and a dead blow hammer to bash the curve into it...it's relatively comfortable even without padding. We have been planning another 'bike night' for next week, so we ought to have a few more things to post soon.
 
This is what we did during last night's 'bike night'....trimmed up an old front fender to fit the back end of the machine and sorted out the mounting arrangements; it was pretty straight forward as we managed to make use of the brackets that were already on the bike. Got the pedal chain fitted. After that, got the hack saw out and made up some proper tank mounting straps out of 16ga steel. Took a couple of photos and took it all apart again. Herm's going to work on painting the wheels, tank and fender. He will also be mounting the tires as well as getting the seat covered. Meanwhile I will get at the final mechanical stuff like exhaust and intake manifolds together and try to sort out a starting pawl affair for the clutch.
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Decided to spend some time in the shop after supper and came up with a starter pawl set up for the centrifugal clutch. Welded a band to the outer circumference since the drum did not extend out over the flyweight body enough to notch it. Then fastened a pawl through a pre-existing hole. When sitting idle a very light spring keeps the pawl in contact with the clutch drum and when the engine starts the pawl will ratchet against the drum until centrifugal force should hopefully disengage it. I'm not worried about it being slightly out of balance, as it's fairly close to the crank hub and not all that massive...I can always weld a counter weight to it if I have to. Sorry if the photos are a bit hard to see...I should have painted it afterward, I guess.

First shot is of the clutch with the pawl in the engaged position.
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Next, the disengaged position.
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What a AWESOME idea!! Did you drill and tap for the screw? What did the little piece come out of or did you make it? Looks familier. How did you cut the notches? What did you use for the band flat stock?
THANKS.............Curt

PS What a truly AWESOME build.........Love your builds
 
Geesh Curt, you're full of questions :D
Yes, I tapped for the screw and after it was together (hopefully for the last time) peened it over on the back side so it can't come out. The pawl is cut from a piece of 1/8" stainless steel bar stock...I'm sure almost anything would have worked (have you seen what they are putting in lawn mowers lately?). The notches were cut in with the edge of a file and the band stock is simply 16ga steel cut in a strip about 5/8" wide.
I used a small roll pin to prevent the pawl from moving out of engagement too far and also used it as an anchor for the spring.
 
Goldy said:
Geesh Curt, you're full of questions :D
Yes, I tapped for the screw and after it was together (hopefully for the last time) peened it over on the back side so it can't come out. The pawl is cut from a piece of 1/8" stainless steel bar stock...I'm sure almost anything would have worked (have you seen what they are putting in lawn mowers lately?). The notches were cut in with the edge of a file and the band stock is simply 16ga steel cut in a strip about 5/8" wide.
I used a small roll pin to prevent the pawl from moving out of engagement too far and also used it as an anchor for the spring.
Click to expand...

THANK YOU!!
Save a lot of gues work for me and anyone else thats intrested. I know I could of deramed it like you did but this will save a lot of time.....Curt
 
Chuck the clutch assembly up in a drill (or a lathe if you have one) and spin fast to check if it is balanced. You don't want to hurt the bearings in the engine.
 
Or you could bubble balance it. Maybe just put another pawel on the other side and it would be the same weight ? ................Curt
 
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After feeling under the weather with a flue bug, I decided to have some fun today with the bicycle build. Started to fiddle around with a compression release last night...somebody had posted a drawing of one around a year or so ago and I saved the image and started making odds and ends last night. Anyhoo, when I awoke this morning, I had another slightly more technical idea that I had to try. Well, after machining screw in bushings, and an eccentric shaft to operate it, the unit lifted the exhaust tappet perfectly, but I couldn't get the camshaft in place with it all bolted up and rather than re-make the mounting arrangement, so that I could screw the unit in after the cam was in place, I just decided to continue with what I started last night. The first shot is of the bits used to get the job done, the second is with everything in place all ready for the camshaft. Works perfectly and to whoever the thoughtful person was who posted that drawing, I say "Thank you kind sage!"
BTW, relax...I am going to balance that clutch :)
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