So much to do and so little time to do it

Im trying to pack a lot of things into my weeks at the moment, which is great but I cant stop thinking about the scooter.  And so I was up with the lark this morning to get an hour in the garage before work.
It was a dark and damp morning - not too chilly - very autumnal, and as I opened the garage door and switched the light on I was struck with how very exciting the scooter is starting to look (I guess in all my rushing I hadn't noticed it before) - Its really starting to look like it could all come together now :-)

So on with the job - Painting the horn-cast, handlebar cowl and mudguard trim - these are all plastic bits that couldn't be powder-coated so Ive bought some cellulose in a can.  This morning it was a wet and dry rub down and 2 coats of primer

And I was still in my office for 7:30am!

handle bars

I thought we were going to have a family night in with a movie - but they all decided they wanted to watch a new telly period drama.  So that seemed like a good excuse to pop out to the garage and assemble the handlebar unit.  Once again it all seemed to go together nicely (though I have no idea as to how stiff the twist grips should be - I would have thought they would be a little freer, but I have left as is - as designed - with plenty of lube), and so it seemed a logical next step to assemble to the steering column.  Here the only challenge was getting all the cables and wires threaded through neatly - I was again very pleased that I'd taken so many photos of the tear-down to help me work out the designed reorder of all the bits

Rebuilding continues

Life is busy busy busy at moment and so im not getting into the garage as much as I would like. Every time I think I have a moment clear in my diary, my wife tells me otherwise! Having said that, she is pretty cool with me and the time I do have in the garage (even allowing me a couple of hours without mentioning once that I should really be getting on with putting the patio and decking back down after last weeks sewage overflow - who is that mystery sewage-pipe blocker?)
And so progress is not as fast as I would like, but the bits that I have managed to do are keeping me excited and enthused.
I'd been pondering for a while as to the perfect order to reassemble the bits.  Clearly wires and cables needed to go in first, but what then? There are so many independencies that nothing can be installed and ticked off as finished - everything seems to need to be going together at the same time.  And so after some head-scratching and procrastination (and with an eye on the limited time I had this weekend) I simple decided to "go for it" regardless of a 'correct' proceedure.
I was rather surprised at just how quickly the front end all came together (note - I havent changed the steering column bearings) and so thought I'd attempt the engine/rear suspension unit too.  And lo and behold, that also seemed to pop in quite sweetly.  I was delighted that the two chassis sides (that I had completely re-fabricated) between which the engine frame bolts was a perfect fit and everything appears to have lined up just right.
So within a couple of hours I had the scooter standing on its own two wheels with the aid of a milk crate for balance.
I had planned to spray black 'stone-chip' paint inside the wheel arches/mudguards but (again with my new 'get-your-finger-out-and-do-something' attitude) decided to simply paint a good coat of waxoyl over the complete inside surface (the propriety waxoyl hand sprayer is bloody hopeless) - I figured that it was perfectly good enough for my needs and this 'resuscitation' project
I havent taken any photos of the rebuild thus far as its not particularly interesting, and the garage is so cramped that I can hardly move to get a picture in there.... Actually I should say, that my cramped garage has been a source of frustration today.  Kids! I thoroughly recommend you working hard at school so you can get good qualifications, so you can get a good job, so you can get a big house with a big garage space, so you can work in comfort all around your chosen project.  PS if you do get yourself a good job and a big house with a big garage, and you are the sort of person who thinks a garage is for storing cardboard boxes or your executive BMW in, then I despair.

The rebuilding begins

Ive been waiting a long time for this moment.  The moment of starting to build the scooter up again.  But I was a little worried about how I might thread the wiring loom back through the tight gap between the headstock and leg-shield without damaging the old (and brittle?) wiring - note, I haven't done any renovation of the wiring loom.  However, as it turned out it was easy peasy.  I wrapped the loom and all its flying ends in a tube of polythene shopping bag, tied it to a length of 3-core electrical cable and simply pulled it through!  So easy was it, I threaded all the new brake, clutch, gear and throttle cables too - and then I was at a bit of a loss what to do.... i hadnt planned to get that much done in such a short space of time.  Will it all be this simple?

I have also put a good spray of waxoyl down through the box section of the frame in an attempt to keep water away from the joints and seams (though I suspect I shall rarely take it out in the rain, and even if I did it would take years and years to rot through the powder coating and then the metal - but it made me feel good all the same)

I am very pleased to have taken the dozens of photos of the strip down - to help me work out which cable threads through which hole with which grommet

Painted but not disguised

I finally got round to taking the bubble wrap off the frame (I still haven't even looked at all the ancillary bits yet) and I must say I am very pleased with it.  I love the colour (which incidentally is BS16C33 Blue), and it looks clean and solid.
My welding is there, warts and all, for the world to to see - but I'm not beating myself up over it.
I should have spent more time flatting the bumps and dinks - but, again,  Im not beating myself up over it.
I reckon if I go fast enough, not one will ever notice ;-)

This frame looks like its got a history, a story to tell.  A few scars and a couple of rough edges, its got character.  Its a rough diamond.

Im loving it more and more :-)

Powder coating

Ive been purposely holding back from writing my next blog post because i was afraid that I might have said something i would regret.  I'd been getting a bit pissed off with the powder coaters - Redditch Shot Blasting.  But before I go on - I am over that now and am now delighted with Redditch Shot Blasting :-)
Remember that I had tried to get the painting done way back in July but they couldnt get it done before I went away on holiday, so on my return I got it into them as soon as I could where I was told it would probably take about 10 days.  10 days turned into 2 weeks.  Then it was going to be Friday, then Next tuesday etc etc.  In the end it took 3 weeks to turn around - time in which I could have finished the rebuild.
It wasnt so much the time it was taking (though I was desperate to get it back) but more the messing with my expectations and logistical arrangements.
The Job cost £270 +VAT and I was a little taken aback at what initially felt like a lot of money to me, especially as it was taking so long to get done!
On reflection - I think I had been unfair to the chaps.  When I did finally get to collect it from them, they had done a marvelous job.  Everything had been thoroughly masked and plugged and some of the pitted areas they had actually layed 3 coats of powder on to buildup the surface.  I am guessing that cost of materials aside, there is probably quite a lot of labour in getting these bits coated.
The only trouble now was - I had only just enough time to get the bits home and in the garage before I had to turn round and dash away for 5 days leaving all those lovely painted bits behind me still wrapped and tantalizingly close to starting the rebuild