Duke Blackwood

More test riding tonight, once I got the fuel issue cleared up it ran far more consistently and I think it’s going to be wicked quick for what it is. It does have a problem though where after a spirited squirt when you clutch in the revs skyrocket and when the killswitch is hit to stop the overrevving it keeps on overrevving so I had to pick a high gear and dump the clutch with the brakes on to kill it. The theory is that it has the wrong plug and the one in it is waaaaay too hot. It’s gearing is currently really short, wheelie prone, but doing an indicated 70kmh at half throttle with a gear and a half to spare... on a gravel driveway in the dark. But I had a helmet on AND I have good life insurance.

Just went for its maiden voyage around the block and the rose tinted glasses have come off... holy shit. It will be an extraordinary achievement for man and machine if I can complete Te Urewera Undertaking on the ysr. It is comically unstable at all speeds. The brakes are surprisingly doughey for such a light bike. It swaps back and forth between unstoppable wheelie machine and bog monster. Unpredictably. And I found myself adopting the leg drag moto-x style even on the seal. And I saw a cop (haven’t installed my plate yet). Essentially, the absurdity has bolstered my confidence, and I can’t wait for this trip haha. I thought I was going to have quite a quick straight line bike compared to the scooters, but I’m beginning to think I may be the underdog, and the only way I’m gonna keep up is to ride the wheels off it. I will be a permanent roost. By the end of next weekend I’ll be a demon on this thing. But as a precaution, I’m gonna make some big ass crash bungs....

Rego day. I took it for my first ride this morning, no helmet, kicked it into gear and the clutch was stuck, sledged across Dads wet driveway with the front wheel locked and the back wheel spinning. It must have looked awesome haha.

We just cut the factory peg off it’s steel mount, drilled a hole through it and mounted an FXR foot peg equipped with its own shift and linkage which didn’t require any modification, they were even the same internal spline!

So I had a conundrum with the shifter where I could run it back to front and it would work easy but the shift direction would be reversed (race shift) and I HATE race shift, so I opted to engineer a new shifter linkage, sources tie rod ends etc and then Dad Blackwood was like “why don’t you just pinch one from one of the spare bike frames lying around?” So we did, and with little modification, it fit like a glove. Thankyou FXR150 frame haha. Also repaired kick starter and locked in a lot of the wiring, just have to repair fairings and install an Oiler really and we’ll be rolling for Rego! Pics to come

I opted not to modify my motor and instead have simply re-installed it with fresh gaskets. I’ll worry about my oil setup once I’ve got her assembled; I’m really starting to fret about the looming Urewera trip and ensuring that she’s ready and reliable. I’d really like to be looking at a shakedown ride in the next couple of weeks, but there’s a lot left to do. Getting all the lights to work and secondering a legit plate will be two major hurdles. Repairing and installing the kick start and shifter will be bigger jobs as well. In the background I have sourced a replacement intake manifold from the local wreckers for $20 (win) and Dad Blackwood machined me a new rear shock pin to reduce the massive swing arm play. I’m also one weld away from having a functional exhaust system. Gotta maintain momentum otherwise I’ll have to ride, ‘gulp’, a normal bike...

Re-pants chat, I mean, compulsory...? ‘Cause I chafe

Did 6 hours of ass conditioning yesterday on the hard-tail, in preparation for the big ride, checked out the classic bike racing at manfield, also practiced road-side mechanic-ing when Itchybear’s Harley packed up....

I love TVRs for the exotic-ness and the fact that they were always so hard to drive on Playstation1, I didn’t realise that there were affordable models around until reading this post. I had never heard of the Tasmin but now when I win lotto tonight I am going to buy one. Keep at it man, this thing is so damn cool.

Good man Fletch, you’re quickly becoming a shed night staple

That looks awesome thanks Anglia4, that will give me a bit of piece of mind when I’m doing gravel jumps on it at this Urewera thing

Right lads I’m at a cross roads and have a decision I need help with. The TS185 has a three bearing crank, the outside bearing is on the left hand side and it WAS lubricated directly by the oil pump which also mixed oil with the fuel. My intention was to swap to premix, purely so I never had to worry about the pump failing or mounting a separate oil tank. But if I do that this bearing won’t be lubricated and will seize. I’ve heard of people drilling through the cases beneath the barrel to tap into the gallery that would have lubricated from the pump and allowing fluid in that way.... but is that huckery and unreliable? I’ve had the barrel off to investigate and the piston, ring and bore look mint. Pics to follow. And then, opinions please fletch has been making appearances at shed night and brought something along for show and tell.... a smaller bike, with a bigger engine!

Made up a rear engine mount to try and prevent frame snap-ages