Lime Rock Historics 2015 - Part 1

 This past Labor Day, I had the opportunity to go to Lime Rock Park for the 2015 Historic Festival 33. Here is Part 1 of the pictures and videos I took:

Diesel Land Speed Racer Mk2 - Part 5 - First Start (Video Post)

Diesel Land Speed Racer Mk2 - Part 4 - Wheels, Wires, and Welding

The next step of the project was to fabricate and install the front engine mounting plate. This required a bit of headscratching, because it was necessary to carve a clearance into the engine block, in order to avoid modifying the front frame bend. As a result, the frame had to pass THROUGH the mounting plate. 

I accomplished this by machining a pair of slots into the plate that allowed the tubes to pass through. Next, I welded a brace underneath the tubes that joined and strengthened the three edges of the plate.

 

Shaping the front mount brace

Adding reinforcement braces

Fully Welded

After the frame was finished, I replaced the wheel bearings with a set of homemade tools. I took the opportunity to upgrade from the old two-piece tapered bearings to single-piece ball bearings.

New bearings and a custom-made installation tool

Removing the old bearing race

Knocking in the new bearings

Motor bolted in place

Beginning the wiring harness

Diesel Land Speed Racer Mk2 - Part 3 - Motor Mounts And Setbacks

During the summer, work has slowly progressed on the second diesel bike. The first major milestone was installing the welded motor mounts on the Sportster frame. I hit a snag when a hidden rotten section blew through, but I was able to clean it up and cover it with a welded patch.

 

Rotten section

Bad metal carved out and cleaned

Fabricating the patch

Tacked in place

Repaired

Pressing in fresh wheel bearings

Loring Spring 2015 - Road Trip To The Race (Video Post)

The full video of the road trip to Loring Spring 2015.

Diesel Land Speed Racer Mk2 Part 2 - Fabrication Begins (With a Vengeance!)

This is going to be a huge photo-dump of diesel Sportster progress pics. Work has been progressing steadily on and off since December, and the basic form is starting to take shape. I bobbed the rear fender, discarded the front fender, sandblasted both, and had them powder-coated green metalflake.

I chose powder-coat over paint because the paint on the first diesel got stained by leaking fuel. Powder has a harder finish and better chemical resistance.

The next step has been modifying the frame and engine so they can fit together. I shaved the rear valve cover to improve the clearance.

The final major hurdle before I can assemble a rolling chassis will be fabricate the engine mounts. I am using flat bar stock and a MIG welder to slowly construct a strong foundation for the huge v-twin.

Steam Engine Restoration - Shaking Out The Cobwebs (Video Post)

This is the long-overdue higher resolution video of the steam engine running. It has been on display inside for nearly 8 months, so I pulled it out, wiped it down, regreased everything, and hooked it up to some air. Runs like a champ!