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Topics - taysidedragon

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1
Out & About / SOHC meet in Scotland
« on: February 07, 2024, 01:04:09 PM »
Last year I suggested a meet up in Scotland for forum members, particularly those that live in more remote parts and don't travel too far down South. We don't want to be corrupted by the Southern Softies! 😉

Just kidding, the arthritis stops me from riding too far these days. The joys of reaching retirement age.

So, if anybody fancies meeting up, I suggest The Crieff Visitor Centre, PH7 4HQ on 29th or 30th June.
It's fairly central Scotland and has a large free car park, restaurant and facilities. It's a regular stop off for me when out for a ride.

There is plenty of accommodation in Crieff and surrounding area if anybody needs to stay over or are touring Scotland at the same time.

Nothing is set in stone, so date and place are flexible.

2
Misc / Open / Security Lights
« on: January 27, 2024, 11:59:05 AM »
I need some advice from the SOHC collective. I want to put a couple of security lights on the house, one for the back garden and one for the garage door. The easiest solution would be solar powered LED lights with motion sensors. Somewhere in the 800 to 1200 lumens region would be bright enough. I don't need to dazzle the whole neighbourhood!
There are plenty on the market but reviews/feedback are pretty hit and miss. Many don't work at all or fail very quickly.

Has anybody got a good recommendation for a reliable light that doesn't cost a fortune?  Or am I better off biting the bullet and fitting mains powered lights?

3
Misc / Open / Old Dealer Stickers
« on: January 09, 2024, 12:19:39 PM »

4
Misc / Open / 400f parts in auction
« on: November 14, 2023, 05:40:42 PM »
H J Pugh in Ledbury are having their next m/c auction on Nov. 24/25th. There are a lot of parts for 400f in several different lots. Frame, engine parts, exhaust,  mudguards,  etc, etc.

Worth a look if you're after parts for your projects or stash.

5
Misc / Open / Oil viscosity
« on: August 24, 2023, 10:48:14 AM »
In the search for better fuel efficiency, engine oil has been getting lower and lower viscosity. I'm now seeing oils getting down to 0w viscosity!  How much protection does that give a modern engine? Is better fuel efficiency at the cost of shorter engine life?
I know we can't (wouldn't)  use thin oils like that in our sohc engines, but I'm curious about the need for such low viscosities.

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

6
Misc / Open / HDMI cables
« on: August 08, 2023, 04:33:06 PM »
Question for all the tech geeks on here.

I just had all my TV cables hidden in the wall and plastered over. Connected everything up afterwards and there's no signal. ☹ The 2 satellite cables to Sky Q box are working fine but the long HDMI cable is not connecting.

I thought that the HDMI cable in the wall must have been damaged so tried a short cable direct from the sky box to TV and it worked fine. Electrician had another new long cable in his van, same as the one fitted. We tried that direct between the devices and no signal! He then tried the cable at his house with a Virgin box and says that it works!

All the cables are High Speed HDMI with Ethernet, the only difference is the length. Original cables are 1.5m and wall cable is 5m. Electrician is no help, just says talk to Sky. Any ideas?

7
CB350/400 / Oil change minor issue
« on: July 28, 2023, 12:08:07 PM »
I always drain my oil when the bike is on it's sidestand. The drain plug is on the left side so I figured that the oil would drain out better, not leaving any quantity of oil in the sump. My drain can fits under the bike to catch the oil safely as well. If on the centrestand, it is not easy to position the drain can where it will safely catch all the oil with no spills.
I drained my oil the other day and left it overnight to drain completely. Next day I  took the drain can away and put the bike on it's centrestand to make it slightly easier to fit the drainplug. About a cupful of oil came out, which surprised me. Enough to get messy. ☹️  Not doing that again.

8
Desperately Seeking!! / CD250U Swingarm
« on: July 22, 2023, 08:48:08 PM »
Anybody have a swingarm for a CD250U in decent nick they could sell. A mate of mine needs one, his original is
completely rusted out.

9
CB350/400 / Exhaust feature
« on: July 04, 2023, 12:05:33 PM »
This popped up on Pinterest. I don't remember seeing this before. Does this also solve the discussion on position of clutch cable guide? [ Guests cannot view attachments ]

10
Humour / Evolution
« on: June 03, 2023, 11:10:31 AM »
So true!

🤣 [ Guests cannot view attachments ]

11
Out & About / Tiger country
« on: June 24, 2022, 01:24:51 PM »
Getting some miles on the Triumph Tiger at last. I found a suitable jungle for a Tiger!

12
Project Board / Unusual use of 400 four engine
« on: May 20, 2022, 02:07:50 PM »
Here's a combination that I never thought I would see!
In this month's Classic Bike mag, a 400f engine squeezed into a Douglas Dragonfly frame.
It's nicely engineered,  but I can't help think, Why? The owner said he wanted the ease of electric start in a good handling bike. That's what he had with the complete 400f project bike that he bought off DS. 🤪

13
Humour / Carb problems explained
« on: March 22, 2022, 11:58:19 PM »
Pinched from AWoL Biker Magazine.

Everything about carbs you needed to know..

Gnomes.

The basic secret of carb function is that inside each carb are thousands of tiny gnomes; each with a small bucket. As you open the throttle, more of these gnomes are allowed out of their house and into the float bowl, where they fill the buckets and climb up the carb's passages to the intake, where they empty their buckets into the air stream.
But, if you don't ride the bike for a while, bad things can happen.

Tiny bats take up residence in the chambers of the carb, and before long the passages are plugged up with guano. This creates a gnome traffic jam, and so not enough bucketfuls of fuel can get to the engine. If it gets bad enough, the gnomes simply give up and go take a nap. The engine won't run at all at this point.

Sometimes you'll have a single dedicated gnome still on the job, which is why the bike will occasionally fire as the gnome tosses his lone bucket load down the intake.
There has been some research into using tiny dwarves in modern carbs. The advantage is that unlike gnomes, dwarves are miners and can often re-open a clogged passage. Unfortunately, dwarves have a natural fear of earthquakes, as any miner should. In recent tests, the engine vibrations caused the dwarves to evacuate the Harley Davidson test vehicle and make a beeline for the nearest BMW dealership. Sadly, BMW's are fuel injected and so the poor dwarves met an unfortunate end in the rollers of a Bosch fuel pump.

Other carb problems can also occur. If the level of fuel in the float bowl rises too high, it will wipe out the poorer gnome housing in the lower parts of the carb. The more affluent gnomes build their homes in the diaphragm chamber, and so are unaffected. This is why the bike is said to be “running rich”.
If the bowl fuel level drops, then the gnomes have to walk farther to get a bucketful of fuel. This means less fuel gets to the engine. Because the gnomes get quite a workout from this additional distance, this condition is known as “running lean”.
The use of the device known only as the ‘choke' has finally been banned by PETG (People for the Ethical Treatment of Gnomes) and replaced by a new carb circuit that simply allows more gnomes to carry fuel at once when the engine needs to start or warm up. In the interests of decorum, I prefer not to explain how the ‘choke' operated. You would rather not know anyway.

So, that's how a carburetor works. You may wish to join us here next week for basics of electricity, or “How your bike creates cold fusion inside the stator” and why the government doesn't want you to know about it.

14
Member 4 Sales / 400 four wheels, new rims and spokes
« on: March 01, 2022, 05:30:37 PM »
Posting for a friend.
New front and rear wheel rims, one DID, one Araya, new spokes and pair of old wheels. Can cut the hubs out of the wheels before posting. Located in Dundee. £275 + £25 postage

Message me for contact details if interested.

Modified for correction.

15
Other Bikes / Triumph T100ss
« on: December 27, 2021, 01:52:10 PM »
An early Christmas present to myself was this 1965 Triumph Tiger T100ss. It's the wrong colour for 65 and has non standard bits on it. Some other parts needed so needs a little bit of work before riding.
Bought it from a mate who's kept it in his living room for the last 5 years. 👍😁

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