imago

Everyone has different tastes and interests within the motorbike world, I suppose the trick is to have as wide an appeal as possible on the stand. A frame with a race history or whatever is just a frame to me, but someone else will find it fascinating, Fitting a turbo will have one person open mouthed in admiration, someone else will glance and shrug. A Kreidler Van Veen is a fascinating machine to me, someone else sees a spindly thing they wouldn't pause to look at. So it goes. The stands I look at as I wander round have something away from the norm in terms of engineering and build. They're well lit with people who chat to you and know their stuff, with a good mix of bikes on display that you can have a good nose at. I think looking at the OSS stand you have to take into account that it's not a club stand, so it doesn't have membership fees and consequently isn't going to have the whole 'banners, lighting and floor display' thing that others do. Bike wise there's a good mix, and there are people on the stand who know their stuff and are happy to chat with people. The dark corner at Stafford was shit which didn't do the bikes any favours, and wasn't very inviting to passers by. Is there an aim for the OSS stand beyond people from here getting together for a laugh/drink/chat? If not then it's bang on. If there is then just change stuff to move towards the aim, whatever it may be.

Each to their own I guess, a bare frame does nothing for me personally. Until it becomes a motorbike it's just a collection of tubes.

I don't know about the other shows, but if you want to see a bare frame at Stafford or Newark a wander round the paste tables outside should have you sorted.

They're within the OSS rules/definition for the forum. Shaggy's drag bike was a big hit and draw at the OSS stand at Stafford in October, and the only thing even vaguely Suzuki on that was (some of) the cylinder head.

Agreed, personally aside from it fitting in with the OSS ethos/rules I'd say the only criteria is that it needs to be a roller with most of the big lumps in place so that people can at least see what it's going to be. The OSS stands at shows I've been to over the last 12 months have had a pretty wide range and mix which seemed about right. Covered everything really, shiny show bikes, rarities, oddities, ratty, WTF?, great engineering, imagination and all points in between. So I think the only thing to be added would be more bikes and some new stuff that hasn't been seen as well as older builds which haven't been seen for some time. Is 12 bikes about the average number required for an OSS stand?

It won't be anywhere near ready by the middle of March, once it's done I'll take it to some shows later in the year. Still that's better than the draw through, that's unlikely to appear anywhere until 2025. Maybe the 2025 Scottish show could be its inaugural trip out?

That's my test shock for the length, and happily it sits perfectly with standard length ET shocks so that'll make ordering something more in keeping a bit more straight forward.

Totally agree and I'd like to make the trip tbh, I've had some good nights out in Edinburgh over the years. Unfortunately the lack of a bike to take issue won't be resolved for a while yet, and I doubt our Pictish chums would be particularly interested in a GSX1400 with its only stand out feature being a big kitten sticker on the tank. I don't need to go all the way to Edinburgh for people to take the piss, I can get that here. Same goes for shows South East and West of here, although it seems unless you go across the channel there doesn't seem to be much going on in those directions aside from the 'brown seat and beard oil' shows down South.

Just had a quick look at the travel on Google maps. 6 hours and £70 in diesel each way. Almost exactly the same distance and travel time for me to go to Brussels.

I'd suggest putting old tyres on and off would risk more damage than being careful as they are. Fear not, they'll come to no harm in the couple of weeks until they get tyres on.

All coming back off once I've got my measurements for spacers etc. Lots of trial fit stuff to sort out, then I can get some boots on them and work out what I need in the way of discs and sprocket.

Fair to say I'm pretty chuffed with the way this is shaping up.

Time to remove the now run in big valve head and 1168 Wiseco big bore. The head's going on the Dresda. Big bore on something eventually.

Looked a great turn out and show, a shame I missed it but you can't win them all. What/when is the next show with an OSS presence?

ISR levers look really good on special frame or race bikes, they should look trick on the concentric. I think they look a bit out of place on a modified ET or EF though. A bit too 'technical' looking if you get what I mean.

Looks like a good turn out for the stand. It did strike me looking at the pics on FB that of the 12 bikes on the stand only 3 are air cooled. A sign of time moving on I guess, I wonder how long before it becomes OSS/OCS?

That was the thing which impressed me most when I was talking to Graham about it. Very simple techniques and tools used, but done with a great deal of skill and knowledge.

Harry's finished the polishing, looks the nuts.

It's just sitting on the rails as it is. The final/correct position will see the very front of the seat/tail come down, the back up a touch and the back of the tank down about 5mm. Basically the top of the tank and the top of the tail unit will be a straight line. I need to get the wheel and arm under it before I go too far down the lining things up road though as it might not work so well then so I don't want to waste time and effort only to in it later. Once that's done and I've decided between a combined electrical tray and mounting or two separate parts I can make it/them.

Right, moving things on a bit and I got an xr55/Slabby seat unit to try courtesy of @SFC(it's a seconds unit for chopping purposes). A bit of cutting and trimming at the skirts and I'm liking the lines. I'll take some more off once I get the arm and wheels under it so that I can see the general shape of the bike better. Don't want to cut too much off until then as it's a bit more difficult adding than taking away.

Good call on the base gasket. I need to get the big valve head off of the engine in the ET, check the compressed gasket thickness and then double check what I have squish wise. I haven't sorted the cams for it yet, so I need to get on with that so that I know where I'm at with lift and duration.

The engine that the block and pistons came from must have been insanely close to the edge. The squish is purely head gasket thickness. I think a base gasket adjustment may be in order. By my reckoning that gives me 11.5:1 compression and 1165 cc displacement.

Right then, deck height, squish, compression ratio and capacity checking time.

It'd need to be Santa paying for them, I don't even want to think about or know the amount of spending I've done in the last few months.

I was talking to the bloke I got the pistons from last night, and he has photos of a Saxon race bike which has the same wheels, but although the centres are identical the rims are one piece carbon.