Hodakaguy's R51/3 & Steib LS200 Thread.

[hodakaguy]

Out for an afternoon cruise with the kiddo, playing with the Insta 360 cam.



Hodakaguy

[20774]

Sweet sound!! Got a little woosy towards the end!! So, does the camera software automatically erase the pole used to hold it?

[hodakaguy]

Sweet sound!! Got a little woosy towards the end!! So, does the camera software automatically erase the pole used to hold it?

Yeah the AI in the camera automatically erases the selfish stick. The camera records 360 deg of video constantly and allows you to frame the shot afterwards however you want. They are a lot of fun. The camera I used here is a Insta 360 X2.

Hodakaguy

[hodakaguy]

Time for some new shoes. The tires that are on the bike have been on the bike for a Loooooong time and the sidewalls are weather cracking, the tread is also getting down there so it's time for some new rubber. I decided to go with the same tires that were already on the bike, Avro Triple Duty Sidecar Tires. The flat profile of these tires lend themselves well to sidecar use.

Here I've already spooned on the new rear tire and I'm static balancing. The wheel didn't play well with my actual balance stand so ended up using the axle and jack stands, not ideal but got it very close and for the speeds I'll be riding at should work perfectly.




While the rear wheel was removed I disassembled the rear brakes and lubricated all pivot points and shaft on the cam.




A tad bit of difference.....much better!






The fender on the sidecar hinges back to allow access to the tire.






Spooning on the sidecar tire and balancing it on the stand.






Old tire sidewalls, weather cracking.




Decided to cut the old tire in half to see the construction....just curious. Pretty cool.




Next up....clean the carburetors. The right side carb has been puking fuel upon shut down and stumbles occasionally when riding (not to often). I ordered gaskets and set to cleaning both carbs. Side note: I also ordered new lever tops & floats to convert the carbs over from the old style needle valves to the new style. Turns out I already had lever tops installed on the bike lol, that's what I get for ordering parts when I'm away from the bike. I installed the new lever tops and floats and will install new needle valves in the old units and keep them for spares.

Starting on the left carb.




One dirty carb ready to be cleaned.








Carb disassembled and parts organized in the Ultrasonic Cleaner basket. Upon disassembly of the left carb I found the float washer laying in the bottom of the float bowl, under the float. The washer is suppose to go on top of the float, between the float and lever actuating the needle valve. The washer being missing/out of place on the float can cause incorrect fuel level and possible sticking of the float assembly. The float and lever top pictured here are both new, seen to the right of the basket.




I placed the pilot jet inside a small brass container made to hold small parts in the Ultrasonic cleaner.






Parts going in for a bath. I'm using cleaning solution made for carburetors and safe for aluminum parts. Solution was set to 167 Deg F.




Just turned the machine on, you can see the grime forming little clouds around the parts (in the upper right) as the ultrasonic sets to work.




While the parts were taking their bath I checked the float height adjustment on the new lever tops....set perfectly from the factory.




Going back together.




Continued Below....

[hodakaguy]

Continued from above...

Should have checked this before I started re-assembly but here I'm checking the carburetor flange for flatness. The flange on this carb was warped which is common from years of heat and over tightening. The machine marks are still on the flange so it's never been lapped/trued up before. Hard to see as the camera angle was off but there is a gap in the middle, the ends are the high points.






To fix this issue and make sure I have a tight seal against the manifold gasket I'll lap the flange flat using a piece of glass and some 220 grit Wet/Dry sandpaper with oil applied. The oil helps keep the sandpaper from clogging up. It's super important to keep the carb flange flat against the glass when lapping. Go slow and check often, you don't want to remove any more material than you have to.






Here I did several passes on the sandpaper and stopped to check. You can see that the ends of the flange are contacting the sandpaper (Showing they are the high spots).




A little further and checking again.




Left carb flange is now square and will seal properly.






Back on the bike.








Time to complete the right carb. One dirty carb ready for a cleaning.




I found that the right carb was missing it's float washer completely.






The flange was warped on the right carburetor as well.






Parts coming out of the cleaner.




Shiny bits going back together.








All important washer installed on top of the new float










Ran the clock out for this day. More to come......

Hodakaguy

[Drew]

Nice write up!

I've always enjoyed your builds on advrider. Gotta love a vintage sidecar.

[hodakaguy]

Nice write up!

I've always enjoyed your builds on advrider. Gotta love a vintage sidecar.

Thanks Mate. I've been on ADV longer than any other forum, it's a great site! I love sidecars, for an around town rig they are an absolute blast!

Hodakaguy

[hodakaguy]

Up early this morning to re-install the right hand carb and get this baby running again.




Setting the free play on the throttle cables.




Both carbs installed.




Houston we have a problem! Time to fire this baby up and balance the carbs. Fuel on and..........what the! Huge fuel leak happening on the left carb. After a quick check it was obvious what was causing it. When I cleaned the carbs yesterday I noticed a crack in the bottom of the left carb's float bowl. The crack didn't appear to be going all the way through the carb body and it hasn't been leaking any fuel so I didn't think a lot of it. But.....I did clean a bunch of scale out of the bottom of the float bowl and apparently the scale was keeping it from leaking. The crack looks like it's been there for a Loooong time, who knows how it go there...maybe someone dropped the carb at some point or a piece of road debris hit it? Either way the carb is now leaking fuel....Dang.

Back on the bench to examine the crack.




Close up.




I'd love to find a replacement carb (Bing 1/24/159) but I also want to ride the bike so some kind of fix is in order! I started by taking a wire wheel and cleaning the crack and surrounding area.




Next I used the edge of a cut off wheel on the Dremel to carefully open up the crack a bit and rough up the area around the crack. I also used a cone wire wheel on the Dremel to clean the bottom of the float bowl really well. All this prep is being done to allow epoxy to adhere properly. Areas were then cleaned with Acetone before applying the epoxy.




I decided to use some JB Weld Fuel repair epoxy to complete the repair. Ready to use in 1hr.




Cutting off a piece of epoxy. You kneed the piece until color is uniform then apply to the desired area and form into place.




I applied a small amount from the inside working it into the crack until it came out the outside.






Then applied some to the outside as well. This stuff sets fast and you want to be quick, it went off in about 3 minutes. Luckily the repair is not visible once the carburetor is back on the bike as it's on the front underside edge of the bowl.






Back on the bike and zero leaks.....That's better!






Up and running smooth, here synchronizing the carburetors.




Wouldn't you know it....bike is running and now it's raining. Well time to clean up the shop and go play tomorrow :-)

Hodakaguy

[hodakaguy]

Huge Thanks to member Flyin Monkeys for sending me a Franklin Mint BMW model with the same sidecar. Absolutly Love it!

Going to look so good on display with the real thing. :wings.

Thanks Again Mate

Hodakaguy

[hodakaguy]

Spent the weekend at the Hood River OR Antique Fly-In......soooooo much fun!

I decided to take the R51/3 in tow and my father got to try out his new to him Scout Camper. My uncle followed us down in his Van and a friend tagged along in his van as well.

The weather was absolutely amazing...sunshine, clear skies & 80 deg temps. There was a large turn out this year and we met so many amazing people! Gave a lot of people rides in the sidecar and drooled over soooo many cool planes on the field. The museum here is a must see, one of the best I've been to with a TON of classic aircraft, cars, motorcycles and all kinds of other historic artifacts.


Setting up camp and unloading toys. My son had a blast cruising around the field on the 69 Z50.








Man...what a view. This was early Friday morning. We arrived early so we could get one of the front camp spots next to the planes.






With camp set up I took the BMW just down the road to DIY van and picked up a Maxxfan that we will install in my dad's Camper. Two web straps and the aluminum rack on the back of the Steib worked perfectly to get the fan back to camp :-)






Hanging out at camp




One of the volunteers talked me into letting him try out the bike, it was cool seeing it off the bike.




This fine gentleman stopped by to chat about the Tom Thumb minibike and we ended up talking for a good couple hrs. He is Desmond Doss Jr, Son of Desmond Doss. He is a really great guy and I enjoyed swapping stories. He had two firsts while he was at the event...I gave him his first side car ride, and my son asked him for an autograph on a plastic whimsical PBY wing....he said that's the first time someone ever asked him to sign a PBY LOL.








Kiddo Heading out for a ride on the Z50 with one of his Grandpa's.




First outing with my fathers Scout Camper. We recently sold my dad's Revel as it hurt my dad's neck and back to drive. He can drive the truck for days without issue so we decided to get him something to put on the truck. The Scout is light weight, well insulated and he doesn't have to lift the top like a FWC. It worked great!






Dawn Patrol! This biplane was up early Saturday morning waking up the campers and getting everyone stirring. It worked great as everyone was milling around shortly after. I was already up enjoying the beautiful weather and breathtaking scenery, I snapped this photo as he flew in front of Mt. Hood.




Love this Gyro!




Bike out in the sun burning off the morning dew.




Great company.




So many awesome aircraft to take in.












Checking out the restoration shop at the museum.




I purchased my son a ride on the 1929 FORD Tri-motor and grandpa went with him. Lifetime memories. :-)








Continued below.....

[hodakaguy]

Continued from above...

A Morgan 3 wheeler showed up, I love these cars! Had to get a pic of my 3 wheeler next to the Morgan.








A father/son team was using their Urals to shuttle people around the event...my son loved it!






Inside the museum. The detail on this scale Semi is amazing. I can't imagine the work that went into this!








Just your typical 51 Ford with a 998 CI engine!








Can't wait till next year!




Hodakaguy

[Drew]

Looks like a great time was had by all.

Thanks for sharing!