General Category > Bike Builds, Rebuilds And Restorations Only
Bernie's Budget Beast (SP1000)
berniebee:
This thread will describe the rejuvenation of sorts (Not to be confused with a full on restoration!) of an '83 SP1000, with an eye to DIY as much as possible and a definite leaning towards thrift. (Tight wad, me? YES.)
First a starting point: When I purchased the bike, it was in mid crab, hanging from a chain block in surgery. The clutch and everything aft was laying about the garage. Probably not the best situation for someone who had never seen a Guzzi up close, but the price was right.
I'll start small. How about a take apart of what the braking section of the Guzzi parts list calls a "valve"? It's what some people call a proportional valve, but these (And the ones on your car) are really pressure regulators. For me, linked braking is a big part of what makes a Moto a Guzzi. With the circlip out, the internals slid out of the body:
Luckily for me, the unit WAS seized. Otherwise when I removed the circlip that spring might have launched the bushing (The larger OD part on the right side, pic above) into a tender part of me.
After studying it a while I suspected that the bushing was seized onto the shaft, which you can just see protruding on the right end.
So into a vise it goes with an appropriate sized socket:
A spray of release oil and a slight closing of the vise:(Notice the spring compression.)
A few cycles of compression and release and finally the unit came apart: (Sorry about the focus.)
After some cleaning:
Back together, lubed with brake fluid:
Back in the vise with a smaller socket to install the circlip:
And finally some vaseline to keep out moisture. The last 10mm of the shaft is enclosed by the bushing, but it is open to atmosphere and that's where it seized. I suspect the rubber cap didn't keep out all the moisture, as it's not a tight fit. Hopefully the jelly will prevent this from happening again!
berniebee:
After disassembly and cleaning the wheels,
(Don't even ask how long it took to clean the brake pad/disk dust and Georgia undercoat!) I found one bearing per wheel was rough.
So I replaced all four. Splurging already, I know. But bearings are cheap from an industrial supply shop.
Getting the front bearings out was a bit of a challenge because the internal spacer leaves only a thin edge for your punch to "grab". I found that my widest round punch (1/2") worked best. New bearings stayed overnight in the freezer and then using my special tools (see the pic) they were a breeze to install.
The rear wheel was a little trickier. It was a bear to remove the steel sleeve/bearing tube, even with a 2" diameter steel pipe and the persuader. It didn't. want. to. let. go. But getting it out made wheel assembly a little easier. What worked for me is to insert the frozen bearings into the baked steel sleeve first.
Then freeze the whole shebang and coax that into the alloy wheel. Because it had been so difficult to remove, I made up a sleeve installation tool of threaded rod, a block of wood, washers and nuts. And then, surprise, surprise the dang thing just slipped in with one rap from my bare hand!
Dang! The cush drive plate wouldn't slide over the sleeve!
It looks like when I installed the bearing, the sleeve expanded slightly. I confirmed with a caliper- the end of the sleeve is now about .2mm bigger in diameter than the middle of the sleeve. Crap. The bearing wasn't THAT hard to install. File it? Sand it? (just kidding) This is a quick job to correct on a lathe, but I sold mine long ago- it wasn't earning it's keep, both monetarily and in the space it took up. So it looks like my next task is to locate a good old fashioned machine shop.
Stu:
Hi Bernie... nice project. I'm also not restoring my Guzzi, a 76 T3... bought as a running bike, but standing for the last 30 years. I imagine we'll be dealing with lots of similar issues!
Rode mine today for the first time... not very successfully but after having the heads off, it's a milestone!
aproud1:
Quite a project Bernie. Look forward to seeing the progress. Best of luck to you and your knuckles!
rutgery:
Nice project! Do you know why the bike was crabbed before you bought it? Weird that your bearing carrier of the rear wheel expaned when pushing the bearing in?
The paint on the wheels look extremely good, is the rest of the paintwork in simmilar state?
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