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General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: lucian on January 26, 2018, 05:46:58 PM

Title: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 26, 2018, 05:46:58 PM
Can't imagine life without them.
Especially on this project. Decided to uglyfi the griso. May need to borrow Chucks hacksaw when done. We'll see.  :laugh:


(http://thumb.ibb.co/i8Wvmw/IMG_1165.jpg) (http://ibb.co/i8Wvmw)



(http://thumb.ibb.co/ddjgRw/IMG_1167.jpg) (http://ibb.co/ddjgRw)


Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on January 26, 2018, 06:57:27 PM
 :grin:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: slopokes on January 26, 2018, 07:29:58 PM
Clean tools r your friend :boozing:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Triple Jim on January 26, 2018, 07:39:25 PM
Rear racks are so useful that it doesn't matter what they look like!
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: John A on January 26, 2018, 07:49:11 PM
you should tack those vice grips or they may fall off when you hit a bump, I hate loosing tools  :evil:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: fotoguzzi on January 26, 2018, 08:47:16 PM
works good on Suzuki screws so tight the correct JIS bit still can't get them loose, had to grind down the back side to fit between the flutes on the carb top..

(https://photos.smugmug.com/DR-650/i-Xm9WGVL/0/92f2a2c7/X2/2016121116283581-IMG_2506-X2.jpg) (https://fotoguzzi.smugmug.com/DR-650/i-Xm9WGVL/A)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: John A on January 26, 2018, 09:22:46 PM
If you want to clean up the vice grips a little what I do is spray them with Ospho and let it set overnight . It turns the rust black. I get a quart bottle at the hardware store and put a spray head on it. Quart lasts me a year unless I get an old tractor.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: normzone on January 26, 2018, 09:53:39 PM
Rear racks are so useful that it doesn't matter what they look like!

 :thumb: :1:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Tom H on January 27, 2018, 12:02:51 AM
works good on Suzuki screws so tight the correct JIS bit still can't get them loose, had to grind down the back side to fit between the flutes on the carb top..

A proper JIS bit couldn't get it loose. Wow. Vice grip pliers do have a time and place!

Tom
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: JACoH on January 27, 2018, 12:27:26 PM
Hard to find real branded Vise grips, and the cheap Chinese versions that everyone sells are junk. I've thrown away 3 in the past year.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: cloudbase on January 27, 2018, 12:31:47 PM
Also known as the Texas A&M knurling tool.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: MotoChuck250 on January 27, 2018, 01:03:23 PM
Can't imagine life without them.
Especially on this project. Decided to uglyfi the griso. May need to borrow Chucks hacksaw when done. We'll see.  :laugh:


(http://thumb.ibb.co/i8Wvmw/IMG_1165.jpg) (http://ibb.co/i8Wvmw)



(http://thumb.ibb.co/ddjgRw/IMG_1167.jpg) (http://ibb.co/ddjgRw)


Having worked in a weld shop for years doing fit up, I love the vise grip clamps.  As an ex motorcycle mechanic I hate regular visegrips for the number of rounded off nuts from idiots that used them as wrenches.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 27, 2018, 03:43:15 PM
Ok, here's the finished rack. I'm no pro fabricator but I think I can live with it.  I was tired of strapping my mustang bag down on the seat and having to remove it to lift the seat off.  I couldn't find an aftermarket rack I liked as most seem too small, or sit too low and cover the tail light. Then I saw what they charged for them and decided I had nothing to loose but $25 dollars worth of steel tubing. It was a fun project and it has been a while since I tried welding thin tube. I'm thinking about making some C-bow plates to add to the sides and then I could share the bags from another bike. Would have been an impossible job without the vise grips.  Opinion's welcome. :violent1:


(http://thumb.ibb.co/fsMrTb/IMG_1189.jpg) (http://ibb.co/fsMrTb)



(http://thumb.ibb.co/mg3c1w/IMG_1192.jpg) (http://ibb.co/mg3c1w)



(http://thumb.ibb.co/bUHbuG/IMG_1197.jpg) (http://ibb.co/bUHbuG)


Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Roebling3 on January 27, 2018, 03:54:09 PM
For those less talented than Lucian Ventura tail racks are some what similar and have work well for me w/their soft luggage on many bikes.  R3~
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 27, 2018, 04:09:21 PM
I had actually wanted the Stucchi rack but the supplier was out and then never got back to me. I think they are no longer available. I did not know about vetura, but wasn't too crazy about the givi.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: fotoguzzi on January 27, 2018, 04:56:31 PM
your rack looks real swell ! I like what you did to improve the Griso.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 27, 2018, 05:06:40 PM
your rack looks real swell ! I like what you did to improve the Griso.

Thank's FotoG, it's far from perfect but it's function over form for what it is. It's always fun to try and create something from the scrap heap and I always seem to learn something in the process.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: twowings on January 27, 2018, 07:41:40 PM
I've never told another man he had a nice rack, but that looks good! Well done... :bow:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Guzzi Gal on January 27, 2018, 09:00:55 PM
I've never told another man he had a nice rack, but that looks good! Well done... :bow:
:1:

Fantastic job!
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 27, 2018, 09:17:03 PM
Thanks GG, you're a kind soul. :bow:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: LeRoy on January 27, 2018, 09:34:57 PM
Rear racks are so useful that it doesn't matter what they look like!

Well, what they look like does matter, at least a little. I'm not proud of the aesthetics and I tip my hat the OP for his fine work. But this rig did the job until I found the Hepco u. Becker model. And when a guy only has a hammer, a vice, ViceGrips and a piece of old railroad rail as an anvil, you get a lot more function than form. That being said, I got thousands of miles use from this rack. It never failed, left no marks on the machine, was pretty easy to install and remove, and was very recyclable at the end of its life.


(https://thumb.ibb.co/fqs1Bw/Rack_on_Guzzi.jpg) (https://ibb.co/fqs1Bw)

(https://thumb.ibb.co/j3xCJb/Rack_and_Bags_on_Guzzi.jpg) (https://ibb.co/j3xCJb)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Triple Jim on January 27, 2018, 09:55:44 PM
Well LeRoy, it looks fine in use.  I guess maybe it's better removed when not in use though.  :)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 28, 2018, 08:54:21 AM
Well, what they look like does matter, at least a little. I'm not proud of the aesthetics and I tip my hat the OP for his fine work. But this rig did the job until I found the Hepco u. Becker model. And when a guy only has a hammer, a vice, ViceGrips and a piece of old railroad rail as an anvil, you get a lot more function than form. That being said, I got thousands of miles use from this rack. It never failed, left no marks on the machine, was pretty easy to install and remove, and was very recyclable at the end of its life.


(https://thumb.ibb.co/fqs1Bw/Rack_on_Guzzi.jpg) (https://ibb.co/fqs1Bw)

(https://thumb.ibb.co/j3xCJb/Rack_and_Bags_on_Guzzi.jpg) (https://ibb.co/j3xCJb)


 :thumb: Nice job Leroy. For me half the fun of a motorcycle is improvising things to fit your needs. It's little projects like these that keeps a man sane.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on January 28, 2018, 12:48:27 PM
Attaboy, Lucian..  :thumb: That's a nice piece of fabrication..
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: mjptexas on January 28, 2018, 12:53:13 PM
WOW!

Great job Lucian.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Tom on January 28, 2018, 01:31:23 PM
Hard to find real branded Vise grips, and the cheap Chinese versions that everyone sells are junk. I've thrown away 3 in the past year.

So......sounds like your decision to buy cheap is the problem.   :grin: :grin: :grin: :grin:  A bad American business decision was made.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Matt Story on January 28, 2018, 01:55:14 PM
Nice work Lucian.  Dont want to hijack.  Thought I would show another alternative.  Last summer I needed a rack on short term notice for my R1150RT.  I brainstormed for a couple days what materials and processes were at hand.  Considered making from 12mm hyd tubing bent at work at welded at home, but not much experience weld and no time for a learning curve.  Settled on $20 of rigid copper water lines sweated.  It turned out very stiff and is no worse for wear after 2up trip across country.  Includes center attachment by lashing learned in Scouts.




(http://thumb.ibb.co/dgmreG/20170826_125610.jpg) (http://ibb.co/dgmreG)



(http://thumb.ibb.co/iSzVOb/20170826_125110.jpg) (http://ibb.co/iSzVOb)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Tom on January 28, 2018, 03:09:15 PM
Lucian...Good work.  Matt, one of my friends did the same for his K75s.  He's a plumber.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: sign216 on January 28, 2018, 08:47:25 PM
Dave, great work.  Nothing beats building it yourself.
Joe
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: nc43bsa on January 28, 2018, 11:25:43 PM
Along the lines of fabricating racks, has anyone here tried fabbing a copy of the H-B "hoop" with the latch plate?

I'm interested in making mounts for H-B luggage for two of my bikes, neither of which H-B makes (or has ever made, AFAIK) mounts to fit.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on January 29, 2018, 06:19:39 AM
Along the lines of fabricating racks, has anyone here tried fabbing a copy of the H-B "hoop" with the latch plate?

I'm interested in making mounts for H-B luggage for two of my bikes, neither of which H-B makes (or has ever made, AFAIK) mounts to fit.

The last one I did, I just bought some generic HB mounts, used the hoop, and did whatever it took to fit it to the bike.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on January 29, 2018, 07:23:53 AM
Thank's for all the kind replies. I've been told a lot of things but having a nice rack was never one of them. :laugh: :laugh:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: dguzzi on January 29, 2018, 08:40:28 AM
Ought to be able to tie a milk crate down nicely on that!

   I wish I had your skill, I would love to make some changes to my EV similar without cutting the OEM rack.  Nice work!
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: jumpmaster on May 31, 2019, 04:22:26 PM
Along the lines of fabricating racks, has anyone here tried fabbing a copy of the H-B "hoop" with the latch plate?

I'm interested in making mounts for H-B luggage for two of my bikes, neither of which H-B makes (or has ever made, AFAIK) mounts to fit.

Just came across this post while looking for something else.  I don't know if your Mille GT is one of the bikes you want a rack for, but H-B does make a rack/pannier hanger combo for the Mille GT - I bought one for my bike a couple of years ago.  As I remember, it was hard to find, but a shop in England (Moto International?) had them and the bonus was the exchange rate was favorable at the time.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: JC85 on May 31, 2019, 04:25:19 PM
Hard to find real branded Vise grips, and the cheap Chinese versions that everyone sells are junk. I've thrown away 3 in the past year.

Vice Grips and Crescent Wrenches: two tools that I have never found an acceptable substitute for the name brand of.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Ncdan on May 31, 2019, 06:21:06 PM
Can my 1400 rack be next:)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on May 31, 2019, 06:55:14 PM
I knew something was up when I saw this old thread re appear.  :laugh: I'll see what I can do. Will have a look at the big ol girl this weekend and see If i can fab one up before the trip.  I guess it's true that old LEO's never forget.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Ncdan on May 31, 2019, 08:07:26 PM
I knew something was up when I saw this old thread re appear.  :laugh: I'll see what I can do. Will have a look at the big ol girl this weekend and see If i can fab one up before the trip.  I guess it's true that old LEO's never forget.
Lol, just funning buddy. You’ve got too much going on now, getting ready for your adventure. We’ve got all winter to play with that project:)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Pizza Guzzi on May 31, 2019, 08:40:46 PM
I'm no pro fabricator


I dunno, looks like a bloody nice job to me  :thumb:

Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: nc43bsa on June 01, 2019, 12:17:31 AM
Just came across this post while looking for something else.  I don't know if your Mille GT is one of the bikes you want a rack for, but H-B does make a rack/pannier hanger combo for the Mille GT - I bought one for my bike a couple of years ago.  As I remember, it was hard to find, but a shop in England (Moto International?) had them and the bonus was the exchange rate was favorable at the time.

Nah, I already have a complete H-B rack for the MilleGT.  What I'm interested in are rack systems for my Yamaha XT600 and my Commando.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: frozengoose on June 01, 2019, 12:42:16 AM
The title sounds like it could be from an old Firesign Theater album, Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers.

I've got an old luggage rack that used to be on my T, so it'd probably fit most Tonti framed bikes. I'll post a pic if anybody's interested in it. It meets your main criteria, it's certainly ugly!
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: jumpmaster on June 01, 2019, 06:16:25 AM
Nah, I already have a complete H-B rack for the MilleGT.  What I'm interested in are rack systems for my Yamaha XT600 and my Commando.

Andover Norton carries a Hepco-Becker rack for the Commando, "all years."  they list it under "luggage frame."  Not cheap, but high quality.  As I remember, the instructions came in German with an English translation that was barely adequate, but I eventually noodled out the 2 or 3 rough spots in the instructions.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: sign216 on June 01, 2019, 06:39:15 AM
Vice Grips and Crescent Wrenches: two tools that I have never found an acceptable substitute for the name brand of.

I've got a bunch of Crescent brand pliers etc, but oddly, no Crescent brand crescent wrench.

Do people still call adjustable wrenches "crescent wrenches," or am I living in the past?

Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Ncdan on June 01, 2019, 07:29:51 AM
I've got a bunch of Crescent brand pliers etc, but oddly, no Crescent brand crescent wrench.

Do people still call adjustable wrenches "crescent wrenches," or am I living in the past?
I think the terminology “lockjaw” pliers is fairly common.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: JC85 on June 01, 2019, 09:30:17 AM
I've got a bunch of Crescent brand pliers etc, but oddly, no Crescent brand crescent wrench.

Do people still call adjustable wrenches "crescent wrenches," or am I living in the past?

I'm only 33, and I still call them crescent wrenches. So does everyone I work with. So I think you're fine, haha.  :thumb:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: speedyg on June 02, 2019, 05:34:22 PM
Lucian
Great job and well done. Looks great.

Oh, and the Griso in White is a fave of mine, like the Le Mans III in White.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: mechanicsavant on June 02, 2019, 05:42:14 PM
And that’s why I have over15 pair of them!
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: lucian on June 02, 2019, 08:01:47 PM
Lucian
Great job and well done. Looks great.

Oh, and the Griso in White is a fave of mine, like the Le Mans III in White.
[/quote]
Thank's Speedyg,, you'll like this shot then :thumb:



(https://i.ibb.co/McBvDX1/IMG-0190.jpg) (https://ibb.co/McBvDX1)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: speedyg on June 03, 2019, 12:01:00 PM
Lucian,
thanks for sharing the pic.
Just needs a red le mans 850  :bow: in shot for perfection.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on June 04, 2019, 06:53:59 AM
White LM3s do it for me, too..  :thumb:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: dguzzi on June 04, 2019, 07:54:33 AM
I have a Winchester brand pipe wrench. Saved for that reason alone.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Muzz on June 05, 2019, 05:19:17 PM
Good work there Lucian.  I find those rear luggage racks really useful.

For those less talented than Lucian Ventura tail racks are some what similar and have work well for me w/their soft luggage on many bikes.  R3~

When I bought the Breva I negotiated some stuff to go with it, amongst other things a taller Ventura tail rack.  I have a cheap pack attached and it is really useful.  Permanently carries my tire compressor, a 500ml pack of oil, a dog turd tire patch kit and a pair of slip jaw pliers.  These are to tweek the oil dipstick.  Those who have experienced the slippery foot syndrome will understand that. :rolleyes:
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: drdwb on June 05, 2019, 06:41:46 PM
Very nice fab on the rack, impressive looking on the bike. Now you can put a back pad on it so your wife or girlfriend doesn’t fall off.I hear Griso s are chick magnets.

So instead of a counting cylinders survey, which hasn’t been done in awhile, a new survey topic is born, how many authentic vise grip tools do you own. Than we can move on to Roc straps or bungee cords.
Seriously nice  Rack great job.
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: slowmover on June 05, 2019, 08:22:39 PM
Waiting on new switch
(https://i.ibb.co/nCVf586/ABEF5-FB2-5-A84-4-CF1-8-E82-23067-F4043-BD.jpg) (https://ibb.co/nCVf586)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: JJ on June 05, 2019, 09:37:29 PM
Back in the day, and while on a Road Trip to Lake George, NY, I accidentally clipped a pylon and broke the tip off my shift lever on my 1977 Yamaha RD400. 

I used a pair of Vise Grips as a make-shift lever to change gears, which was awkward, but got me home...about 3.5 hours away. :thumb:  To this day, I carry a pair on every Road Trip I ever ridden on... :wink:


(https://i.ibb.co/yP1X2nG/Screen-Shot-2019-06-05-at-7-33-23-PM.png) (https://ibb.co/yP1X2nG)
Title: Re: Thanks be to vise grips
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on June 06, 2019, 06:09:43 PM
I used to keep a pair clamped to the frame of my Bultaco Matador. That, and a rock could do a major overhaul on one of those boogers out in the woods.  :grin: