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A vid of some of the process.
Here is the oil seal and o-ring. It fits into the seal head. Im showing the old stuff from the front and then from the back. You can hardly tell a difference, but the oil seal (the piece inside the o-ring) is tapered on one side. I had to get out a caliper to find the small side. The taper needs to point towars the piston as the oil and nitrogen pressure help it to seal.
Got the shaft assembled again. Rebound adjuster is set right where it was before. All I need is to install a new piston band and the shaft is ready for install.
Also, the oil seal doesnt really stay inside the o-ring when its all on the shaft. If you move the seal head around at all, the oil seal pops right out. When you thread the end cap down, it physically presses on the oil seal to hold it in place. I pushed them both together and sure enough it pops right into place. I recall upon disassembly the old oil seal just fell out and was loose on the shaft.
Thats the trick with hoping you bled it and hoping your piston is in the correct place. At least thats what I think.
For now, bleeding is the least of my problem. Im just trying to get the damn thing to seal.
Needless to say, I spent most of the day fussing with this thing, going in circles and practicing my disassembly and reassembly skills (which I'm getting quite good at).
Here is a picture of my $20 harbor freight vacuum pump. I found out if you pull the shrader valve core you can use it to draw the piston and fluid down into the reservoir.
I also spent $5 on a hose barb and rubber stopper. I drilled the stopper, inserted the barb and wedged it into the compression valve bore. Once I got the shock sealed up, I turned it on its side and used the vacuum pump to draw fluid and bubbles out of the shock. The bubbles rise and the fluid falls. Just keep fluid in the line.
Here is a video to capture some of the frustration.
Now for the good news. I figured out that the dust cap needs to be sealed. For some reason I thought it would be fine if i just torqued it down, but no dice. So I wrapped it about 3 times with teflon tape, torqued it down, shot 220 psi of Nitrogen into the thing and presto...it works! The shaft is dry, the shaft rebounds on its own. It acts just like it should now.
But...the dust cap is leaking slightly. It left a few drops over 10 minutes. So I have it sitting over night to see what kind of puddle it leaves. I'm going to have to tear it down one more time and figure out a better sealant for that dust cao and then hopefully I will be done.
Forks will be next. I hope to have them apart this week.
The Shop
Also got the badge reattached to the frame. The blue looks pretty cool from the red frame.
It's usually something along the lines of your snap ring positioning that you sorted out. Things like that, bite you in the arse.
Years ago, I was the OZ tech for major suspension manufacturer, and, I'd have to reverse engineer each new type of shock, as they were always a bit 'behind', continually, with rebuild specs and instructions. It drove me absolutely nuts.
Even when you got them - specs and instructions - much of the time they were not particularly useful. Informing them of that, upset a few, endeared me to a few. It's the way it goes.
Keep going, it all looks great, and you re showing you are far more than the usual 'bling-er' - you're a do-er.
Are you going to keep the 406? I hope you do / you can.
Also busted out the "classic" 2002 YZ250F that I did a really detailed build on. It ran like a charm. I actually enjoyed riding it. I had the wife take some footage of me booting around on the pit bike trail in back.
Also took another vid:
No bloody way I'd ride anything with just a few threads of nut engagement. And No manufacturers OEM axle would be like that. It doesn't look like it's simply you having a spacer / whatever under the head of the fixed axle nut (that doesn't look like it's got a lot of protruding thread, that could also perhaps account for the lack of thread, on the RH side), that's making the axle 'short' .
If the wheel is slipping in without you having to spread the Swingarm, well, I'd say it's not wheel spacer related. To get full nut to swingarm engagement, with thinner spacers, you'd be pulling the swingarm in / together by quite few Millimeters.
I think the original axle end 'keyed' over that square in the LH side of swingarm. So only 1 tool was needed for rear wheel removal. The other blokes who've posted here who had ATKs may know the full details - if they had the same sort of swingarm as yours - there were a few different Swingarm / Brake / Chain adjuster set ups, I believe, over the years.
I also found out that my A-Trak components are all jacked up. It appears there was a chain detrailment that caught up inside the upper. It has a fresh looking Chinese bearing inside. It also has some rigged up stuff that I have yet to determine if it meets my rigging standards.
Not sure of your Idle Sprocket problems, but I think ADB have new ones, with a better bearing etc set up, available. To me they were quite reasonable in price. They are a Major part of your bikes design and function, so you really shouldn't cheap out on them / do a bodge.
I found them when I was trying to get new idler / guide wheels for my AMP Chain Device I used to use on my CRE, and XR/ CR hybrids. I loved some aspects of it's performance, but grew leary of those parts age, so, went back to a standard chain run, in the last year and a bit. It took quite a lot to get used to chain torque reactions, again.
Pit Row
Also I have two options for bars...dull or shiny. Both are 7/8 Renthals that friends have donated to my garage over the years. The ones that came on this ATK were bent, cheap steel, so either of these will be an improvement.
As I was contemplated options I couldn't help but notice how nice this offset Craftsman wrench fit. I'm strongly considering using the meat of it and donating the splined end and (non) pivoting tip from my current one. Too bad the chrome wont survive.
It ranks right up there with some of the lunacy we see on Craigs List sales. You know, the complete and utter shyte type bikes / mods that Meth / Oxy / Smack heads think are great .
Plenty of gear levers with full, correct splines cark it, either from impacts / being run lose.
Something with minimal, non full contact 'teeth', such as a multi point ring spanner, won't last any sort of usage.
You've got a dual usage, inner and outer set of shafts there you risk damaging, and they might be a bit expensive, or, hard to get.
If the splines on the gear lever are healthy and it clamps to the shaft well, just make a new folding tip (well, just go looking for another decent / high quality folding lever at say, a wreckers) and construct it to the correct length and height setting to suit your Herman Munster feet.
Sorry if I seem impertinent with this, but hell, you're doing a great job, making a classic bike, live again, and fit You . That ringy idea, is well, just as I described it in my 2nd sentence, above. Or was that ring spanner 'thing' a joke?
I like the long skinny profile because it will be friendlier to the engine case during the inevitable scuffs and it wont protrude out as far as the round stocker. That left side is pretty crowded by the peg so any room will help.
The seat mounts up ok. I was interested in seeing how all 3 colors of red mesh together. The side plates are yet another color, but at least those will have some big, white number plate backgrounds to block it out.
Also got the intake tube cleaned, test fitted the air filter and dragged the carb out from under the toolbox. It will probably be next up (I keep avoiding the forks!).
Older Huskies (as in, Swedish Huskies) had neat little folding tips, on a small section, high quality 'arm' that might be of use to you. I used to use them, quite a few years ago, on many projects.
Though, I had mates with various bikes with the 'inner and outer' KS and Gear Shaft set ups, that made up more malleable, flat bar mid sectioned folding levers, combined with Brake Snakes, to protect the double shaft set up.
For phucks sake...thats the section I wont use. Gesus...its like you dont even know me.
Can you post a pic or link to the Swed Husky shifters you are talking about. I'm curious about that.
PS I was thinking of a brake snake for the same reason!
My 'puter's dead, so, no access to my pictures. I'm stuck on my 'phone, or this weird little tablet.
You'll find a bazillion pictures of old Huskies though, here in the 2t section, and, the web in general.
But, they are pretty much like your original ATK one - slim 'arm's, made from high quality material. And, quite possibly expensive, or hard to get. Have you got a MC Wreckers near you., so you can find a donor, folding tipped arm? Though, it looks like you are in a rural area.
The prior owner had a conglomeration of zippy ties and a janky rubber boot. While at Autozone the other day I noticed this guy sitting on the shelf for $10. Its 3 inch to 2.5 inches, but it was close enough. I just had to trim the front and rear (and use brake cleaner to removed the tacky logo). Looks like a winner.
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