1500 ebay deal - now done

Started by OR Seedman, November 14, 2017, 16:37:04 PM

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mittico68

Mmmmh, it's quite the same for me: I've been ridin' since I was 18 and got my first cruiser at 21 (a 650cc Suzuki savage); my wife just doesn't understand, even though she tells that she likes to go ridin' with me!  :o

I love my swingin' bike!

OR Seedman

LOL...that's my desire, but not sure it's worth the grief!  I grew up riding...my wife didn't...and she just DOESN'T UNDERSTAND...she thinks there is something wrong with me  :o.  My grandfather raced sidecar motocross in Germany and owned a BSA Motorcycle store/shop, so it must be in my blood.....I started riding at 12 and raced MX until I was 17...got my first roadbike at 18 and off I went....My wife has ridden with me a total of 3 times in over 32 years of marriage, so obviously she just is not going to get it....

OR Seedman

mittico68

Quote from: OR Seedman on January 06, 2018, 08:40:30 AM

I really need to get a good feel for the bike so I can make an "informed" decision as to which one I want to keep... ;)  Maybe we can take a poll....

I guess you already know the answer: KEEP BOTH!  ;)

I love my swingin' bike!

OR Seedman

I have a tan one that goes with the other seat....but it is curved to match a fender....the rack is definitely strong enough to hold even my weight (240lb), so it would work in a pinch...there is a vendor on ebay that sells some flat tan leather rear pillions for Royal Enfields that might work, but I really don't have anyone to put back there (my wife WILL NOT ride) so not much point to it for me.....

I am really looking forward to some good spring weather so that I can take it out and put some real miles (or kilometers) on it, instead of just going around the local back roads a little bit. (not licensed yet..no plates).  I really need to get a good feel for the bike so I can make an "informed" decision as to which one I want to keep... ;)  Maybe we can take a poll....

OR Seedman

mittico68

Great looking bike!
You could even add a pillion seat over that rear rack, since that she's got foldable passenger footpegs too!

I love my swingin' bike!

OR Seedman

#21

updated pics with new Saddleline Leather Seat Cover for the oem seat.  Also added chromed heavy duty rear rack with my Indian style backrest.  3/4" memory foam layered on top of the stock seat foam makes for a very soft seat... ;D

The leather is really soft and supple, but not thin....good value for $95

OR Seedman

OR Seedman

new rack design for the 1500 (works really well with the classic style seat).  Has gone in for chroming.....has adjustable tilt, pre-drilled for backrest mount...will post pics when I get it back from the chrome shop, too.

OR Seedman

greenbarn

Thanks for the info.   Will undoubtedly help someone out.

No Worries

OR Seedman

must be....there was absolutely no way to clear the bottom of the frame to remove the 2 lowest sitting casing bolts on this one.....I was lifting the entire rear of the bike up with the rear head against the frame well before the bolts would clear...

OR Seedman

Troll

Quote from: OR Seedman on November 17, 2017, 16:01:10 PM

total time is difficult to calculate....I was working on it between doing things on the research farm....I would say that if I focused on just doing the bearing, total time would have been about 4 hrs....I did try the trick of removing the rear engine mounts and lifting up the back of the engine to clear the frame with the lower bolts on the casing (like you see on youtube), but that doesn't work with a Drifter...not enough clearance above the rear cylinder head to the frame....so I had to crack the frame and move the engine a little bit sideways....but I did not have to completely take it out....just drained and disconnect the radiator, drained the oil, disconnected the drive shaft (checked it for tightness...all good there), pulled off the rectifier, rear fender and wheel, rear diff for the shaft drive (so I could slide the shaft off of the front gear as it is spring loaded at the rear differential which forces it forward) and the seat and tank...really not that complicated...

I bought the new bearing through Global Industries (have an account with them)  it is a 62mm outer diameter with 25mm inner shaft diameter  x 17mm thick...open bearings (no seal), running in an oil-bath (not greased).  I bought a BL HD bearing with higher specs (increased max rpm of 13,000 vs 10,000 and tighter tolerances).  cost was $4.84 plus shipping, but since I had other bearings for machinery in the order as well, the shipping is negligible  (shipping total was $5.95..order was over $80).  The casing gasket was bought off of ebay for $4.00 with free shipping....

I probably spent an additional 6-8 hours cleaning it up, fixing small nit-noid things and painting....not really a whole lot of time....always in between my research work....the biggest pain in the butt was that I forgot to put the tow plastic panels back on in front of the tank....Had everything put back together and then realized I had to lift the tank up to get to the push tab holes to re-mount them...DOH!  Live and learn, I guess.... ::)

That's funny, I did mine without removing the frame rail...but mine is an R model, the frame is a bit different

Recovering H-D owner...W-650 Cafe' No excuses...Ride it or sell it to someone who will!


OR Seedman

#15

total time is difficult to calculate....I was working on it between doing things on the research farm....I would say that if I focused on just doing the bearing, total time would have been about 4 hrs....I did try the trick of removing the rear engine mounts and lifting up the back of the engine to clear the frame with the lower bolts on the casing (like you see on youtube), but that doesn't work with a Drifter...not enough clearance above the rear cylinder head to the frame....so I had to crack the frame and move the engine a little bit sideways....but I did not have to completely take it out....just drained and disconnect the radiator, drained the oil, disconnected the drive shaft (checked it for tightness...all good there), pulled off the rectifier, rear fender and wheel, rear diff for the shaft drive (so I could slide the shaft off of the front gear as it is spring loaded at the rear differential which forces it forward) and the seat and tank...really not that complicated...

I bought the new bearing through Global Industries (have an account with them)  it is a 62mm outer diameter with 25mm inner shaft diameter  x 17mm thick...open bearings (no seal), running in an oil-bath (not greased).  I bought a BL HD bearing with higher specs (increased max rpm of 13,000 vs 10,000 and tighter tolerances).  cost was $4.84 plus shipping, but since I had other bearings for machinery in the order as well, the shipping is negligible  (shipping total was $5.95..order was over $80).  The casing gasket was bought off of ebay for $4.00 with free shipping....

I probably spent an additional 6-8 hours cleaning it up, fixing small nit-noid things and painting....not really a whole lot of time....always in between my research work....the biggest pain in the butt was that I forgot to put the tow plastic panels back on in front of the tank....Had everything put back together and then realized I had to lift the tank up to get to the push tab holes to re-mount them...DOH!  Live and learn, I guess.... ::)

OR Seedman

greenbarn

OR :
Great looking bike, and what a deal!!   Of course you had some sweat equity in the equation too -- time is money.    How many hours was the bevel gear bearing for you??     Would you be so kind as to share the bearing information for us??   

No Worries

OR Seedman

not sure....the bearings on both the engine bevel gear and the shaft bevel gear are splashed with oil....but what the failure on the engine shaft one is caused by I have no idea.....

OR Seedman

Bucko

I've never heard that the bearing failure was widespread.  Is there an oil starvation problem in that area?


OR Seedman

lots of Vulcan 1500 owners (not just drifters) have reported front bevel gear bearing failure at anywhere from 25k to 35k miles....seems to be quite common across the board on the 1500 engines....could be that the failure is due to harder riding than most Drifter owners subject their bikes to.  The oem bearings are a medium load rated bearing with so-so tolerances, so I looked around for something stronger.  I buy aftermarket farm equipment bearings all the time, so I got the specs and found a heavy duty bearing with tighter tolerance and 3,000 rpm higher rating at about 1/8 the cost.....not everything has to be OEM with a Kawasaki brand name price tag.... ;)

I dipped the grips yesterday and put them back on the bike today....much better...now I can actually hold onto the handlebars when accelerating..

OR Seedman

Troll

My bevel bearing failed at about 75,000...I replaced it and now I have 115,000 with no further problems. I have the original clutch, too

Recovering H-D owner...W-650 Cafe' No excuses...Ride it or sell it to someone who will!

drifter-paul

Hadn't heard of this 30K problem, I got 162K now without replacement. That's worse than the diaphragm spring plate weakness (80k) before the Mean Streak mod !!!

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

OR Seedman

thanks.  I think the previous owner (original owner who bought it in June '02 brand new), had someone he knew doing a lot of the customizing....but he also had some mechanical work done a the shop I bought it through...clutch spring, plates, etc...but the cost of doing the bevel gear bearing (they quoted him $2500+) pushed him into dumping it on ebay through the shop...I put a BL Heavy Duty bearing in (industrial bearing) that has a higher RPM rating and tighter tolerances...at a cost of $4.95  vs  $38 for the oem that seems to go out at 30k miles or so.... ;)  I am pretty happy with the whole deal so far....bike seems to run strong...

OR Seedman

BlackBlueMagoo

That was one heck of a deal on that 1500! I'm happy for you! I only hope one day mine could look 1/2 that good!


drifter-paul

Hair dryer to heat the 800 badges and press fit them to shape ? Haven't tested the theory on my 1500 badges, and sorry, no, not for sale, I sometimes revert to them from the Zambinis.

What a buy !!! Saw a '99 advertisied up in Qld, with 40K for $5000 US, but you have raised the 'Bargain' stakes!. Congratulations! Enjoy.

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

chief

Slainte mhaith - Good Health - Cheers

'02 Vulcan Drifter 1500

OR Seedman

#4

that's the fender rail I was going to use to make copies from....had it cleaned up and chromed....turned out really nice...

I like the idea of the Indian Head conches....I will have to look into that.

The only thing really left to do is I have to dip the solid chrome grips in some plasti dip for tools.....You can hardly hold onto them when riding....I don't know how anyone could ride with smooth metal grips like that...I am going to put a rubber coating in the middle of each one by taping off the ends and then repeatedly dipping them in the can of black I picked up today.  Hopefully that will take care of the issue....

OR Seedman

Old Drifter

Gene

1999 Drifter

CDNRatMan

  colours are nice, the F&S passenger floor boards look really good. That front fender guard really adds some bling to the machine......

GPS is not to get you THERE but rather to get you home from THERE

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