Suspension - please explain.

[Bill Thomas]

Thanks Vincent, No, One side Oil, One side petrol , Like an "A".
Ron built it for my 1975 "D" Special Road Bike /Racer, He cut a standard tank in half horizontal made it 2" taller,
And blocked it off in the middle,
This is the frame from same bike "D" and the seat from my L/ning rep' and carb' manifold which snapped
When I fell off at Oulton Park.
Lots of Memories.

 

[Marcus Bowden]

Bill, make it as big as possible keeping it in close to the bike, you will always find something to fill it with, Petrol, oil, or a few spares, my crash bars have lengths of soft solder & silver solder hidden in them, the tubes under my seat for the pannier system have long cable ties & wire, slid in between the pannier boxes are large strong folded up carrier bags, 99% of the time it's just additional weight but occasionally one can help out a distressed person. If you carry it you very seldum use it your self.
bananaman.

 

[Bill Thomas]

Thanks Marcus, It was only going to be a flap of alloy, I made a bigger one and it didn't look right to me.
I don't want a lot of weight, I carry a large tank bag.
I don't go far now.

 

[Howard]

I can confirm that after a 10 mile run the new suspension seems to be working well, so well the Girdraulics seem harsh - like all jobs recently, one fix spawns 2 problems. Mods - Girling springs with spring box mods, Paul Ennis damper mods, grease friction damper and new bushes in the seat ...... I've ordered some HDPE bearing strip to replace the friction lining, but it's not arrived get.

 

[Bill Thomas]

It seems to be the eccentrics that are the problem, Stiffness ?,
More so on a Comet because of the lighter weight.
My next plan is to try and get some of this ZX1 lube or grease,
Anyone know what shops sell it ?.

 

[Martyn Goodwin]

I can confirm that after a 10 mile run the new suspension seems to be working well, so well the Girdraulics seem harsh - like all jobs recently, one fix spawns 2 problems. Mods - Girling springs with spring box mods, Paul Ennis damper mods, grease friction damper and new bushes in the seat ...... I've ordered some HDPE bearing strip to replace the friction lining, but it's not arrived get.

see post 23

 

[Howard]

It seems to be the eccentrics that are the problem, Stiffness ?,
More so on a Comet because of the lighter weight.
My next plan is to try and get some of this ZX1 lube or grease,
Anyone know what shops sell it ?.

More chance to do some road testing now, so I'll see what happens.

 

[Bill Thomas]

Don't Rub it in Howard, I have been Crook all month .

 

[Howard]

Don't bother machining the eyes, this would be very expensive, just get them honed at an engine reconditioning shop using their hone they use to resize connecting rods. That way the eyes are kept perfectly in line and the amount removed is a maximum of less than 8 thou on an as new link. Using four of (x 4) 32 x 20 x 7 mm sealed bearings you want not more than 7 tenths of a thou interference, any more and this will distort the bearings and crush them too much. Lightly grease all the parts on assembly to the stem, you will need one or two of the supplied shims on the inside between the large inner washer and the stem lower block to space everything correctly. Use a washer under the heads of the main bolts, this will help align the upper spring cases with the lower halves better........Use a steering damper of your own choice making sure you get full lock to lock travel.............Good luck with it all.

Thanks for this (and thanks to Timetraveller for similar) Despite being a Vin owner for 45 years, I'm still very new to standard frame parts, so just to confirm, this mod replaces the flanged oilites in the concentrics (FF5) ??? I can see the sense in it, and I can do the job, I just want to be certain before I set to with modifying the wrong parts . You also mention steering damper, is this for the usual reasons, or does this mod increase the chances of a tank slapper? Famous last words, but my Comet is used quite hard for a 70 year old road bike and I've never had it get out of shape - maybe I'm just lucky.

 

[Bill Thomas]

I have thought a lot about this myself, But surely you will have to make Conncentrics, Instead of Eccentrics , And will not have the sidecar changing bits, Not that that is a problem for us ?, Just more work than at first thought ?,
With a lot of different washers and shims ?.