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1966 Bsa 650 on a budget

26K views 214 replies 20 participants last post by  MikeJustice55 
#1 ·
I picked up a 1966 bsa roller with complete engine for $450 at a swap meet about 8 years ago, lost interest and gave it to my dad then decided to build something again so i got it back from him. Heres the plan.... do as much work as possible solo and reuse as many parts as possible to keep this thing CHEAP. I work at a machine shop so i will be making what I can and have good painting skills so we will see how this goes.
 
#68 ·
So i put the jugs on with new piston rings, almost forgot my lifters though. Then inspected the gear selector plate before putting the trans in and it looked almost like new. There was hardly any wear on it at all. Also checked for any chipped teeth or anything else unusual and all looked good. The bearings were also in very good shape so i put some fresh oil all over everything and put it back in. Also managed to take 1 3/8" out of the shock mount on the frame and made the rear shock mount and crossmember for the upper part of the swingarm today. Ill get the swingarm in place for the wheel and take a pic tomorrow if i get a chance.
 

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#69 ·
Here is the basic stance. Thats a 5.5 inch stretch from the original swing arm. Ill be working on the front end now to put a rim on the front and set it on the table so i can really get measurements for my axle plate for the rear. Then lots of bracing and measuring to make sure nothing moves when i weld it. It had an older sportster front end on it just finger tight so ill be machining and fabbing spacers to fit the harley front end. (I would prefer bsa front end and wheels but i dont have them and i would like to have disc brakes anyway)

How low is too low? I plan on keeping the center stand and mounts but may modify the stand a bit.
 

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#71 ·
For comparison, here's a Vincent rear end; the seat mount is pretty clearly part of the front frame member. ... So, are the top tubes (with your seat mounted to them) going to move fore and aft as the suspension deals with road irregularities?

Sorry if I'm simply failing to see something obvious.
 

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#75 ·
Haha i dont mind hearing any ideas at all. This was a new idea for me and there are a lot of things I overlooked right away. At least i know i can always take the shock out, weld some tubing up for a rigid hardtail and it will still be cool. Might throw hours of work out the window but hey, shit like that happens sometimes.
 
#76 ·
Yeah well a guy with your skills, and I guess I can say your vision, it's probably a good corrective to have to throw time and deeds out the window once in a while. Plus, should you decide to go in a different direction, I have no doubt you could make a rear frame like this one from scratch.

Wish it was easier to see what's going on there in frameland.

* Pic is from this site's Board, p. 303. The thread is "Great wrap up ... ," and it's post #1.
 

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#78 ·
So i knocked out the old bsa cups and machined in some inserts to run standard 1 inch roller bearing and cups so the harley front end fits. We keep these bearing sets in the tool room for some of the shop equipment so i got them for free along with the steel scraps i used to make the adapters. These are exact measurements i used if anyone wants to put an old sporty front end on a bsa. I made everything .001 press fit. (Tapped in with a hammer nice and tight) now im going to disassemble the front end, put new seals in and shorten the spings up 2 inches and assemble with tires to see if im happy with the ride height.
 

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#80 ·
That's a lot of work to get HD bearings on the neck. I have a 68 TR6 and have a sporty front end on it. I machined off the brake and fender tabs and welded a tab on the right leg to fit the Triumph brake drum. Lobrow sells adapters for the neck bearings to install the sporty trees. Is your Beezer different?? Thought they might be the same.
 
#82 ·
So I took the oil pump apart marked all of the gears cleaned and inspected everything very well and reassembled it. Now if i tighten the 4 bolts on the rear more than finger tight it gets very hard to turn. Now i did clean all mating surfaces and base surface with 1000 grit wet sandpaper with wd 40. I dont think i removed any material but maybe i did and the assembly is too tight now? Any ideas? It was too tight before i started to roll over with my fingers but a straight slot screw driver did it fairly easily.
 

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#84 ·
Are you going to use a tachometer on it? If not you don't need both drive tabs to be there and you can still use the same drive gear.
This has happened to me almost every time I have taken apart one of these for cleaning. Sometimes you have to fiddle with the gears to get it to turn smoothly. Other times it may be necessary to lap the face of the gears slightly to get things to loosen up...generally speaking they are a little stiff to turn when they are set up properly anyway.
 
#85 ·
I dont plan on running any guages on it but i did find another oil pump in my shed. I remember i took one apart before and it had a piece of hardened metal jammed between 2 gears. This is probably the one. I may take the tach drive out of that one and put it on this one. Im going to try to face the gears as well, maybe .0005 will make it spin a little easier. Even with the bolts finger tight spinning it with a screwdriver it pumped very well. I wanted to replace the oring and make sure it all looked good. The oring cracked when i took it out so it definitely needed to be replaced.
 
#86 ·
Hmm. I had posted about oil pumps but can't find it now . . .

If you can, replaced this pump with a later model "D" or "DD" pump (as identified by stamp on body/nose). These are doweled to ensure proper alignment between body and nose which could cause binding of tach shaft or pump gears.

The early ones are a sketchy collection of loose parts that depend entirely on precise assembly and torque down to ensure free operation.

I think the later ones came out in '67 or '68 but am not sure.

There is a later cast iron version but I'm told they are rare as hen's teeth. I've never seen one in real life.

I have no experience with the SRM pump.

Jason

p.s. - if commiseration salves your state of mind, take comfort in knowing that breakage of the tach drive is super common. I'll leave this here to make you feel better ;-0

 
#87 ·
Lol thanks. I took it apart again today and faced the gears with 600grit then 1500 grit wet paper and reassembled and it rolls over nice now. Still a little too tight to do with my fingers but easy with pliers. Not running a tach anyway so its ready to bolt up. I looked to see if i had a later dowel style or a cast iron one but no luck. I have the worst design but it seems to pump really well.
 
#88 ·
Made good progress last week, put new bearings and races in the wheels, new fork tube seals, Shaved the fender mounts off of the legs. Bought some shinko super classic tires and mounted them on the rims after i sandblasted and etching primed them. Now i have it where i want it ill make a jig to mount the rear axle plates where i want them and tack them in place and bring the back half home and tig it up. I dont have correct axles so i need to make some or find some at the local bike scrap yard. Not buying stuff like that new when $5 can get one in good shape.
 

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#90 ·
Yeah. I want to keep the rear open so it looks like a hardtail but im worried about flex too. I am going to put a cross brace in to stiffen it up just in case. Plus the original plan was a 6" stretch but this tire was bigger than i thought so its going to end up being a 7 1/2" stretch.
 
#91 ·
If it isn't already clear that I think your BSA is going to come out good, and that I admire your eyeball and skills, I do. So this question from the peanut gallery is asked with due respect and no intention to snipe at your decisions.

Does it seem maybe kind of backwards to predicate a big decision (length of rear frame) on the dimensions of a single, consumable, relatively cheap thing like a tire?

I'm asking because to my mind, it's easy to go too long with a hardtail on a British bike or any vertical twin. Too much empty space around it, and the engine (properly, I think, the bike's focal point) begins to look runty and insignificant. I was sweating the 6" extension; 7.5" is making my nose run as well.

Honest, I mean no criticism and obviously my aesthetic opinions are worth every dollar I'm charging you for them. And again, could be I'm missing something major about what you've got planned. As long as you like the result, that's what counts, to the exclusion of every other consideration or opinion.
 
#92 ·
I think itll still look good because the tire takes up the other 2 inches. And no worries about criticism. I am impossible to offend and like to hear other peoples point of view. I do plan on putting a nice battery box, coils, and an custom oil tank behind the motor to fill the gap. It should look good but if I dont like it ill change it.
 
#93 ·
So i finally finished the rear portion of the frame today. It too 2 tries though. First time i welded the axle plates in i didnt do enough tacks and when i did my first stitch it picked up the other side about 1/8" so i had to cut it off and do it again. I got it just about perfect now. So then i welded in the supports to make sure it doesnt flex and it feels very rigid now. I should be able to mount the wheels now and make it a roller to start assembling. I cut a ball bearing to cap the ends of my frame i think it turned out cool.
 

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#96 ·
I havent been getting as much done as fast as i would like but im slowly making progress. I made this chain tensioner throughout the week on my breaks. Its a simple design but i havent really seen any like it. It has 2 inches of stroke and cost me $14 in materials. (The brass was something i used as a big punch for putting in bearings and races. Sacrifice worth the reward) the wheel material is teflon left over from an old job we did a while back in the shop.
 

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