Lost torque

To get a good garage feeling for next weekend we will display one complete bike and one in bits and parts... Well, the truth is: During the summer I thought that I got better and better at driving my bike - but in fact it was the bike that gradually lost it´s power:( The plan is to bring back the original torque and a bit more. High comp components are thought of. Depending on the diagnoses either the valves or the piston and sleeve will be replaced. This is the nature used bikes. Getting to know their history and temperment.

It will be a fight against the clock. Hoping to get the bike running before the first frost in the end of october.

September BBQ

Welcome to recyclemotorcycles autum patry. Bring your food - we have the fire and the entertainment.
Take a picture of your motorcycle in the photo studio, or mingle with an espresso in the bar. There is a vegtable garden in the garage - but we will talk mostly about motorcycles, design and trends. Late night = movie show.

For more info contact : design@larsg.se

Getting colder

In a world full of naked motorcycles I find it intresting to sketch fairings... or is it the cold wind? As always I get stuck in the seventies. Found a fairing on a japanese websight and modified the shape and size  in my mac. I don´t want anything else than the front screen. The tail should be light as a feather - same backlight and rear fender to keep a low budget. To my suprise the original gas tank fits in perfect with the concept. This will be the winter project. Wooden prototype and fiber molds. Hopefully, it will be possible to produce more than one fairing..:)

Good old days

It is easy to like an SR - and the only man that can say "I´ve got one of these bikes..." without getting my correction is my father. He drove BSA and Jawa´s in the Swedish army 45 years ago. Have not driven a motorcycle since then. It took him one circle of the village to sort out the gears - then he took of. Didn´t see him for a long time - almost missed the afternoon coffe. He is still smiling...

Bell

Back to my first helmet. I wonder if it is my head that have changed size or if the bell helmet just grew a bit bigger. Any way - it looks a better on both the head and the handlebar. Got a dirt track visor on the way from US.

wheel bearing

The good thing with an SR is that it looks good even when it is broken. When I got the rims of for painting, last winter, I recognised that all the seals were missing. Got some seals from Japan but didn´t change the bearings (bad idea). The bearings had taken to much beating from the water braking in. Yesterday I felt a small gap when I shook the back wheel. Fortunately the local Yamaha supplier told me to get some standard, sealed, ball bearings instead of the origoinal ones. - Swedish SKF is cheaper, and in stock next door to us. Thakyou mrs lokal supplier!

If you ever had trouble dismounting the metal sealer - here´s a tip. M5 bolts fits perfect into the holes, and they make it easy to lift the metal plate - even with a new rubber seal fighting back. Standard part is good. No problems to fit the brand new ball bearings into the 27 year old wheel...


...not so easy with the motorcycle lift. Bought the lift and rebuild it in order to fit the low design of my bike. It has been cut and welded in so many new and strange ways that I dont realy trust it. As I lift the bike, it starts to tilt a bit to the right - very nervous owner. Must find a better way before I get a dent in the gastank and a hole in my wallet.

Party with bikes and friends

The recyclemotorcycle BBQ was a success. Both the photo studio and the film was apritiated. So now I'm aiming higher. In September it will be a rerun - only bigger with more people and bikes. Yes - this time, we used small grills, but we will start the large 1.5 square meter barbecue in September.

Some say it is difficult to distinguish a sr400 from an sr500. I say - just to look at the driver.The typicall 500 owner is mostly one bit happier than the other. Fredrik´s black tracker is fitted with a 18" front tyre and a muffler that, in a generous way, amplifies the exhaust sound:)

Two years of surfing has created some large picture maps on the mac. The common theme has been small and few cylinders and an "I dare to use my bike even if it´s raining" style. The style and the bikes is still rare in Sweden - hoping to catch up.

BBQ test run

Tonight there will be a test run of the BBQ in the workshop. The idea is to run a bigger event in september. The evening contains the possibillity to take photos of the guest bikes and riders. There will also be a movie show during the evening.

Gold

It's been a while since the youngsters painted the logos on the rear tires. It feels today as if it is completely out = it´s "time to show them were the cabinet should stand" (swedish proverb). The whole bike is getting more and more 70's like, to my horror and delight. 
Instead of white paint, I use poor man´s pinstriping, marker pen, a technique I already used on the tank. Searched for a yellow-brown marker all over the city before I saw a motorcycle on the exeptional blog Pipeburn. Found the answer in the text. Gold is the color. Always nice to have builders who will share their materials and ideas.

Covers

After spending a whole winter in the workshop cutting away fittings and battery from the center frame, I discovered that the big wheels brings to much fokus to the start and the end of the bike. The trend of having see through frames with no fairings  caught to much of my design attention. In a small test I just rested the plastic fairings in the frame - and it made a big differense. More optical fokus to the center and less "hole in the frame".

No work is in vain. Because I stripped the frame from unnecessary fittings I can place the fairings were I want them. Now fitted inside the frame rather than hanging on the outside. They don´t add any width to the bike, just a shape that amplify the impression of a bike, long and thin as a paper.

Chrome away

To many old men saying: I got one of thouse, Northon bikes, when I was young. Just like this one. I need to add some more modern materials to my Yamaha...

 

The chrome must go. A heat resistant paint has been applied to the exhaust. A realy nice texture to the paint - almost like black iron. Painted the headlight as well. 

The puzzle

It takes time to create the perfect "I´m just riding to the corner shop" look. It´s not easy when the Swedish motorcycleshops seem to think that all bikers wear black Gore Tex together with their v-twins. Here is my recipe for a good Yamaha sr suit:

Davida brittish racing green helmet - keeps all the exhaust noice on the outside of your head. Harolds Gear gloves from Japan will show all the beautifull oil stains from the roadside tinkering. 


Boots form Vitesse. It took me a long time to find a "not black" racing boot. Realy good craftmanship, and the size chart on their web is good and accurate. Vitesse knows how to care for their customers. If you order from them you will get a unik level och packaging, textil wrappings and personal wellcome letters. A total joy.


Vintage leather in funny colors rather than hi-viz vest. A friend of mine has grown in a way that is not compatible with his jacket. Fortunately he asked me if I wanted to buy his vintage Manx leather, hand made on Isle of Man in 1980´s? Don´t mail me, I´m not selling..:)

Oh - and of course Dragin Jeans.

Top box

Some times you need to transport more than your custom design can carry. And who wants a plastic top box chasing you behind your back, when you spent 1/2 year cutting things of your bike? I found out that deckbags for sea kayaks got all the detales you need. They are water proof, slim and got a lot of fitting options. The company www.chillcheater.com got a deckbag of super quality for a good prize. Comes in many colors, and with a textile surface.

Wires you don´t need

My friend Mats got his sr 500 road legal just two days after this picture was taken. A lot of wire cutting in order to make everything blink in the right way. A temporary seat - and then of to inspection by the authority. Two days later he brought the bike to the thursday custom meet on Öland. Always on schedule.

The workshop

The workshop is located in an old powerstation at the local glasfactory. Perfect for summer - to cold for the swedish winter. But it has a perfect atmosphere for wrenchturning and spotify surfing. If the rain stops you from riding I equiped the workshop with a small screen for motorcycle movies. The cinema takes 20 riders on wooden benches.

In order to make my bike riding even more holistic the workshop share room with an urban farm. Read more about the farm att www.groform.se.