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Project Blackbird


JaBr

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On 7/28/2020 at 9:32 PM, blackhawkxx said:

I'm guessing most here tried them years ago, maybe they have improved.

 

Quite possibly, I can only speak from the experience I've had.  There are many, many forum posts online about them being rubbish to be fair but they mostly are older posts.  If they don't work out then I'll swap them in the future, it's not a job that intimidates me any more having done it once and now owning the super duper skylift.

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1 hour ago, blackhawkxx said:

So is the skylift very sturdy with no worries of tip over?  Any negatives beside price?

 

I'ts very strong and well made, the lift itself is completely stable and so far I can't see any way to make it fall over, there are three lower legs on castors that spread the load with a 4th castor on the upright, 2 of the castors are braked.  There is a little movement of the bike possible if you push on the bike when the brakes are applied to the stand, I'm not sure that's something that could be designed out without much more expensive materials and bigger box sections.  The hydraulic ram is rated for 3 tons, the lift itself has a stated SWL of 400KG so well within limits, once you've lifted the bike into position there's a locking pin that is used to hold the bike at height and the ram is released.  I can push the bike around the garage safely on the lift, the only downside I have seen is that I can't lift the bike if it's already up on the centre stand as the central leg of the lift needs to be where the centre stand is.  No issue with it being on the side stand. 

 

In my case this skylift has paid for itself just by allowing me to do this build myself, had I not bought the lift then I would have spent way more than that on getting the work done at a garage.  If I'd had the space I could have bought a table instead that would likely have been cheaper, but then I'd still have needed to do a whole load of additional work to allow me to secure the bike in a safe manner to remove the front wheel and forks.  I've had the bike in the level position on the skylift and have plenty of room to completely strip the front end.  If I needed more room around the front, I could put the bike in the wheelie position so the whole front is in the air.  There is also the option of the stoppie position if you need additional access to the rear.

 

My biggest concern was whether there would be enough access to the left hand side of the bike while it was on the stand, I needn't have worried.  There is plenty of room to get to everything on the left whilst the bike is on the stand.  With all the additional bits I bought I spent £580 on the skylift, it's money well spent, I can also remove the swingarm if needed as I bought the footpeg kit to allow it.  I'm seriously cosidering buying the technician kit that contains all of the additional fixings for other bikes so that if I change in the future I have the gear ready, it's £148, but once again, money well spent to futureproof I feel. 

 

Finally, their customer service is excellent, I'm really happy with everything, especially the 3 year warranty they give (the ram is not included as they buy those in so it only gets 12 months), to me that shows a real commitment to the quality of their own products.  I actually met a few of the guys many years ago at the bike show, it was the launch of the skylift and at the time they didn't have a fitting kit for my bike, even then though, they were really helpful even though they knew I wouldn't be buying at that point.

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So apart from brake disks, the last big purchase of the project has now arrived...

 

IMG_4730.thumb.jpeg.c03bb1e305ab5c2f7df356f9ea5a9e06.jpeg

 

That ladies and gents, is the shindengen mosfet reg rec.  Coupled with the shiny new electrosport stator, it should keep me free of major electrical gremlins for some time.

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So I got some time on the bird this weekend, finally removed the exhaust so I could drill out the snapped bolt for the lower radiator bracket.  Once that was done, many hours, I ended up using a helicoil to rethread.  Have mounted the new 2 row radiator and the new R&G guard which doesn't sit quite right on this radiator.  I think it's OK though :).

 

IMG_4740.thumb.jpeg.5be4543b67e449d1e82087419141ddbd.jpeg

 

You may have noticed that the cover is off the thing at the back of the garage I mentioned a while back, it's the hardtop for my 1994 Mercedes SL280.  Picture below :) 

 

IMG_4527.thumb.JPEG.d00037c8a6f7bd306533a12dedd6687d.JPEG

 

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3 hours ago, blackhawkxx said:

They look great to me and your SL isn't too shabby either.

 

Thank you :)

 

The SL came to me as a project last year, cost a massive £600.  Bodywork was awful but the engine was sweet.  Straight-six and smooth as a babys backside.  Couldn't get the original 7 slat grille as Mercedes no longer make them.  Same part number gives you the 6-slat from the later cars so that's what I bought.

IMG_0918.thumb.JPEG.11d211a56db62c8b92bea18035ad3c33.JPEGIMG_0914.thumb.JPG.fd907c3bdd69b81cf04be7d80e00c2e7.JPG

 

£7000 later she looks pretty decent, perfect for taking the dogs and SO out on a sunny day :) 

 

IMG_4565.thumb.JPEG.c72fe8f211fa809588fee60739831c73.JPEG

 

Wearing the Hardtop 

IMG_4147.thumb.JPEG.07eac741a3f8977afb5fa096889f2e34.JPEG

 

Arty Farty pic at Laxey

IMG_4154.thumb.JPEG.2672d92b82a09df1a81657e718fb3344.JPEG

 

Wearing the softop

IMG_4520.thumb.JPEG.17f44e25c3b9bec1837e3da044eb499f.JPEG

 

Not the favourite of my cars, but a close second.  

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  • 2 weeks later...

So, a quick update.  Heven't had a lot of time recently but did a little bit of cleaning of plastic stuff, also fitted the new Shindengen Mosfet RegRec and sited the secondary fusebox.

 

Piece from below clocks

IMG_4765.thumb.JPEG.afe07e1fca2d958e451c132ed099d4c0.JPEG

 

Spare clock infills.

IMG_4766.thumb.JPEG.69cd4409d081bf5c5150eb063aa7f93c.JPEG

 

Lower infills.

IMG_4767.thumb.JPEG.346e7a444bbb3d7fb6eefd226fb372a6.JPEG

 

Chain Guard

IMG_4768.thumb.JPEG.2a6acb231b7dd2986c870f08b10f60ab.JPEG

 

Accessory infills :)  - There will be a single one of these dual USB with voltmeter sockets and a waterproof accessory socket.  New accessory socket hasn't arrived yet and I wanted to have something filling the hole 🤣

IMG_4770.thumb.JPEG.254ad94c81fd25fc3f41246583566676.JPEG

 

Airbox, complete with new HiFlo airfilter and standard honda secondary sponge filter (those are inside :) )

IMG_4769.thumb.JPEG.dff8f44dd4f60bb3de28d89aef25a08e.JPEG

 

Shindengen FH020AA Mosfet RegRec.  Yes I know, the starter solenoid wiring is a mess and there's still some frame cleaning to do.  This rebuild is only going so far 😂, want to be able to ride her sometime soon.

IMG_4771.thumb.jpeg.58e0b8926ef7c9feaf7bec5fbc516cd9.jpeg

 

Secondary fusebox site.  New box has LED's to indicate blown fuses.  Currently plan to run 2 x accessory sockets, camera's, and heated grips from this all as separate circuits.  Have a brand new Electrosport stator for the injection model fitted so plenty of extra juice for my carbie.

IMG_4772.thumb.jpeg.a7b6b906f4558e7554ce5379bf2e349f.jpeg

 

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23 minutes ago, blackhawkxx said:

Now that is a good idea that more things should have.  Did you use anything special to clean the plastics?

 

Sometimes the simplest ideas are the best.  I got it from AES UK

 

Cleaned the plastic using Armor-All exterior trim wipes that I got from costco in the UK last time I was there, cheap but effective.

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4 hours ago, JaBr said:

Airbox, complete with new HiFlo airfilter and standard honda secondary sponge filter (those are inside :) )

"Standard Honda secondary sponge filter"...what is that?  The stock filter isn't a sponge so I assume you grafted something together...?  I looked at a photo of the BB filter on HiFlow's site and it looks nothing like the stock filter.  If the photo is of what they sell for the BB and not some generic photo, I'd be highly concerned.  Changing the size/shape of the filter can have a drastic impact on the airbox's tuning.

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13 minutes ago, blackhawkxx said:

When I went to change mine a few years ago, it crumbled in my hand.  I mean it turned to dust.


They pretty much always get overlooked, I had one on my VFR which is why I checked for the bird.  Don’t really want chunks of greasy foam in my carbs really.

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2 hours ago, XXitanium said:

Poke, poke....

 

@JaBr Have you heard of the fan fix?

 

 


I live on the Isle of Man 🇮🇲, it never gets that warm here 😂

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On 8/25/2020 at 12:26 AM, XXitanium said:

...and no traffic jambs - ever.

 

Not true, there are several roads around Douglas that get jammed up, especially at the moment whilst we have major works progressing on all of the main routes in the town.  It's a matter of perspective but it's not unusual for me to sit in a half mile queue on the way home from work.  Thats on the odd days I actually go the office :) 

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On 9/3/2020 at 2:22 PM, OMG said:

I added a computer fan to the fin side of the volt regulator, always on. My imagination tells me it keeps it cooler.

 

You could always go down this route...

 

Chilly Reg Rec

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