Life before allen keys

[keithmac]

I still use a ancient flat multi tool style bike spanner for adjusting wheel bearings, nothing else in my tool box will fit behind the lock nut.

I had to grind a spanner down to do my lads rear wheel bearings (locking the cones after replacing the bearings). That flat spanner would have been a godsend!.

 

[Gunk]

Yep although they're not in the MotoGP paddock any longer there is still a world championship as well as national ones and the classic and vintage scene is as active as ever. The local circuit 'Mallory Park' even has sidecar festivals, I'd post a vid if Youtube hadn't gone all silly and google on us. A bloke I knew used to race a TZ 700 engined one back in the 80s in the British championship and used to borrow a 500 motor when he got a 'wildcard' entry to the British GP for a couple of years.

Most of the TT outfits run Honda CBR600RR engines revving to over 15000 rpm, a real testament to Honda engineering.

 

[Gunk]

I had to grind a spanner down to do my lads rear wheel bearings (locking the cones after replacing the bearings). That flat spanner would have been a godsend!.

Although I have a couple of modern bikes with sealed bearings and cassette style BB’s I still love working on the older stuff with cones and loose ball bearings, rebuilding an old ISO bottom bracket still gives me so much pleasure, it’s proper analogue engineering which is still surprisingly effective and cheap to maintain.

 

[raleighnut]

Most of the TT outfits run Honda CBR600RR engines revving to over 15000 rpm, a real testament to Honda engineering.

Yep 600 four strokes is the new class limit for national/international competition, they were just getting too quick (faster lap times than MotoGP bikes on short circuits)

 

[mickle]

Still not sure of what shuddering mickle's concern is. Pretty confident about the safety of my ride coffee making gear - use one of those tall super cheap (not much over a pound) cartridges and a cheap chinese attachment/stand to keep it the right way up. Couple of double espressos and a bunch of lidl wine gums have got me through a few long ride troughs.

The tools in the OP. Dumbbell spanners guaranteed to break, stamped multi spanners guaranteed to slip. I was labouring under the misapprehension that these items were the subject of the conversation.

 

[Blue Hills]

The tools in the OP. Dumbbell spanners guaranteed to break, stamped multi spanners guaranteed to slip. I was labouring under the misapprehension that these items were the subject of the conversation.

Ta for clarifying. Misunderstanding as your comment came immediately after colin"s reference to my coffee making.

 

[Smokin Joe]

Most of the TT outfits run Honda CBR600RR engines revving to over 15000 rpm, a real testament to Honda engineering.

Anyone remember the Norimp from the 1970s? Hillman Imp engine in a Commando frame -

 

[raleighnut]

Anyone remember the Norimp from the 1970s? Hillman Imp engine in a Commando frame -

View attachment 509153

A local fella stuck a Rover V8 in a similar frame,



EDIT Again the pic is a link to an article, the bloke was from Melton and I saw it at Mallory Park

 

[neil_merseyside]

A local fella stuck a Rover V8 in a similar frame,
PHOTO SNIP

Isn't that just making the oil puddle larger?

 

[keithmac]

Most of the TT outfits run Honda CBR600RR engines revving to over 15000 rpm, a real testament to Honda engineering.

I've taken a few Honda engines to bits over the years and they are as well finished on the inside as out.

Can remember doing one 20ish years ago and commenting how they'd machined the inside of the crank cases and removed all the flashing/ casting marks.

Serviced on time they'll run forever imho.

 

[roley poley]

ah the pressed steel (cheese) multi spanner still have a couple in a corner of the no2 tool box still full of use as a perishable tool that can be banged or filed into a bastardized function

 

[Smokin Joe]

I always fancied one of these, the Quasar from the 1970s. Powered by a 750cc Reliant engine -

 

[ColinJ]

I always fancied one of these, the Quasar from the 1970s. Powered by a 750cc Reliant engine -

View attachment 509558

I bet that is a bit scary to ride in gusting crosswinds!

 

[Nigelnightmare]

I bet that is a bit scary to ride in gusting crosswinds!

I had one in the '80's.
They were actually quite stable, more so than the Honda 400/4 I had at the same time, the much lower center of gravity helped.

 

[FrankCrank]

My first car was a Hillman Hunter, so spanners were all imperial sizes. Next car was a Toyota Carina, so another set of spanners in metric.

Fast forward nearly 40 years and those old imperial spanners were used to strip a Raleigh Twenty - worth hanging on to eh.

Still remember fondly my apprenticeship days, the foreman would often say 'fetch the 28 pounder'. This was the big hammer, which I could barely lift, let alone swing. A few swipes by him and the steel frame I'd made was persuaded back into alignment. Happy days..........