SuzukiSavage.com - Print Page

SuzukiSavage.com
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl
General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> Tkat F/B
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1234377625

Message started by Tkat on 02/11/09 at 10:40:24

Title: Tkat F/B
Post by Tkat on 02/11/09 at 10:40:24

Just got thru perus'n the F/B posts - B4 go'n back out in that cold shop. A cpl of things jump out.
1. Finish: These are "tumble finished". They're all ready for polish. All it takes is a buffer wheel, rouge, or a lotta elbow grease. They can also be anodized or chromed as you please. Keep it light on the clamp ID. They're sized for 0.010" squeeze.

2. Installation: I noted 1 picture where it was apparently mounted "Upside Down"?. The small ID contour goes on top and seats down on the top of the slider. Assemble the clamps snugly but not tite on the sliders - they are match marked in pairs - and tap them down. Square them up w/ a straight edge across the front. Tighten them down as you would a clutch cover. Mount the X-bar, the skeletizing goes down. Recheck all tightness'.

3. The fork bug shields won't work. Tap them up w/ a piece of wood & a hammer & cut 'em off. I've looked and see no way to save them. Any ridge above the seal for them to clamp to would form a pocket for dirt, water, & other crap to accumulate in around the top of the seal, causing worse pblms. A POSSIBLE solution is to find boots such as on early CB 750, XS Yamis, &c. & then making clamps to suit them.

Another trick we usta use from our ol' Pro-Rally days was to spray everything w/ Pam. That might work. Mud, junk, & bugs just slid right off. Try spray'n the male tubes w/ it. (It also keeps adobe mud from building up under fenders.) A final solution would be an extended top lip and full gators. But again, watch 'em! a leak or hole would fill up the area around the male member full of crap.

OK, back out to the machine. I've installed a couple of new dual mill vices and now hafta rewrite all the pgms to account for new delta part locations (grmblegrmble)

Tkat
"The older I get, the faster I was."

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by SimonTuffGuy on 02/11/09 at 17:34:11

Glad to see you on the board Tkat. :) Can't wait to hear when the next batch is ready!

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Skid Mark on 02/11/09 at 18:38:10

Just got confirmation my fork brace shipped monday.
Yippee!!!
Good to see some install tips. I'm looking fed to install it. :D
;D

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Dj12midnit on 02/13/09 at 15:05:42

Be sure to post a how to with lots of pics.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by T Mack 1 on 02/14/09 at 13:48:47

CLICK the picture for bigger image

As received (can added for size reference):

http://www.users.fast.net/~tommack/TKAT_sm.JPG (http://www.users.fast.net/~tommack/TKAT.JPG)

Polished:

http://www.users.fast.net/~tommack/TKAT-Polished_sm.JPG (http://www.users.fast.net/~tommack/TKAT-Polished.JPG)

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Savage40 on 02/15/09 at 08:21:11

Purty! 8-) That's definitely on my list of "cool things for my bike", once the paycheck fairy starts being more generous. ;D

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Skid Mark on 02/19/09 at 12:50:49

My Tkat Fork Brace just arrived in the mail. I'm impressed with the finish quality of the machining. Mr. Tkat does quality work!!!!

Hopefully I can install it this weekend but there is no rush as there's still lots of ice & snow around up here.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Mr. Hyde on 02/19/09 at 13:38:27

T Mack - did you shine it up like that with just the polish, a cloth, and a good elbow or did you use a buffer?

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by 88pagan on 02/19/09 at 14:56:59

I got mine to shine like that with almost no elbow grease. Polished up so quickly that I was too impatient to take before and after pix haha. I used mothers billet polish. Not the mothers mag polish...the billet polish thats comes in a container half the size for more money but hasn't let me down once yet with an easy polish job.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by SimonTuffGuy on 02/19/09 at 19:15:02

My check mailed yesterday! Can't wait to get the brace in.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Puddle Pirate on 02/19/09 at 21:02:08

Sent my check yesterday also. Looks like a quality product.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by T Mack 1 on 02/20/09 at 03:19:01

2E114D2B1A0706630 wrote:

T Mack - did you shine it up like that with just the polish, a cloth, and a good elbow or did you use a buffer?

Mr. Hyde,
Started with a cloth using the Weiman polish. Then impatience set in and switched to a cloth wheel on my grinder and used the Turtle Wax polishing compound (that white tub hidden in the one picture) and then back to the Weiman. Finally wiped down with a clean cloth.

All told, about 20 minutes including the walking from garage to the basement workshop.

I bought the metal polish & compound at Auto-Zone. Bought them a while back for other projects .

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Dj12midnit on 02/20/09 at 18:27:15

Mailed my check Tuesday. Now is the hard part waiting.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by srinath on 02/20/09 at 19:01:29

60 series aluminum polishes up well. Almost too easy you think wht are people complaining about polishing. Problem is, 20 series and 60 series polish up well, yea and 70 series too. But the cast crap, the stuff wheels are made or and the pot metal sheiete is so hard, and it gets crappy looking if you even say the word water near it.
Cool.
Srinath.

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by prechermike on 02/22/09 at 17:51:22

My fork brace came sometime last week, I was out of town until last night. I got a chance to put it on today, it was so easy a cave man could do it.

I rode a few miles this afternoon in a strong wind. I believe I could tell a difference, I know there was a discussion somewhere about whether they made a difference or not. The road I live on has tar sprayed and rocks dumped a couple of years ago, it is rough as a cob, with the grooves running parallel to the road. It is not the best ride, kind of makes a wiggly feeling. (That is a technical term!) The ride was better, alot more stable feeling, the curves felt better as well. I will admit this might be just because I was expecting it, but regardless, I like myTkat.

Somewhere the question was asked if a fork brace was really necesary. I would have to say no, it is not necessary. But getting the bike was not necessary, all the mods are not necessary and so forth. Honestly, we probably could all do with out the brace and even the bike, but we sure do enjoy them, don't we?

Mike

Title: Re: Tkat F/B
Post by Skid Mark on 02/23/09 at 20:13:01

I just sat down with some Mothers Mag & Aluminium polish,an old rag and my Tkat. Wow!! Hardly any effort and all the oxide is gone. Time to scrounge more rags and finish the job. Looks like spring cleaning on the bike is gonna include some aluminium polishing too.
The Mothers Billet was 2x the price and a smaller bottle. Hard to imagine it being better than the mag & aluminium polish for this application.
Thanks for the info on this guys.