1967/1969 Bonnie Rebuild Desert Sled Project - Any Advice

when i said you dont need the tool i meant the one with the circular groove cut in it. i do reccommend a stepped drift because the bearing cage is easily bent. lowbrow sells one

 

Ok, I’ve got the lowbrow tool. Merry Christmas SpeedR.

 

dont use it for wheel bearings like i did. you ll have to dress it after

 

OK, I'll have to make a note of this!

 

I’m getting ready to reassemble my clutch shock absorber unit with new rubber bits. I’ve also got new screws since the old ones were messed up a bit. I’d appreciate any comments on how to get this together as I’ve read getting the new rubber bits in can be a challenge. Also - what it the recommendation for loctite? I’m assuming a bit of red loctite? Thanks for any advice!

 

Sundance
You can't go wrong watching John do his thing.

 

Thanks Iron, yes, I've watched this great video several times. It is what helped me find a way to get those rubbers in. I have a rubber strap wrench that I put around the basket. Then I had a piece of angle steel that just fit into the inner gear. With this secured in a vise I was able to rotate the outer piece with the strap wrench and insert each piece with a bit of leverage. Do you have any advice on using loctite here - red, blue or none? Thanks!

 

I've never used any loctite on any part of the clutch. If you must, use the blue one. At least you've got a chance of getting the nut off again.
If you've got a tab washer then nothing should come loose. Make sure the tab washer is kept central as you do up the nut as they can go skew and get jammed into the thread. If you've the later self locking nut, then again, nothing to come loose. Obviously you need to torque to requirements.

 

Thanks again. I broke a screwdriver bit with my impact driver taking off one of the 6 countersunk screws on the clutch shock absorber unit. I don't think tI want to loctite any of these.

 

I’ve been waiting on some new cams and tappets so went to work on the frame, completely disassembling it. I took the forks apart tonight and would appreciate any comments. I am pretty sure these are forks from a 1969 Bonneville. The insides were a mess, lots of corrosion, so I’ll be needing to get a number of parts. These measure 6 3/4 inches stanchion to stanchion. On the right side stanchion there are a couple of pits about mid-way so I’m wondering if this is a problem to rebuild? On the left stanchion there are a couple of pits also, however they are very low on the stanchion. Thanks for any comments.

 

Looks like you have the later shuttle valve forks and 6 3/4" are 68 on widths, the top yoke is for a C model ( further back solid bar mounts) as all T120's used the more forward P clips with rubber mounts originally, i would leave it as is as they are more comfortable. As a minimum i would at this stage go for new stanchions, bushes, damper sleeve and oil seals.

 

Darkman, thank you for this input. I've been looking at all the parts books from 67, 68 and 69 trying to figure out what I have in these forks. I will likely be replacing all except for the yokes and slides and a few nuts here and there.

 

I’m working to get the frame parts ready for painting or powder coating. I see that on the main frame the main tube ends with an open hole. Is this suppose to have some sort of cap on it? I have not seen anything in the parts books but it seems like it would be a good idea.

 

That open end is correct

 

Well, OK then. I'll keep it open. Thanks

 

Rocker arm question. See the photo of one of my rocker arms. The face of the tappet adjuster is banged up so I am intending to replace these. I purchased some adjusters with the mushroom type head. Also see the ball end, mine have the hole in the end. I have been reading about changes made to the rocker arm and the difference between the ball with the oil hole and the ball end without. Is the ball end something I should replace also? If so, since this is a pin I’d appreciate advice on how to the the repair. Thank you.

 

Basically there are two types of rockers, early like you have with the drilled oil feed to the pushrods that have the Thackeray fitted next to the rocker arm on the outsides with plain washers on the inner pushrod sides and the later type with oil slots and no drilling but have the 1/2 plain washers next to the rockers on both sides inner and outer as the rockers have oil slots in them, either type work ok. I never use the Mushroom adjusters as i don't like how they push on the tips of the valves.

 

Nice explanation. I’ve another ask. I’ve looked at the ball end of the rocker arms and the ball surfaces seem smooth and polished so I don’t believe I need to attempt to replace them. I am curious as to why the adjuster ends are so gouged up and pitted. It would seem to me that they shouldn’t wear in this manner. I’d appreciate any insights as to why these might be in this condition? Thanks.

 

What year are my rocker boxes? So, My engine number is EC 19971 T120R. From my look at the engine year data I believe this means it was built in E “May” of “C” 1969, number 19971. Do I have this correct?

If so, I see that my rocker box assemblies are of the older type with the lubrication hole in the ball end. From my reading (in the tech notes from thebonnevilleshop) it reads, “the drilled hole in the rocker arm to supply oil to the ball end was deleted in favor of a notch at each end of the rocker arm bearing,” and that this happened during the later part of 1968, beginning with engine number DU79965. Have I got this right? If so, it appears that while my engine cases are from 1969, my rocker box assembly is from an earlier time, some time later in 1968 or earlier. My frame on this bike is number DU49062, 1967, so I suppose the rocker boxes could have been from the motor original to the frame. Thanks for any comments/insights. I’m trying to get a full idea of what I’ve got here.

 

Yes you have it sorted parts wise, its normal for adjusters to show signs of wear at this age as its caused by continual adjustment over time as each time you adjust them it changes the angle of attack, you also get pitting on the valve stems, for the cost of a set of standard adjusters its worth replacing them.