Early one morning....

[andyoutandabout]

Mike looks like he's having a blast riding the learning curve.
Knowledge is a wonderful thing and the Fj community being littered with experts means an owner is never left high and dry.
Best of British with your spannering; a rally approachth.
Fj gods speed your progress

[Mike Ramos]

Well, the progress continues. I like, if possible, to be able to allow the bike owner to participate.

Mike did 95% of the tear down of the engine. It made him really nervous as things were being disassembled they were not being laid out in order...everything just goes into a basket for cleaning.

I told him the next time he came down, I would have him clean up his bike since it has hundreds of thousands of miles on it. It is a perfect opportunity to clean while the engine is out. You get to see places that are never visible with the engine in the bike.

So, I gave him some cleaner, an apron and a pressure washer. I told him to wash it, then we will look at it and wash it again...

He gave it the initial wash and was surprised how many spots he missed. So, the second washing Robert took over after I gave Mike a soapy rag to wash the wheels. I can here Robert saying...you missed a spot under here.

At the end of the day the bike is probably cleaner than the day he bought it.

The head is back from the machine shop, waiting on the cylinders then it is time to put the puzzle back together.

Randy - RPM

Gentlemen, yes I got nervous!  I usually set bolts and parts out as i disassemble, especially when i am not too familiar with the internals of an engine.  However after several mishaps (e.g. I did not realize the airgun was in tighten mode and broke off a couple of case bolts (thank goodness for those EZ-OUT tools!) dropping the cams on the ground and braking a few fins off of the head - I may have stripped a spark plug as well; never use an air tool on the spark plugs!

Robert finally said "Dude, you're killing me!" and took over, thus ended my tear down chapter... Yep, out behind the palatial RPM shop on their special steam cleaning pad I tried to use the heated steam cleaner pressure washer but alas, you can see Robert finishing what I missed after several honest to goodness tries...   Finally Randy said, "Little man, stay away from the mechanics" and had me take pictures.... 

It can now be argued conclusively that looks are deceiving - look at the picture of Randy overseeing Robert using the pressure washer; would anyone trust their engine to a fellow who wears a goofy looking hat? Not to mention Mr. R really should shave that goatee if he wants credibility... And look at those silly shades not to mention such poor posture....

Oh and Texas Dave, nothing funny about anything - this is serious stuff!

Looks as if the Renegade Rally is shaping up nicely...!

Ride safe & see you there.

[Mark Olson]

Oh Mike, It will be alright . The guys will get you all fixed up in no time and your bike will roar to life once again. 

[Pat Conlon]

Hey Mike, FYI, I'm bring up to the RR a Rifle windscreen for you to try....

http://rifle.com/Motorcycle-Windshields/Yamaha/Yamaha-FJ1200-Windshield-System1991-1993.aspx

It has the small 13" clear top screen. It should work pretty good...

[racerrad8]

Well, I made a choice not to get the NYT TRN2 done before the renegade rally. It would have been a fresh build and there would have not been any break-in time on the engine. But progress has again begun to get it back into service.

I have never taken either of the engine chains and did a comparison of new to old. These old chains out of the engine have more than 100,000 mile on them. While the stretch doesn't seem to be too bad, the starter chain is the source of the idle engine noise on older engines.

The started chain has no form of tensioning on the chain so it just flops around as the chain wears. I was also surprised how far the old starter chain can bend backwards compared to the new one.

The timing chain has the tensioner to keep it taught but with chain stretch the camshaft become more & more retarded from TDC.

More to come as the build begins to get into gear later this week.

The first three are the timing chain and the rest are the starter chain.

Randy - RPM

[Mike Ramos]

Time for an update...

I was able to stop by the palatial RPM shop early this week - despite their very busy schedule, work on the '92 FJ is progressing nicely.   

The engine assembly is complete (!) and upon my arrival it was just being moved into the state of the art painting booth - I am not sure of the brand of paint, but the spray gun was top of the line (not a H.F. special) and the finish was impressive.  As it was explained to me, the paint will be allowed to cure under heat lamps for a specific amount of time, thus ensuring a curing process that, should any finger prints or smudges appear, they can easily be wiped off.  Another plus is that in the future bugs and road grime will easily wash off. 

While I requested a red crank case, white barrels & a blue head assembly to show my patriotism (granted after a look of disbelief by the whole RPM crew), apparently as it was explained to me, I could have any color as long as it was black - I suppose it affords some kind of tradition.  Anyways, with the polished cooling fin edges, it will look just fine.

There were two cars that were being serviced - one with overhead cams and fuel injection, as in EFI...  hmmm, I did not know that Legend cars had EFI systems... 

So, I should be riding my own FJ by next week... assuming the car with the EFI does not run into unexpected assembly problems...

Just an observation!

[Mike Ramos]

Ah yes... nothing like progress 

Okay, engine assembly is complete & engine installed; fairing polished and the aluminum too!

Enjoyed picture perfect weather at the RPM shop and mostly I enjoyed a one hour trouble free shake down ride accompanied by Robert leading me through the quiet country back roads.

Everything checked out perfect: engine was as smooth as ever and the transmission never shifted so well...!

I have a car ride lined up tomorrow back to RPM to drop me off & I plan on an easy break in ride down to San Diego.

Much thanks to Randy and Robert for the excellent service and a job well done!

Pictures tomorrow showing the various stages of installation.

Until then - & of course ride safe...!

 

[andyoutandabout]

Nothing like having your own bike back. Not that you were any slouch on those borrowed wheels at the Renegade. Select those gears positively.

[ZOA NOM]

Sweet news Mike! Let's make some more video without the smoke this time!

[ribbert]

Ah yes... nothing like progress 

Okay, engine assembly is complete & engine installed...... and mostly I enjoyed a one hour trouble free shake down ride ........

Excellent stuff Mike, good to see you back on the road and the bike purring.

Noel

[Mike Ramos]

Good evening Gentleman,

So it has been 6,130 miles since the engine overhaul and past due for an update.....

A BRIEF REVIEW: the engine lost a valve at just under 108K miles.  The conversation then focused on whether to look for another used FJ or have this one rebuilt.  Weighing the pros & cons, especially considering the many modifications which have been incorporated (also I had recently replaced all the suspension linkage, swing arm, steering head and wheel bearings) it was not difficult to take the decision favoring an engine rebuild.

I was able to stop by the RPM shop occasionally during the rebuild and Randy's experience is in evidence to the smallest detail. 

VERDICT:  It is an understatement to say the new engine is running flawlessly! 
Cold starts are almost instantaneous.  There is noticeably more power available than before and the engine, while always smooth, has even less vibration than previously.  There are absolutely no oil leaks or seepage.  Oil consumption, if any, is negligible. 

Added bonus:  Robert is quite the instructor & his attention to detail is admirable.  Noticing that several fairing tabs were cracked on at least one of the fairing mounting points, they were repaired better than new.  I was shown how to quickly remove the fairing.  A simple procedure; one which takes almost less time to do than reading about it.

Several rides of note: First, apologies to those back east and other environs where riding is seasonal.... While we have had a lot of rain, there has been a limited amount of icy cold, riding limiting weather.

A spectacular late night run from San Diego to far northern California on Hwy 101 – almost no traffic north of Los Angles, passed through the Bay Area in the early morning hours and further north crossed over to the eastern part of the state.  All in all a very satisfying sojourn.

Another ride from far northern California last Friday evening.

And finally another 400 plus miles Sunday (leaving in the early morning, spending the day visiting) and returning late night.

Ah yes, nothing like a well running FJ....   

Again, much appreciation to Randy and the R.P.M. staff.

Ride safe,

Mike Ramos.   

[Mark Olson]

most excellent Mike,
Although the weather has been wet here and there , we have had many great days to sneak in a good ride .
glad the new rebuild is working out.