Vintage rides

I added new section to the blog: manuals. Here you can find Ski-Doo shop and parts manuals. I will try to figure out how to make them downloadable...
Read more...

Spent some time clearing the room on the floor in the garage. Assembled Elan takes much more space then parts bins:) I can continue work on the frame now.



I was doing ongoing inspection during the disassembly: most of the parts are in better shape then those I had. When I was picking the sled up I felt that it wasn't smoothly rolling on the track and I found the cause: the left axle bearing was destroyed and inner race of the bearing wore the axle beyond repair. Gear case isn't damaged.


Frame got some damage in the tank area and some rust on the tunnel - not too bad.


Bogies' tires are worn and 2 bogies shafts are in bad shape. One is reusable.
Track is original, but cracked badly. Everything else is in useable shape. Just some cleaning and repainting.




Read more...

Worked hard a couple nights and now Elan needs only seat...

Did I mention, that I worked hard in front of my computer searching local ads for cheap sleds? I missed one really nice Elan - dirt cheap... And found this 1973 model (manufactured in Feb. 1972) for sale. For the fair price I got it home yesterday: now I have plenty of spares:) Mechanically it's in better shape then my first one and I will use some parts to complete the first project, then, maybe, I will restore this one.
So, now I got second motor with good compression; the hood (poor shape, but fixable); clutch/brake/gear assembly; steering is in really good shape. Will check bogies - maybe they are in better shape as well.
Here are some pictures:

















Read more...

Couple things happened: I brought the boat to my place in city and I pressure tested the Yamaha sled engine - it passed!!!

The pressure test surprised me with good result! I was prepared for the worst scenario and brought tools to remove the engine from the sled. I blocked the exhaust with rubber sheet


and plugged the inlet with tester adapter,

pressurized to 8 psi: lost the pressure in a minute!!! Sprayed the engine with soapy water - no bubbles, but I could hear the air escaping somewhere... It was a pulse line for fuel pump! Blocked that and pressurized engine again to 8 psi.

Waited a couple minutes - still 8... Left it for 10 minutes - 8 psi... Great! Put everything back together - will test-drive the sled when we get the snow.
Now I think, that I could make the test a bit more complicated by cranking the engine a couple times before it, but I think it wouldn't make a big difference: if I will have a leak at seals, I would find that anyway...




Read more...

Today is "small things" day! Those little tasks always can wait until you get the bunch to do them at once. Wheels’ dust cups got their grease fittings today; vegetable cutter got the blades fixed; I assembled a leak down or pressure/vacuum tester for two stroke engines.


For those who are interested here is a bit more information on the tester >>>>

What is pressure testing? The pressure testing of a 2-stroke engine is a test performed to verify air leakage (actually, you don’t want air leakage). An air leaks will cause lean conditions in air/fuel mix with a possible result in engine damage (seizure, detonation, hole in the piston, etc.)
For more information how to perform the test and how to build the tester you can check these links:
www.duncanracing.
www.macdizzy.comh
www.greenhulk.net
www.allthingsmoto.com
Last week I received the pressure/vacuum gauge in the mail and today I put the tester together. At first I wanted to use the valve from tire tubes, so I can use bicycle hand pump, but I couldn’t find it in my bits bin… I decided to use the leak down tester set up I have for 4-stroke engines. It has regulator, so I can increase the pressure safely. I don’t have a vacuum pump, so I will do only pressure testing for now…
The gauge I use is common engine vacuum/pressure tester available from some auto parts stores.

I got mine from ebay for 16 dollars shipped. It comes with a hose, so all you need are fittings, brass T, some kind of check valve or just a shut off valve like I used and source of pressure/vacuum. Actually, you can use whatever you have: the gauge is suppose to be able show you low pressure precisely enough.


I am going to test my Yamaha Excel engine, so I use taper rubber plug with maximum OD 1.8” – it fits right in rubber intake manifold. I am going to seal the exhaust with rubber sheet.
I am curious to see the result…

Read more...

It seems like ehen I have a spare minute I try to weld something to the Elan frame:)


Looked at the frame and tried to weld all the holes along the footrests. Lots of grinding ahead...
Here are the pictures:








Read more...

It was busy week for me.
Still working on the Elan's frame. Still need to upload some pictures... Will do!
Wednesday and Thursday I spent at the cottage working on the Yamaha sled and boat trailer. Yamaha is almost done for the winter season. Almost - because I need to pressure test the crankcase. Last season I had problems with lean mixture and I couldn't find any obvious reason for that. I got the low pressure/vacuum gauge, so I am going to test the engine next week.
Another thing I am going to do next week is moving my boat from cottage to city. I got some space on the driveway where I can park it and it's much easier to work near the home - much more productive. I changed the wheel bearings yesterday and installed new trailer lights, so it's safe on the road. The longest trip I made with that trailer was to the nearest marina which is in front of my cottage:) Now I can go as far as I want:) Trailer wheels still need to be cupped, but I am going to do next week. Also, towing vihecle (Toyota Corolla) has to get trailer lights converter because it has separate circut for turn lights. I was thinking about making the convertor myself but ended up buying it for $17 at Princess Auto. Not THAT cheap, but I can live with that:)

Read more...

Couple more things done to the frame: I am getting close to the finish here!
So far I finished 1lb spool of 0.25” wire and emptied the bottle of gas:) Working outside requires a bit more gas flow for welding, so I can’t do much about CO2/Argon consumption…
The long edge strips welded in place: footrest getting rigid again!!!



I was thinking about reinforcing the tunnel along the footrests and around axles mounting plates: finally I decided, that two goals could be achieved at once! I just integrated two parts together!
A bit of measuring and playing with templates produced a good result! The angled piece will give an extra support for the tunnel and will spread the load from the mounting plates for axles. Just for an extra strengh I drilled series of holes, so I can weld the reinforsment to the frame not only around the edge but in the middle as well.

Here are the pictures(pictures in daylight would be better, but I just wanted to document the result and didn’t want to wait):









Here is the part welded to the frame:









Read more...