What's in the box?

Go on, tell me, tell me, what's in the box? All will become clear later, but first, I want to talk about studs.

I don't mean a type of piercing, racehorse or gentleman who is popular with the ladies, nor do I mean a piece of timber for fixing plasterboard to, or the thing on the bottom of a football boot.

No, I mean: "a bolt with threads on both ends, to be screwed permanently into a fixed part at one end and receive a nut upon the other; - called also standing bolt" not my definition I hasten to add, but accurate enough. I have used many of them throughout the rebuilding of Izzy's engine but the ones Ii want to talk about today are the chaincase cover ones. Why, aren't they just studs? well, interesting you say that, on one hand (not sure if its the left or right) they are yes, but on the other, they are different. Time for a picture I think, after all, it paints a thousand words apparently. That was an idiomatic expression, who knew (no me neither) but I'm sure some did. By the way, I'm not a big fan of bread (bread products yes, just not the group) but I felt it emphasised my point.

So, back to the task in hand, studs..........

I'm sure by now you know I do like a pic of the same thing, from a different angle, so there are 3 above. Studs in a crankcase, could almost be musical piece couldn't it, "studs in a crankcase" it's not, it's just a description. So, these studs, why so different, well, they have holes in, allen key sized holes, for fitting and removing said studs. I thought it was a cracking idea when I saw them, no more stuck studs that you end up drilling, cutting, heating and  getting extremely frustrated at trying to remove. 

3 more pics, same thing, different angle, but this time with nuts on, how exciting, I know, you're like me, you cant contain yourself can you. On a side note, I'm a bit worried about my chain, its adjusted as it should be (according to those wot know about these sort of things guvnor) but I cant help thinking it should be tighter, still, the play in it is the play its supposed to have so for now its staying that way. If, in the future, changes are needed, then changes they will be made. 

You wanted to know what was in the box didn't you, go on then, I will show you...........

and

Shiny new things, new things all ready to be fitted. Guess that' the next post sorted then :-)

Olympic Rings (aka clutch plates)

Well maybe not, there are only 4 (not 5) and they aren't organised correctly, but just imagine, if there was one more (it would be a 5 plate clutch) it would be the same number as the Olympic rings and if it was organised differently, it would look just like them. If you want to know more about the Olympic rings, click here, if you want to know about Izzy's clutch, stay here and keep reading.

I soaked the new cork plates overnight (as you do and I'm sure you know why) in oil, prior to assembly, funnily enough, in a tub in the lounge much to DB's dismay, but it made it easier for me to turn them to make sure they were well soaked (not said in a cockney accent) just thoroughly soaked.

I then fitted the strengthened clutch springs, held in place with a dab of grease (supplied with the Gori kit, the springs, not the grease) as you can see below.

Then the clutch basket, followed by new cork (and steel) plates went in, one after the other, repeat until done.

Pic above is basket with no plates, pic below is basket with all cork and metal plates fitted (and clutch compressor still in place). Well, even I couldn't be bothered to take a pic of each one in turn being fitted, that would be far to dull for you to look at dear viewer.

What I will do though, in the way of bonus of Sunday night pics, is put another 2 from different angles, with the clutch compressor still in place...................

No idea why, so dont ask........

Followed by a further 3 pics with the compressor gone, and the clutch all happy and as it should be (including its retaining circlip) from different angles for your delight and delectation :-)

Don't say I never give you anything to look at, goodbye for now..................

Gori Elaborazioni

No, I am not speaking gobbledygook (I didn't realise that word is actually in the OED until I checked) gobbledygook I mean. I have titled this post as such as I wanted to do a quick post about some of the bits that are going on/in the engine.

Before you ask (although to be fair its not likely anyone will) yes, that is the ceiling in our lounge at the top of the picture! The reason, well, the garage isn't the best for not getting damp and I didn't want to leave it (the exhaust, yes, that's what is) out there where it may get wet. Everything else is in plastic boxes with lids, to keep any potential leaks/water out, but the exhaust wouldn't fit, so it had to stay in the house (much to DB's dismay). The garage isn't actually too bad, only when we get a lot of heavy rain in a couple of places (already patched up a lot of it) but it gives me an excuse to have an exhaust in the lounge, on top of the unit, which I can see whenever I look up a few feet from the telly, which is nice :-)

So tuning wise, Izzy is having a few tweaks, to become less of a standard 175cc, fifty (plus) year old engined scooter and something more modern, and also hopefully more reliable and nippy.

I will add pics and more detail in further posts of some of the individual components etc (this was only supposed to be quick post but my rambling has yet again got the better of me) so for now I will just list a few bits instead of adding more pics and details.

Electrics wise I have upgraded everything to a full BGM electronic ignition set up, including, coil. stator, regulator and a beautifully crafted one piece lightened flywheel from Twisted Rods, all of which need to be fitted but are sitting there waiting to go.

As previously mentioned, all bearings, oils seal, o rings, circlips and gaskets are new and/or uprated along with brakes clutch and suspension. In addition to all of the above, we have the following:

New crank (uprated GP Mazzucchelli)
New barrel, piston etc (Gori 200cc "Sport" kit)
New exhaust (matching Gori "Sport" exhaust)

I went for the sport combination as opposed to the racing one to keep things more sensible (a novelty for me, must be my age) and allow for a more original look (carb/airbox wise) also, an important factor (DB may be looking), it was the cheaper option :-)

I bought the Gori stuff directly from Italy (as opposed to paying more to get it all from a UK supplier) and dealt (through email) with a guy called Andy, who was absolutely brilliant and very helpful, I would highly recommend doing the same if you are after anything Gori related.

So, that's a relatively brief (for me) synopsis of what's going inside (or attached to) the engine cases and I am going to finish the post with one final link.

When deciding on what kit and exhaust to go for I did a lot of reading and deliberating around various options, views, performance specs etc. While doing that I stumbled across this video (ignore the music and scroll to around the 40 second mark) and the sound of the exhaust is something I am hoping Izzy will have when finished :-)