Hello from Mexico-TY 175 Project

[mmmexico]

Hello from Mexico. I am an ex-pat (from the USA) living in Mexico for the past 12 years or so. I have been riding trials bikes ever since my friends began to seriously injur themselves on MX bikes. I raced for several years in the US with AHRMA, and then I moved to trials. I brought a few bikes with me when I moved down.

This project began about 6 months ago and is now reaching a critical stage. The engine is going together but I have some questions about the dowel (dowels) which are inserted into the rear engine mount (mounts). My Haynes Manual refers to dowels, in the plural, but when I disassembled my engine only one dowel was in place. So, i just bought a couple more off of eBay. I am going to take a closer look later today.

Below is a picture of the bike before the work began. I started a blog to keep myself and the project) organized. I've gotten quite a few hits from the guys at the Trials Central Forum in the UK. I've also noticed a few hits from you guys down under. So, here is a link, if you care to follow along. http://meditarivemachinery.blogspot.com/

If you have any thoughts on the whole dowel issue...please feel free to chime in.

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[David Lahey]

the inner and outer sleeves of the upper rear engine mount usually stay in one case when you split the cases

[mmmexico]

Thanks for the note Dave. Actually I finally figured out the problem. There are a couple of dowels. One at the front of the engine and the larger one at the rear of the engine.These dowels locate the two crankcase halves. The dowel at the rear of the engine actually is part of the lower engine mount. The Haynes manual is referring to these locating dowels in the section which initially confused me. There is only one dowel with the sealing rings. That dowel is actually inside of the void created by the lower rear engine mount. In short, everything is OK and I am ready to put the cases together today. Unfortunately, I have already ordered and paid for two more of these dowels and their associated sealing rings....so if anyone needs one of these buggers, I am the guy to see...

Thanks for the interest


Mike

[mmmexico]

Since my last post things have been happening. I know that you guys are having your winter whereas those of us in tropical Mexico are having an especially hot and humid summer. Today when I got up it was 87 degrees inside and 95 degrees outside...now it is 110 degrees outside and 100 degrees in my "shed" as you guys call workshops. The humidity is right at about 50%. So...work has been slow. Yesterday I got the frame back from my good friend Chuy. Attached is a picture of his work around the swingarm pivot.

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Prior to welding in these new reinforcing pieces (same piece is on the other side) the frame had one perforated piece on the left side and nothing on the right side. So, now the frame is significantly stronger in this area, and it is at least the same on both sides.

A lot has happened on this project since I last posted. You might want to take a look at the blog

Thanks

Mike

http://meditarivemachinery.blogspot.com/

[mmmexico]

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Just an up-date from Old Mexico. I had a chance to do a trial fit of the WES exhaust system. I went pretty well primarily because I can bash any required clearance into the system. The alloy is strong and reasonably easy to "adjust"

Better pictures (higher resolution) and commentary on my blog...check it out..

Mike
http://meditarivemachinery.blogspot.com/

[mmmexico]

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This is just an up-date on the Mexican TY. Painting has begun. In a short time we will have a finished bike. Better pictures and commentary on my blog

http://meditarivemachinery.blogspot.com/

Mike

[mmmexico]

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More progress has been made...despite the overwhelming heat of our summer here in tropical La Paz. It is true, we have an El Nino condition in the Eastern Pacific. The new result is a lot of heat and humidity and an almost daily formation of one or more hurricanes off the Western Coast of Mexico. It's only a matter of time before we get a few...Anyhow, I put a couple more clear coats on the tank/seat unit and then I was able to decide which of the Yamaha decals looked best. I'll finish the chassis as time/energy permits and then I can see if it will start.

You can also see in the background that I've started painting the seat/tank unit on the TLR



More pictures and description on my blog at:

http://meditarivemachinery.blogspot.com/

Thanks for looking...

Mike

[David Lahey]

The black on the tank graphic goes nicely with the black frame

[mmmexico]

Another up-date from Mexico. We are starting to get close now. The paint and decals are on, and I found the time yesterday to put the chassis together. Mainly I wanted to see what it would look like with the new paint scheme and the alloy fenders. I have to confess, I am very happy. I wonder if Sammy Miller could be persuaded to add a little color to his seat/tank unit?? Probably not, he seems pretty "Old School".

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Below is a shot of the rear fender mount. Again, it's not the sort of TY that you would typically see at a Vintage Trials event. However this bike is going to have a very different life.

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More and better pictures and a bit of description at my blog. Please take a look. It might change your idea about what a TY ought to look like. Hope to see you...

Mike

http://meditarivemachinery.blogspot.com/

[S.E.Lucas]

looks good so far