Another little job completed today. Finished the parts to mount the fuel tanks, (not got the frame yet, but nothing like being prepared !).
This bike is going to have two fuel tanks or one tank, but in two halves !, mounted in the "normal" place. There's a few reasons for this change over the previous build.
1) Range, because the tank fitted between the top two frame tubes on the first bike capacity & hence range suffered, (not so bad in our country, it being small ish). Hopefully having two tanks will increase the range, ( on previous bike I needed to be looking for fuel every 50 miles) because they can be made taller & they'll be wider at the back. Might get up to 70 miles on this bike, which would make a big difference. I've already run out of fuel at least three times up to now !!
2) Just for a change so it doesn't look too like the other one.
3) I could fit the Thunderheart unit & some of the other electrics like the magneto cut-out relay inbetween the two tanks, which will leave more room in the battery area for the battery itself, ignition switch & fuses.
I made a couple of basic formers to bend the top two mounts round, (as they are going to follow the contour on the top frame tube). Then heated up the two brackets, positioned them in said formers on my press & bent them. The bottom two mounts will remain flat. I already had turned the mounting bosses for the tanks & the brass spacers for the rubbers. The screws are M6 for the top mounts & M8 for the bottom mounts, (metric 'cos we is in Europe !!