Cannonball! Coast to Coast on a '28 Indian

[bigequip]

If you go 40 home, 93 to 40 watch your speed, California will let you go 78 in the desert, AZ will not let you go over the speed limit and the cops hide in the center divider. NM is pretty strict too. Don't want any f..ing performance awards. Have a safe trip, we will be watching!!!

[pdxbrit]

Originally Posted by bigequip

If you go 40 home, 93 to 40 watch your speed, California will let you go 78 in the desert, AZ will not let you go over the speed limit and the cops hide in the center divider. NM is pretty strict too. Don't want any f..ing performance awards. Have a safe trip, we will be watching!!!

I don't think Doug will have any issues with speeding.

[mrbreeze]

I-40 across TX OK AR has got to be the most boring route in North America. Maybe a detour to Big Bend and then to Cajun country is in order?

oh - and I love the KZ!

[10 Man]

someone is gonna get a speeding ticket ...
Hope ya have fair skys all the way home Doug suppose to piss rain for the next 2 days in north Mississippi
but with that tall windscreen ...you won`t get wet

[charlie101]

Originally Posted by Laconic

It's gonna be like riding on cotton balls all the way home!

Yeah, that's why I'm keeping away from smooth and fast.

[ObiJohn]

What a great story with a great ending / beginning of the second part!

I wonder if the mechanical problems encountered by all of the riders was typical of the first few generations of motorcycles, instead of being an artifact of these bike's age. How reliable were those old bikes? I can't imagine what it must have been like for those riders a half-century ago. Makes me appreciate my brand-new FJR... but a retro repro with modern mechanicals would be pretty neat. Could that have been what the OCC guys were thinking as they watched at the start?

[charlie101]

Originally Posted by ObiJohn

What a great story with a great ending / beginning of the second part!

I wonder if the mechanical problems encountered by all of the riders was typical of the first few generations of motorcycles, instead of being an artifact of these bike's age. How reliable were those old bikes? I can't imagine what it must have been like for those riders a half-century ago. Makes me appreciate my brand-new FJR... but a retro repro with modern mechanicals would be pretty neat. Could that have been what the OCC guys were thinking as they watched at the start?

I was looking all over the forums for damage reports in order to learn something from the CB about the weakness in the engines, but very little was described in detail. I don't know if the guys where ashamed of mistakes they done in their restorations or if the parts where weak in construction. Some things a normal restorer can't have control of, coils, condensers and some is more difficult, generators, magnetos, metallurgy and such, but still I think there was little willingness to describe their obstacles and remedies.
Retro repro is what most already do more or less in these rare machines, and there is many nearly complete repro bikes out rolling. A few even in both CB's. Some think it's wrong, but I'm of different opinion. My take is that it is the original constructers and technology of the time that is celebrated not the metal in it self. That's why damage reports are so interesting in my mind.

[eldomike]

Doesn't Mike from Kiwi's make a retro Indian with modern metals?

[charlie101]

Originally Posted by eldomike

Doesn't Mike from Kiwi's make a retro Indian with modern metals?

That's right, he's doing a top notch job on the later Chiefs.

[indianscout]

Guys, you have to remember that when "new" these old bikes ran great but age had caught up to them that most parts are just plan tired and can't handle the punishment like they did when they were younger. Mags and coils go bad without much warning, leaving you high and dry on the side of the road. Not like you can just stop in at your local (insert your favorite brand here} and pick up a new one. Kiwi Mike is doing late model Chiefs, although some of his parts are interchangable with some of the early models, his retro bikes won't qualifie.

[DESERT SCORPION]

GET YOUR KICKS... ON ROUTE 66! And page 66 of this epic ride report. Doug, hope you're havin' a good ride.

The Scorpion

[Whitehorse2003]

Originally Posted by indianscout

Guys, you have to remember that when "new" these old bikes ran great but age had caught up to them that most parts are just plan tired and can't handle the punishment like they did when they were younger. Mags and coils go bad without much warning, leaving you high and dry on the side of the road. Not like you can just stop in at your local (insert your favorite brand here} and pick up a new one. Kiwi Mike is doing late model Chiefs, although some of his parts are interchangable with some of the early models, his retro bikes won't qualifie.

Right on, and 80 year old metal is not the same as we have today, even when it was new. Kinda like the 80 year old codger sittin in his rocker on the porch.. Sittin there rockin might be ok, but runnin down the street after a short skirt,,,,
Aint gonna ketch it, and somthins gonna break !!!!!

[ObiJohn]

Originally Posted by indianscout

Guys, you have to remember that when "new" these old bikes ran great but age had caught up to them that most parts are just plan tired and can't handle the punishment like they did when they were younger. Mags and coils go bad without much warning, leaving you high and dry on the side of the road. Not like you can just stop in at your local (insert your favorite brand here} and pick up a new one. Kiwi Mike is doing late model Chiefs, although some of his parts are interchangable with some of the early models, his retro bikes won't qualifie.

So, could you make effectively NOS parts that interchange, maybe at a component level, e.g., a magneto with modern sealed parts or a complete bottom end (crank, rods, crankcase, etc.) that looks retro but with improved materials and design, and still be 'legal' for these types of competition?

[pierce]

Originally Posted by charlie101

I was looking all over the forums for damage reports in order to learn something from the CB about the weakness in the engines, but very little was described in detail. I don't know if the guys where ashamed of mistakes they done in their restorations or if the parts where weak in construction. ...

Darryl Richmann's blog details the problems he was having with head gaskets blowing on his 1928 BMW R52 (flathead boxer). the solution, implemented after a couple days of DNFs, was copper gaskets. Sadly, he crashed on the next to last day, I think the video of the bike retrieval was posted a few pages ago on this thread, with Doug helping keep the bike upright (tow truck driver would have dragged the r52 up the hill on its side, cylinder stuck into the dirt).

[charlie101]

Originally Posted by pierce

Darryl Richmann's blog details the problems he was having with head gaskets blowing on his 1928 BMW R52 (flathead boxer). the solution, implemented after a couple days of DNFs, was copper gaskets. Sadly, he crashed on the next to last day, I think the video of the bike retrieval was posted a few pages ago on this thread, with Doug helping keep the bike upright (tow truck driver would have dragged the r52 up the hill on its side, cylinder stuck into the dirt).

Yes I know, I think I read all that was written during the rally, and Darryl was good as was the Rinkers and a few others in reporting, there was just that there wasn't anyone that covered the really interesting stuff IMO. The Henderson people was really lousy in reporting.