Here’s the final assembly of the sleeve drive crank, sprocket and drive pin. Finally looking like a proper engine component! The three holes in the sprocket are to allow it to be removed, rotated 120° and refitted. With the 44 teeth not being divisible by 3, this provides a finer valve timing adjustment than jumping a whole tooth.

Until the patterns arrive that’s all of the machining completed. Time to look at that gearbox and decide whether I can make it work for me.

While I was looking at Faceache on the couch, a good friend of mine Matt was busy with his home made furnace. It took a few goes and a couple of blown elements, but after a few days rough cast part arrived outside the garage.

The mighty KLR650 that took me all round the world had took the hump going up and down the Coventry Easterm Bypass. Who could blame it, given the wonders it has seen only to end up in such a miserable shithole. In winter. 😦

Anyway, the linkage under the swinging arm had seized solid. I had to cut it out and it cracked as a result. Mr. Kawasaki wants £160 for a new one. Plus £140 for a set of needle roller bearings. Plus £48 for a new spindle. And Mr. Uk Taxman wants his 20% VAT.

In an attempt to see what I can do for free with the tat lying around, Matt offered to have a go at casting a new one using the original as a pattern. This was an excellent start! His persistence paid off while I was still sat on the couch. Now known as the casting couch 😉