got the R90 out in the sun

[8ninety8]

Thanx for the heads up, here's the stump shrinker not yet used and the home made squareheaded mallet. For pounding used couple layers of carpet samples with the round and square heads, and the HF airhammer planisher.

98 percent of us over 60 had the cultural advantage of attending a couple of wood and metal shops from the mid fifties through the mid seventies, in high school. Programs which have been given the deepsix in favor of diddle-doddle tech/no hands on/avoid liability.

Great teachers, great programs, gave us the "don't tell me I can't do that" attitude. Now, off that stump, back to the program. Airhead owners have the attitude, fix it, ride it. What a sweet life because of these amazing machines.

[8ninety8]

And the carpet/planisher shrinker/stretcher combo. Learning curve has to get steeper. .080" is over three times thicker than .025". At some point this thread will go silent as the shock sets in, "WTH could I have been thinking?"

[20774]

I'm still wondering how all this is going to work out. I watch what they do on American Chopper with the welding, pounding, forming of sheet metal to form a tank. Maybe in the end the details get lost on TV and/or is covered in paint. But it would sure seem difficult to get the metal smooth enough so that the appearance/paint didn't amplify all the undulations in the metal.

[8ninety8]

IN the same vein, the TV chopper tanks watched have been steel. Small, round little two/three gallon pieces, some with edges, merely tack welded, and then sent off to an expert welder/finisher, the real craftsperson behind the scenes.

The welding on this one will cost around 100 bucks and hour if subbed out. At this point the most difficult part will be the undertank. Will tackle that part first, with the front mounting bucket, and the correct stock rear mounting bracket. All edges oversize so all edges can be trimmed down to fit, topside to bottomside. It's a mind game figgering one step before the next, and if it can be done in a garage by a rank amateur. Gotta always have something on the burner.

As for smooth, the planisher finish is good enough for this bike. Just polish it up a little, the sides maybe, add a roundel, maybe a strip of checkers down the middle-top.

[Walking Eagle]

I agree with Kurt about how difficult it might be to get it absolutely smooth. That said, take a look at some of the old pix of those "dustbin" racing fairings of yore -- obviously one-off, and YES! obviously done by human hands! (Sadly, some dustbin fairings were prone to causing the bike to take to the dirt in sidewinds, but not because they were handmade.)

Watch out for cookie crumbs in the tank --

Brother, you've got a "set" to take this project on, and GOOD ON YOU!

FYI, the excellent book, Shopcraft as Soulcraft addresses the current lack of shop classes in schools. When I grew up in Arkansas (one of the poorest states) during the 60's, our high school had BIG woodworking and metal shops with plenty of machine tools to play with. Wonder how many guys got a CAREER out of what they learned in shop class? Lots, is my guess.

Walking Eagle

[lmo1131]

898 I'm curious as to how your "carpet/planisher shrinker/stretcher combo" works. It's a "pounding" operation, right?

The "bag-of-walnuts" finish is usually removed by rolling the material with an "English Wheel". Harbor Freight offers one, it's on sale this week for $299

When I grew up in Arkansas (one of the poorest states) during the 60's, our high school had BIG woodworking and metal shops with plenty of machine tools to play with.

Ditto in southern Indiana at the time. We started "shop" in the seventh grade; drafting, woodworking, metal smithing, leather work, and foundry. I still have the center punch I turned, and the cast aluminum bookends I made. AS I recall, we had to draft the metal part we were going to make, and then used the drawing to make the part (including holding the tolerances). A few years ago Pacific Gas & Electric offered a four year "technical apprenticeship" (paid) through the local community college and out at it's Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant - only two students were interested enough to even show up at the orientation, and the program was canceled. The two students were hired on the spot due to their incentive.

[8ninety8]

LMO1131: Don't know for sure how it's gonna work out since the cookie pan was a third the gauge of what I'm gonna use. Will pick up a sheet of aluminum next week. That's when I find out where the rubber meets the road. Spent lot of time surfing around metal specification sites learning about hardness, tensil strength, chemical properties and applications of various alloys. Good news, the info is out there, god bless the guys who invented computers. Didn't take computer science course in highschool.

Got a real good deal on the metal after shopping online forever. Then found a local distributor right around the corner. Shopping works. Got about 225 in this so far. Hours? don't count'em. If it wasn't for projects, we'd get the fatarsed disease.

Was surprized how easily the planisher smooths out the whack marks. Also, the three inch anvil makes a real nice compound curve all by itself. The HF unit was so friggen cheap, with coupon 80 bucks, couldn 't pass it up. Depending on how the metal shapes, determines how the tank bottom will be cut up, hopefully in two pieces. As you asked earlier, actually pounded the metal right on the buck for the knee sockets, then planished out the marks.

WalkingEagle: Funny thing, I got that same book, read it a couple times. KNow a few shop teachers who got canned since about the nineties for no other reason than the school district just decided to, terminate the programs, and in came the banks of PCs and diddle-doddling began. Sooner than later folks moving into the 21st century aren't gonna be able to take care of themselves as most of us airhead owners do. Making tank is just part of enjoying an airhead. Might work, might not. Nothing risked, nothing-you get the idea. Not smooth will work fine, polish it up a little, instant patina.

And back to Lew, the planisher is a variable speed hammer only with three anvils included. the english wheel is to much tech for this project. Gotta cover ears when using planisher, ooh, is it loud. Also has adjustable striking clearance. Don't know how long it'll last, hopefully long enough to pound out tank. Replacement hammers are around 20 bucks. All in today as I pick aluminum. Getting that stupid project feeling.

[8ninety8]

Back with metal, cheaper in bulk, always need 10% for waste factor. Advice, unless you're stubborn, got a lot of time, slightly delusional about skill set, don't try making tank. Metal shapers who ride airheads are having a chuckle right about now.

[8ninety8]

Decided have to make bottom in four pieces. Can't follow all undulations of stock tank. Only come kinda close. Bigger will miss brake master, coils, etc. Guess that's how the stock tank got to 6.2 gal., by tricky bulges. Went with .063, which is really hard to pound. This may take all winter, or never, and lots of will power.

[lmo1131]

Went with .063, which is really hard to pound.

The more you pound it the harder the metal gets (called work-hardening). That's what the "annealing" process does; returns the metal to a soft(er) state. It's an ongoing process; pound a bit, re-anneal, pound some more, re-anneal.

There's a trick to annealing aluminum in that link ... using torch soot to coat the metal, and then heating the sheet until the soot burns off. There's a sweet-spot though; too hot and you have a puddle of aluminum. Read the link.

Now beat it kid!

[beater]

so I know that I am new here, but there is a reason my knickname is beater

i am a metal artist in my spare time, and I am watching this with interest.

my only advice is anneal, anneal, anneal.

Hit me offline if you get stuck.

johnny

[8ninety8]

Gets a little tricky when reading specs. Delivered in sheet form it's tempered, hardened, partially annealed and non heat treatable, whatever that means.

It isn't too difficult to form, not to the extent that I want to heat it up, 600 F, to make it easier, maybe damaging the original temper, hardness and structure.

By not having the form exactly as the dye formed original, larger curves and such, clearance will be generous, and the tensile strength should remain as when mill rolled, and the tank volume lost by larger undertank radii, can be regained by kicking out the side bulges topside. Learning curve is a delight, got plenty of material, 40 sq.ft., could even make a new front fairing, long winter is on tap. Thanx for tip.

[8ninety8]

And a little more shaping today, can't work non-stop, too much other stuff to do. Think it's possible to do this project. Was a little down after getting metal, think it'll work, no rush. Bye bye rust, one quarter of bottom almost done. Curves should give monocoque strength. Glad didn't use .080.

[8ninety8]

Went for ride this AM, thought, hey, why not make backbone of tank one piece, got out 2X10 drop, hand screw clamp, made crude die, got hernia bending.

[8ninety8]

Here's the crude but useful die.