[AzCal Retred]

@ # 14: K70's are fine, the new ones just don't wear long on the rear. The 3.50x19 is easy to change as the sidewalls are thin & flexible. Keep an eye on tire pressure. The Bullet is no flyweight at 420 pounds+. Add a 200 pound rider and you have nearly 400 pounds on the rear wheel, add a passenger & luggage and you exceed the 3.50's load rating. I like the Duro HF308 4.00x19 for its extra 250 pounds of load rating and larger contact patch area. The Duro is a knock off of an old Pirelli "Universal", functionally like the K70, good for hard surface casual trail (Jeep/Fire roads). Sidewalls are stiff, so changing is a bit of a wrestling match. Don't forget a new tube and rim strip. I save the used 3.50x19 K70's for the front, they have good traction and basically stop wearing in a front tire application.

E-Bay has a TON of Bullet seat configurations available, as well as fuel tanks of 9L - 14L, 25L & 35L capacities available. Shipping time generally runs a month.

[allanfox]

The seat on mine is very comfy and is I think off a Woodsman, does look factory and is basically the front of the duel seat, Hitchcocks might have them?

[Adrian II]

That's the seat off the Watsonian-Squire (former UK importers) Woodsman, H's bought out W-S' parts stash quite a few years ago. Bill Harris fitted a replica of the late 50's UK model Bullet dual set to his Electra-X, and that looked very good. 

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[allanfox]

That's the seat off the Watsonian-Squire (former UK importers) Woodsman, H's bought out W-S' parts stash quite a few years ago. Bill Harris fitted a replica of the late 50's UK model Bullet dual set to his Electra-X, and that looked very good. 

A.

It is indeed, low and very comfy in comparison to my sprung saddle on my 350.

[Adrian II]

If by any chance you did want a specific Watsonian-Squire part for one of their kits, Hitchcocks' do have them listed, though many are showing out of stock. Type in WS* in the parts search field on their web site.

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[Blaqkfox]

The seat on mine is very comfy and is I think off a Woodsman, does look factory and is basically the front of the duel seat, Hitchcocks might have them?

That looks really good! I quite like the woodsman! Might have to see if I can find that style seat. How does this bike do as a dual sport? I thought about doing a woodsman conversion on mine but wasn't too sure about it. Those tires look beefy, too knobby for anything I would do, but what size is that?

Hopefully my welding buddy will TIG my tank this week, another member on another forum sent me some free knee grips so I have those laying around. I was just going to prime the welded area and cover it with the knee grips but im halfway considering repainting the whole bike now, that silver looks gorgeous!

I ended up wording the K70 tires so those will get installed Monday. I got some new eBay turn signals I've used on a past bike and liked, started installing those tonight, and about to order a seat and a chain and that should do it.

Unfortunately I have to double back and redo my oil change, turns out I missed the drain plug for the oil pump or whichever one is most forward on the bike. The oil that came out when I drained the other two was nasty- looked like milk chocolate; very diluted from water condensation, not suprising, this bike has sat for several years outside under a cover before I got it. But now I've got to change the oil again since I missed that plug. I don't know if I should change the filter or not... I just put a new one in it, but I did run the bike for a good two minutes or so, so now I've circulated it.

But if all goes to plan I should be able to ride this thing by next weekend finally! Then I can start putting my CM400 back together, just got the frame back from the powdercoater

[Blaqkfox]

anybody happen to know the chain pitch on a 2008 Electra USA model with the 5 speed? Hitchcocks list a 90 pitch for lean burn electra with "standard gearing". I assume they mean standard tooth count on the sprockets and not the actual gearing right? like, theyre not calling the 4 speed gearbox standard yeah? idk if the sprockets were the same size between the 4 speed and the 5 speed so im a little confused there. when I google it I come up with a 95 pitch chain which confuses me even more... I suppose ill go measure it and calculate the pitch myself...

[AzCal Retred]

https://www.hitchcocksmotorcycles.com/partsbook-pages/6138#page-6138-position-2

Where's the old chain? Just count the rollers and replicate it. From H's website the standard 2008 ElectraX 500cc 5 speed final gearing is 18/38, chain is listed as 95 pin, the transmission internals don't affect chain fitment. Do a tooth count and chain pin count on the existing bits to make certain the one you have agrees with the parts book.

A chain is easy enough to shorten, just grind off the heads of the rivets on a flat plate section and use a punch to drift out the unneeded pins and plate. Order any chain you like as long as it's too long and custom fit it. Often a  quality 100 link assembly is cheaper as they are less in demand, so get the brand you like. I'd recommend getting a 1/2 link as insurance, there isn't a lot of adjuster range. A couple extra master links are a wise precaution too.

IF the current sprocket teeth are hooked a new chain won't last long. The front and back sides of the teeth should be very symmetrical, the pulling edge will undercut and assume a mild "hook" when worn significantly. One strategy in olden tymes was to have TWO chains and alternate maybe every oil change. Use the in-service chain to pull in the replacement. This was intended to reduce sprocket wear and also (I think) because the countershaft sprocket isn't easy to access. Generally a set of sprockets will last thru a couple chains.

[Adrian II]

5/8" x 3/8" chain on these.

The stock 500 iron barrel (and Sixty-5) use a 17T sprocket on the gearbox, My old Electra-X was happier with one of those rather than it original 18T.

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[allanfox]

That looks really good! I quite like the woodsman! Might have to see if I can find that style seat. How does this bike do as a dual sport? I thought about doing a woodsman conversion on mine but wasn't too sure about it. Those tires look beefy, too knobby for anything I would do, but what size is that?

They are 110/80 x 19 Continental TwinDuros and to be honest are fine, I happily scratch it on corners without feeling unstable, also allows me to take a few shortcuts!! :-)  The bike came with them and were both brand new so no plan to change just yet, they do just look right too!

[Blaqkfox]

https://www.hitchcocksmotorcycles.com/partsbook-pages/6138#page-6138-position-2

Where's the old chain? Just count the rollers and replicate it. From H's website the standard 2008 ElectraX 500cc 5 speed final gearing is 18/38, chain is listed as 95 pin, the transmission internals don't affect chain fitment. Do a tooth count and chain pin count on the existing bits to make certain the one you have agrees with the parts book.

A chain is easy enough to shorten, just grind off the heads of the rivets on a flat plate section and use a punch to drift out the unneeded pins and plate. Order any chain you like as long as it's too long and custom fit it. Often a  quality 100 link assembly is cheaper as they are less in demand, so get the brand you like. I'd recommend getting a 1/2 link as insurance, there isn't a lot of adjuster range. A couple extra master links are a wise precaution too.

IF the current sprocket teeth are hooked a new chain won't last long. The front and back sides of the teeth should be very symmetrical, the pulling edge will undercut and assume a mild "hook" when worn significantly. One strategy in olden tymes was to have TWO chains and alternate maybe every oil change. Use the in-service chain to pull in the replacement. This was intended to reduce sprocket wear and also (I think) because the countershaft sprocket isn't easy to access. Generally a set of sprockets will last thru a couple chains.

All great info! Yeah Ive replaced a few chains before, but usually we go by link count not pitch which threw me off a bit. I was curious how you would change the engine sprocket on this bike. I'll have to research that. Im used to them being right behind an engine side cover plate, maybe two screws and a locking ring and they're off. The royal looks like you either have a really hard time getting a hand/wrench in there or you have to open up the primary and remove some parts. Surely not...

I've got a chain coming in a few days as well as the Trials seat and electronics cover with a luggage carrier. I put new turn signals on as well. I also took the gas tank to my professional welder buddy and he had the same issue I did... he kept blasting holes in the tank trying to weld it. We concluded the tank got really rusty at one point which thinned the metal. Somebody did a good job cleaning it out before doing the tank sealant atleast. Long story short, he did do better than I, we thought it was done, I put vinegar in the tank to clean out the rust, over the 3 days it sat with vinegar a leak appeared and grew, it was not big though just a drop every couple hours... I ended up putting some JB water weld to cover it, sanded it down, primed it, and some nice fella from another forum sent me some knee grips which will cover the patch up. Ill post pics when the bike is all back together next week.

So the tank now holds fuel and is back on the bike. Ive got new Dunlop K70 tires on. The turn signals and 7in headlight conversion is installed along with the new ammeter gauge and clock. Basically everything is ready. I just need a chain and dial in the carb and install my seat when it gets here and I should be riding!

[AzCal Retred]

Countershaft sprocket replacement entails stripping ALL of the primary drive covers off...!! I'm of the opinion that this was the driver for the old school chain maintenance fanaticism. Probably still a good practice today. I'll be doing the double-chain-clean-soak-shuffle myself after I get all-new countershaft & drive sprockets fitted. Just like back in 1940, which is the era of these machine's design.

Whilst the Primary is apart, it's an opportunity to renew the clutch, primary chain tensioner and the alternator. Look over Hitchcock's "Parts" website carefully. All gaskets, that big primary cover O-ring, maybe the drive shaft seal for the inner primary case, the rubber widget that seals around the alternator cable as it exits the cases, the "new rubber buffer" primary chain tension adjuster bolt, The new bearing augmented clutch pushpad, these are all low-buck improvements that are easy to access while the primary is off. There are some specialty tools also that may save mangling a pricey bit when you are taking it apart. I recommend checking the alternator/rotor air gap before disassembly, gives you a baseline either for improvement or achievement. There is a spacer behind the countershaft sprocket, mine was severely chewed because it wasn't properly secured. This led to shifting anomalies as the gearbox wasn't properly indexed. A $5, hard to access part led to lots of frustration. All things to think about.

[Adrian II]

All gaskets, that big primary cover O-ring,

Not on these AzCal, it's a proper gasket for the 10-hole primary cover, sorry!

I recommend checking the alternator/rotor air gap before disassembly, gives you a baseline either for improvement or achievement.

You won't be able to play with the stator/rotor clearance, the stator is fixed to the OUTER primary cover. It's not adjustable. However, assuming the locating dowels were correctly positioned that isn't something you need to worry about.

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[Blaqkfox]

Good to know! Yeah I've already had the primary cover off. Mine is indeed the fixed style mounted to the primary case cover and has a proper gasket... or it did. I had to take it apart because the gasket was leaking. I ended up just slapping it back together with some permatex gasket maker like we use at the shop for this type of job all the time. I was curious about the proper fluid capacity for the primary though. Some guy on another forum was telling me to put 1 liter in it. The manual calls for only 420ml. He claimed there was actually a TSB (technical service bulletin) in which RE upped the fluid capacity to like 840 and something ml. Supposedly this is to keep the starter sprag in good shape. I know those fail all the time on these bikes. Mine still works fine, or did, the solenoid just failed on me so ill have to replace that now. I went ahead and filled it with about 940ml (thats 1 quart in the US since we don't sell liter bottles). Can you shed any light on that?

The other thing I now have a question about is the exhaust. It seems my header pipe fits awfully loose up to the engine. I did notice the retaining plate that bolts onto the studs and holds it all together was just a flat piece of metal. I thought that odd. I figured it would've had one with heat dissipating fins like the old Hondas typically have. I know Hitchcocks sells them, not sure if its an upgrade or something factory that the previous owner replaced with this flat one. Or maybe my gasket is just missing or the studs are incorrect or something. Theres only like 2mm of play and its pretty solid once the muffler is on, but I unbolted the muffler (it was in the way of removing the rear axle to put my wheels back on) and I could wiggle the crap out of the header pipe.

[AzCal Retred]

@ #27: I stand corrected!!

Since I have your attention - is there a good flat top (or slightly dished) 87mm piston that fits the older bushing big end Pre-Unit engine? The piston pin to crown height is quite tall on the older units. I'm looking for more cubes but not a big CR change.