[GUNR]

Following the advice from other members, I've managed to complete jobs using tools which I've made with what I've had lying around. I thought this might give us a chance to share what tools we've made so that others may emulate and benefit.

Thanks to Captain Bob for the idea of the wire tool for the fuel tank connector.
Thanks also to Gizzo and his broom handle idea.

My attached photo shows;
From top to bottom

1. My version of Captain Bob's fuel tank connector tool. The right angle business end has the strength to depress the 2 buttons on the connector, while the width and length of the 'handle' help with the leverage.

2. A straightened piece of heavy wire which I needed to use as a drift so I could release the front disk pads.

3. The shortened 5mm Allen key required for disassembling / assembling inlet tract (especially the LHS screw securing the fuel injector).

4. The truncated 8mm Allen key used in an old old impact driver (in reverse) to undo the damper rod bolt at the fork leg bottom.

5. Broom handle (she'll never miss it) which has been attacked with a tomahawk so that it can be jammed into the top of the fork damper rod to hold the damper while No. 4. above is used to untightrn or tighten the 8mm screw.

So guys, what special tools can you show us?

[GUNR]

Oops, it looks like the pic didn't load the first time.

[Adrian II]

Build a better mousetrap?

I also chopped a 5mm Allen key for my Electra-X.

A.

[GUNR]

‘Build a better mousetrap…and the world will beat a path to your door’.

‘Necessity is the mother of invention’ and some of us not having lathes,  welders, compressors etc. must rely on ingenuity and our (as we say here in Oz ‘bush mechanic’ skills).

[GUNR]

Here’s an example of Aussie ingenuity (not related to the CGT).
https://youtu.be/trrEKbc6uqE

[gizzo]

From L to R:
Bead breaker
Crank case splitter
Valve spring compressor
V8 oil pump primer
Brake shoe spring turning thing
Bicycle chain whip

[GUNR]

Brilliant! Thanks mate; that’s what I was hoping for. How does your crankcase splitter work (and do you need something like that to get the CC covers off?

Your valve spring compressor, does it work on leverage (hence the long handle)?

Love the simplicity of your chain whip and to think I bought one when I was running a rear cassette. Now it sits languishing in the bottom of the  bicycle / velomobile tool box since I installed the 14 speed Rohloff internally geared hub.

[gizzo]

Brilliant! Thanks mate; that’s what I was hoping for. How does your crankcase splitter work (and do you need something like that to get the CC covers off?

Your valve spring compressor, does it work on leverage (hence the long handle)?

Love the simplicity of your chain whip and to think I bought one when I was running a rear cassette. Now it sits languishing in the bottom of the  bicycle / velomobile tool box since I installed the 14 speed Rohloff internally geared hub.

The splitter is to separate the two crankcase halves. you remove the side cases by hand, very easy. The tool fastens to the crankcase at a few side cover holes and pushes the crankshaft through the case which in turn pushes the side cases apart. Then swap the tool over and push the crank out the other case. You can reconfigure the same tool to pull the crankshaft back into the case. Saves whacking things with hammers.

The spring compressor attaches to the wall with a bolt and the fixture thing about halfway along ( there's some missing in the pic) pushes the retainer down so the collets can be removed. And you haul on the long end, correct. I screwed some wooden blocks to the bench to stop the head sliding around. A proper compressor would have been easier but I wanted to do the job NOW, not wait for a tool.

I love the idea of a Rohloff hub. Maybe on my next bike.

[gizzo]

Coincidentally,I'm using the bead breaker today to fit new tyres to my track bike for this weekend.

[GUNR]

Coincidentally,I'm using the bead breaker today to fit new tyres to my track bike for this weekend.

My quick scan gave me ‘bread baker’ and I thought that’s the sort of thing you’d use when trying to sell your house not for a track day.
BTW I’m envious of your garage work space; it’d be a lot easier to check the oil level than doing what I do (ride around with a small level in my pack until I find somewhere suitable…).

Have a fun track day especially on those almost slick tyres.

[GUNR]

Here's another small addition for the toolbox. I took the precaution of labelling it because of the time it would owe me to make another one. The Haynes manual suggested an alternative to the factory locking tool to fit between the crankshaft sprocket and the one on the clutch basket so that the nuts on both could be loosened when i.e. replacing the primary chain.

Haynes specified steel of 70 x 20 x 5mm with the ends rounded to fit between the sprocket teeth.
I only had a scrap of 6mm aluminium plate, so I cut, rounded and smoothed it and it worked 'like a bought one' as we used to say.

[Geoff Vader]

Got fed up trying to align the battery and airbox covers up on the two pegs that seem to have been welded to the frame in random positions.

A piece of bar with a 6.2mm hole drilled in it solves the problem. Push it firmly over the pegs and bend them to the position that aligns with the holes in the covers.