Honda MadTrax V Twin Quad.. Nearly Finished.. Woo Hoo

[Ian 2,417]

On 13/07/2016 at 9:34 AM, meadowfield said:

nice work, loving the welds

 

Thanks mate, I'm quite liking them too

 

While busy welding the mesh on the left side I thought I could feel my right leg getting warm!
For some reason I forgot to tuck my jeans over my boots this morning, the foam in the tongue had caught alight and was taking my jeans with it!! Oops!




Fire put out and the mesh welded on..




With MadTrax on axle stands it was time to start making something heavy..




A engine/sump guard made from some rather thick and heavy diamond plate..
The diamonds are on the other side.
A big thank you to Nigel for offering me the plate to use.




A test fit after cutting it to shape.




The front of the guard needed to be bent up a bit, after cutting it part way through and beating it with a big hammer it was time for some heavy duty welding..
Me like my Murex TradesMig.






Another test fit to test the... er.. fit..




I needed something nice and strong to mount the heavy sump/engine guard to the frame...
So I started slicing up some nice thick angle iron.




Sliced, cleaned up, drilled for a bolt, and a captive nut welded on..






Welded on.




Although my welding is getting much better, I just can't get the knack of welding upside down for some reason!!
Which is why the mounts will be fully welded on when I can turn MadTrax on her side..




One of the mounts had to go on the side rather than under the frame tube... Nice welding eh




I think the engine/sump guard is strong enough

You may of noticed a gap between the top of the leg guard thingys and the frame..
Which is why I made a couple of these..




They slot in here..




Welded in.. That looks a lot better now.




I had to find some storage space for a lot of parts, so the "rack sort of thing" under the bench was turned into a big shelf using er.. metal shelves..






So why do I need parts storage space?
Well....
This started happening.




Followed by even more of the same.






Until finally I had reach this stage by the end of play yesterday.




On Monday that last parts will be stripped off, then some serious welding can begin
Thanks for taking the time to read my ramblings, comments and questions are always welcome..

To finish up this update, here's the latest video fresh off of MooTube where you can see MadTrax being stripped down and even two of me at the same time...
What more could you want eh

 

 

[Alan 1,273]

It was hard to tell you and your twin apart Ian,   luckily there was only ONE Nigel.

[Stormin 4,458]

Getting clever with the video's now, Ian.

[Ian 2,417]

On 22/10/2016 at 8:45 PM, Alan said:

It was hard to tell you and your twin apart Ian,   luckily there was only ONE Nigel.

 

If there was more than one Nigel I'd never get anything done

 

 

On 22/10/2016 at 9:20 PM, Stormin said:

Getting clever with the video's now, Ian.

 

Thanks Norm.. A bit more of the same in the next video with a splash of "how did he do that?"

 

 

The strip down continues..

 

 

 

Right side A arms and hub.

 

 

 

Left side and rear shock...    Quite amazingly I have had no problems getting any bolts out, a few were very tight to say the least, I think only 2 small ones have broken and they only held the original bodywork on anyways so they are not needed now.

 

 

 

Lot's of welding has been happening, you may remember the sump/engine guard mounting brackets that I couldn't weld on upside down..

 

 

 

Ground back... Ok, this is a different bracket but you get the idea

 

 

 

And fully zapped up.. It ain't gonna move now

 

 

 

Speaking of welding, you will now see why I didn't want to get the engine running before fully welding the frame up...   Lot's of bit's to weld that just couldn't be done with the engine in!

 

 

 

There has only been two bolts that were a right pain to get out, but that was only because I didn't have the right tool was the swing arm bolts with "big ar$e" 17mm Allen key bolts!

 

 

 

But yesterday I was able to borrow the right tool, a 17mm Allen key thingy that fits on a ratchet (Thanks Karl) and after a lot of force that bolts freed up with a loud crack..

Of course the swing arm bearings are shot..

 

 

 

An almost naked frame.. The sump guard is doing a great job of keeping the frame steady on the bench

 

[Stormin 4,458]

I bet the swinging arm bearings are bushes and no grease nipples?

[Ian 2,417]

Your right about that lack of grease nipples, but the bearings are bearing and not bushes..  I've got a little box with all the little ball bearings that fell out in it..

[Ian 2,417]

Morning all, let's start this update with a very good reason to buy a decent Mig welder...

 

As I've been going round welding up MT's frame there has been the odd weld or three to tidy up...

This was gone with my old MigMate hobby welder, and even though I was welding from underneath it looks horrible and not very strong!

 

 

 

But once it was all ground back and hit with my Murex TradesMig 165 it looked like this

So there ya go boys and girls, bin the hobby Mig and get something more trade like but nothing new (Made in China) and cheap... My Murex is at least 20 years old and will outlast me I expect

 

 

 

A heat shield has been made from some thick ally to stop the exhaust cans from melting the seat..

The rear mounts are just captive nuts welded onto the seat mounting plates..

 

 

 

The fronts were mounting brackets that I think used to hold the bodywork on..  Strong with a threaded hole.. That will do nicely

 

 

 

Slowly the frame is getting weled and cleaned up..

 

 

 

Some more strength was added a the front where new tubes meet old... Yes the square plate is offset, but so are the lower tubes..

 

 

 

 

By this point I was starting to get bored with the "weld, grind, weld, clean off some rust, weld, grind, weld, grind" side of things, so I dug the fuel take out and bolted it in place..

 

 

 

Even with the bars, gauges etc bolted on you could see down inside the tank from the front which really bugged me.. So it had to be covered over but I still wanted some air to blow under the tank..

 

 

 

The last bit of my first (and very rubbish) mig welded came in handy once again, this time donating some louvers.

 

 

 

Some cutting and welding later...

 

 

 

Welded on the tank though a bit of trimming is needed....   The tank will fit in place as it should, you just can't get it on

 

[Ian 2,417]

Evening all..

 

A bit of trimming, re-shaping and carefully grinding back the welds later and the tank fits again.

 

 

 

One of those little milestones, the first squirt of paint on this project..

 

 

 

An even bigger milestone.. With the frame work finally done it was treated to a couple of coats of the red oxide stuff. The poor light in the workshop made it look like a very dark thin coat!

 

 

 

But the biggest milestone yesterday was getting the frame in it's top coat, a very classy shade of satin black

 

 

 

 

 

All I have left to do now is everything else, which is quite a bit

 

 

[Joseph 332]

I really like the special effects in the video . Really great progress too. I have just been looking through the complete post and I can't believe how much it has changed in appearance.

 

Joseph

 

 

[Ian 2,417]

Thanks Joseph, even more special effects and other bits coming soon

Yeah MadTrax has changed a bit since I started it all those months ago, and looks all the better for it.

[Ian 2,417]

Morning all, after a short break from MadTrax to build the camera panning jig thingy I'm back on the case now..

 

With the frame painted it's time to start on the smaller parts, starting with these nice crusty A arms..

 

 

 

After thinking for a while I decided the best way to clean the crud off was to use one of these.......

 

 

 

Well, use a Hoover as dust extraction for my blasting cabinet

 

 

 

Unfortunately, due to the cabinet beings so small and bad arthritis in my shoulders the pain got too much after just a min's use, so I had to clean the A arms up the old fashioned way with a wire cup brush on the grinder!

The very shot ball joints in the upper A arms came out without to much of a fight..

 

 

 

 

The lower ball joints however refuse to come out despite plenty of WD40 and huge amounts of pressure in the vice.. I think I'm going to have to grind the base of the ball joints away and try and bash them up through the A arm rather than down as normally would be done..   I'm sure my 12 ton hydraulic press is going to some in handy

 

 

 

Four (mostly) cleaned up A arms waiting a few mods..

 

 

 

With the A arms having quite a bit of rust pitting I don't 100% trust the strength of them especially as they will have to cope with a lot more power and forces.... So template time it was.

 

 

 

Which turned into a couple of these..

 

 

 

One of which fit's in here..

 

 

 

I didn't like the look of the inside straight bit, so something had to be found I could draw around to give a nice gentle curve.

You can also see the lip welded to the underside of the strengthening plate to er... Strengthen it

 

 

 

Fully welded up and hit with some Red Oxide.... I think they should be strong enough now and will hardly notice after a coat or two of satin black

 

 

 

 

And so onto the lower A arms.......

 

[slf-uk 914]

Looking good Ian, I like your idea for strengthening the suspension arms.

 

I have high expectations for the next video and after the last one you have already set the bar high Joseph has been telling all his friends at school about how great the footage is of you handing yourself a mug of coffee/tea.

Iain

[Anglo Traction 1,016]

Great Vid work Ian, very impressive !. If you want a laugh though, run it with the Subtitles On  . Show the awkward Lower Arm swivel Joints to the Press and scare it/them out 

[Ian 2,417]

On 23/11/2016 at 4:21 PM, slf-uk said:

Looking good Ian, I like your idea for strengthening the suspension arms.

 

I have high expectations for the next video and after the last one you have already set the bar high Joseph has been telling all his friends at school about how great the footage is of you handing yourself a mug of coffee/tea.

Iain

 

Thanks Iain, the suspension arm did need the strengthening for peace of mind if nothing else.

Ahh, the next vid....  It's going to be entertaining for sure, a lot of extra camera work and editing.. 

Thanks Joseph for me, tell him to continue spreading the word

 

On 23/11/2016 at 7:39 PM, Anglo Traction said:

Great Vid work Ian, very impressive !. If you want a laugh though, run it with the Subtitles On  . Show the awkward Lower Arm swivel Joints to the Press and scare it/them out 

 

Thanks Richard, yeah the subs on MooTube are a laugh.. They can't get it quite right

 

Well the lower arms have had the treatment and are now a lot stronger too..

 

 

 

 

 

[Joseph 332]

10 hours ago, Ian said:

 

Thanks Iain, the suspension arm did need the strengthening for peace of mind if nothing else.

Ahh, the next vid....  It's going to be entertaining for sure, a lot of extra camera work and editing.. 

Thanks Joseph for me, tell him to continue spreading the word

 

I am going to give my friends a link to your YouTube channel today. Looking forward to the next video

[Ian 2,417]

On 25/11/2016 at 8:04 AM, Joseph said:

 

I am going to give my friends a link to your YouTube channel today. Looking forward to the next video

 

Thanks Joseph, please spread the word

 

Most of yesterday was spent filming this, that and the other but I did find time to start cleaning the rear axle/swing arm...

Here's just a small amount of the 14 year old mud that was stuck between the diff and the diff guard!

 

 

 

The mess that was the inside of the diff guard..   Me thinks it maybe past it's best!

 

 

 

The bolts holding the diff guard in place were very chewed up and no sockets or spanners would shift them....   Sometimes ye olde tools work best though

 

 

 

A few parts arrived yesterday... Two upper ball joints, one lower and new swing arm bearings...   Struggling to find a second lower ball joint though!

 

[Anglo Traction 1,016]

On 26/11/2016 at 9:03 AM, Ian said:

 

 Sometimes ye olde tools work best though

 

 

 

A few parts arrived yesterday... Two upper ball joints, one lower and new swing arm bearings...   Struggling to find a second lower ball joint though!

Ahh!, the ole Stillsons. They look identical to my Dad's which I now have.

In the Pic Ian, Are you Shearing the Nut/Bolt off, or is it a left hand Thread?. Noticed the way it is set is to tighten a R/Hand thread.

I see there are many Ball joints available in U.S & Canada. Did you import or source in UK?. Lastly, are the Tops different to the Lower joints?.    

[Stormin 4,458]

I'd have another look at that photo, Richard. 

[Anglo Traction 1,016]

40 minutes ago, Stormin said:

I'd have another look at that photo, Richard. 

You're right Norm,  Sorry Ian, wasn't concentrating as I had the F1 Gp on.. Damn it Lewis missed it!. 

[Ian 2,417]

The answer is.... Undoing the bolt Richard

 

It's been a shocking few days.. Not just pulling the front shocks apart for cleaning and painting, but it's been shocking to see the state of them!

One shock leaks and has a cracked collar which holds the base of the spring in place, the other does not leak but has the same busted collar.. Oh and the springs are slightly different heights!

 

That would be new shocks needed then!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reeling from the state of the shocks I thought I would cheer myself up and have a look at the front brakes and hubs..

The front brakes didn't work but looking at them I'd guess it was more down to air in the system and bad adjustment than knackered brakes..

I will test the cylinders and adjusters before putting them back in..

 

 

 

Of course most parts were covered in mud and surface rust... Not any longer

 

 

 

 

 

A few satin black parts about the place

 

 

 

 

 

A random rear shock of unknown parentage that Nigel had sitting on a shelf..   If a second one can be found then that might be the front end sorted..

 

 

 

Oh, and a parcel containing 3 large green sheets turned up yesterday..... I'm sure they will come in handy

 

[Ian 2,417]

Thanks to Nigel I now have a nice pair of Spax adjustable coil over shocks...
Shorten the springs a little bit and some new top mounts on the frame and they should work

 

[Ian 2,417]

 

[Stormin 4,458]

Enjoyable video, Ian. I see you've finally cut Nigel down to size. And got him working.

[nigel 1,876]

12 minutes ago, Stormin said:

Enjoyable video, Ian. I see you've finally cut Nigel down to size. And got him working.

He left me trapped under the can for ages Norm and put me in a wheelchair, he abused me 😁

[Alan 1,273]

Brilliant video Ian. Unusual to see Nigel moving so fast.  Is that a first. ?  If he gets annoying in his mini form, one of those electric fly zappers will soon calm him down.