Hi Folks
Sorry for the delayed update, I've been flat out with extra shifts at work to pay for all my parts, and of course rebuilding Betty.
Got the old main filter out with a molegrips and a tiny pry bar. It was very perished although somehow apparently not yet leaking. Glad to have a new one in.
Had a bit of a headache trying to choose which marks were the factory marks on the original clutch basket and my new (to me) pressure and cover plates. I bought new stock friction and diaphragm spring, but the spares I got for the heavier parts were low-milage used and had vague or multiple marks. So it was a toss up between installing 'new' ones as they would be less worn, or keeping the old ones so as to preserve the balancing.
I read around this issue online and found enough postings that were skeptical of the balancing issue to ease my concern. The arguments:
The plates are ground out in places around their perimeter indicating that they have been balanced in the factory. BMW mark them to show the heaviest point, and one should spread these heaviest points out evenly across the three heavy clutch components, ie ~120 degrees, so as to avoid excess vibration.
But. If the plates were balanced in sets of three, then replacing certain parts but not all parts, or indeed replacing all parts with spare parts that had not been balanced in a set of three, is gonna be problematic.
And if the marks are unclear, non existent or duplicated, you have to guess anyway! So, given that there was a clear wear lip around the contact faces of my original pressure and cover plate, I decided to go the second hand ones I'd bought which showed no signs of wear on those faces. I chose what might have been the marks, and was anyway unable to achieve a 120 degree spacing owing to the limited mounting points. I spaced em out best I could and stopped worrying about it!
Tranny back on with no issues. Swing arm rather more difficult. Really struggled to get the pins in and nicely aligned. Ended up starting with the left side and then rather bashing the right side in. It worked but I didn't like it! Correct alignment should mean they pop in easy I feel, but anyway I anti-siezed the shit out of them and I'll be sure to get new pivot bearings and pins next time I'm in there in case I've deformed them at all.
No further difficulties. I finally got everything back on around ten pm last night, having been on it every available hour since 6pm Thursday (I did have to work Saturday and Monday daytimes). I'm waiting for a new muffler clamp and gasket (these perished in the strip down) before I can do a proper test ride but we did take a very short run up and down the road outside my yard last night, and boy, she goes!
It is perhaps a tiny bit premature to say but the clutch feels like new (I guess it is!). I'll have to relearn to ride her without stalling......
Things I'll be feeling out for:
any infernal clanking
any extra or new vibrations
Regrets:
I didn't install a clutch arm grease nipple. I will.
I didn't use the new gearbox in/out seals I bought -the old ones looked fine and by that point I'd had enough learning experiences!
Having ABS. It doesn't work anyway, and gets in the way so much! Have resolved to learn about the hosing system, buy some appropriate hoses and remove the units...
I cracked the case of my buddy's torque wrench. The upside is I've decided to buy myself the same one so he can have the case and I'll nolonger a borrower be.
Thank you all. Really loads. I really didn't expect to get away with doing this myself. Let alone to enjoy it, and your support made that possible.
Kaleb.
