Side Covers

I fabbed up some simple side covers for Ratty, using a scrap piece of aluminum sheet. Mostly something to cover the openings in the frame, and give access to the wiring behind it. Here was the process:

Traced out a pattern roughly 1/2" bigger around than the size needed. Then I bent the edge over to give it a 1/2" depth. I then drilled a few 5/8" holes in it:


Inside view of the cover:


To keep the thin aluminum from bending in while I drilled it, I cutout a piece of 1" thick rigid foam to fit inside the cover. I was surprised how hot the cutout aluminum piece was, as it melted down through the foam:


The almost finished side cover mounted up. I have since made the other side panel, and given them a light wet sand to scuff them up a bit. I didn't want them to have that brand new shiny plate look.


I would have posted a "finished" picture of the covers, but I locked my keys in the garage, and Susan is off at Salvation Army serving food. So you'll just have a to pretend to know what they look like, while I drink a beer.

C'

Roof Vents

I got a bug up my ass and finally installed a pair of roof vents in the garage. Our hot Chico summers, combined with minimal venting of the garage, meant for hot temps. So much so, that garage work would suffer. I thought about a powered gable fan, but after looking at my gable area, I realized there was too much framing in the way. So I settled for a pair of whirly gig spinning passive vent things, as shown below.

I bought two kits, roughly $31 each.


crawled up on the roof and set out the tools:


Cut out a hole:


Both vents installed, and spinning away. Inside garage temps are 10 degrees cooler this afternoon compared to yesterday afternoon, and it is only in the 70s.


The end.

C'

Squirting Saline up my nozzle

Allergies have begun to hit me this year. Not that bad, but enough to suck. I have a Dr. appointment on Monday, but int he meantime he recommended a saline wash/spray. I picked up a kit last week and have tried it everyday this week. It makes a difference, as it seems to really loosen up the goods and keep things clear for longer.

One of the "fun" side effects is that at various times through the day, I will somehow position my head in a way that it decides to clear itself. Meaning, I'll stand up after sitting at my desk for a while, and I will shoot liquid out my nose in a dripping fashion. Sometimes as much as 6 hours after spraying the saline up there. Keeps things interesting!

C'

McMinnimans Booze Fest

I was up in Roseburg the first part of this week, getting my p00p training on. Our first stop was at the local McMinnimans, where I managed to sample five different beers. I apparently took photos of two of them, one of which is so out of focus it appears to be a blimp passing through a dark night. I apparently was having fun.

This was the Ruby, which as the name and color suggest, was a light fruity offering. Just like me!

C'

Sierra Nevada Old Chico Crystal Wheat

12oz.

I like Crystal Wheat, but up until Susan spotted this six pack, it had only been offered on tap. It looks like Sierra Nevada made a special run for locals only. Like me!

There is nothing really special about this brew, except that I've always enjoyed its light crisp taste, especially on a hot ass day. a good go-to beer for a trip downtown for burgers or wings. Hhhmmm, I wonder what I'll be scarfing down tonight with my Crystal Wheat?

C'

Bluff Creek Pale Ale

12oz.

5.5%

Overall, a nice generic Pale Ale. Nothing too spectacular, but not bad either. A good balance of hops and malts, but it pour fairly flat and didn't have much carbonation in the body. Nice smooth finish, without much bitterness.

C'

Kona Brewing Fire Rock Pale Ale

12oz.

6.0% abv

A nice pale ale with a surprisingly robust malty flavor. It still has a good amount of hops, with fresh hoppy notes, but even the aroma leans more to sweet malt scents. That doesn't make it bad, just different from most pale ales I've had. It had great mouthfeel with a nice bubbly carbonation that kept it crisp until the end.

Overall, a nice offering that is somewhat unique for a Pale Ale.

C'

Stone Brewing Sublimely self-Righteous Ale

22oz.

8.7% abv

This offering could very well be sitting at the top of my most favorite brews list, it is that good. Hops, hops, hops, hops, hops, and hops. I love you hops. From the moment you pop the bottle open, there is a fantastic fresh hop scent. Even the foamy head tastes like hops. After the first drink, I realized this was going to be 22 ounces of liquid hoppy awesomeness, which of course I love. Better yet, there is no bitter aftertaste, in fact the fresh hoppy flavor seem to keep kicking out at you long after you swallow.

Yummy!

C'

Drake's Amber Ale

12oz.

5.9%

An exceptionally tasty brew! This is a full bodied Amber with fantastic nutty and hoppy flavors. So much nuttyness in fact, I could have sworn I was drinking a brown ale. That didn't make it bad, as the nuttyness was very smooth, and nicely balanced with great hop and malt notes. Overall, a nice meaty Ale that I drank far too quickly.

C'

More Details on Ratty

I've ridden Ratty a few more times, and it seems to be getting better and better. That said, 've had to modify a few things to work better, including relocating the footpegs, lengthen the shift lever, change the rear brake arm to a longer one, and fab up a simple speedo.

It isn't pretty, but I think I got the shift lever length and position figured out. Now to add some "speedholes" and clean up the welds:


The little toolbox got dressed up with some safety stickers I earned lately, thanks to confined space and excavation training courses i sat through. They gives these out to slap on your hardhat, but my hardhat has a perfect layer of grime thanks to five years of use. I didn't want to have to clean it, just to slap on stickers.


A Schwinn speedo, meant for a pedal bike. I had to fab a simple bracket to hold the display unit, and a bracket to mount the trigger. Yep, a max speed of 34.7mph, which was half throttle, maybe 4,000rpm in 3rd. I think I might have the bike geared up too tall. Except that both 2nd and 3rd seem perfect for bombing around town.


The bracket for the front trigger. I used an old piece of scrap shelf bracket, gave it a twist in the vice, and mounted it to the stock brake cable mounting boss on the front hub. The magnetic trigger mounted perfectly to the wheel spoke.


The original speedo packaging, complete with instructions in English, spanish, and french.

A little more wiring to figure out the rear taillight mechanism, and I'm getting closer to getting it road worthy.

C'

Anchor Brewing Old Foghorn Barleywine Style Ale

12oz.

8.8% alc.

A lovely Barleywine Ale full of smooth 8.8% alcohol helped to make my Sunday afternoon special. This is a great sipping beer, especially out in the garage working on motorbikes. It has some serious sour notes and a thick syrupy body that coats the glass. There is just enough hops and malt flavor to balance out the sourness though, so while unique, it is still very drinkable.

C'

Checkered Flag, then KABOOM

Today was the first race of the season, so we packed up RalphVee last night, and hit thr rode around 7:30 this morning. I had a 9:20am practice and a 10:40am qualifying. The track was fairly slick early, and it was very windy, so I had lots of helmet buffeting and a couple hundred extra RPM down the front straight.

Qualifying went well, and I was right in a group of cars running in the 2:09-10 range, about where I normally run.

So I gridded up for the 12:30 race. A Spec Miata got me into turn 2 on the first lap, but I had enough patience to follow him around and ducked inside on turn 14 under braking. I then pulled a nice gap over the next 9 laps. I got lapped by the leader (Formula Mazda) on the last lap, so I only had to run 9 laps, not 10. As it happens, that was all RalphVee had in him, 9 laps.

He literally blew up as I crossed the finish line, taking a checker flag and the class win in GT4.

I felt him tighten up a little, then heard a little noise. He was still pulling strong, had great oil pressure, and oil and cylinder head temps were "normal." Right as I crossed the finish, the noise got worse and I could feel it get even tighter, so I pushed in the clutch and killed the ignition. I then heard a noise, saw a tick of smoke, then just coasted around to the outside of turn 3. I came in on the hook.

The air cleaner was no longer attached to the carb, so that was a strange thing. There was some oil on the upper end of the engine, but nothing dripping underneath. Then I found some metal. I found what appears to be about half of a piston ring and some small chunks of block. Then I found the hole in the block. It was on the top of the block, next to the oil pump.

How in the hell did a piston ring manage to escape that hole is beyond me.

End result? The motor is shit. Well, the block/case is obviously shit. I assume a piston, rod, cylinder, maybe a cylinder head, and who knows what else is also shit. After a bit of time to digest, I will take out the motor and rip it apart.

Long term, I'm not sure what my plans are. I love running Ralphvee, but have had a lot of problems trying to hot rod him. Maybe I should send the 1200cc motor off to a pro FV builder for a rebuild, and learn to love 55whp.

And now the photos:

getting strapped in:


Our hero, about to blow a motor:


random bits that escaped the confines of the engine block:


Nice Hole! (that's what she said)

That might be a rod sticking up, sorta looks like it.

C'

Tomorrow is race day!

That means when I get home, I can pack the truck and load RalphVee in the trailer. I picked up some new trailer ramps a few weeks ago that are about twice as wide as the previous ones. Hopefully, this means I can get the ramps "close enough" and not fear the car falling off of them.

Then a beer for my efforts.

C'

Avery Brewing 14'er ESB Ale

12oz.

no alc given

An exceptionally good Extra Special Bitter, with a strong fresh hoppy nose. At the same time, it has some very strong malty flavors, that border in being a bit too sweet at times. But luckily, it manages to be well balanced, despite the opposite flavors being fairly strong on there own.

Overall, quite nice and unique.

C'

New Belgium Enlightened Black Ale

12oz.

5.6% abv

As the name and picture suggests, this is a dark, thick, meaty ale with strong malt flavors. Nice head and a thick syrupy feel that coats the glass. At first, it tastes like a typical well-rounded stout, but has some very sweet flavors mixed in with chocolate. It is very good, but the sweetness was a surprise. An excellent sipping beer.

C'

Sam Adams Coastal Wheat

12oz.

bottle was recycled before I got the abv

This is one of four Sam Adams offering I'll be enjoying over the next few weeks. Susan picked up a case containing four different varieties, with this Coastal Wheat being one of them. I like wheats, so of course I enjoyed this offering. However, this was a pretty "main stream" feeling wheat. Meaning it could have been just about any generic wheat from the bigger bottling companies. Light and crisp, and enjoyable on a hot day, but not a lot of flavor, except for some light citrus hints.

Overall pretty bland, but wheats aren't usually super flavorful anyways.

C'

Sam Adams Noble Pils

12oz.

no alc given

Tagged as being one of the only brews made with all five noble hops, the Noble Pills proved to be rather bland. Maybe it is too well balanced, or the hop count is rather low, but whatever the reason, this lager is very light in color, taste, and feel. Somewhat disappointing, but at least we're having some warmer temps, so this will be a nice "light" hot day beer.

C'

Sam Adams Boston Ale

12oz.

no alc given

Unlike the other Sam Adams offerings I've tried, this one isn't bland nor set aside for the "hot weather" selections. This is pretty much what a Sam Adams tastes like, as I've experienced at many an airport bar. A nice robust ale with a well-balanced malty feel that doesn't overpower. Not much hops, and it isn't very sweet. It just has a nice smooth malt taste.

C'

Riding Ratty

Yep, I rode it! Roughly two months after starting this strange project, I took Ratty for its maiden voyage down the block and back. It ran pretty well, though I kept it under 30mph, which was still second gear at light throttle. I have a feeling 3rd gear will be perfect for cruising around town. Anyways, here are a few pics Susan snapped of the event, including a short video.

Currently, the footpegs and kick starter interfere, so I'm installing the peg after getting it kicked over and idling. I'm still messing with the idle adjustment and choke settings, but considering it has a total of 10 minutes on it, it runs pretty good.


Yep, I wore pants and a helmet. I did a quick nut and bolt on it, but you never know what is going to fall off on the first trip!


A bit like a Monkey humping a football. I had originally installed the footpegs in that location assuming I would be sitting on the rear seat. I still haven't decided where I'll be sitting, but I need to, as that will help me finish things up.


Here is a short clip of me riding it. Oh, and Sean: Yes, the brake sucks. Besides it not really working that well, I dislike having it on the throttle hand. So I need to sort my riding position, locate the pegs, and make a rear brake foot pedal/lever.



C'

Vroom Vroom it RUNS!!!

The Ratster runs, here is proof:




And yes, it sounds like a tractor in this video. It sounds way better in person, especially when I rev it. Not to loud though, but a nice gruffy bark.

I hooked up the fuel line, tightened a few hose clamps, kicked it over a few times, and kapow. It ran. I think the idle speed is a bit low, but it ran great with a tick of choke. It also revved fairly clean, although I wasn't revving it that high. I figure it needs a few gentle runs up and down the street to break in. I still need to sort the rear exhaust bracket, wire in a on/off switch, and generally make sure all the bolts are tight and shit won't fall off.

C'