Couldn’t agree more. Paul doesn’t come at it as “I am the expert” it’s more of here’s how I am going to try and make this work and I think it looks pretty darn good. The reality is it is always well made and well designed.
Must people probably don’t think about it but Mitch does an absolutely awesome job filming you. The way you have it all laid out is done very nice and easy to follow. I’ve been a machinist my entire life so it’s probably easier for me to follow the non machinists. 😊
We used to service and repair a good few Brit bikes in my shop many years ago. The Cubs and other Triumphs were a PITA. Nothing ever fit right, frame wise. It brought back memories in watching your problems. I used to do a lot of parts for the vintage guys as i had a lot of equipment other bike shops did not have. One of the jobs was number plates front and rear on pre war bikes. Customers wanted them patched and welded up. However, i found it quicker to make new ones as you had bright clean metal and no rust to work with. I cut them out as you did Paul. I used the old number plate as a pattern, allowing a bend radius and then i ran around the edges with a Jenny (Bead Roller) No hammer form was needed and no edges to trim. If memory serves me right (But open to correction) The cub and other Triumphs were two pieces with the top bracket tucked under the top of the number plate and spot welded. I replicated the 3 spot welds with my Mig welder. That welder was called a SAM (Smart Automatic Mig) and Made in Canada. You just set the wire speed and it did power and gas automatically. Fantastic machine for all kinds of welding. Never saw any other machine like it and had it for about 40 years until the PCB melted. Keep well and i always look forward to your videos. FF
I don't think big manufacturers like this were focused on perfection, it's mass produced, all that matters is getting them out the door quickly, and for most people that's good enough. It's cool that you improved it though.
As a schoolboy 60 years ago I was taught to rub blackboard chalk in to the file when filing aluminium, it stops the alu filings stickin inthe grooves. Also annealing alu, heat it until when you rub it with bar soap, the soap smear turns brown
I love the realism in these videos especially when things go wrong, I'm always messing up so it's good to see that it can also happen to "The Master"!!
Sitting here watching you fabricate a monster pommy number plate holder to look just like the original from the 60's remembering how as a kid in the 60's I sat in the shed cutting the damn things off.
It's all making sense now. That's why I couldn't find a used licence plate holder. You, and probably many others, cut them in half to be cool 60 years ago. Thanks for watching!
This epp was very nostalgic for me, the sheer amount of hours I've spent cutting, filing and sanding aluminium sheet fabricated parts for race cars means that I could even feel and smell those memories right now. Cheers for that, covid means I can't be in USA for the team (I'm in Aus) but the internet helps lol.
When I saw you weld over the tape residue, I knew the tail light housing extending over the bracket was a deal breaker lol. I'll keep an eye out to see when it gets remade. Enjoyed the video thanks
The Triumph Cub is my all time favorite motorcycle, being 70 years old and having owned most everything from old Harley's to a Hayabusa over the years The simplicity, beautiful lines & style of the Cub as a standard moto is superb as well as being timeless. Both your meticulous work and craftsmanship along with Allen Millyard's work and ingenuity on video, by far are the best & most comprehensive videos on RU-vid. My bucket list old age dream is to have a 1967 Triumph Cub again as my last motorcycle, set up as a Mountain Cub or mild Trials/Enduro style machine. The years i owned and rode the Tiger Cub as my daily, changing it up from stock to a Cafe/Clubman configuration and then again into a Mountain Cub, the Cub did it all so well & with a properly tuned exhaust & muffler has a unique throaty note all it's own. Keep up the fantastic work with both machines & videos.
I am happy to see that you used my idea , a friend of mine said that it's called a brake noodle , I didn't know it's proper name . Obviously you figured out what I was talking about
First up, once again, really nice job and execution on the part, came out really good. Unfortunately the second or third iteration is always an improvement on the one before, hard to learn when it's nit picking or legit reason to do another. Mitch did an excellent job capturing/showing how an alu weld goes down, really lets you appreciate when you see those perfectly laid down "dimes" Now this was a very interesting one for me, with this motor bike stripped down, you can really see that it's nothing more than a beefed up bicycle frame. There's a few guys I've seen down here who have bolted small lawn mower engines into bicycle frames and they seem to work quite well and this explains why. On the license plate thing, 100% agree with you on the safety thing, down here we actually have bicycle license plates and they're made of tin, I always keep mine in my saddle bag or pack and if I get stopped on the road, I tell them it's because of safety I don't have it attached to the frame. Worse in years gone by, for motor cycles they gave you an plate that was 'sposed to be mounted on top of your front fender like a sword, a good few people got injured in accidents from them.
I've never owned a bike that had a front licence plate. They do look like they could be a bit dangerous if you had a prang. Never had a licence plate on a bicycle either, for that matter. Thanks for watching and commenting.
My T20SH also had an offset rear subframe so much so the the 3.50X18 rear tyre was virtually rubbing on the chainguard while the correctly adjusted chain was clattering on the lower part. Great video, keep it up.
Hi Paul. Excellent videos. I have a '58 cub as well. Same dimensions as yours regarding the top loop. I've left it as it is. With everything on it, it looks okay
Really happy you saw my centre measuring comment and used it. I’m not that experienced compared to most but I have had some great teachers showing me tricks that work in the less equipped real world. Thanks for taking the time to make these videos. They’re great to watch.
I was in stiches when you seemed surprised that the Cub's frame loop was off-center. 😅 The British motorcycle industry _really_ didn't care at all by the '60's. One way to get offset is to use a pencil or scribe in the center of a fender washer. The washer will roll around your pattern (or the buck/hammer form) and the washer determines how much overhang you end up with. Another fun episode! 👍
When Mitch took a shot of the frame from the rear you could see rite off what the problem was with the frame.Bike must of been crashed at one time to cause that damage don't you think. Will the rear wheel be able to be removed without unbolting the license plate holder? Someone commented that bike builders didn't care about the accuracy of the measurements of the frame. Looking at the frame section of the Triumph manual I would have to disagree. Nice work guys. RMM
@@roberymcgoff1904 I think the essential parts of the frame were built in a jig, and of course those sections were to accurate dimensions. If the bike were crashed hard enough to throw* the hoop over like that the upper shock mounts wouldn't even be close to right. Paul is a frame builder and he wants to fix it. Next episode should be fun.
an English watcher from Thailand. Had a tiger Cub back in 1969 it was old then used it for daily transport was 16 at the time, it stopped on the way to work, so I parked it and got the bus. Chap at worked suggested try turn on the reserve tap??? it worked. Young and foolish a lesson learned never forgotten. My tank was covered leatherette diamond pleats. Great show Paul.
As always, thank you for the video. Good outcome on the part as well. On the inside corners of the hammer form, you can use a "caulking tool" -- it's a hardwood (or strong softwood) block which has a mostly square struck end, and a softly rounded business end which transmits the force, but doesn't mar the work. RE: extra metal weld allowance.... that's the voice of experience speaking! I've helped a number of friends learn to weld, and that's always one thing that they trip up on. It's always lovely to watch the lightbulb go off when I tell them to make the small bits small *after* they've welded it. :) RE: weld prep, I use a non-woven pad (aka Scotchbrite wheel) in a die grinder to clean the area to be welded -- it's fast & easy, and usually adequate. If I'm serious about it, I'll wipe the work and the rods down with acetone.
@@jcerullo5015 To be clear, all brake cleaner isn't the same... it's ***chlorinated*** brake cleaner that's the issue. Striking an arc on chlorine creates phosgene gas, which was first used as a chemical weapon during WW1. Most brake cleaner is non-chlorinated now, but it's not entirely off the market (because it works great) so as you suggest, it's a good idea not to use brake cleaner as weld prep, and if you do, ALWAYS check to make sure it is non-chlorinated.
Hi Paul, to learn more about hammer forming and how to use a simple method to calculate how much additional material to add...to allow for rolling the edge...look up Ron Covell on RU-vid. Also, instead of eyeballing the additional folds on the wings of your second piece...you could have just used the edge of your original mdf form. If the mdf wasn't thick enough you could have just glued another piece on and smoothed/matched the profile before hammering. That way both prices would always have the correct profile. Lastly, to avoid hammer marks in your piece...use a piece of hardwood between the hammer and your aluminium. To can vary the size and shape of the wood to allow you to get into the tight corners. Really enjoying the Tiger Cub build. 👍👍👍
in Pennsylvania, you can apply for a vertical motorcycle plate. Perfect for what you are doing. "Act 89, signed into law on November 24, 2013, provides for the availability of a motorcycle license plate designed to be displayed vertically. Vertical motorcycle plates are an option for motorcycle enthusiasts who prefer the positioning of vertical plates over horizontal plates. "
Paul, I live in the same Province as you. Made a nice slim vertical plate holder for my old Triumph Bonneville build, and promptly got pulled over for it. Apparently the highway patrol’s license scanning software won’t work on vertical plates, so I had to redo . I wish you better luck, maybe a collector plate will get more tolerance.
Yet again a very enjoyable video . Thank you , I said you would have come up with a solution before we even had finished watching the last video .. beauty of it is its simplicity. Will we get to see Mitch on your end at some point so we can put a face to the name . I was wondering how you was intending to clean the edges after forming ..hey ya got a mill why not use that hehe I was expecting a serious lesson in how to flatten with a file . And the rear of the frame hmm its British what else do you expect not much really was jigged or balanced to be symmetrical in the 50s or 60s ..
Very nice work Paul, if you're charge out rate is $1 per hour your cub will still be the most valuable on the planet. Nevertheless someone will buy it.
Lots of hours of Good work Paul. Thank you for Teaching us the tricks of the trade. The Little cub is going to be a Gem. All the best and stay safe. Dave from Australia.
That frame was a Triumph 'Sports Cub'/'Mountain Cub' one as it has the silencer bracket welded on the RH rear sub-frame. The Sports Cub I bought new in 1965 frame/engine number was T20SH 1906 and was actually built at the BSA Armoury Road, Birmingham factory.
I'm told my frame is a 1958, and that's what it is registered as. The tube that holds the silencer bracket is straight, so the silencer goes outside the frame, not inside with the "bent" tubes some models have. I will be running a low pipe, so the silencer bracket will be coming off.
@@paulbrodie If as you say that frame was registered in 1958 in all probability it was a 'Trials Cub' (UK model type) with as you mention the exhaust outside the 'straight' rear RH sub-frame. As an aside do you know if the 'standard' Cub the one with the 17" wheels was imported to Canada ?.
@@rgadave It could be a Trials Cub. I do know my 1965 motor is a Mountain Cub. The Tiger Cub Bible has all the info on which country got what bikes and dates, etc. Have you looked in there for the "standard" Cub?
No material goes waisted...I like that you cut a new aluminum plate to fit better and meet your expectations than use the first one for the next part. Quality over quantity. The plate overhanging might be a good thing acting like a fender. Great work!
Great work as always Mr Brodie! I had just hammer formed a 1/16" thick piece of 6061 aluminum (not annealed) and while watching you bend the corners on that thick piece I was thinking how the heck is he doing that so easy. I'll be finding some 3003 for my next project, thanks for the tip!!
for the silhouette of the number plate to allow more material for a rolled edge use as a guide for the sharpie a washer of appropriate size, roll washer around edge with sharpie inside washer .
As usual, I really enjoyed this video, Paul! I'm having a rum & coke, but I'll buy you a coffee now...and one for Mitch. Assuming he actually exists! Cheers from Langley!
Thank you John. Mitch is a bit shy, apparently, but he really does exist. I simply cannot fabricate AND film at the same time. I know other RU-vidrs film themselves, and it shows in the quality and production of the video. We are a good team.
@@johnny787 Believe me, I tried. In one video I held up a mirror, so viewers could see what I see, but Mitch ducked behind his camera so that was a no go.
Another great video! Two hammer form suggestions: 1. Drill holes through the clamp, metal and form to insert pins. This keeps the piece from walking in between the form and clamp. 2. A delrin hammer head in an air chisel forms the metal quick and easy without hammer marks. As always, Thank you for sharing your work!
you could also screw the aluminum to the hammer form to prevent it from moving between the wood. MDF is also much cheaper then aluminum for a hammer form good for a small run of parts. use wire as a template for the angle
Have you seen the technique for marking the allowance around the outside of a pattern with a flat washer? Select the correct washer, lay it flat against the pattern, place tip of marker in washer hole and roll along marking, it works very well.
Bondhus makes a screwdriver-style ball-end Allen wrench in both metric and SAE. I have some, and I swear by (and not at) them. Bought sets @ Amazon, and a local (good) hardware store has some individual examples.
That's another cool part made. TIG welding around here is about $75.00 (US) an inch so I won't be making anything like it any time soon Couple of weeks ago (after you made tank) I found some info from early 90's about metal shaping/bending but didn't think it worth posting (doh) For 90 degree bend, allowances neutral axis, 0.4 x material thickness nearest inside radius. The inside of bend is under compression and outside under tension When you know how far you want material 'sticking out' over buck, the bend allowance (C) is Pi (3.14159) x2 x (0.4 t divided by R) (R= inside radius of bend, t= material thickness) divide answer by 4 plus the 'stick out (A) plus material (B ) to width or centre line of symmetric part It's actually much simpler when written out using ordinary math symbols and conventions but I don't know how to do that here. I use Pi at that number as it's the 'diagonal' on number pad. In your case, with 2mm thick material and a 6mm bend radius it works out about 7.5mm, plus the 'lip' (2.5~3mm) or roughly 10mm outside of 'flat' part. 'Thick' Sharpie is about 4mm wide and 'ordinary' Sharpie about 12mm dia (or 6mm outside to centre point) so by 'trial and error' you got second one roughly 10mm wider than the original template. I'm kinda surprised my math worked out, it was always my worst subject
Great work. Most appreciated that you go to the trouble to share your knowledge with us. Float level is so critical to good performance so what happens when the carb is mounted so far out of horizontal? Also when a bike is doing a wheelie that level is almost 90 deg wrong. Thanks
Thanks Roman. Yes, float level is critical. Just because the carb is angled a few degrees doesn't mean the float level is affected. I cannot comment on wheelies.
A grinder and paint make a welder what he ain’t 😂😂 I tip I learned recently With tig especially aluminum keep the filler in the gas cloud while welding If you pull it out to far it oxidizes On that note what do burnt pizza a pregnant woman and frozen beer have in common……? Some idiot forgot to pull out soon enough
I rebuilt a BSA twin that was literally all in old fruit boxes. I found that one of the crank throws was .008 longer the the other and the cylinder head for the longer stroke had its valve seats recessed deeper than the the crank with a shorter stroke. I didn't change the crank stroke and rebuilt everything else. Both cylinders, when running again had the identical compression. I chalked it up to something I could never understand the reason or speculate why. The engine was in such bad shape that the final displacement was just a whisker less than 1000 Cc. That was the year that Honda came out with their 4 cylinder bike. It couldn't keep up with me.
The Honda 750 came out in 1969, and you're telling me you had a 1000cc BSA that was a twin cylinder? And that it was faster than the 750 Honda? You obviously have a story to tell...
That engine made so much power that it would destroy the primary chain immediately if I gave it full throttle while rolling at any speed below 50mph. It would give me a hand full of rollers to fall out when I'd open the primary cover. The bike had been raced and had a large magneto with a point system with external cam that pushed the points closed as they spun inside a cavity.
@@paulbrodie Yep that's probably true, thankfully I daint live there, I'm in Wales near the west coast. Mobile camera vans are our scurge, traffic cops are thin on the ground. The roads can be a joy midweek when all the tourists go home, and it's lurvely with the roads to ourselves.
Hi Paul, The number plate shape you are making is 1963 onwards. The earlier one (for a 58) is square as shown in the parts book. When the number plate numbers began to wear out, they changed from 6 to 7 digits by adding a year letter Your 58 would have a square plate as shown in the parts book. Also I suspect that the rear light shown in the video is wrong? Enjoying the videos! Cheers (56&59 Cubs) Dave
Well Dave, I have a Cub, but never said I was any kind of an expert. My motor is a '65, so that is closer to the shape of the plate holder I made. I'm just having fun in my shop, so thank you for watching and commenting :)
@@paulbrodie yes, Sorry to maybe have sounded like a rivet counter! I'm converting a road bike to similar spec as an off road and will use a short guard like you.
I think you did a very nice job of that number plate holder. But is it a triumph pattern. It looks very much like a BSA bantam one. Perhaps it's a copy of one on a bantam cub?
Devon, it's a "sort of" copy of a Cub plate holder, but I did change the shape a little bit to suit my taste. I've never seen a real one so it was based on photographs a friend sent me. Thanks for watching.
Fantastic job! Loved this episode. What cfh are you running for tig welding? Might need a hair more, looked like your tungsten was getting pretty cooked for how much stickout you were using.
if you ever do it again Paul a pneumatic hammer is faster and think if a tailor. they always cut the pattern a little larger for obvious reasons I'm glad you left the mistakes in the finale cut that show how real you are and others how to avoid mistakes good teacher move.
Yes, a pneumatic hammer would be nice. I don't think it's possible for one guy to have every single tool AND space in his shop. There has to be a compromise!
Will the tank go over the carb. OK? I wanted one but had to buy five new rear license plates, a pity you're in the USA. The dust from MDF is a carcinogen, it contains formaldehyde in the glue.
I do believe the tank will fit. I am not in the USA, I am a Canadian living in Canada, eh? Good thing I sanded the MDF outside when there was a light breeze blowing :)
Doesn't seem like a trick question to me. Yes, I have annealed aluminum. The licence plate holder was made from 3003 aluminum. Quite soft; I didn't have to anneal it.
@@paulbrodie There Ya Go, I got caught and assumed it was maybe 6061. MY BAD ! Again, really nice work. You live in a nice area, I worked a couple of movie locations right next to you. Probably a good thing I did not know, you would have needed a restraining order against me. 🤣
@@paulbrodie There are probably a couple you could really make great use of. a palm hammer for large things, and a straight, or gun style, that you can change out different peens, etc. McMaster-Carr is a company I like.
@@DetroitMicroSound I think I would get the gun style to start with, but I won't be buying from McMaster-Carr after they refused to sell to me (several hears ago..) after they found out I was a Canadian living in Canada...
@@paulbrodie Agree on the gun style first, because it'll do everything. Ah, right, I bet you can find a good supplier, and a good quality gun over there in your part of North America's gorgeous Canada.
In the US, we can get motorcycle license plates which are smaller and look nicer on a bike. Is it not that way in Canada? Having to fit a full size plate on a bike is terrible!
In uk in those days the numbers and letters were white stick on ones on a blsck background, although you could get stamped ones as well if you wanted to spend more money. Just an aside but the number plate holder was meant to be vertical not angled.
That has got to be the weakest steering head design I have ever seen. A typical Triumph design. They were quite slow to move away from the cast lug/ brazed tube construction. There is no rotational support to stop it twisting. In its day a cheap bike cheaply made. But its a British classic and we like that. As usual super content. Well done Paul and Mitch.
Yes it's a daft design but important to remember that the C series bikes were all the same and used the steel tank as the frame brace. The tanks have Internal strengthening bars. It's like criticising a frame that uses the engine as a stressed member when the engine isn't in
@@cdp9633 I have seen videos of Cub trials bikes with the "tube brace" oil tank covered with an alloy tank. It's cool, but I'm going for stock. Thanks.
Hey paul this is a very weird Thing are you on RNZ doing an interview at the moment the lady said it was paul and it sounds so much like you 😂 I was so freaked out
If you’re making a custom license plate bracket, why don’t you make a stock looking one which actually fits your license plate. That would be so much cleaner in my opinion.
@@paulbrodie I see - the original shape is beautiful but kinda messes with the whole rear assembly, especially as it hang past the rear mudguard. It would’ve had one like this of a BSA B40 btw. It’s pretty similar just with the sides filled in. I really enjoy your videos and soak up every bit of information I can get out of em. Thanks for your great content:) Greetings from Germany
@@kiel9030 Well, I thought I knew how to answer your first question, but then you added "or rather a circle" which only served to confuse me. I think you need to re-state your question.
@@paulbrodie So I was told once in welding class that the Electrode of a WIG welding device should be sharpened at about 60°, so that it is nice and sharp (it has something to do with focussing the electric ark). And once I dipped it into your weld and some metal stuck to the electrode, what I did quite some time at the beginning, I needed to resharpen it in order to work properly. I know It also works with a blond end like you can see in your video, but it should work better with a sharpened one. We had a special sharpening device, but you can do it with any kind of grinder. Doesn't need to be too precise. I hope it got clear what I meant and that it might help you in case you didn't know it. Also, I didn't think you would actually read the comments on a video so old, and was just amused by it being so contrary to what I was told. :)
OK, I just did some research on the topic and realized that you did TIG welding and there the electrode can be round in deed. I am sorry to bother you.
