Restoration of 1951 Vincent Rapide - Part 73 - Separated Rear Sprocket

[@simonwiltshire]

What a machine, everything was so well thought out, pure genious.

[@nealebradford6417]

vincent ahead of its time, ill say that again, pure genius.

[@michaelbarron533]

Found this series and have spent hours watching it. I'm enthralled. Up to clip 72 so far. As I watch you working I imagine myself doing it...and buggering it up! The Vincent is so beautifully made. Unfortunately I am a lot less mobile these days (at 82) but still ride my '08 Can Am Spyder GS SM5 & 2015 Honda PCX 150 Came over from the UK 60 yrs ago. Keep up the good work.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hi Michael, many thanks for taking the time to write. I appreciate it and am glad that you have enjoyed the series. It turned into a lot more videos than I planned, but was a wonderful experience. Great to hear that you are still riding. Best wishes, Mike

[@malcolmbennett3555]

so glad to read the very dangerous issue did not cause you injury or the bike significant damage. glad to you are replacing all the related parts so all will be good for rmany many years to come :)

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thank you Malcolm. Yes, I consider myself lucky on this one! The replacement parts should be on their way now and should be pretty simple to install. Best wishes, Mike

[@johnmcclain3887]

I like that "slotted trunnion", might have to make one for my Harley. You Brits have some interesting words, like "gudgeon pin, mickey mouse nuts, and "tommy bar nuts". And then there's "the Meccano, or erector set, for America". Thanks for sharing this, I always wanted one, never had the chance over here in America.

[@rscaryrsc]

Wow! Too long bolts possibly aggravated by heat generated from braking may have caused the drum to finally crack from the pressure. I continue to be amazed by all the little engineering details on this bike. So much thought went into the design of all the components to make it rider/mechanic friendly for servicing.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks Scott!

[@JRondeauYUL]

What a nice and handy motorcycle lift you have ! I’m a structural engineer. This is what we call a shear failure, and a very long one too. Rarely seen.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thank you Jean-François. I think it must have been happening for a long time according to the rust. Best wishes, Mike

[@jamespinderphotoman]

Oh dear, oh dear. I'll be sure to remember this one if I ever get my hands on a Vincent in my lifetime!

[@thomasche]

Nice to see the Avon Roadrider tires on there.

[@berniebne8243]

Many years ago I was involved with a London Bus Preservation Society. We had a friendly commercial wrecking yard where the owner had been an apprentice for London Transport. He used to put parts aside for us. One of the split rim wheels he gave us had a slightly different curve, unnoticeable by eye & put pressure on the brake drum. The end result was the same as your bike. we only realized why the casting had cracked from some witness marks.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot Bernie for this. It was very helpful. Cheers, Mike

[@alanaldrich8069]

I watched your video with great sympathy as you realised the extent of the damage to the sprocket drum assembly. The cause seemed so simple yet so easy to be trapped into. I hope you can get it rectified quickly. In my youth I longer for a Vincent engine as I wanted to add it to ny feather bed Norton frame. I know this may sound like sacrilege to a true Vincent owner. A friend of mine beat me to the punch when an ex-sidecar racer had his Vincent engine for sale. He was loading it into his car when I arrived to look at it. I ended up using a Bonnieville motor.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thank you Alan for your great comment. I appreciate it. Yes, I'm sure it will all be just fine with the replacement parts. Oh my, can you believe it that you used to be able to pickup old Vincent engines for relatively little money! There are still a few NorVins around and they are spectacular!! Cheers, Mike

[@pashakdescilly7517]

A Vincent engine in a featherbed is the wrecking of two good bikes to make a not very good bike. If you want a frame for your Vincent engine, put it in an Egli

[@johnmcclain3887]

I had a Triumph Bonneville, back in 76, never got the Vincent I wanted, and I miss the Bonneville. I owned some 13 Yamaha 650's, while on recruiter duty in the Marines, in Va, bought out a guy's basket cases, and put about half together, and then the one I kept was stolen. I've got a custom harley I built in 95, but it just isn't a Vincent. I can only dream, lol.

[@Colin399]

Love the way you work on your bikes, like a working on a fine watch.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thank you very much Colin! I'm glad you like the videos. There are a few more in the pipeline and then I'm hoping to switch to the other bikes. Best wishes, Mike

[@vicscott7872]

On reflection the fiber lock nuts are on the spokeflange/hub I have thin nuts & dead size bolts (with small gap between sprocket flange and first rib of drum) on the shadow.

[@453421abcdefg12345]

At least you have found the answer to your problem, that has been a problem waiting to happen since the sprocket was fitted, the hub spoke flange bolts can also give trouble, but I see you have hex bolts with one flat machined smaller rather that the eccentric head type. good luck on your replacement parts, and stay safe away from other people! Chris B.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot Chris. I hope all is well with you and your family. We are all doing very well considering. Yes, the new parts have been ordered and should hopefully be here soon. It should be a relatively straightforward replacement. Best wishes, Mike

[@gregbrassington2120]

That could have been so much worse Mike ! Glad your all over it Mike. New hub ,sprocket rear & front , chain probably do the de-bling whilst it ripped down. She will come up a treat👍 Cheers Greg

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot Greg. Yes, I have just finished the rebuild and there should be another video coming out soon. It wasn't so bad. Mostly just reassembling everything and it was nice to see a black sprocket, not more chrome ;)

[@TheDavey333]

That’s a catastrophic failure, good you were near home. Looks like it was a long time coming, judging by the rust in certain places. Keep safe Mike all the best and keep smiling 😀

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks very much David. That was an interesting project. Thanks for your kind words as always and best wishes to you and yours.

[@tadpoles10]

Thanks for the update Mike, a simple but expensive mistake, so pleased you are ok 'metal' can be fixed. Only thing similar that I can recall was a cambelt going on an old Cortina years ago, not as noisy as a chain sprocket turning at speed . ha ha. I'm doing the 'self isolating' here, tinkering in the garage and have cut the grass first time this year. Regards to all, stay safe & well. atvb t ..

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot Terry. Glad you are working on projects and staying busy during this time. I am also beginning to catch up on a few things. Best wishes, Mike

[@larrys.3992]

Know thy beast! So much in those three words. Good job Mike!

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks Larry. I hope all is well. Best wishes, Mike

[@coreylevenson]

It'll be interesting to see how hard it is to remove the ten fasteners that hold the drum to the hub with all the spokes in place. Could be slow going with not much wrench movement possible in such a confined space. Good luck, Mike; I know you'll persevere in the end!

[@malcolmbennett3555]

remove every 2nd bolt to provide clearance :)

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot Corey. The old drum is off now and I'm just waiting for the replacement parts to arrive. I ordered all new hardware too and checked that they should fit aok! Best wishes, Mike

[@iivaridark6850]

Quite interesting! Thanks for the video!

[@TheMightyGarage]

Glad you liked it! Thanks, Mike

[@TornadoCAN99]

Looks like a few spacer washers under heads of those bolts would have prevented the interference, or a little grinding protrusions beyond the nuts.

[@TheMightyGarage]

You're absolutely right! Apparently a few of the Vincent guys said that they do that when they see that the bolts may be a bit too long! Best wishes, Mike

[@charliesharpe5004]

Rear solid axle (tommy bar) should have a 1/16" thick chamfered washer between it and the R.F.M. on l.h.s. Not shown in the Parts List but drawn in "Richardson". Cheers mate.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Ooh, thanks Charlie. I missed that. I will take a look for sure and fit one. Best wishes, Mike

[@Beeza56]

Well worth the anticipation, thank you Mike. Who would've thought? I know you could've done without the expense, but it'll at least keep you busy. All the best and thanks again :)

[@TheMightyGarage]

Glad you enjoyed it Ian. Thanks a lot for your note. The replacement parts are on order and hopefully it will be a pretty simple replacement. Best wishes, Mike

[@rvanderw998]

Excellent forensic investigation Mike! Unfolds like a good crime whodunnit! The tall bolts did it, of course!

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hehe, thanks a lot Richard. Yes, I really enjoyed getting to the bottom of this mystery! Best wishes, Mike

[@abp2861]

Good vid👍🏻👍🏻

[@Wooley689]

Dang Mike, I hate that. Very interesting video though and how the ease of maintenance was engineered in.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks Wooley. The parts are already ordered and hopefully will arrive soon. It should be a fairly straightforward replacement! Best wishes, Mike

[@caahacky]

Good video Mike - never seen your hands so dirty!

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hehe, I know! The bike is filthy ;) It needs a good clean. There's an oil leak (maybe more than 1) that I need to fix as they are spraying the bike with oil!

[@dducdude6315]

Ahhh I knew there had to be a reason leave it to Mr Stevens from KTB to detail just what happened... Time to go and check all the nuts and bolts for correctness! Once again glad all is well elsewhere on the bike. Was thinking if you swapped the wheel around and had a sprocket on the other side you could have just spun the wheel around to get home. I knew thee was a good reason Vin's had that extra sprocket..LOL Cheers Mate, Eric

[@TheMightyGarage]

Cheers Eric, yes, I was actually thinking of possibly fitting two sprockets! Perhaps in the future. I do like to see the extra in the other side. It always looks cool! I hope all is well with you. Best wishes, Mike

[@54macdog]

"Know Thy Beast". How cool is that?

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hehe, it's one of the most widely read books by the Vincent guys. It's required reading ;) Cheers, Mike

[@vicscott7872]

You also have shadow drums on a Rapide, no bad thing! nuts were originaly thiner with fiber lock material. I have a shadow and two comets, just saying.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thank you Vic. Yes, I really like those ribbed shadow drums. They look great!

[@tomgarney7700]

It’s a classic fatigue failure. Age and use caused the failure, not the bolts.

[@TheMightyGarage]

It's both, Tom

[@BilgemasterBill]

Too-tall bolts sounds like just the kind of boneheaded thing I'd do, thinking the new hardware was an "improvement".

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hehe, yes I don't think someone realized how much impact it would have over time. And they appear to have been cut by hand, so it wouldn't have hurt to shorten them. Hope all is well Bill. Best wishes, Mike

[@jimh.5286]

It's a little scary to realize that such a seemingly minor bolt-length issue could have such a catastrophic result.

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hi Jim, yes that could have been a lot worse upon reflection! I'm so glad that it happened at about 10mph! Cheers, Mike

[@motorcyclegarage2307]

Would have expanded with heat as well I guess

[@TheMightyGarage]

Great point! Thanks a lot. Cheers, Mike

[@Richard-pe4cx]

do you find the avon rider tyres difficult to sit even on the rim ?

[@TheMightyGarage]

They seem to fit very well, Richard. I haven't noticed but then again they were fitted by a local dealer who I assume has the proper equipment. Best wishes, Mike

[@ThePianoCentre]

Never spotted that Mike , how difficult is it to get a new one ?

[@TheMightyGarage]

Hi David, it should hopefully be very easy. The Vincent Spares scheme company and also companies here in the US have a full inventory of parts for the Vincents. Best wishes, Mike

[@stancoleshill8925]

You need a new drum. This can not be repaired as it turns and must be centered. You can not weld this thin cast iron. Please note that there are no washers under the heads of the bolts which may have provided enough clearance to prevent this from happening (again) ? Also please note that appears on the drawing that the bolts are installed from the other side. Ah-ha !

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot Stan. All the new parts have arrived and they look great. I will post another video of the reassembly process using the proper nuts and bolts ;) best wishes, Mike

[@bsimpson6204]

Someone who thought they were good mechanics fitted the wrong bolts and levered it apart… The rust you see on broken surfaces of the drum is from where it cracked earlier and rusted. Hope you get it fixed ok,

[@TheMightyGarage]

Thanks a lot! Yes, it's all done now. I have a vid coming up for the refitting. It was quite straightforward. Thankfully just nuts and bolts and parts and $$s! Cheers, Mike

[@bsimpson6204]

Mi Ty good stuff, look forward to the next video 👍

[@pashakdescilly7517]

Your Rapide rejected the Shadow parts.

[@TheMightyGarage]

HAHA! Yes, they were too "fancy" ;)

[@John900C]

Poor design.

[@TheMightyGarage]

It certainly is a weak point.