A quick question on the suspension . I've seen pictures of fleas with rubber suspension bands and on, the one I managed to get hold of has Leather ?, just a bit confused to why the difference

Thanks

Dave

Leather can't work! It must be rubber bands for elasticity. You can usually buy the thicker ones (4 off) from Hitchcock's. The central thinner one has to be made up. Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Don't forget the rubber tubing around the spacers, everybody leaves those out!

Cheers,

Lex

email (option): welbike@welbi**.net (think about this!)

That's what I find strange , they look as if they have been professionally made. I would post some pictures but can't seem to find a tab for uploading images .Wonder why it has these fitted very odd .

Looked at the ones at Hitchcocks , they say Quote :FORK SUSPENSION RUBBER (NARROW) - USE 26443, AND TRIM TO CORRECT WIDTH

This surely wont stretch to the length of the long one !

Dave

I think you are right about that Dave! I wonder if anyone at Hitchcock's has ever tried to fit one of these cut down rubbers? I once had one made at a rubber firm in Southampton, which was just a strip of rubber with the ends cut at an angle and vulcanised together, but the joint gave out after a year or so, while the bike just sat in the shed. Eventually I found an original somewhere?? Here it is along with my spare kit of parts, including the rubber tubes that Lex mentioned. Ron
PS. posting pictures on here is a right arse! You have to download them to photobucket, then copy and paste the HTLM code into your post

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Thanks Ron , yep I think it's a bit of wishful thinking on their behalf to cut down and "stretch" the suspension rubber to fit

They look to be quite substantial thickness wise , is it correct to double these up? .Will they DKW be the same ?

Now I know what I'm looking for I'll start to scour the internet etc , thanks Ron

Dave

Yes, DKW is the same, but the guys on ebay don't sell the long one either!

Difficult, my Flea's front suspension is very stiff, have tried other rubbers, but no luck, in fact the stronger the thin one is, the better the suspension works, as you can also see on Ron's picture, the links are almost vertical, they should be more horizontal to work right.

Cheers, and good luck, and let us know if you find something.

Lex

email (option): welbike@welbi**.net (think about this!)

I think I'll pay a visit to my mates car factor shop with the long "Leather" band and see what his catalogues hold , there maybe something we can match up (fingers crossed) I'll let you know if I have any success , you never know might be lucky.

Dave

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

I have just fitted these rubber suspension bands to my other flea. Having put the two pairs in place on their cottonreels I then had the problem of how to stretch the thinner one and put the little roller and retaining bolt in place. The thinner top one I made from the 5th.thick one, by finding a suitable round branch from the wood pile. On marking the width with a pencil I stretched the band onto the branch and used a Stanley knife to cut it to width.Back to the forks, no way could I stretch it to reach the top position. Solution was found by putting the frame on the workbench and putting a ratchet strap over it and down to a 56lb, weight on the floor. Another 1inch ratchet strap was put over a beam and the two plastic covered s hooks were put into the rubber band. Operated the top ratchet and with the 56lb.weight beginning to lift up from the floor I was able to insert the steel roller and the retaining pin with no trouble, release the ratchet and the hooks came away with no trouble.Crude maybe, but it worked, John.

email (option): john.forsey@mypostoffice.co.uk

Hi John

The thin band you stretched is this one of the smaller ones you are talking about you modified to fit ?

Dave

Thanks John

John I had not thought that could work. I thought the stretch would snap it! Perhaps I spoke out of turn about Hitchcock's advice? Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Well done John. " Necessity is the Mother of invention" Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Thanks for the advice on how to fit the 5th band it will save a lot of frustration and no doubt skinned knuckles .I wonder by having to over stretch it so far if it will reduce the life of the rubber?

Dave

email (option): davemb42@yahoo.com

Ron Pier

Lex Schmidt

see on Ron's picture, the links are almost vertical, they should be more horizontal to work right.
Lex

Something wrong with my forks Lex? Or are you talking double Dutch With the bike on the stand and no weight on the wheels the angle of dangle is about the same as this bike....you might recognise! I guess when I have done 10,000-12,000 miles, the newness in the rubber bands will wear off. Ron

email (option): welbike@welbi**.net (think about this!)

Yes Lex if I lean on the handle bar with my 9 stone, I can get the links to get half way to horizontal. Bat as you say, very little movement. I do not intend to thrash mine down a farm track though Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Hi Ron

I've sent you photo's of the "leather" bands via e mail as I cant get round to putting them up on here , hope you don't mind , curious to see what you think of them .

Thanks

Dave

email (option): davemb42@yahoo.com

Dave I think these leather bands would be the equivalent of replacing the spring on an M20 with a solid bar Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Didn't appreciate these had rubber suspension, probably for weight as rubber supplies were a problem at the time - u learn all the time.

Used rubber banding on a GSX1100 powered hill climb car we built (with john terry of Terrypin fame) - worked very well as rubber has a lot of internal damping - light and very 'dead' compared to a spring.

Not surprises vulcanizing didn't work, its just a gluing not a true bonding process.

Cutting rubber - always use water, cuts easily when wet - that's why you always get a puncture in the rain.

Don't bother trying to freeze rubber and turn in a lathe - doesn't work, even when using liq. nitrogen.

Lubricating rubber - don't use detergent or vegetable oil(don't ask) - it destroys the rubber, go down to local car tire place and blag a hand full of tire fitting lanolin - works a treat.

narrowing thick rubber - use the most abused tool in the work-shop - a bench grinder.
Stinks like hell (can be a bit smoky) but works a treat, particularly with a coarse wheel, but a fine green wheel (used for sharpening TC tools) also works as does a DREMEL slitting disc.

['Don't bother trying to freeze rubber and turn in a lathe - doesn't work, even when using liq. nitrogen.']

I've done that more than once...and drilled holes in it as well...but you have to be quick.

Success may be dependent on whether you have natural or synthetic rubber and if the latter which grade, there are many.....Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com

Ian - started with throwaway tooling but realized not sharp enough, reverted to SHARP T/C tipped tooling (As you know rubber is VERY VERY abrasive)- a bit more success, but as you say window of opportunity to do much machining of frozen rubber is very narrow.

Rubbers used where mainly oil-resistant Nitrile rubber (never tried it on a 'natural rubber)

We then discovered pouring urethanes of various grades so simply made moulds and 'cast' our own bush's and things - much easier than trying to machine rubber.

Lex, your yellow primary chaincase balance mark is "on the piss"....!!!!!

Should be vertical and have an original image here to prove.........

Steve, I have copied this from an original paint Flea, and have a picture to prove it!!

Will post later, but you're the first one to comment on it.....

But you should know me by now, that I never do anything without reason, or something undocumented.

Cheers,

Lex

email (option): welbike@welbXXX.net

Not disputing Lex.........but here's an original image (photo) of a fairly late Flea (I once owned the bike 7 machines before this one !)............image for airborne loading information it is thought........

Note the vertical yellow stripe on the primary cases and position can be worked out from the screw holes............

Okay, no probs! here the same picture (without the arrows and letters) a bit larger, strange that the stripe is interupted??



Here the original paint Flea, from the Netherlands, but now in the UK.



I think I figured out some time ago that it's crooked because it was painted on when bike was on the centre stand, with back wheel on the ground.

Cheers,

Lex

email (option): welbike@welbi**.net (think about this!)