PROJECT BIKES
PART 03
The more they delve, the greater the extent of the problems becomes clear. It looks as if the best way to rectify the tubework hackery is to take it back to Harris to rejig
The sure thing about building a special is that there are no sure things, especially in the early stages of the project. Having decided I was building a Harris Magnum 2 with a Bandit 1200 engine, a lucky find means that I am now going to fit the bike with a GSX1100 motor, the powerplant the chassis was originally built to house back in 1984. That will be with me in a couple of weeks. More on that directly.
For this month editor Chris suggested that I hang together the parts that the project came with, and always keen to while away a morning at the workshop, he rocked up with his boiler suit, and with a sack of cinnamon swirls from the Co-op to see what we could do. The object of the exercise is to get a feel for the stance of the bike if we decide to go with the original swingarm, Triumph 955 forks, Nitron shock and Aprilia RSV wheels the project came with.
For now, the empty engine ’cases that were in the frame can go back in for visual purposes. It’s all a tight fit. Even an unmodified Magnum frame is known for the closeness with which it hugs the engine, and this one is as tight as you like having been modded to have the front engine mounts on a tube that spans the width of the frame between the downtubes. It’s like an enormous version of those metal puzzles kids played with decades ago – and quite a bit weightier too. We get it in and I’m pleased that I used a Sharpie to mark the locations and orientations of the various spacers when I removed the dummy motor.
Expecting this to be the worst part of today’s exercise, we are unpleasantly surprised to find that the swingarm pivot that had been left in the frame was reluctant to come out. This was presumably left in there to keep things straight when a previous owner reinstated the chopped-out back end. It takes heat and a very big hammer to get it moving. Inspection of the spindle shows it to be slightly bent, which hadn’t helped our cause. We then realise that someone has pressed sleeves into the swingarm mount
