Since the oil cooler is so far above the engine, be sure to include a check valve and an inline relief valve in your oil cooler setup.

The check valve goes in the supply side, to prevent the contents of the oil cooler from draining back into the engine.  The inline relief, set to 3PSI or so, prevents the return line from emptying back into the engine, but passes oil flow under pump pressure.  BOTH must be installed as close to the engine as possible.

You don't want to have the oil pump charge that HUGE oil cooler every time you start the engine.  It will be running without pressure for quite a while!

I would install an oil pressure gauge as well, so you can monitor charging time.

A thermostat would be a good idea, as well.

In all seriousness, since the engine is out in the open, there's not really much need for a cooler at all.

Did you buy plans for this buggy from somewhere or are you just building this from scratch?  How much money do you have into it at this point if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks,

Nick

Quote from: Beelzeboss on January 20, 2009, 11:52:37 PM
Are you crazy? A Goldwing engine? That's bigger than the engine in my car! The GS engine is already slightly too big for this buggy.

Finished modifying the steering rack. Instead of tacking a bush on one end, I decided to machine a press fit bushing on the lathe to press into the rack. I might have to bore it out a bit more, but at the moment it works perfectly.



Rear bearing plates arrived from Edge, so now the rear swingarm is 100% complete except paint



Some would say I AM crazy, but I just think having a reverse is a must with something you cant just back up using your feet.
520 50 tooth sprocket from a motorcycle shop in Brookvale was $40 new. The guy went through all the 520 50 tooth sprockets to find me the cheapest, AND then he gave me a discount! I think it looks pretty good. The place was called APW motorcycles.



Picked up a seat on ebay. A friend and I bought the pair for $140, and I got the more faded one because I need the reclining lever on the left. It won't fit on the right because of the engine.



Mounted the oil cooler at the back of the buggy. If I was to do it again I would save some money by using rigid steel pipes, rather than the expensive oil cooler lines.
The original GS oil cooler was badly damaged in the accident, so this aftermarket universal transmission cooler should do the job, once I put a couple of fans on it.





Removed the rear brake assembly from the bike



Made the suspension pivot pins. The rear one is a bit longer than stock because I made the pivot wider.
Instead of threading the end of the pins I decided to use cotter/split pins through the end of the bars.



Seat rails without the holes drilled in them



One of the wing supports done. It was easier to cut the correct angles than I expected



Also, I fitted the front suspension mounts. I had to tack and grind off the top suspension mount like 10 times to get it in the right spot and square to everything. Magnets helped hold it in place but made the arc (during welding) go a little bit strange



I hope to have the buggy done by the 1st of feb. It will be close, but I think I can make it, especially if my friend comes over to help.

Andrew

Thanks very much for the comments guys.

Geep,

Since the oil cooler is mounted upside down, and there are no air leaks, and the outlets for the cooler are under the oil level... how can it empty out? Where does the air get into the system?
Also, while filling the oil cooler is oil getting to the rest of the engine? I would hate for the engine to be running without oil for even a few seconds on startup.

Which direction does the oil flow through the cooler? Or, which side of the engine is the oil pumped OUT?

Cheers,
Andrew

Quote from: Beelzeboss on January 22, 2009, 05:59:12 PM
Where does the air get into the system?

I'm pretty sure it would be by way of that little black hose on top of the engine.

The cooler will drain when the oil lines siphon it empty.

On top of that you've added about a quart of capacity...so there's a whole world of complication there.  It's also going to cost you about 5psi of oil pressure.

Oil coolers need to be mounted as low as possible, and as close to the engine as possible.

Any idea on how much you've spent on the build? where did you get the plans from or are you making this from scratch?

Thanks,

Nick

As Mak said, the oil cooler can empty over a period of hours or days.  The weight of the oil will force it back through the bearings or the pump, obtaining fresh air from the engine vent.  This is most likely to happen when the oil is of low viscosity, such as after running on a summer day.l

To prevent this, a check valve must be installed in the engine oil outlet, and a pressure valve installed in the engine oil cooler return.

The relief prevents drain-back through the oil pump.  The pressure valve, set slightly above the pressure the head of oil exerts, prevents the oil from flowing under gravity into the bearings.  Both valves allow flow under engine pump pressure, at the cost of slightly diminished oil pressure.

It is best practice to install an oil cooler as low as possible.  By rights, the highest part of the oil cooler should be at or below the engine sump to prevent drainback.  But, with the correct design, mounting the oil cooler high can work reliably.  It is done every day.

When the oil cooler is filling, the engine is not receiving oil pressure if the GS engine is designed for full-flow cooling, which is likely is.

I'm not sure which side is the pressure and which is the return.  A quick bit of experimentation would confim that though.  Pull the plugs and crank it over.   

Once installed, be sure to pre-oil the engine and fill the cooler.  Fill it as much as possible manually before installation.  Before the first test run, pull the plugs and turn the fuel off.  Crank the engine until you see oil pressure, then another 5-10 seconds to ensure the system is primed.

I would install a thermostatically controlled fan on the oil cooler.  I would aim to keep the oil temperature in the 180F-240F range.

Nick, the plans are from http://www.edge.au.com, and it is called the "Sidewinder"

Thanks GeeP, I think the easiest and cheapest thing to do is to relocate the oil cooler to very low and just in front of the engine. It will be even lower than it is in the bike, so I hope this will solve any potential problems.

Thanks everyone for patiently answering my questions and explaining things. It has been a real help during the build.

Andrew

I would hangg the thing below the front engine mount.  I'd actually try to find a way to have the top of the oil cooler below the "full" mark on your oil sight glass.

While I understand the argument against mounting the cooler up high, Mine was above the engine.
 
right in front of the fuel tank, behind the drivers head. 

Now, I don't know what the pressure needs to be for the little light to come on, but there was always enough pressure in the line to keep the light off. 

Alright, the buggy is nearing completion. No pircs right now, but should get some tomorrow. On tuesday I'm going on a massive (buggy parts) shopping spree and getting everything (hopefully0 needed to finish it. I hope it's done, minus paint, by the 1st of Feb.

Big question: how do I get the chain off the bike? I'd rather not cut off the swingarm because I might be able to sell it.
I can't see a master link on the chain, but it was pretty dirty so I might have missed it.

Chain breaker / chain splitter,
                                          Kinda a hand held press that pushes out the pins and can be used to join it up again.
Like this.

http://www.autotools.com.au/images/products/CR002.jpg

Motorcycle 

Motorcycle Drive Chain Breaker
Part Number : ATCR002
Use to remove and assemble chain connecting links, rivet pins and connecting link plates on most motorcycle drive chains etc. Pin Diam: 3.5mm to 6mm. Capacity: 3mm to 22mm.

Price: $76.45