TSM – Wreck Rebuild Repeat

November 9, 2017May 6, 2020

Oils well that fairs well?

The TSM-SP now has its tools in place and the convertible pannier mounted. Then I realized I didn’t think of a spot to keep oil. In my lovely bag, no way. Jacket pocket, sounds like a recipe for a ruined shirt. There has to be a free spot on the bike. Under the seat is the answer!

There is a hollow just big enough to house 2 vials of oil. Leah and I are (were) Flaviar members and I’ve been saving the little booze tasting bottles. Now I just needed to make something to hold the bottles in place.

I still had a ton of marine vinyl and some dog leash left so back to the sewing machine!

I ended up making a tiny pouch that straps around the frame and leaves the vials suspended as a bit of a shock absorption system. I made one for each TSM and they fit perfectly, even with the different seat mounts.

Just when I thought I was finished with the TSM-SP, Benji and the guys from Treats find tiny fairings. I need one! Bonus they were having a sale! Yay!

In a couple days I had the magical fairing in hand…well in Leah’s hand for these shots.

I made a quick mount for it out of some 22 gauge steel and poof!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BNDzci0DM6_

It is only attached to the spot where the plastic rivets connected the windshield to the headlight surround. After sleeping on it for a while I painted the brace black and added a camera mount. I also added velcro ties that attach to the triple-tree.

Now it looks like this…

https://www.instagram.com/p/BTWi6IJBuuC

So for now I’m calling this project done. Is there something else in the works for the TSM-SP…of course there is! I need to get out and ride this thing more. To give you some perspective I started the process in October of 2015. It was tuned and rideable June of 2016. Finishing touches April 2017.

Ok, Gotta get out riding and shoot some fun rides…and don’t worry…I’ll still be wrenching.

September 6, 2017May 6, 2020

A triple-tree grows in Brooklyn

I repainted the last of the seat plastics and recovered the seat. Then put things together.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEIKmYFE-F/

The long seat trim pieces were a little long and needed to be trimmed down but overall with the rear fender on this build was coming together.

The big issue was that my triple-tree stem was too short. I had a long bolt holding things together but I needed something permanent.

To solve this I found a piece of steel tube that fit perfectly into the stem. I then cut the stem in half and slid the tube in between the halves. I then adjusted the length so it was about two and a half inches longer and drilled some holes between the old stem halves and the tube. I then riveted everything together. Finally I welded everything in place. There will have to be a catastrophic failure to sheer the rivets and the weld. Once on the bike everything looked perfect.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXGPB-Ilukl

I put things back together and then mocked up where the taillight was going to go. I ended up going with the higher mount.

The only things to figure out now is how to mount a backwards freewheel. I won’t put an engine on this guy until the pedals are working…one alignment problem at a time.

Next up…panniers days…it rhymes if you’re French, I swear!

July 24, 2017May 6, 2020

Dual sport goes dual variated

With the tank, headlight, seat plastics and frame painted, it was time to put TSM#2 together. This is when I remember that I have a dual-variated swingarm hidden in my parts pile. Why make another TSM when I can build a TSMR or in this case a TSM-DR!

The swingarm needed a thorough cleaning, a little grinding and welding and a couple coats of paint. After that it was time to put it together

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXehqxoFD5e/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

I wanted to use a Puch Magnum pedal crank so it would pedal more like a BMX bike but that didn’t fit right. (Keep an eye out for an upcoming post as I’m working on a custom crank for both TSMs.) Spacing things correctly is the next challenge and I’m sure before I’m done I will have to take this apart a couple more times to get it right.

I mocked up some fender mounts on the CR80 forks, made a temporary adapter to mount the forks, and bolted everything up.

You might notice that the back of the seat is missing. Well I dropped it before the paint cured and knocked a chunk out of it…so time to repaint it…grrrr.

Next up…tree lengthening, marine vinyl, and me.

July 7, 2017

It was the best of primes, it was the worst of primes.

Back from the DGR ride and inspired by the smell of fall in the air, it was time to start building TSM #2.

A year earlier I had started mocking things up for the build but other obligations got in the way. This bike would get a CR80 front end and have my favorite Shinko 244 dual-sport tires.

I had laced the DIO RIM to the Peugeot hub using some curved washers…if this was a good idea or not still remains to be seen.

Now a year later I had the tank and plastics painted from my previous painting adventures. It was time to get this frame in shape.

Cutting off the excess mounting points, moving some and filling in any dings in the frame and it was time to primer.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BSKMBT9hTQ8/

I was really liking the primer color so I decided to just sand it smooth and clear coat it.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BLCJrCGDEUz/

I also had time to repaint the seat pan and cut some high density foam for a seat.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BSciMlQB98M/

A little clean up on the triplet-trees and everything was looking good.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BLXiPxUj7Gy/

Next up…one is fun but two, Woohoo!

June 6, 2017March 23, 2020

Bolted-up and beautiful but broken?!

Everything is together and looks great but no matter what I do I can get this carb jetted correctly.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BGDmv2ZmnYm

After getting a mediocre idle I discover that my engine has a bad seal. Not a big deal and while replacing the seal I discover the crank is out of true. The wobbly crank is what shortened the life of the seal. I thankfully have another crank and new bearings on hand. Thanks to Chris from Tomahawk mopeds and Nash for sharing ideas around pressing on bearings. Time to build my own tool.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BGitJ3cGnSq

It works great and now it is building time!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BGnJdaTGneN

With the engine back on the bike the idle is better but still not great. No idea what is going on here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BGozrduGnba

https://www.instagram.com/p/BIaNaVng4xQ

I suspect that maybe there is a leak around the clamp on carburetor. I try a new shim and that doesn’t work. I then try using a completely new carb with a spigot mount. It doesn’t really fit and the issue remains.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJKBgm8gnTs

In a last ditch attempt I break down the carb and rebuild it completely…still impossible to jet. On a fluke I took the intake off and low and behold it has a hairline crack…insert swearing here…

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJjE8SSgVgg

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJmQVTmhO3W

If I’m anything I’m tenacious, but try as I might I couldn’t save the old intake. Ordered a new one from Treatland.tv and I’m finally back in business. My assumption is that the out of true crank caused excessive vibrations and the strain caused the crack.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJt-MPHg-wg

After dialing things in its done! Time to ride!

Next up…weddings and wanderings with wife and wheels.

May 22, 2017

Holey tanks and holy crap I’m bad at painting!

Once everything was together I decided it was a good idea to clean this old tank before I took it for a ride. So I filled the tank with Evapo-Rust and left it overnight.

The next day I checked on the tank and it was mostly empty. That should have been a sign that something was afoot but I noticed that the gorilla tape and stopper had come loose from the petcock threads so I thought it was just a tape failure.

Flushed out the tank with some acetone and then back on the bike for a ride…I started to pour the premix into the tank and then suddenly it sounded like a mini rain shower! My tank is officially a spaghetti strainer!

After tossing a paint tray under the bike I managed to stop pouring gasoline on my garage floor. (Insert swearing here) The tank is definitely free of rust…sadly it’s bottom half was mostly rust but it’s shiny metal now! After draining the tank for real I coated the inside with a layer of oil and sealed the whole thing up with plastic wrap.

The good news is that I have parts for a second TSM and the tank is already clean…and maybe doesn’t leak? After a quick test (off of the bike) being leak free is confirmed. Hop on the bike go around the block and everything is right with the world…well mostly…this tank looks terrible…its got some dents and is spray painted black.

Having never painted anything other than pipes and frames I had no idea how to make a tank look nice. So I outsourced the work to my buddy Larry…and he managed to find metal under a total of 8 different coats of paint!

What I didn’t realize was, he wouldn’t get any further than that…its weird, he has other things to do other than unpaid work for me…go figure. Larry did have time to poke around and find the perfect color green!

Bondo is easy…and surprisingly fun once you figure out the timing of mixing and smearing. I also liked sanding it…little did I know I was soon to be in sanding hell.

I build a tiny paint box and made a lazy-susan with a big bearing and I’m shooting paint. This is where everything goes down hill. Too much paint, too fast, too much dust, this isn’t as easy as it looks…what am I doing!!! After stopping because I’m terrible at painting, I started watching some YouTube tutorials…which told me what I already new…I’m impatient.

After much slowing down and lots of sanding I got the paint right!

Now that I had painting figured out, I decided I should fix the holey tank too. The only thing better than one TSM is two.

The tank needed the rust removed the rest of the way and low and behold the was a big hole in it to go along with all the little ones. Patched things up with this

and then bondo to smooth things out. A little epoxy to clean up the cracked plastic parts and then paint. Oh and stripes!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BS2l9ikhmz6

Once both tanks looked good they both got a full can of 2K epoxy coat to make them gas resistant and read to go.

Note: I intend to Caswell the inside of the striped tank so I can be sure it won’t leak again. That adventure is TBD.

Next up…back together again but you still won’t be my friend!?

May 10, 2017

Wire woes and how do I attach…these?

Imagine you just put together a completely ride worthy vehicle but you made a list of requirements because you LOVE lists…so instead of riding it around…you keep working…yep…that’s what’s happening…

Fitting the blinkers in the front is pretty easy the hard part is remembering what wire goes where…

Then some holes drilled into the tail light assembly get things fitted nice and snug.

(I couldn’t find a build picture of this so here is a current one.)

Then some gauges

Next it is time to hang the rear fender (I forgot to take mock-up pictures…I get carried away when I’m working). I had another pannier rack floating around the garage and it needed to be shortened up to put the fender in the spot I wanted. I made a hanger for the front of the fender with some strip steel. This is held in place with a bolt and some spacers.

I cut up the existing seat mounts so they would better fit on the TSM frame and then slapped on a tank. It’s time to gas this up and go for a ride!

>>>>fast forward to the future>>>>

The initial rear fender mount idea didn’t work and I had to add a hanger to the back (under the tail light) to keep the fender in place. You can see it in the taillight picture above and below is the video loop of putting it on. This happened a while after the moped was done but I should of done it right at the start.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BIaTRcgAq-X

Next up…why is my moped a fuel filter!?

April 26, 2017

Peugeot and Lego rhyme

Now armed with a pile of formerly working parts, I needed to turn them into a new vehicle…I should of thought this through.

I realized I wanted Green 2.0 to be more than just a top tank conversion. Time to make a list.

TSM-SP must haves:

Disc brakes
Seat big enough for riding dubs
Mount points for panniers
Turn signals
Green paint (should look like Green but updated)
Use as much of the SP as possible

Seems pretty straight forward but that was before I started looking at what parts I had and how these were going to fit.

Fit/ No Fit list:

SP swingarm – fits (Yay!)
SP shocks – fits (Woohoo!)
SP engine and exhaust – fits (Wot!)
SP handlebars and controls – fits (I would hope so!)
SP seat – doesn’t fit
SP rear fender – doesn’t fit
SP panniers mounts – doesn’t fit
Tomos front forks and wheel – sort of fits

No idea why I thought this would just bolt up but here we are.

Taking a look at the frame there are a lot of mounting parts that I just don’t need…and this frame needs a little fresh paint anyway so it’s grinder time. (Use your imagination…I forgot to take pictures)

Poof! Done.

Now to out these parts together-ish…

And there you have it! It’s looking like a moped…but it’s not green yet!

Next up…wires and gauges and what the heck was I thinking!

April 12, 2017

103SP to TSM-SP or Mini TSM or whatever, you get the picture

Green Machine was my first French moped and the start of my love of silly swinging engines. From the first time I took a ride on a stock 103SP, I was fascinated with the performance of the “Cadillac” of mopeds. (Not my term that credit goes to Jerry Murray from his book; Mo-Ped The Wonder Vehicle)

Green was the most exciting thing I had built and even a fast Honda MB5 didn’t change that. I put thousands of miles on the bike and eventually the fact that I didn’t have a crossbar on it for much of its speedy life finally caught up to me. The tank started leaking and brazing is not my strong suit…yet.

I decided it was time for the 103SP to evolve. I loved everything about it except the fuel capacity. The ride height fit me well and it could handle dubs without issue…so where to go next?

I thought about removing the tank and fitting on a bigger one but then remembered that I had a tank and a frame. Oh right I have a blog about a moped I’ve never built!

Time to transition Green the 103SP to Green the TSM-SP? Why a TSM-SP? Well I’m short and a regular TSM is tall…like me on my tiptoes tall. My 103SP is lowered and I like to think the SP stands for “Short Person”. Thus the TSM-SP is born!

Thankfully it’s the shocks, fork and seat that make a TSM tall just like a 103SP…so let the parts harvest commence.

I’m going to use everything from the 103SP except the frame, seat and side covers. The 103SP’s tank now is empty with a coat of oil in it and it tucked up in the rafters of my garage for when I get around to fixing that leaky tank.

Next up…why Peugeot mopeds are not like Legos.