The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

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meico
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The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#1

Post by meico »

Good afternoon,
I've long been a lurker on this board and I have always loved watching people document their builds. Since then it has always been a goal of mine to share one of my own. This is my second Goldwing, my first I bought almost ten years ago. It was 1983 GL1100. I... did not do a great job on it. While this was going on I started a family and decided to go back to college, this prompted a cross-country move where I was forced to sell my motorcycle.
In August I found a GL1200 within 200 miles that was an amazing deal. Since my University offers motorcycle parking very cheap and does not offer on-campus car parking I was able to justify it.
Image
I have always been fond of the idea of naming things after literary principals, so I would like to present The Artful Dodger.

This is where I am after Thanksgiving break:
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This bike is my daily driver so this project will be a very slow one. I hope you enjoy.
Last edited by meico on Wed Nov 21, 2018 5:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
meico
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#2

Post by meico »

My first step was to create a new false tank. I was lucky enough to find someone selling one on eBay that was just an hour away. Since this bike is my daily driver I took it to go get replacement parts. To say the trip back was ungainly was a bit of an understatement
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I have been told that GL1200s are hard to strip down but this was a perfect excuse to play with fiberglass. I started by cutting away the sections of the false tank that mold to the front fairing.
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I then glued and wedged foam insulation sheeting material together to make a structure that is larger than the potential area that was needed.
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I am lucky to have access to an Aerospace Engineering lab at my university. Frequently as a Senior Design project, they create foam structures then use fiberglass and carbon fiber to create flight surfaces which are then placed in wind tunnels. I was able to check out a hot wire cutter which cuts through the foam, not unlike butter.
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This was the final shape that I settled on. Now if I were to do this again by hand I would make the curve larger as it looks a bit small to my eye on the bike. Another option I have is to learn how to 3d model and create the entire shape from scratch. I may end up doing this.
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Then, I draped it with aerospace-grade fiberglass sheeting and epoxy. I had to do 4 layers on each side and had many small patches. Adding plastic sheeting between the fiberglass and the foam would have been smart as chiseling the foam back out was not fun. I am very happy with the symmetry of the shape given that I was just eyeballing it.
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From there I sanded the shape with 80, 200, and 400 grit sandpaper to make a smooth surface.
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Then I used a sandable spray paint primer and Rustoleum rattle can paint for the first paint job. I may redo this in the future.
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While I was lucky to get all of the supplies for this (except for the paint) for free this is an easy but time-consuming process. I would guess you could do this for under $50
meico
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#3

Post by meico »

The next task is to create my own dash. I'll start small at first and add features as I go on. There is a connector that connected to the front fairing that is just perfect for what I need. I traced all of the important connections from the instrument cluster to this connector.
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The speedo is a cable not an electrical device so I will use a GPS for now, but I have an idea for a module that I can build. I will design a circuit board with hall effect sensors and epoxy a magnet to the inner cable.

The tach I am attempting to reverse engineer.
Image
The oscilloscope I rented to try to figure this out is giving me inconclusive values. I am getting frequencies that jump between 27 and 80kHz and peak-to-peak values of 80volts.

Does anyone how the tach is supposed to work? I have done quite a bit of googling but I can't find any theory of operation information.

Reading the individual lights will require a custom board since they exceed the typical 3.3 or 5 volt values most microcontrollers use.

I'm going to start poking at the temp and fuel gauges but I think they are straight variable voltage devices.
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5speed
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#4

Post by 5speed »

really nice job on the tank.
I'm guessing you aren't majoring in biology at school? :mrgreen:
1982 1100 standard. (sold)
1986 Yamaha FJ1200
2000 Yamaha Roadstar
1976 GoldWing. running but not on the road
1978 Goldwing. future cafe project.
2019 Can-Am ryker (boss's new ride)

2002 Shadow American Classic(sold)
1983 Shadow 500. (sold)
meico
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#5

Post by meico »

lol, nope not biology. I am a Computer Engineering major.
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sunnbobb
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#6

Post by sunnbobb »

Looking promising.
I found the end of the internet

---- Bradshaw Bikes custom polishing for your wing. Visit us on facebook!

1978 Learning Experience
1980 County Road Hauler "Brain Damage"
1978 Cafe Custom Gl1000 "Vyper"
1977 Bulldog Inspired "Vaincre"
1981 Street Fighter GL1100 "No Quarter"
1983 Supercharged Street Drag "Anubis" (in worx)
1983 gl1100 mint restoration "Kristen"
1985 Aspencade..pondering.
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Track T 2411
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#7

Post by Track T 2411 »

Looks like you've got a good start!
"I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein

"He that is good with a hammer tends to think everything is a nail" - Abraham Maslow

"If you can't take the time to do it right the first time, how are you ever going to find the time to do it over?" -Unknown

Current Rides:
'Grumpy' - '81 Standard, now fully dressed.
'Layla' - '81 Standard w/dealer installed fairing and Hondaline bags.
'Scarlett' '76 'Survivor' nekkid as a j-bird!

Under Construction:
The 'Jalopy' '78-'79 Mash-up
'Quikie' '81 gl1100I back on the lift, project with the step-son!

In The Shed:
'81 gl1100I barn find aka "Josie, the farmer's daughter." (almost comatose build)
'77 gl1000, roller parts bike.
'82 gl1100I, 'Old Crusty' titled roller parts bike (free!)
'82 gl1100I, My first 'Wing, and an expensive lesson!
New2U Bike? Read Me.
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Buli
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#8

Post by Buli »

love to see more.
Kinde
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Easter
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#9

Post by Easter »

Looks like a really nice bike to start with. Good luck with the project. As for the tach, an after market unit is very inexpensive and just takes its signal from one of the coil wires. That usually leaves two other wires to hook up, one for ground and one to power the light inside the unit.
Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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sgwilly
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#10

Post by sgwilly »

Hey now! Easy on the knocking of biologists (they are among you). English majors are a much softer target.
Steve
'09 Yamaha FJR1300AE
'99 Valkyrie Tourer
'89 Isuzu Trooper 3.4L
'83 GL1100 MonkeyWing (on IR)
'75 GL1000 (in the queue)
'70 Suzuki T500 Titan (in the queue)
'64 MGB
IBA #58082
All my stuff is old. It makes me feel young.
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meico
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#11

Post by meico »

Thanks for the info about the aftermarket tach. I am attempting to rebuild the instrument cluster from scratch so I would prefer to avoid aftermarket parts like that. However, with the timing requirements of counting spikes for the Tach and monitoring a hull effect sensor for the speedo I may need multiple microcontrollers, a specialized IC, or hack an aftermarket unit.
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5speed
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#12

Post by 5speed »

sgwilly wrote:Hey now! Easy on the knocking of biologists (they are among you). English majors are a much softer target.
:lol:
my apologies. How about geologists? My son graduates this spring with his degree in geology..he's fair game. :mrgreen:
1982 1100 standard. (sold)
1986 Yamaha FJ1200
2000 Yamaha Roadstar
1976 GoldWing. running but not on the road
1978 Goldwing. future cafe project.
2019 Can-Am ryker (boss's new ride)

2002 Shadow American Classic(sold)
1983 Shadow 500. (sold)
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sgwilly
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#13

Post by sgwilly »

Open season on those rock polishers!
Steve
'09 Yamaha FJR1300AE
'99 Valkyrie Tourer
'89 Isuzu Trooper 3.4L
'83 GL1100 MonkeyWing (on IR)
'75 GL1000 (in the queue)
'70 Suzuki T500 Titan (in the queue)
'64 MGB
IBA #58082
All my stuff is old. It makes me feel young.
SGWilly Gallery
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Wolfie666
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#14

Post by Wolfie666 »

re... tach
Might want to check out the Arduino.
I'm working on it doing a complete dash on a small 1" x 1.5" mini-led display.
I'm doing a tach and speedo, but aftermarket ignition, so already know what the output is.
Arduino Cookbook is a good place for reference, you can pm me for where to get a local copy if you want...
.
Don't take life seriously,
You will never get out alive!
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BikeMaine
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Re: The Artful Dodger - 1985 GL1200

#15

Post by BikeMaine »

Meico, Looking forward to seeing more work from you.
Kevin
1982 GL1100A
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