Making a Custom Aluminum Dashboard
By Ma. Carla Ballatan
Are you a proud owner of a Moto Guzzi ‘Jackal’? Well, then you
are likely to be an envy of many. But if you missed out on the
benefits of a tachometer, you might just go by the sound and feel
of the engine whether or not it was happy with the revs you are
using during changing up or down the box. We can forgive you if
you are clueless as to what those revs actually were.
Used motorcycle parts like a tachometer could really be a
beneficial thing to improve the general condition of your Moto
Guzzi motorcycle. However, new or second-hand Cali EV dash is not
that easy to get hold of. Given this difficulty, you could
produce a new dashboard for yourself. You could even produce a
better dashboard than the original Jackal item.
Itching to start already? First, you must get a bit of 4mm thick
1050-H14 aluminum (BS 1470), (99.5% pure aluminum, a bit of wet
& dry sandpaper, a couple of drills and a counter sinker for the
warning light cluster / mounting screw holes. If you decide to do
the cutting yourself, you need basic hand tools, drill, hole
cutter for 85mm diameter holes, a small band saw few files and a
couple of medium / fine flap wheels for finishing off the edges
and for doing the brushed satin finish. Water Jet Cutting, Plasma
Cutting, Laser Cutting, CNC Milling are several ways of
manufacturing the aluminum. You can choose any method feasible
for you and that which will create smooth results for your dash..
Here are the steps in cutting out your dash from
http://www.webbikeworld.com/Moto-Guzzi-motorcycles/dashboard-tachometer/:
1. Mark out the plate, including profile and hole centres
2. Centre-pop all of the hole centres
3. Centre-pop the holes using sharp centre-pop. A light tap
should do it.
4. Pilot drill each hole centre using something like a 1/16th
drill
5. Cut the 85mm holes
6. Use the trepanner / tank cutter or an 85mm hole saw.
7. Drill the warning light and mounting holes. De-burr.
8. Finish off the warning light holes using a bit of wet & dry
for a clean edge to the holes.
For the underside of the dash:
1. Cut out the profile using a hacksaw / bandsaw / plasma cutter
2. Smooth off and finish off the edges
3. Use file, wet & dry, wire wool, flap wheel to remove cutting
marks
4. Bend the ‘mounting lugs’ to the correct angle using the
original dash as a pattern
5. To surface finish, hold the drill with both hands and ran the
flap wheel down the dash in one smooth, even stroke, starting at
one side.
Finish-off by getting some Methylated spirit and de-grease the
dash, taking care not to leave any finger marks. Then, spray with
a few coats of acrylic lacquer. For fitting and connections, the
speedo cable fits fine. The article “Install a rev counter on
your motorcycle” at
http://www.articlecity.com/articles/auto_and_trucks/article_195.shtml
may help you with the wiring and the fitting of the dash. You’ll
find it complicating but once you’ve finished, you’ll be even
prouder of having your Moto Guzzi motorcycle with its new
dashboard!
Lala C. Ballatan is a 26 year-old Communication Arts graduate,
with a major in Journalism. Right after graduating last 1999, she
worked for one year as a clerk then became a Research,
Publication and Documentation Program Director at a
non-government organization, which focuses on the rights,
interests and welfare of workers for about four years.
Book reading has always been her greatest passion -- mysteries,
horrors, psycho-thrillers, historical documentaries and classics.
She got hooked into it way back when she was but a shy kid.
Her writing prowess began as early as she was 10 years old in
girlish diaries. With writing, she felt freedom – to express her
viewpoints and assert it, to bring out all concerns -- imagined
and observed, to bear witness.
For comments and inquiries about the article visit
http://www.motorcyclepartsbin.com
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