T'Dubing to Safford for Grinders and Scarlett is operational again

 I was awake in time to catch a nice sunrise today:

A little after 10AM this morning, once temperatures were north of 40 degrees Fahrenheit, Chris Z and I geared up and rode our TW200s the 32+ miles to Safford, AZ.

First stop was gas, then the Ace hardware store where I got epoxy glue for the windshield, four 25mm long steel pins with OD of 10mm.  These were the shortest ones available at the store and I would have to grind them down to 16mm length.  I also picked up two 16mm and two 20mm grade 8.8 M8x1.25 hex head bolts and lock washers.

Also picked up two 3" hose clamps to use on the windshield's lower support arms.

Enter the first Grinder, Chris found a grinder wheel for electric drills that would be able to grind down the steel pins.  I had been thinking I'd have to buy a small grinder/cutting tool for about $40 but the $6 option found by Chris accomplished the mission:

Then, a stop at the Napa Auto Parts Store to get some electronics cleaner, an oil filter for Chris' TW and misc items he needed.

We went to the nearby Walmart for groceries, and after paying for them, we got the second grinders.  These were subs at the Subway shop within the Walmart.  I told Chris that I'd grown accustomed to the storage capacity of a sidecar rig, but the TWs did just fine.

A brief stop at the KFC for a bucket of chicken and we got back on the road headed back to Hot Well Dunes.  The only thing that went wrong with the packing was the bumpiness of the Haekle Road to Hot Well Dunes caused one of the sodas on Chris' TW's front rack to explode and leak.

After negotiating the many potholes almost successfully, we got back and after a brief rest I started on the third grinder of the day.  

Here's the pin we got from town.  Too long of course since the pins that are used on the Ural are 16mm long.

Chris suggested a way to secure the drill that would spin the grinder wheel and here's my field expedient grinder bench (front cargo rack on the VRRV):

Took me about an hour of slowly grinding away material till I got it close to spec.  They're closer to 17 than the stock 16mm length but close enought.

The middle one is untouched.

Chris lent a hand and soon we had the drive shaft angle bracket secured to the final drive.  I made sure to align the forks to keep them in phase.  I had no issue with one of the 20mm bolts but the other one refused to go in smoothly.

The stock bolts are 16mm in length per Ural but to me it seemed that not a lot of threads went into the final drive.  Because of the second 20mm bolt's issues, I ended up using one of the 16mm bolts.  Both bolts went in with Blue Loctite, with the 20mm bolt also using a lock washer.  I skipped the washer on the 16mm bolt to allow 1-2 threads more of grip.   The plan is to find another 20mm bolt or perhaps chase the threads on the final drive side sometime in the future.

A short test ride revealed no issues except for slight difficulty putting it ito 2WD but then I got things to click into place.  Everything stayed together and the we all went to the "cement ponds" for a soak in the hot spring water.  Chris rode in the sidecar while his wife Lori rode his TW200 there and back.  No issues with the repairs, I'm happy to report.

Someday, when I have to replace the driven spline hub on the final drive, I'll also replace the hardware involving the mounting bolt and pins.  The pin holes are a bit "worn" due to the two incidents involving the bolts coming out.  First one while attempting to Ural up Black Mesa, AZ (link to that posting) and the day before today's riding out to Dripping Spring.  Oh well.

Lori and Chris fed me dinner and we called it an early night.  A good day overall, I hope the repairs of the windshield mount prove just as easy tomorrow.