Home made Chain Oiler, 5 Euros!
 

OK, here it is! it was a doddle to make, and it works pretty good, more testing to be done in Daylight tomorrow.....
here are some pics of the various steps. took me less than 1 hour start to finish (ok I had a break for lunch to let the glue dry, but actual build time less than an Hour) enjoy!:thumbup1:
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...leposition.jpg
bottle cable tied in position, awaiting addition of tubing, 250ml bottle, would prefer 150ml or 100ml
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...stickbetwe.jpg
above: there is a piece of plastic lolly stick jammed between the cable ties to separate them and keep them firmly in the end of the tube, i am just enlarging the hole to allow better oil flow
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...ndbendtoro.jpg
here you can see the piece of brazing rod i used ( you could use copper wire or a bit of Coathanger)
this makes it easier to position the end "feeders", the inside edges of the "feeders, which are made from cable ties are grooved with a Stanley knife blade , 3 grooves lengthwise, to aid with the flow of oil to the tip

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...ONpisition.jpg
Above: the tap here is in the "ON" position, if the lever was straight up, it would be in the "OFF" position
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...hesprocket.jpg
In the above picture Inoticed the end was too near the sprocket so then adjusted it, that is why there is wire inside the tubing, so it can be bent and keeps its shape..... Note: Oil is visible just a drip, right on the very Tip, the grooves are working!
so far so good......... if anyone wants step by step instructions I will post all the pics ( about 35 and instructions) on instructables.com with a link

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...monthebike.jpg
Above: Finished Installation.

cheers

Martyn :mchappy:

Nice work Martyn - you might remember this thread about the same topic:

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...in-oiler-28074

So, one question - why do all of these systems go to the back sprocket and not the (nearer) front drive sproket?

If they were put on the front sproket you would have the oil splashing all over your engine block just after it hits the chain, causing that horrible smell and smoke.

Where as if it's on the rear then it just goes over your tires when your riding slowly, something you have to watch out for.

plus you want the oil to be driven into the chain from the sprocket by centrifugal force, putting the oil on the rear sprocket allows the chain to be in contact with the oily sprocket for longer - and if you mounted on the front you would have to get it onto the top of the sprocket for it to work at all, which would be logistically difficult.

My DIY oiler, that I posted about some time ago, originally went to the rear sprocket but from day one had a problem with oil dripping onto the tyre when the bike was parked.
I moved the outlet to the top of the front sprocket back in the summer and so far so good. There is a bit of overoiling splash but it drips onto the bashplate and away from the tyre

thats why this is here.........
 

Thats why I fitted this little tap!.....no more drips unless i forget to turn it off.......and knowing myself that will be 90% of the time!:oops2:

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...ONpisition.jpg

Back of Beyond, can you make it so that the oil line gets an air bubble in it while the bikes parked over night, just route the line above the oil reserviour the pressure difference will pull air into the line when your stopped.

That's what I've done that way the oil only starts to come out after about 5-7 minutes riding, only thing is slow riding through traffic or when stationary and the bikes running, then I normally get a few drips.

I've not checked since I put on my Touratech Chain Guide last week as I now have it running down into that first then going on the chain, I'm hoping it would stop some of the mess, I will check it once it's light again.

Hope that helps.

erm, is this a gravity fed system or is it powered off a manifold spigot?

If it is gravity fed then I'm afraid putting the resevoir lower would cause it to stop alltogether

I think drips are inherent in my design because of the long tube that goes from the reservoir to the sprocket. In martyn's design the tap is located close to the sprocket and will probably have minimal drip from the tube (if he remembers to turn it off!).
His bike has the stand on the same side as the chain so that when parked the sprocket leans away from the tyre and drips go on the floor, mine unfortunately has the chain on the other side so drips fall onto the tyre. The oil for these drips come from tube drainage and with a long tube going from the reservoir it takes a fair while to drain. Using one of martyn's taps would have been a good idea but I made the oiler out of scrap lying around in the garage and didn't find a tap.
I can see the principal behind your "block it with a bubble" idea, I'm just not clear on how I could make it work in practice.

I need a rethink!
 

Backof beyond, after todays run out, im going to change my design! to front sprocket oiling like yours........ Because..

1.) the oils oversplash on rear tyre caused some amazing sideways nearly brown trouser moments today!:helpsmilie:

2.) when I fiddled with the end of the tube to try to move it away from the sprocket it made the problem worse.

3.) I think I am going to go back to the drawing board, remove the lot and redesign with brackets rather than cable ties and a better oil delivery system. for safetys sake if nothing else!

Martyn

Too much oil.

And possibly the wrong place?

On an old bike I had .. the oil was contained in the swing arm, a needle valve controlled the flow - both on and off and its rate. The flow was directed to the chain just before it contacted the rear sproket. I think this is the longest run of chain where it is most stable (whre it goes around teh sproket, so the oil has a chance not to be splashed off. As the chain/oil went around teh sproket the oil would be centrifically flug towards the outer surface of the chain - having been delivered to the inner surface - if did get good coverage. You don't need much oil at all, I used to leave it on for a cup of tea... may be a drop afterwards. The side stand was on the side with the chain so drops if they fell - fell away from the tyre.


Before you build it permant - experiment as to

1) rate of flow.
2) where to put the oil.

Good luck - and let us know how it goes.

It's not clear from the pics but I can't see anything in your system that limits the rate at which the oil flows down the tube. I jammed a piece of plastic with a 2mm ? hole (mig welder liner) at the end of the clear tubing to limit the flow rate. This makes sure the oil doesn't flood out. The reservoir end also has a 3mm outlet to limit the flow rate down the tube. These holes are really too small for my normal 90 grade gear oil in the winter but fine in the summer. You're only looking for a drip a minute or so.

What it comes down to, I suppose, is how much time and effort you want to put into these things. I did consider knocking up a needle valve based control system on the lathe using carburettor jets / needles and calibrating it against temperature and oil viscosity but it would have been easier just to go and buy one - secondhand scottoilers come up regularly on ebay.

An electronically controlled pumped system is probably the way to go and there are several designs to crib on the internet (mainly in german for some reason), some of them looking like they cost more than the bike they are fitted to. I tried to convince my son that building one of them would be perfect for his gcse electronics project - particularly as he was doing german gcse as well, but I think he saw through the ploy.

flow rate adjusters!!!! lol
 

The little chrome "TAP" is actually an aquarium air-flow adjuster, used to adjust the rate of air flowing to an air-stone from a pump....... therefore it SHOULD also limit the flow of oil. I just need to practice how far to turn it.:thumbup1:

Martyn

Im interested!!
 

Hey Martyn, :thumbup1:

please send the step by step guide. (is it completed yet?)
Im the type that likes to forget/lazy to oil my chain:nono:

Had my DID snapped in the midlle of a back road, during a 400km ride, Luckily I was still in the area where public buses & workshops were still
nearby.:(



:scooter:
Ride Safe/Save/Sober

Step by step
 

Hiya Osama, still a few pics to add and some more revised instructions ( such as try using thicker oil if you value your ass/bike/sanity) will get it finished before the weekend, if you PM me your email addy I will send it off to you ASAP.

Martyn

No point in 'calibrating' the flow rate adjustor ..

On the old bike I just marked the needle valve head so when pointed to the rear it was about right .. screw in for less, out for more .. screw in all the way for off.

---- IIRC someone used a human drip feed adjustor as their flow rate adjustor .. think it was a wedge against the tubing .. humm a small scew clamp agains the tubing would work .. may not shut it all off and may be non linear but who cares?

suggestion
 

to make it automaticaly shut off you could use a injector from a car,
these are nothing more than a tube with a naturaly closing thingy, when you put tension (12 volt) on it, it will open.
so if you connect it to the ignition powersupply line, it will allow flow. if you stop driving and remove the key it will stop.

injector
 

hi guys i feel a bit stupid asking this question but here it comes? why are u going through all this hassle for lubrication? is it not easier to keep a can of lubricating oil and use it whenit is needed? i am just asking since i am relatively new to long distance riding and i normaly use my bike to commute from home to work etc not long distance sine i live on a small island. planning for a long distance trip next year though. so should i think about something similar or just stick to the normal lubrication ways?

ozzee......its like this
 

The short answer: cos its fun messin with bikes!

the easy answer is......Because some company makes something that does this for a lot of money and I wanted to make one cheap.

the complicated longer answer is:Because some company makes something that does this for a lot of money and I wanted to make one cheap AND I cant be bothered to lube every day, wanted to find a system that did it for me cos im basically lazy as well as no money.

Martyn

Way to go
 

Yep, spot on!
KISS wins again.

Hi ozzee , if you are only doing short runs then it doesn't really matter whether you have an automatic oiler or you just spray on oil or use a paint brush or whatever .
But on a long run the auto oiler will be better because it drops oil onto the chain as you ride , thus the chain is being oiled when it actually needs lubrication .Centrifugal action also spreads the oil over the chain and sprocket for you and helps prevent waste because you use less oil .

@ Martynbiker
no need to change the font size..:surrender:. beeing an electrical engineer this was the kiss methode.:tongue_smilie:

the none kiss methode :tongue3: is a discription of the electrical circuit how to make the injector limit the oil flow and increasing it while the speed increases...

but others reading it might not intantly understand the injector trick.

yes please! im game for a go at that
 

any chance of a "how to" posting on that one then? sounds like fun!

Martyn

Dunno what all the fuss is about either, All my old Triumphs had a chain oiler built in, they vented crankcase oil via a timed outlet off teh inlet camshaft to spray the chain as it went over the gearbox sprocket. Spare oil would tend to run down the engine casing which often mislead ill informed people to think their bike was leaking oil. My BMW does not need one :)

:rofl:

I had T140V that had a total loss lubrication system too.......:thumbup1:

same here .... LAZY/NO MONEY:clap:

Chaep?
 

Injectors anit cheap .. well not cheap enough for me to use them there..

cheap as chips mate!
 

what you need is an injector from an XR3 or something similar, the scrap yards are full of them! i doubt they would charge you more than a couple of beers for one, or go to a BOSCH Fuel Injection Centre, tell them what you are doing and ask for an old injector that doesn't spray correctly, what you want is a worn one, not a clogged one.( remember we want it to drip Oil, not atomise fuel) and they will probably let you have as many as you want out of the bin.

Happy Huntin'

Martyn:mchappy:

i'm sorry that i made you walk away from you kiss believe :oops2:
and i don't want to look like a geek.
so that is not going to happen anytime soon..but it would be the easy on a bmw with injection once you have taped into the digital system, just to bad they don't need it.

Hi Martyn. I think what you are doing is a great idea, and have tried it myself, but there is one company that does it for not a lot of money.
LOOBMAN - manual chain lubrication system for all motorcycles with regular, O-Ring and X-Ring chains

17 UK pounds, while a lot more than your 5 pound affair, it still pretty cheap and it's all there and sorted.

Regards

Nigel in NZ

Nigel, its like this....
 

I know I can get one for 17 quid. but it still only costs em about 3 quid to make em!, and I am so tight you wouldn't believe it, I cannot pay for something I can make myself.. even if it takes me longer in man hours than it would have took to earn the money.
Besides, being unemployed here in Spain, and with very little money, every Euro saved is a litre of fuel for riding. I dont drink or smoke, so my bike is my only pleasure! and besides, I have to have something to do when im not riding......


Martyn

you sure like me!!
 

Hey Martyn,
we're very much alike... unfortunately:(
(some people just dont understand)

Maybe you should copy the loobman design!:thumbup1:


:scooter:
Ride Safe/Save/Sober/Smokefree
(but only from exhaust pipe)

I know what you meant Osama!
 

Its OK I know what you meant......

Actually, it was the LOOBMAN design I was trying to copy........ but with a tap! anyway Osama, I promised you some pictures and still haven't sent them...., so I am gonna kick myself up the Bum, and send them to your email address NOW!

Cheers Fella!

Martyn

Well?
 

When is "NOW"? :rofl:

check your email!
 

I sent them 2 days ago Radzi! compressed file......

Sorry, Sorry
 

Got it! Got it!:clap:

:oops2:Just checked my gmail. I thought you send it to my yahoo:(

Thanks, very nice:thumbup1:

will let you know the progress!




Sweet As

roflmao!
 

:innocent:

No worries.... Happy to help out :D

Sorry for the late reply, but sometimes its not easy to keep track of all the threads and posts... Thanks guys for the replys.. since i come from a little island in the middle of the Med and am new to long distance travelling i never needed such a thing. but it is a good idea, and knowing me its good to avoid the hassle of constantly oiling the chain, i ll probably forget to oil it anyway ! :thumbup1:

front or rear?
 

Hey Martyn,
the pics you send me; which sysytem is it? Front or rear sprocket? :confused1:

Hiya fella!
 

Hiya Fella, how ya doin? the pic is actually the rear sprocket....... the large silver thing next to it is called a swingarm....bit of a give away that.:rofl:
I know the close up pic is a bit misleading.

and here is some free advice. make sure it drips about 1 to 3 drips a MINUTE.
no more than that....... otherwise you will end up with oil all over your tyres and a bruised arse. Dont ask me how i know :eek3:

Martyn

silly question..
 

Martyn,

how does the oil flow from the bottle to the chain?
Garvity? Just like using a hose to clean aquarium technique...:confused1:

Hmmm should try it tomorrow... bought all the stuff for less than a quid! :thumbup1:(except for oil & tie cable)

Hey Martyn...I'm still building up to 8 posts so here's one.

This rips off the Loobman system but how about lengthening your supply line from the tap to the sprocket and adding an airlock/lowpoint to it whilst shortening the line between the tap and bottle?

Instead of having the tap on permanently you just open it up between the sprocket and bottle to fill the feed line then shut it and let it drip and repeat as required.

I had a Loobman on my SV1000S but hated the mounting position as I wanted the bottle out of sight and wandering hands so I mounted it under my rear seat. At least this way I can make up another kit and mount the tap outside.

YOU'RE A PHARKIN PENNYTECH GENIUS!

Love your work man!

why thank you Dude!
 

Thats the nicest way I have ever been called a 'tightarse'!:thumbup1:

I reckon every penny saved is a little more ridin' I can do. I struggle like hell to save enough to repair/insure/ride but seeing as i neither smoke n or drink and am single, I manage.

Thanks for the compliments. watch this space for the latest invention coming for the summer, the Hammock Tent!...:thumbup1:
full instructions will be posted on instructables.com on how to make your own hammock with flysheet for a fraction of the cost of a shop bought'
one. i weigh loads ( 6'2" 140kg so its good n strong! ) ok it isnt as pretty, but it does the job, weighs less than 4lbs and takes up less room than a tent. 4 mins max to put up, ( inc mozzy net)

Martyn

Looking forward to it.. Here's a word for it.. "re-innovation" (R) :)

I just bought a shiny new Hennessy Hammock.. I can send u some pics, if that helps.
.