MMI (Motorcycle Mechanics Institute)

End of the day in clinic 7


Of the many residential groups who are temporary transplants to Phoenix, some of the most interesting are the MMI students. I happen to be currently be a student, so it is also the group that I know best. Since there are only two places in the U.S. where one can get basic factory training, Phoenix, AZ and Orlando, FL, there are people of all ages from all over the country and a few foreign students at the Phoenix campus.

It is a much tougher thing to get one's motorcycle mechanics,(technicians) certification than I thought. One of the main difficulties is the draconian attendance policy. A minimum of 90% is required for graduation and, if you want to get a job somewhere when you are done, you had better do much better than that. The reason attendance is so closely monitored is because shops and factories value that factor highly as an indicator of employability.

There are no excuses to be absent or tardy, none. If you are late or absent it comes off your overall score, no excuses. Life sometimes does things that force you to have to be somewhere else though, and it can be frustrating to lose your perfect attendance over a one time medical emergency or something of that nature. Why is it hard to be somewhere five hours a day? Most people go to work everyday, right? Fair enough, but most students are here on full financial aid and many get little or no help from home so they are forced to work unusual, long hours at low paying jobs as well as go to school. So if one can manage just to get to MMI everyday it can be a huge deal.



Good work guys! Now can you put it back on?

The classes, or clinics, as they are called are a mixed bag. It all depends on what instructor you get for any given clinic. They are as diverse in background and personality as the students. All of them are excellent mechanics however their skill as teachers is all over the map. Although, once one gets beyond clinic six the teaching philosophy changes from a hand-holding approach to, "If it is broken when you get it, fix it. If you don't understand it or don't know how to do it, look it up." So the instructors teaching style does not really matter all that much.

One of the main things that drive a lot of people to finish it out of sheer will to shake off the stigma of being a "Blue Shirt." Even though the school would not exist without students, it is still a pretty lowly thing to be one in that environment. For example, overheard instructor to instructor joke - Q. When is it OK to drop a V-Rod off a lift? A. Whenever there are a couple of blue shirts under it, ha ha. So, beyond endurance it takes a little sense of humor to keep motoring along in the program.



Clinic 4, Basic Electrical



What happens afterward? Although the hard data is somewhat conflicting, it appears that the service industry will continue to be stable and even grow in this economy.
MMI has a highly touted life-long job placement program which has already helped people I know personally. So the prospects for employment in the power sports industry are optimistic. Ultimately it is whatever you make it.

MMI is a place where real learning goes on and the discipline of the craft, if taken seriously, can be life changing. In spite of the hardships and just general weirdness of the whole place, I think it is working out as a good stop on many peoples' journeys through life. Will keep you posted as the ride continues.

Brake Pads and Tires

What are the two most important parts of a motorcycle? I am quite sure that question would elicit a lot of different responses from different people. I can tell you though as a technician in training who has been drilled in these matter extensively, the correct answer is BRAKES and TIRES. These are the two things that, if they fail, can take you down and hurt you or kill you!

Brake pad thickness is easy to check visually, although it sometimes requires a small flashlight which should be part of your tool kit anyway. It is pretty obvious when a brake pad is getting thin, but even so most have wear indicators. Shown below are pads off the same bike. One new showing the wear indicators and the other worn almost all the way down to the metal.



Here is a typical brake caliper mounted on a bike for reference.



There are minor variances on how to check the pads on different bikes with different calipers, but the basic procedure is the same.

You can get a good general idea of the condition by just looking down the end of the caliper as illustrated.

This is obviously a new set of pads...if they were worn they would be riding much farther from the rotor.



If you want to take a look at the actual wear marks you can look down the top. They are kind of hard to see on these Brembo calipers, but most imports have the pin on the side so it is much easier.

Cooking Heads!

For me, this has got to be one of the best Ghetto Garages yet. Here in Phoenix, AZ, home of Motorcycle Mechanics Institute (MMI) where they train "best of the best," homegrown techniques are alive and well.

Just before Christmas vacation one of the projects in machine shop was a practice top end rebuild. Some of it was pretty awesome like boring the cylinder and measuring all the clearances.



MMI Class Room E2



Machine Shop E1 during a rare calm moment



My Favorite Part...Boring Cylinders...That, is serious fun.

That is not the best part though, that would be the "Turkey Pots." Certain machine parts, such as some valve guides, are actually slightly larger than the holes they fit in. A so-called interference fit. In order to remove or insert them the surrounding material must be heated. One would think that a place like MMI would have something high-tech for this. Ahhhh, but not so.



Behold the Turkey Pots!



Yep! That is a Wal-Mart hot plate under there.



It works though.

Diesel

Bikes the Run on Just About Anything...The Wave of the Future?



Kawasaki KLR650 Modified by Hayes Diesel Technologies

To try to predict the future...ahhh...now there is a concept! Those of us in the power sports industry would like to believe that our beloved two-wheeled machines are going to be a big part of the ongoing transportation revolution. Oddly enough, the good old U. S. Military may be helping us along in that direction

History




The Norton Motorcycle.

In the early 1950's Arthur Alexander Sidney developed a revolutionary high speed Diesel engine of 500cc capacity which was comprised mainly or Aluminium. Firstly to help prove the engine, secondly to simulate different loads upon it and thirdly to show it to potential customers he fitted it into a Norton motorcycle frame.
His son, Arthur Anthony Sidney joined him in 1956 at the workshop in Saltdean, Brighton, and together they tested the Diesel Motorcycle driving it as far a field as West Drayton, London where another engine had been fitted to a Dumper Truck owned by a company called Road Machines.
The bike produced 10-14 BHP at around 4000 RPM. It was possible to kick-start the machine with the valves lifted but on cold mornings it really needed to be pushed or towed behind a car.
Top speed was about 55 MPH using a standard Norton Gearbox and the engine had, as you'd expect, bags of torque. Getting over the hills outside Brighton was no problem but acceleration was relatively slow.
The large exposed flywheel could be dangerous at times but the very fact that it was exposed helped enormously when setting up the engines timing.

The Engine.

The engine itself was made from Aluminium to a: help dissipate the heat and b: save weight. Any loss of strength, considering the high compression ratio, was compensated for by the use of tensile steel rods which ran from the main bearings up to the cylinder head. The piston also carried a relief for the valve.
The combustion chamber was of the 'squirt type' being machined into the cast iron cylinder head. Fuel injection was by CAV pump with modified nozzle (to give optimum spray profile and combustion).
The crankshaft was pressure lubricated and ran in phosphor bronze plain bearings (a massive construction) and the cylinder block was lined.
Testing took place on a Heenan & Fronda water break Dynamometer. Only 4 engines were made and all parts were manufactured locally in the Brighton area. At one time Ford was interested in aquiring the patent but this was not followed up.



The Royal Enfield Taurus Greaves Diesel Motorcycle

I'm not sure which year Royal Enfield started to make their Diesel motorcycle but as the first major manufacturer to even take a step in this direction they deserve a mention on this page. Once available with either a 325cc or 436cc single cylinder 4 stoke Greaves engine these bikes are no longer in production according to the Official Royal Enfield website. Both versions of this bike have 12 volt electrics, 4 gears, 14.5 litre tanks and 18 to 1 compression ratios. This bike is no longer in production.



The Kawasaki KLR 584cc Diesel Motorcycle

The HDT-RMCS motorcycle is a collaborative venture between Hayes Diversified Technologies (HDT) of California and RMCS to develop a production diesel motorcycle. The engine was designed at RMCS and is being produced by HDT. Development has been undertaken jointly by HDT and RMCS. The bike uses a Kawasaki KLR 650 rolling chassis, modified for military use. Current status of the project is that pre-production bikes have been fully trialled and evaluated by the US Marine Corps. As a result of these trials, the USMC has now accepted the bike for service, and production is expected to commence next year. USMC currently has gasoline KLR650s in service and all these will ultimately be converted for the diesel engine. The UK MoD currently has several bikes under test, and other NATO armies, including France and Germany, have expressed serious interest. We are now looking at other applications, both motorcycle and non-motorcycle, for this engine technology. However, there are NO immediate plans to offer the motorcycle to civilian customers, as we are presently fully committed in satisfying military orders. It is possible that a civilian version of the bike will be made available eventually but this the cost would be about 20% up from a standard bike. For the forseeable future, while the Military are swallowing the cost of this machine, they are unlikely to want to see it sold cheaply to the general public.

Based on a Kawasaki KLR650 the 584cc engine is designed to run on either diesel or aviation kerosene. Some parts from the original engine, such as the generator, have been used on the new machine in order to save money but essentially this motorcycles engine is completely new. This makes this machine completely unique, it being the first purpose built diesel motorcycle engine ever built.





This D.E.R.A. / R.M.C.S Bike (above) produced in1995 has an Enfield Bullet crankcase (beefed up) and a specially made top end which boasts 4 valves! It is of 547cc and produces between 16-18 BHP. Diesel injector is a modified unit from a car while the gearbox has but 4 gears. Apparently the engines flywheel is lighter than you'd normally expect to find on a diesel. The bike clocks 156 MPG @ 40MPH and 184 MPG @ 30MPH. The engine is mounted in a frame supplied by Eric Cheney. This bike easily pulls away from 250cc petrol bikes on cross country runs according to test riders.

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July 18, 2005 The concept of a diesel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel motorcycle is not one that has occurred to a lot of people – at least not many have thought about it for long because despite a rich century of innovation in motorcycling, only a handful of diesel motorcycles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorcycle have existed and until very recently, they have all been utility vehicles – bikes designed to get great economy on fuel of questionable quality in rugged and remote regions and said diesel two-wheelers had no performance pretensions. As we all know, diesel technology has come a long way in recent times and now the sans-sparkplug engine promises a renaissance thanks to its low emissions, good power output and low consumption ... and like so many aspects of technology, it was the muscle of the military dollar that brought the world's first modern production diesel motorcycle into being.

In the utility area of diesel motorcycles, one marque seems to have been synonymous with diesel motorcycles –Royal Enfield http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Enfield – the marque manufactured diesel motorcycles both before and after its move from Britain to India, and as can be seen from this web page, people just seem to like the idea of shoehorning diesel engines into Enfield frames.

On top of that, one of the most utilitarian motorcycles of all time, the Russian Dnepr, is still offered with a HATZ-Diesel engine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel_engine , and there is a small but enthusiastic group of diesel motorcycle enthusiasts who manufacture their own motorcycles using diesel engines of all types.

There’s also a strong following for the diesel motorcycle in Germany, some of which are producing impressive prototype motorcycles such as this Peugeot-engined Kawasaki. If you're interested in diesel motorcycles and developments in the area of diesel on two wheels, check out the DieselMotorcycles web site - a compendium of the very latest in the area.

Hayes Diversified Technologies (HDT) Kawasaki

But despite this strong groundswell of interest, there is currently only one modern production diesel motorcycle - a Kawasaki KLR650-based machine which is remanufactured with a diesel engine for military purposes in response to the new NATO requirements of "One battlefield fuel" with that one fuel being diesel. An initial order for 522 diesel motorcycles has already been placed by the US Marines http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine and keen interest is being shown by the US Army http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army , the UK Ministry of Defence and other NATO forces.

A unique technology partnership between Cranfield University and California-based Hayes Diversified Technologies (HDT) created the bike – the first bike of any kind with a purpose-designed diesel power unit.

John Crocker worked alongside project leader Dr Stuart McGuigan of the Engineering Systems Department, Cranfield University at Shrivenham, Oxfordshire to design the diesel power unit.

The challenge was to come up with a low technical risk design that was sufficiently light and powerful, and with an engine speed (RPM) range wide enough to give the level of performance required for use as a tactical vehicle.

John said: “The motorcycle also had to meet strict NATO requirements for all armed forces to operate their entire inventory of vehicles and powered equipment on either diesel fuel or aviation grade kerosene http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerosene .

“This capability has major logistic advantages in obviating the need to carry other fuels to battle. And their lower flammability, in comparison with petrol, also greatly reduces fire hazards.”

The engine configuration is a liquid cooled, normally aspirated, 584cc (36 cu in) double overhead cam single with four valves per cylinder. Diesel fuel supply is through a special Fuel Injection unit and single injector developed specifically for the task and the Kawasaki-based combat bike produces a respectable 28 bhp at 5500 rpm with meaty flat power delivery from 1500 and 7000 rpm.

Unlike its gas-guzzling counterpart, the engine has multi-fuel compatibility and can use commercial diesel (inc low sulfer fuel), NATO Military Spec Diesel Fuel, Bio-Diesel (B20 or B100), Aviation Kerosene including JP4, JP5, JP8, and AVTR and plain old Kerosene.

And it’s a real 28 horses too – the bike recently set the world’s first land speed record for a diesel fuelled motorcycle.

Fred Hayes, founder of HDT, who was in the saddle at the world famous Bonneville Salt Flats , Utah, said: “The event was marred by rain the previous week and by poor track conditions, which limited the top speeds due to soft, wet salt. The bike was officially timed by the AMA at 85.466mph, against our calculated top speed of 86mph with production gearing. The calculated speed was at sea level (4350ft) on hard pavement. We’re delighted with the result. If we’d had an option for gearing and more track time, we may have broken the 90mph barrier.”

Fred does not rule out that the motorcycle may be made available for the consumer market. “Although the motorcycle is about 20-30% more expensive than a comparative conventional motorcycle, there would be cost savings for riders and environmental benefits in that the diesel motorcycle can do 110 miles per gallon - a little over twice the range of a conventional motorcycle,” said Fred.

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Production Version of Hayes Engine

Hayes Diversified Technologies M1030M1
M1030M1 - Diesel Military Motorcycle
M1030M1 - Diesel Military Motorcycle

After several years engine development at Cranfield University, the M1030M1 has entered service. It is produced by Hayes Diversified Technologies, and it based around a modified Kawasaki KLR650. Top speed is approximately 90 mph (145 km/h) and fuel consumption is advertised to be 96 mpg (US gal) at 55 mph (89 km/h). M1030M1s have successfully taken part at the British National Rally and the International Speed Trials in Bonneville.

The U.S. Marine Corps bought 440 of the M1030M1 model, under the name 'M1030M1 JP8/Diesel'. The M1030M1E AVTUR/Diesel Military motorcycle is sold to British and European NATO countries. A version made for the civilian market, the D650A1 "Bulldog," was originally slated for release in March 2006, but due to increased military demand for the M1030M1, production of the civilian Bulldog has been delayed indefinitely.

Busting the Octane Myth

When you think of Octane, what is the first thing that comes to mind? If you are anything like me you think of the proverbial "Tiger in the Tank." Well ladies and gents and other sentient beings, I am here to tell you that it just 'taint so.

Saving you the technical details, what the octane number is gas actually refers to is its "resistance" to explosion. Now trust me, this is a desirable thing. In high-compression engines there is a tendency for something called "detonation." Detonation is the spontaneous explosion of unburned fuel/air mixture after the actual spark event setting up a secondary shock wave inside the cylinder which slings the piston around in an undesirable manner causing knocking and ultimately damage to the edge of the piston crown and the rings.

A higher octane gas will explode more evenly combating this tendency. It will not, however, add any umph to your engine.

Meeting With A Master

It has been an interesting few days. For reasons which are beyond the scope of this post let's just say the stress level has been through the roof. Since we are going to Roswell Tommorow the bike needs a little attention and there was also the issue of screening in our new micro-patio. What I am leading up to and the point being that I had to go to the hardware store for the first time here in Albuguerque. I was a little worried because I had a hard time finding metric hardware at anyplace but Budget Bolt in Bakersfield. I had heard though that ACE Hardware had a good selection.

Turns out that was a massive undersatement. They have some very impressive rows of hardware, including a section of chrome parts in locked drawers. Not my thing, but cool. I was barely able to comprehend what happened next-I was transported to Mayberry. Yep, in the hardware isle of ACE Hardware in Albuquerque, NM I met Ernest who I swear to God just stepped out of a time machine from somewhere in the great days of Americana.

I handed this guy a trim screw and asked him if he could match it. He took the screw from me and turned it over a few inches from his face and examined it thoughorly and SLOWLY. To say slowly is not even the right word it was as if two different planes of reality were running simultaneously. Mine, at warp drive and high stress, his at one third impulse and no stress.

So then this guy walks ever so slowly with a sort of odd meter gait to the measuring stick, finds the size of the screw, then again ever so slowly walks to where he thinks the most likely place to find the screws will be.

On my inner track of the world I am screaming inside, "can we just get on with this!"

This scenario replayed itself over and over again. It only dawned on me o the ride home that I had just been in presence of a true Zen Master.

(More to come on this post)