Making a Custom Aluminum Dashboard

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 aluminium (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!

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About Lala C. Ballatan

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.

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And here is another random article you might be interested in...

Private Investigators – The Fundamental Facts

If you want to find out about someone's life without their notion, be it regarding a case work, about kidnapping, to collect evidence of illegal conduct by your partner, or anything that you need to know, a private investigator can do that for you. A private investigator, or PI, is a person who does investigations for a private citizen or some other entity not involved with a government or police organization.

What do they do?

Private investigators investigate cyber crimes such as identity theft, illegal downloading of copyrighted material, and harassing e-mails. Many insurance companies hire them to resolve claims. They also investigate cases dealing with civil liability and personal injury cases, child custody and protection cases, insurance claims and fraud, premarital screening, and missing person's cases. They gather information through interviews, investigation and surveillance, and research, including review of public documents.

Many of these private investigators often specialize in a particular field. Some may focus on intellectual property theft, for example, they help clients stop illegal activity, investigate and document acts of piracy, and provide intelligence for prosecution and civil action, where others may deal in developing financial profiles and asset searches.

These investigators are always required to keep detailed notes, and they have to be prepared to testify in court regarding any of the investigations carried out by them. To carry out investigations, they may use various types of surveillance or searches; however they cannot go out of the law, otherwise they can lose their licenses as well as face criminal charges. Private investigators assist attorneys, businesses, and the public, with legal, financial, and personal problems.

Qualifications required:

There are basically no formal education requirements to become a private detective and investigator, though some do have college degrees. Many choose to become a private investigator after their retirement from the military, Federal intelligence jobs, or government auditing and investigative positions. There are many other people who enter this profession from such diverse fields such as accounting, finance, commercial credit, insurance, investigative reporting, and law. Only a few enter the occupation directly after graduation from college, doing a bachelor degree in criminal justice or police science.

Know your Investigator:

There are hundreds of private investigators, so you have to be careful while choosing one for your work. You have to find out from people around you, and it's a good idea to get acquainted with the industry by asking lots of questions. Sometimes you just have to follow your instinct, and also rely upon impressions you get from interviewing the detective as to whether or not you need him, why you need him, and so on.

There are some things that you need to check about the detective before hiring him:

• His license
• His past experience
• His specialties

If he holds a good record and you think you can trust him, then he is the one for you.

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About Paul MacIver

Paul MacIver is a contributing author for http://www.innovative-info.info - Visit http://www.private-investigator-now.info to read more about private investigators and detectives.