Well I won't buy one if that video is correct fuel filler neck,tap flange and bottom of tank spot welded what do they use as sealant Paint?.or is there more to it..and very thin gauge metal..Tonupdave..T.U.D.
A billion folks just in that one country, and another billion among Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, etc nearby. Even though an Enfield is still a luxury item in India and only .001% of the population can afford them, that's still a lot of bikes.
Having worked in a metal fabrication factory most of my career, I love these sorts of videos of real things happening.
First thing I notice is exactly the reasons why we find that Indian gas tanks, fenders, etc are often a little bit off spec and mis-sized and need some banging and drilling to fit.
For example, when they stack up half-a-dozen steel sheets in the press to form the basic top of the tank and press them all at once, EVERY ONE of those tanks will be a different size and radius depending on their position in the stack.
And in many of the operations, they are cutting or punching or welding with no jigs, fixtures, or stops to locate exactly where the hole or feature or weld is; all done by eye, like I suppose they still do with Morgan hood louvers. I know that Modi and Vijay have a good eye and a steady hand, but everyone has the Monday-morning bad head or shaky hand every once in a while ....
As far as safety goes, these guys are about at the stage you'd find in a BSA factory video from 1950 as far as safety equipment and procedures, or from my first jobs in 1970. I notice that they are all wearing cut-proof gloves; even the toughest guys would get their hands sliced up handling all that raw-cut sheet steel bare-handed. But no goggles at the grinders with sparks flying everywhere, all these loose clothes around unshielded gears, chain drives, and spinning cutters, and everyone's in open-toed sandals. OUCH! I suppose they'll learn even if the Indian Elfin Safety doesn't show up.
And I like the young guy (what is he, 12 or so?) doing a man's work in the shop with a big grin on his face. He's going to contribute more to the betterment of his world than 10 of our lazy, screen-addicted, helpless momma's boys sitting around gaming in his basement bedroom.....
LannisAt no time in history have the people forcing other people into compliance been the good guys.
The tank bottoms are the worst bit, severe creasing after pressing. They really needed secondary tooling/pressing to get those out. I worked as tool maker myself in my earlier working life. Deep drawing of components was always a problem and required multi stage tools to get components right. The gauge of the metal used in the tanks looks very thin.
I don't know what a good gauge of steel for a quality tank is, or how these tanks compare. They seem to be able to endure a good deal of tossing onto the floor and into piles in the early stages of manufacture.....!
Lannis At no time in history have the people forcing other people into compliance been the good guys.
if that video is correct fuel filler neck,tap flange and bottom of tank spot welded what do they use as sealant
I wondered about that, TUD, so asked a pal who knows about these things. Apparently it's called 'resistive welding'. The work is passed between two rotating wheels carrying welding current which creates what he likened to continuous and uninterrupted spot welds.
Not Indian - Pakistani, for locally produced 70cc motorcycles.
Some suggestions that these are for the "Sohrab JS70", a pressed steel frame light motorcycle with what looks like a manual transmission version of the old Honda C70 engine.
The local price for a Sohrab JS70 seems to be 46000 Pakistani rupees - or around £150 ! That rather puts the production methods into a sharper focus ?
Plenty of other videos on Youtube of light motorcycle parts being made in the same locality volume in what would be considered dreadful conditions here (and frequently from dubious recycled materials), often using child labour. It is, very much, a different world, but they seem to manage & I find it interesting to see how they do so - even if I don't wish to emulate their methods !
on March 4, 2023, 11:43 am