Engineering Firms

[LFrog]

Hey team,

I'm new here and in a bit of a pickle. I ride a Husqvarna Nuda 900 which I've been slowly modifying to be a bike that I will never sell or get rid of.
But I've had some engine troubles and the cams are a bit shot at the moment, I can buy new cams for a bit of a pretty penny but I really want to get them resurfaced/grinded and get a bit more performance out of them.

They're a funny shaped camshaft though, not just the regular shape, but have almost a scallop/flat side on each lobe. I've tried quite a few places but many of them say that they cannot regrind cams like that.

Would anyone have any recommendations, or know someone who might know someone who might be able to point me in the right direction?


Thanks a bunch team

[HenryDorsetCase]

I dont know if they would be interested (it might depend if there are any "bike guys" that work there) but Kelford Cams is the only one that comes to mind - they have the gear and expertise but whether they've the inclination is the key. https://www.kelfordcams.com/nz/ Their website does not suggest they do any bike work but one of the engine builders I follow on youtube seems to use their products exclusively.

[Grumph]

The problem is that pretty well all the cam grinders in NZ use the same type of copy grinders with quite a large diameter grinding wheel. the wheel is too large OD to follow the shape required - it can't do a hollow curve of that size.
Those cams will have been produced on a CNC machine and hardened after cutting.

The cam grinders have the knowledge - but not the machine. The engineering companies with CNC lathes or machining centers don't have the cam design knowledge.

HDC - by I suspect, sheer luck - has mentioned the only cam grinder in NZ with a CNC machine. Kelford. But it's used for long run production work and I've not heard of it being used for one-off's. It's expensive to set up and only pays for itself with multiple identical camshafts being done around the clock on shift work.
i don't know if it can handle the curvature required. It would cost nothing to ask. They used to do a lot of bike work but the current owners have backed away from it in the last few years.

I've not seen the setup on the Husqvarna Nuda - but the only other cam i know of that has this problem in manufacture is the Matchless G50. Making that cam on 1950's machinery required some lateral thinking around milling machines I believe.

I suspect that in the end you may well have to bite the bullet and find replacements from overseas.

[rustys]

As Grumph says, but as a chance give Adrian a call at "Franklin Cams" Pukekohe, hes pretty helpfull.

[Ian Staples]

As Grumph says, but as a chance give Adrian a call at "Franklin Cams" Pukekohe, hes pretty helpfull.

try giving Pete Sales a ring in palmerston north . I saw the cam grinding machine he made believe it of not its base is a 4 cylinder car block . incredibly cleaver piece of engineering