Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2021 i Real Classic

Love the mention ofWipac, made Lucas look really good. When testing lightweight AMC bikes in the winter I would pull the tarp off my 'tea' bike I had ridden home on, flick the ignition on only to see the knob disappear in the shrubbery. The plastic switch stems did not like the cold weather. Screwdriver out, pop off headlamp assembly, unplug wiring harness from lighting switch, pop in ignition plug and after very carefully turn switch and off my merry way. Don't even mention the battery-less system on the 250 CS models! Great June issue, as expected. I always liked testing the Matchless GS, more torque than the 250s. The heavyweight 350 was ... heavy. Not much fun to ride, felt like you were always pushing it along. Your short-stroke…

Regarding Frank's rubber seal problem for chain lubrication - do what I do: head for your local home brew shop and purchase some of the rubber bungs. They are available in a variety of diameters and hole sizes. Just cut off the thickness you require. It won't matter if it's not perfect because when you tighten the cable into the lubricator it will then seal perfectly. This is what I have done for at least 30 years because my lubricator was one I made back in the 1980s. I thought I could buy the seals but also discovered they are not available, so I made my own and they still work when I need to renew them. Thanks for great magazines. Tony Pearson, member 1329 Good suggestion! The last time…

I have just received RC206, and as usual after reading From the Front I turned to Tales from the Shed. To my most profound shock, horror, and dismay, I found that Frank has succumbed to the Great American Grammar Disaster. The word 'fit' is used when it should be'fitted'! Please, please don't tell me to go and lay down, either. All this aside I have been reading your monthly expositions for many years, and I always look forward to its (albeit delayed these days) arrival. My despair knows no bounds, but I'm sure I'll recover given enough martinis. Allan Macmillan, member Thanks for this, Allan. I love writing - as is probably obvious - and enjoy playing around with language. I do this more in fiction than in the magazine,…

There was a recent article stating that 'modern' gel/ no-maintenance batteries can be a problem, compared to old fashioned lead-acid batteries. Modern batteries have the advantage that they self-discharge a lot more slowly than lead-acid batteries. I was thinking of fitting one to my 1958 Triumph STA but Arthur at Rockerbox advised against it. Lead-acid batteries don't start to discharge until they have been initially charged, by filling them with electrolyte. So a lead-acid battery can sit on the dealer's shelf for many years without being affected. Modern batteries have a limited shelf life and can self-discharge in storage, even to an unrecoverable state. The modern batteries which have the most capacity and quickest charging cycle are Li-Po (Lithium Polymer). Used in electric powered model aircraft they all come partially…

When reading through 'Who's Done What' it would appear that you like detective, thriller and sci-fi novels. At the moment I am watching 'The Last Kingdom; a boxset based on the historical novels of Bernard Cornwall which are fantastic viewing. The stories are about the birth of England, involving Alfred the Great and Uhtred of Bebbanburg, concerning the Danes defeating everything in their path, except Wessex. They are really well written exciting stories which once you get started really draw you in to the plot. I really enjoyed all the books and recommend them. Mai Burgess, member 366 We do indeed enjoy some murder, mystery and mayhem when taking a break from motorcycling! You'll find lots about such things at the website we run: www. murdermayhemandmore.net Rowena…

The Suzuki GSS00 twin isn't a terribly exciting motorcycle. It's simple, straightforward and beloved of training schools and despatch riders, but that's about it. It's a hack, pure and simple, and a classic it isn't. If you look around, you can find one for less than 500 quid. At that price it'll probably belch smoke and have bits missing, but beggars can't be choosers. And some folk deliberately choose to take an alternative pathway ... I've always been impressed by anyone who can turn a motorcycling sow's ear into a silk purse. Spotting Cheyenne Keogh's creation at the Kickback show in Cheltenham, surrounded by radical Harley-Davidsons, Honda Cubs with 400cc motocross engines and chopped Neval Dneprs was a bit of an eye-opener. For a 19 year-old to build a special…

In RC206 Stuart Francis asks for suggestions for future articles in the Classic Techniques strand. Can I suggest one on the fitting of modern electronic regulator rectifiers to older bikes fitted with Lucas alternators and dynamos and rectifiers? And how to do a 6 to 12 Volt conversion at the same time? I know this will popular as I've had several REOC members ask me about it. I've told them what I've done but an overview by someone with knowledge of a wider range of machines would be a good subject! And you know how riders of classic often baulk at doing their own electrics ... Mark Mumford, member 1513 I am probably n o t best placed to do an article on alternator 12V conversions as the last one…

The article in RC206 about the Triumph and Hollywood stars who rode motorcycles is, like most of the features published in your magazine, most interesting to older riders and to lovers of classic motorcycles. When you get a chance, please look into Keenan Wynn's involvement with motorcycles, especially Triumphs. Keenan Wynn may have been as popular as Steve McQueen and was better known than many other Hollywood stars. You will find he was a true blue motorcyclist and may deserve some credit in your great magazine. Antonio Campos Intrigued, I did a little bit of research. Born 1916 in New York, Keenan secured an MGM contract-and rode his bike from the East Coast to the West to join the Hollywood studio system. This photo claims to show him arriving at…

Having located and fettled the main parts required, the building could start in earnest. I've covered lots of the basics like wheelbuilding in previous builds, so rather than do a blow-by-blow account of everything, I'll just pick up on certain aspects and cover them in more detail. Lots of these things are really subtle; if they weren't pointed out you'd never know about them, and even when the build is finished they're not always obvious. And that's kind of the art or craft of the bike-builder; it's to change things sometimes ever so slightly, or design systems that are functional but unobtrusive, and then make all the disparate parts flow into a cohesive whole. The whole idea is when you look at the finished bike, it just looks 'right'. You…

RC206 was another action-packed issue! I particularly enjoyed Frank's re-acquaintance with the Model 18. My first'real' bike was a 1948 16H attached to a stylish Watsonian Avon sidecar, which I bought in the early 1970s when my previous transport - a Ford Anglia - disappeared in the usual cloud of ferric oxide. The Norton, in both outfit and solo form, and latterly with an ES2 engine fitted to make a Model 18 very similar to Frank's, served us well for several years as our only transport. It took us on rainy camping trips to the Lake District and miserably cold treks from Birmingham to County Durham for several family Christmases as well as providing everyday transport. On one of the return journeys from the icy north we stopped to thaw…

I had a surprise when collecting my relined brake shoes from Friction Services. 'We never put chamfers on the brake linings; said Mike. 'Some people prefer chamfers and some don't, and many manufacturers didn't chamfer them on their cars and bikes: So for the first time in ... ever(!), I shall try them with a square edge. Robert Murdoch, member In RC207 David Cooper regales the tale of two similar brakes not performing the same and asks for any advice. Many owners of ancient brake drums have similar problems. In my experience, discovering what type of brake lining material you have for your brake is the main starting point. These days those old-fashioned woven brake linings which we found fitted on our old machines back in the 1950 and before…

Alan Cathcart commented that Ariel were very daring to launch their Sloper in the early 1930s. When we set up the Finnish branch of the Ariel Owners'Club, I met an Arielist who for many years had been collecting Ariel Sloper parts with the intention of building one for himself. We spent a couple of fruitful hours with parts manuals sorting his huge collection of bits from 1931/32. It struck me at the time that Ariel must have been very brave to create similar motorcycles in that terrible depression with such different parts -parts unique to a single year model! Our friend ended up building a 32 SG fourvalver, as the pile of 1932 parts was larger than the pile of bits for the '31. The Ariel Alan was pictured enjoying…

ALL SEASONS Once upon a time, you could have a riding jacket which was (mostly) waterproof but which provided precious little warmth; or one which was warm but let you get wet; or one which was waterproof but far too hot to consider wearing in summer so you inevitably got soaked and/ or frozen and / or parboiled, depending on the time of year. And these days the weather seems to be even less predictable - apart, of course, from the inevitability of precipitation! So let's give a quick three cheers for material sciences - which has developed a new type of wax cotton. Halley Stevensons Cotec wax cotton is significantly lighter than its conventional counterpart (8oz compared to 12oz) and has been fashioned by Merlin Bike Gear into a…

Spurred on by B44 Clive, who had passed up a distant cyclemotor event with a dodgy weather forecast in favour of taking it to the local Sunday haunt, PUB felt spurred into getting hers out too. Tyres pumped up, a spot of oil where required, some two-stroke in the tank and off it went - eventually. It does seem to need too much choke, so some more dedicated attention might be indicated, but nevertheless it made the trip - with just a stop to clear a whisker, remember those?Two such ridiculous little machines fascinated the rufty tufty bikers. As it happens the NACC has just issued a commemorative issue of its magazine to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the club.Coincidentally it is also the 40th anniversary of EACC and the…