Went over to the speedway last night on Jug. It’s OK – I was only spectating there. But on the way back I was running a good speed on the A120, maybe 75 per or so when the motor went off song. Backed off and it still wasn’t right, though running. Switched the second tap in, and after longer than you might hope it all lit up again OK. Now there was no way I’d done enough on the tank to need reserve at that point.
I’m gonna pull the fuel taps at the weekend for a look and a clean. Anything else I should be thinking of?
It might just have been having a sulk because Rye House lost.
Yeah - albeit by just a couple of points.
I’m back to ‘breaking’ a bike a week again at the moment. Got four lined up to go up on the table this weekend, although one of them ain’t mine.
Have you been syphoning fuel out of Mrs Butch’s diesel car again? 
No, but I did borrow the glow plugs. Just can’t understand it. This weekend I will mostly be;
. Dropping all the fuel out of the Jug tank and then checking the taps.
. Stripping and re-shimming the clutch on the Camel … again (aaaaaaargh).
. Pulling the primary on Hardley looking for the source of some horribly catastrophic sounding rumbles in there.
. Swapping out the starter on my pals Veefer. And adding the relay wiring mod for that.
I only ever used to run mine on the RH tap, and fill up after about 150-170 miles. The one time I went a bit more than that (maybe 200-ish miles) it ran out, so switched to the LH tap but stopped completely after another 2 or 3 miles. The LH tap was completely blocked with rubbish, and there are no riser pipes on mine. Now I alternate between taps so hopefully can detect if one is getting blocked again.
So I drained down the tank and dropped the taps on Saturday. I presume they are the originals – cubes with a lever on one side and a horizontal outlet on the other. They have no tube (riser?) or filter on them, so both sides feed unfiltered from the very bottom of the tank. They are both completely clean and clear. Filters behind the banjos on the carbs are both clean.
I run the bike on the RH tap with the theory being that as I always park the on the side stand the LH tap might have some reserve from the extra that might have accumulated there from the slant. So on two occasions on the road I’ve had the bike falter which has been fixed by switching on the LH tap … but turned out I’d only burnt half the tank off. And then this ‘flatness’ when motoring on the A120 the other night.
I’m wondering if the fuel cap is not quite venting as it might. I’m presuming that too is an original. Hinges on a ring around the filler neck, has a lever on the top that sits fore and aft and takes a 90 degree turn to undo. How best to check this?
Last night I headed out to band practice on Jug. Of the gasoline I’d offloaded at the weekend I took 4 l for other activities and put the rest back in. Barely down the road - on the A120 again, I had the bike hesitating again and without thinking switched in the LH tap also. Stopped at the nearby garage to fill up. Took about 12 l which is pretty much the same as the two other occasions when I’d though I was hitting reserve. Spooky?. This is on a 22 l tank remember.
Pretty damned sure this has to be a blockage on the filler cap vent. Should have popped that before switching in the other tap. Still, another little job for the weekend.
Quite the reverse of a 350 Jawa of fond memory where a combination of full tank and firm braking produced a resonably spectacular fountain of fuel out of the filler cap vent hole and the traditional oily jeans of the proper biker.
To test cap fill the bike then go for a ride.when it falters undo cap and see if it levels out again. Or if there is a sucking sound when you open cap.
Cheers Les
Yeah it seems to be good all the way to around a half tank before I experience it, so really not sure about this.
Meanwhile having shed a side panel out on the highways and byways the freshly revealed battery is showing distinct signs of growth - I have quite a bulge (ooh err). Not sure how this could be material but it is another thing.
Pulled the filler cap off at the weekend. I can see a breather hole in the top, and another underneath. Can’t see how to disassemble the cap, there is a nut underneath but it looks like it is peened over. Wiggled a pointy thing in each of the holes for what it’s worth.
Rang So Low Choppers (Suffolk) on the state of my flattened side panel and they report that it is all the right shape again. And at a very reasonable price. I’ll report back on the quality of this once I’ve picked it up - for my bike I’d rather have a slightly crumpled original than a good repro or (expensive) s/hand replacement. I’ll need to make a new retaining screw for it now - emphasis on ‘retaining’. And it only need a red oxide blow over - keep it simple.
Out on the bike at the weekend and the starter sounded slow ion Sunday morning. Swollen battery now dying I’m kind of guessing. I’ll swap in the Motobatt from Blue for now, and run a meter round the VR at the same time.
(Blue is kind of off the road pending gearbox work and replacement coils.)
Side panel is a goodun. I imagine if you were looking for concourse there might be a thin smear of filler required before smoothing it all out for paint, but as mine was only wearing red oxide paint before I’ll not even be blowing it over for now. Pics are on the FB page.
Battery showed over 13 volts before firing up on Saturday, and 14.5 with a few revs run up. Which I guess is all about right.
Congrats on the side panel.
Did you fix it?
BTW have you run yours on SuperUnleaded? Makes a big difference - engine was designed for higher octane I have discovered
Cheers
Just back from 3 weeks in Oz so not not done many miles on the bike more recently. So don’t know. I guess it needs a positive/negative test to be sure. So fingers crossed really. I have a reserve type cube tap on back order from Gutzibits at the moment.
I always run high octane in all my bikes, if for no other reason than lower or no ethanol content (and The Black Pearl hates std pump fuel).