classic motorcycle forum

Does anyone know which screw goes to which side (inlet and Exhaust) on a Gold Star Oil feed to the head. The oil feed holes on the two screws are quite different - one is probably less than .060" whilst the other is more like 0.100"?

Large hole to the exhaust.

Way back in 1962 when I was an impoverished student I owned an S8. When I bought it, it was attached to a sidecar. Obviously that was very quickly removed and I rode it solo still with side car gearing because, I had no idea about how to convert it. Anyway why would I want to bother with that? It still functioned perfectly well was my logic. The S8 was my every day all weather transport for 2 years, and because I did not know any better it never got any maintainence. If the oil level got low it was topped up (Shell Tellus tractor oil) for some strange long forgotten reason. Due to the side car gearing, initially at least, it excelled on the traffic light grand prix well enough to impress me compared to the C11 that I had previously owned. It was a fate suffered by so many old bikes back then because they were both plentiful and cheap. In this case £15. Can't say fairer than that can you? Well, in spite of all that it proved to be utterly reliable, and only ever once let me down. The dynamo failed. I have no idea why, it might have been worn out brushes, it might have been totally shot, I really have no idea. Anyway the local bike shop fixed it and I was on the road again. I do remember once nearly loosing it due to the back end breaking away. That was at Manor House on the old wooden tram blocks that were still in place in the sixties. I was turning right into Seven Sisters Road from Green Lanes in the pouring rain. The surface was extremely slippery as I very nearly found out the hard way. Eventually the Sunbeam was sold when I was able to afford a BMC Minivan (I could not afford to insure and tax both of them). I have no idea what happened to it after that. I have very fond memories of that bike, I did a lot of miles on it. Most weekends I traveled from London to Huntingdon and I certainly used to press on a bit. Later on I bought a Douglas MK V a lovely little bike, but that is another story.

BSA A10 gear box. Got a problem that I can’t seem to get to the bottom of. Initially when I first go for a ride and everything is cold, the gear change is noiseless and smooth. Selecting neutral from either 1st or 2nd gear while stationary is easy and reliable. After everything has warmed up selecting neutral becomes very difficult, and the best way I can describe it is that gear shift  almost feels as if it is seized solid and will not select neutral at all. This happens after about 15 miles or so. I have replaced the selector forks, and “claw” in the gearbox, and spent a long time setting up the clutch with a dial gauge and according to the guage the pressure plate is lifting absolutely square (four spring clutch with SRM ally pressure plate and radial bearing fitted to the clutch push rod). I have replaced the clutch springs, cups, and spring adjusters too although these symptoms were there before which is why I replaced these items. Gearbox oil is 50 weight  and primary chain case has ATF in it. While riding along the gears change just fine, and it is not until I stop and try to select neutral that I notice any problem. I am lost as to what to investigate next. Anyone got any ideas or suggestions as to what might be the cause of this problem?

A good home made release fluid is 50% ATF and 50% acetone or paint thinners.

Trouble is..... acetone will attack plastic

That's good news.

Not really an entry-level classic though, is it?

Rex, it all depends on how, or what  you would define an entry level classic as being. I no longer own a Douglas, but as 350s were mentioned I thought that including a Douglas to the list of options might be a worth while addition to the list of alternatives. I always found that the Douglas horizontally opposed twins handled and rode well, and that they were easy and straight forward to work on. Everything was easy to get at unlike my present A10 (re-fitting the rocker cover for instance). If you are thinking of a basic motorcycle then a BSA C11 is nice and simple. It is also very durable, the only snag is all old Brits are becoming very expensive to buy (much to the detriment of our hobby) and it is therefore becoming ever more difficult for newcomers to join us, and that is a great pity. What I find depressing is how so often when I am out and about on my bike someone will usually make a comment like " I bet that's worth a few bob" That is totally missing the point. I love my bike for what it is: An old brit bike that I enjoy riding. I do not in any way regard it as an investment or any thing like that.

Thought that I might revive this topic. Here is my first motorcycle. A 1946 tele rigid BSA C11. Of course when I bought it, it was not as is shown in the photograph! Obviousley what you see here, is how it was after the De rigueur mods of a sixteen year old. Clip on handle bars, upswept silencer, dual seat and ally mudguards, all from Pride & Clarke. My version of a mini Goldie (well at least thats how I saw it in my head). That bike proved to be a brilliant buy. I thrashed that bike to within an inch of its life, and despite that it proved to be the last word in reliability. In those days I knew nothing. Never knew what an oil change was, I just topped it up if it look a bit low. I went every where on it and never carried even a spare chain link. When I went to college I used to ride it from London to Huntingdonshire most weekends what ever the weather. I owned the bike for two years then sold it to buy a Sunbeam S8 but that is a different story for another day. All in all it was a great bike, and because of that I still ride a BSA today.

I first noticed this the other day, when I apply the brake, the brake plate flexes at the point where the operating arm spindle passess through the plate. I also noticed that as the brake cable pulls the arm up the spindle moves outwards by about a millimetre or so as it rotates. Is this normal? If it is not can anyone suggest a remedy? other than this the brak operates perfectly well.
John