British Biker Winter '20

NEIL DARVELL TAKES US INSIDE

SAMMY MILLER

ONE OF THE WORLD’S GREAT COLLECTION OF BIKES

what's inside... nuts & bolts SAMMY MILLER national veter an r ally a blast from the past hot tips international jampot r ally ride to geeveston distinguished gentleman RIDe CALENDARS MEMBERSHIP FORM

SW PR I NI N TEGR EEDI DITTIO IONN AMPAY R I L2 202 0 109

official magazine of

THE BRITISH motorcycle club of tasmania CONTACT Please address all correspondence including membership inquiries to: The BMCT Secretary postal- c/o South Hobart Post Office, Tasmania, 7004 e-mail- secretary@bmctas.com MEETINGS Last Tuesday of each month, 8pm. at the HOTEL SOHO 128 Davey Street, Hobart.

All welcome, please come along.

President

Gary Smith

M:0407870493

Vice President

Chris Owens

M: 0448 900 082 E: chris@designforpower.com.au

Second Vice Presedent

Bob Findlay

M: E: rhfindlay@hotmail.com

Secretary

Matthew Shepperd

M: 0417 001 426 E: secretary@bmctas.com

Treasurer

Kerry Johnson

M: 0417536385

Magazine Editor

Kent Moore

M: 0408 483 883 E: kentdmoore@gmail.com

Web Site

Kerry Johnson

M: 0417536385

Clubman Records

Rob Walch

M: 0417 514 450 E: robert@walchoptics.com.au

Librarian

Vacant

Technical Officers

John Rettig (SOUTH) Ken Hall (SOUTH) Mick Lemon (NORTH) Grant Murray (NORTH)

Club Auditors

Casey Overeem Francis Hall

Committee Members

John Rook, Grant Murray, John Rettig, Jim Macdonald, Paul Blizzard

M: 0418136834 H: 03 6249 8731 H: 03 6265 9017 M: 0400 660 926 M: 0411 256733

bwww.bmctas.com

Nuts&bolts We now find ourselves in a strange time no riding, no club events at home in isolation.

Hopefully the government will lift the restrictions on us and we can get back on our cycles.

The Tassie Tour was held during March, all those that participated in the Tour had a fantastic time fortunately the tour was completed before the corona virus hit hard.

The tour committee will be starting to set up for the next tour to be held in March 2022. There is a very good article on the tour in the latest old bike magazine as some of you will know the editor of the old bike magazine Jim Scaysbrook was invited to participate in the tour over the first 4 days.

The committee is working on some type of small celebrations to mark the 35th year of the club, we have quite a few ideas but most of this is on hold while we are in corona virus lock down mode.

Some members have expressed their disappointment in not being able to ride as a group/club I for

with gary smith

one would love to get a bike out and ride with fellow club members but unfortunately as a club we cannot ride or meet in a group. All of us with bikes on V C plates have 30 log book riding days per year and our bikes do need a run occasionally.

The annual Richmond show was cancelled and again as soon as the movement restrictions are lifted the committee will look at a new date either later this year or in 2021.

Dick Jones one of our founding members has not been well and is now living in a retirement village in Creek Road, he would enjoy visits from members and again we will have to wait.

While we are in some sort of isolation it is a good time to dig through all the old magazines you may have and submit articles to the editor for publication in the club’s future magazines.

While I have had the club library at home I have been looking through the photo albums, it was interesting to find photos of the clubs very first run to national Park in February 1985. Some of the photos are in this

current issue. As soon as time allows the library will be moved to Casey Overeem’s house in Blackmans Bay, members will be notified once the library has been relocated.

The club trailer is being stored in Moonah and is available to club members contact Gary on 0407870493 to arrange pickup.

Ride safely see and be seen Gary Smith

SAMMY MILLER

by NEIL DARVELL Sammy Miller was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. After attending his first race at the age of 16 in 1951, he followed a career involving both road, dirt/grass track racing and observed trials.

Miller became British Trials Champion 11 times and won the European Trials Championship twice. In his continuing career, Miller is a winner of over 1300 trials, nine gold medals and the International Six Days Trial, as well as coming 3rd in the 1957 250cc Grand Prix in championship. In racing he rode a variety of machines including AJS 7R, Mondial and NSU. Miller has won three 250cc North West 200 events (1956-1958).

Miller rode mainly Ariel motorcycles, including both trials events and the Isle of Man TT races.

When Ariel were absorbed by BSA in 1964, he formed a partnership with a Spanish firm, Bultaco, and went on to become the lead developer of modern two-stroke trials motorcycles. The bike he created was the Sherpa T. This was done in 12 days, realizing his success when he finally cleaned a section on the Sherpa that was uncleanable on his famous Ariel. In his later professional racing career, Miller was involved with Honda.

Miller is best known for the 500cc Ariel HT5 that he lightened considerably from standard ex-factory condition. The bike was famously known by its UK registration mark, GOV 132. It is now an exhibit in the Sammy Miller Museum.

Miller parted from Ariel at the end of 1964, moving to Bultaco motorcycles, then newly imported by the Rickman brothers, a press photo-call with Ariel executive Ken Whistance and competition manager Ernie Smith ending his seven years of association.

During the 1960s he won the Scott Trial six times, twice on an Ariel and four times on a Bultaco.

He set up his own motorcycle parts business in 1964 in New Milton, Hampshire, and put a few of his old racing motorcycles in the corner, later to become the Sammy Miller Motorcycle museum. In 2007 he was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame. He sold his parts business as Sammy Miller Products in 2007.

Today, Miller still in demonstration

rides events.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sammy_Miller)

national veteraN motorcycle rally

by Graeme Guillick The NVMR is held biennially on a rotational basis around all the states, and this year it was Tasmania’s turn to host the rally. It was the 12th such rally, and was based in Ulverstone, as it was the first time Tasmania hosted the rally in 2007. The rally was hosted by the BMCCT, the rally director was Frances Hall, and the committee were Ken Hall, Howard Burrows, John Read, David Moore and myself. The rally is usually held in spring, but after the last rally here in November 2007 where we experienced four seasons of weather every day, it was decided to move it to autumn this time, and we thankfully were blessed with absolutely fabulous weather for the whole week, only a couple of light showers on the first day. And best of all, very little wind! Perfect veteran motorcycling weather.

MARCH 2019 very little notice there was a good attendance and the die was cast; each subsequent rally has seen upwards of 100 entrants coming from all corners of the country. The added cost of travel to Tasmania, or WA for that matter, hasn’t deterred people from going, and at this rally we had just on 100 entrants and upwards of 140 machines entered.

Not bad, and very satisfying for the committee after all the hard work put in.

The runs themselves took advantage of the many good quality roads in the NW (it pays to be in a marginal seat!) and with the undulating territory were challenging at times for the machines – particularly the single speed jobs, but nothing that caused too much grief. The backup vehicles had a few customers on a couple of the hills, notably on the When the first of these National long climb towards Barrington rallies was mooted in 1997, there – this one even defeated my 1912 was some doubt as to just how Precision, failing by about 50m many people would attend. With before the summit. In fact I think

Laurie Deller’s extraordinary Norton was the only single speeder that got to the top of that one without any pushing. There were thankfully a few fit young blokes giving a hand in pushing the bikes up the hill, I know I would have been pretty knocked out without their assistance! The marshalling throughout the rally was first rate, this makes riding a veteran so much easier, not having to be tied up with navigation on top of all the other things you have to do in keeping these early bikes running well. So a big thankyou to the marshals.

There were thankfully no major incidents on the rally, a few breakdowns as to be expected, but no disasters as far as I am aware (ahem, apart from Dave Moore’s Ace while marshaling, which disgraced itself by throwing a rod – ouch).

No accidents of any consequence either, which is a blessing and a testament to sensible riding and good marshalling.

With the weather gods shining on us, and the slick organisation from the rally director especially, the rally was a resounding success with a great atmosphere throughout.

Camaraderie is of course a big part of rallies, and I think the common interest in something that is pretty obscure even among motorcycle enthusiasts means that we are a pretty tight knit bunch. For me certainly these events are often as much about catching up with old

friends as about riding the bikes, though I really do enjoy riding the early machines; they are so different to riding even a bike of say the 1930s that I enjoy the challenge.

That said, they aren’t really that hard to ride, and a well fettled veteran can perform quite well, sitting on around the 50kmh speed with ease on the level.

motorcycle event before, made the comment at the final dinner that he had never encountered such a friendly and enthusiastic group on a rally before. This is so true, and with a pleasingly large number of quite young enthusiasts in attendance (it’s great to not always be one of the “young ones” at events) it ensures that there is a good future for these rallies. I certainly look forward to One of the committee members, them! who had never been to a veteran

CAPS & beanies

$15

POLO SHIRT

$25

POLAR FLEECE

$37

$20

MEDALION

custom

MERCHANDISE

cloth badge

see gary smith for purchasing any of the club merchandise.. some items are available for purchase at the bar at meetings.

A BLAST FROM THE PAST

Don Lowe with his Douglas dragon Fly. Fred Newmans Vincent on display at the City Hall 1985.

Gary Rizzolo’s golden flash at Nation Park feb 85 (on next page) Jim McCulloch and Don Lowe trouble shooting Kath and Jack England

Club magazine A few words about the club magazine...

The content of the magazine is generated by its members and put together by the editor for publication. Club rides need written reports and photos taken for every ride...., so at muster on the day of the ride can this be organised by the ride leader/organiser. Other articles must be a combination of text and photos/images seperate NOT combined in one word doc or similar. Text as images does not work so any scanned images of text will need to be typed up by the contributor.

When submitting to kentdmoore@gmail.com please indicate in the subject line of your email BMCT article. Thanks!

hot tips Induction Port Obstructions (IPO) Introduction.

• One of the most common problems encountered in British motorcycles is induction port obstruction (IPO).

Since the potential for this malady exists in most carburettor engines, it has been found in varying degrees in each of the common British

marques and also in both Japanese and American motorcycles.

• This flaw came with some bikes directly from the factory, while others had it added by various wrench-wielding owners and mechanics. It is found today in bikes ranging from mung and drool laden beaters to professionally over-restored show bikes.

BY grant murray

• The symptoms IPO produces, such as hard starting, rough running and cylinder misfiring, have often caused it to be misdiagnosed as a defective carburettor or ignition system. The most difficult part of the problem is its diagnosis, the easiest part is the fix and the best part is the improvement in performance the fix provides. Since

most of the British bikes currently being restored and/or ridden are equipped with the Amal Monobloc or Concentric carburettor, the specifics of this discussion will be confined to these two instruments, however, the basic principles involved can be applied to other types of carburettors.

Description.

• An IPO exists when any portion of the intake port downstream from the carburettor interferes with and adversely disturbs the air-fuel mixture coming from the carburettor.

• The most significant disturbance of the mixture occurs when the obstruction is located in the lower 1/3 cross- section of the port, with the most critical area being the centre of the bottom of the port near the two small holes drilled in the bottom of the carburettor venturi.

• At idle to 1/8 throttle, the carburettor feeds practically all of the air-fuel mixture through the pilot jet circuit into these two small ports. The mixture enters perpendicular to the passing air stream and immediately makes a

Short Circuited Wiring – Blowing Fuses??

Replace the fuse with a 12v light bulb and then begin disconnecting circuits one at a time. When the light goes out you’re found the circuit which is shorted. Start looking for faults such as worn insulation or loose bare wires.

90 degree turn along the bottom of the carburettor throat. It flows with and eventually blends into the air stream unless there is an obstruction for it to smack into. The smaller the carburettor slide opening and the closer the obstruction is to these ports, the more severe the mixture disturbance and the more exaggerated the resulting symptoms become.

• As the throttle is increased from idle through 1/4 open, the aperture under the slide enlarges which proportionately diminishes the effect of the size and position of the

obstruction.

• From 1/3 to full throttle, the carburettor feeds practically all of its fuel mixture through the needle and main jet circuits and injects it via a raised stand pipe into the central part of the venturi, where a small obstruction anywhere around the circumference of the intake port has little or no adverse effect on it.

• It is important to understand that a carburettor internally mixes air and fuel into an emulsion before it introduces it to the air stream in the venturi to be further atomised.

This entire vaporisation process allows the fuel to be burned more completely in the combustion chamber resulting in more power and less residue. The goal is to maintain this fine dispersion of tiny fuel droplets all the way to the spark plug.

• An obstruction in the intake port causes these tiny fuel droplets to ram into each other and to coalesce back into larger ones, which leads to a more incomplete burn in the combustion chamber resulting in less power and more residue production.

• This residue contains elemental carbon which is a good conductor of electrical current. As an engine with a problematic obstruction is run at idle to 1/8 throttle, this residue builds up in varying degrees on the spark plug porcelain and short circuits away ever-increasing amounts of current until the point is reached where not enough electrical energy is available to jump the gap and ignite the compressed air-fuel charge in the combustion chamber. The resulting cylinder misfire is constant or intermittent depending on other variables.

Diagnosis.

• In a warm engine with new spark plugs and all systems in good tune, the first symptom of an IPO is usually, but not always, a slight to moderate amount of visible black smoke in one or more exhausts when idling, or when the throttle is cracked open slightly. The more black smoke seen, the more severe the obstruction and the sooner other symptoms may occur.

• Hard starting, desensitised idle mixture screw, roughness at idle to partial throttle, poor fuel economy and misfiring at high speed or under load are the usual symptoms which can occur in any sequence and in any combination. These are all due to the carbonising of the spark plug porcelain.

• Running the engine at 1/3 to full throttle at high speeds under light loadings sometimes alleviates the problem by halting and burning off most of the carbon deposition. But, in the real world of street riding, it never gets burned off completely because we are constantly returning to a closed or partial throttle position where the obstruction causes more carbon to be deposited. This cycle of carbonising / decarbonising eventually causes a hard-core of burn-off resistant deposition of carbon to form, that penetrates the small pores and cracks in the porcelain insulator and causes the symptoms to be more varied and severe.

• In most cases of IPO, a change to fresh spark plugs improves the immediate symptoms but does not address the cause, and the whole carbonising cycle starts again.

• Magneto ignition systems are u ually more sensitive to carbon on the spark plugs during starting and lower RPM than coil / battery systems because a magneto produces less electrical energy than a coil in the lower RPM range. A change to a hotter than normal heat range spark plug does not usually have any remedial effect where IPO’s are the cause of carbonising.

• The gross de-atomising effect of most obstructions exceeds the relatively limited capacity of the hottest plug to effectively burn off carbon deposits on its porcelain insulation.

• A helpful diagnostic technique can be used on an engine that has been run long enough to have produced

a dark coloured backflow residue on the walls of the carburettor throat and intake port. After the pilot jet fuel mixture exits the small ports in the carburettor venturi, the path it takes along the floor of the intake port can easily be seen because it keeps the dark residue cleaned away. In a non-obstructed induction port the path will be cleanest at the small exit ports and will gradually taper away as the mixture rises from the floor into the passing air steam. The path will be straight and parallel .to the centreline of the port floor, and will be seen to divide equally between the two intake ports in the case of a Y-manifold.

• In an obstructed induction port, the path can be seen to flow away at an angle from the centreline and / or disappear abruptly after it encounters the obstruction and in the case of a Y- manifold, an unequal distribution between the ports might be visible.

• Think flow; if the path does not look straight, smooth and gradual, you probably have a problematic IPO. Repair.

• The best situation for diagnosis and repair is with the head off the bike. It usually makes it easier to see down the carburettor throat into the intake port and to perform any metal removal; however, removing and installing the head is often more work than simply repairing the IPO with the head in place.

• One of the most difficult type of bikes to work on with the head attached is a single carburettor twin where the carburettor is situated directly in front of the rear frame down tube. Be resourceful and patient and use a variety of lights, mirrors and probes to analyse the possible obstruction.

A bore-light with a small diameter high-intensity bulb at the end of a long slender flexible shaft is much better than a standard flashlight in most cases. A six-inch long wooden applicator stick (a fondue stick with blunt ends) can be very useful to feel an obstructive ledge. This feeling method can sometimes be more sensitive than looking for the ledge due to inadequate lighting and /or poor eyesight. If you can see or feel any ledge or obstruction, chances are that it is a significant problem and must be removed.

• When checking for an IPO, unbolt the two carburettor mounting nuts or bolts enough to allow the carburettor, phenolic spacer, drip shield if so equipped and gasket to drop via gravity to the lowest position to which they can possible be installed. The plan is to port blend at least the bottom 1/3 crosssection of the intake port with all the parts fixed in the position they will automatically assume when installed on the head. If the parts do not automatically line-up well via the carburettor flange studs or bolts, they can be located with two 1/16” steel alignment pins drilled and installed in the areas below and to the inside of the stud holes before any port blending is done.

• If metal has to be removed from the intake port, sandpaper cartridge rolls chucked in a drill motor or a straight or angle die grinder works very well. The angle die grinder is especially handy when the head is still on the bike.

• Lacking those tools, a fine job can be done with a round file and sandpaper wrapped around a wooden dowel. When porting, remember that you are trying to remove any step-up ledge or rise in the floor of the port. A slight stepdown or gradual drop in the floor is okay and actually preferable.

The surface of the finished port should not be polished, as this tends to encourage fuel coalescence and droplet formation on the port walls; the finish left by medium grit sandpaper or cartridge rolls is good and usually matches the existing factory finish very well.

• If the grinding is to be done with the head on the bike, rags or paper towels can be stuffed down the port to prevent debris from entering the cylinder. After the porting is completed, compressed air blown into the spark plug hole and through the open intake valve will keep debris out of the cylinder and clean the port as the rags or paper are removed.

• The phenolic insulator must be reckoned with. If its aperture is too small, grind it; if it is too big or the mounting holes are too sloppy, get another one. Since this and the paper gasket has the greatest chance of being, reinstalled incorrectly in the future and causing an obstruction problem, do whatever it takes to prevent it now.

One method of fool-proofing this is to contact cement a thin paper gasket of the proper thickness (approx. 0.015”) to the head side of the phenolic spacer and port match both the top and bottom of the spacer aperture to the bottom of the intake port opening in the head.

The slight mismatch that might occur at the top of the port with the spacer ported this way poses no practical consequence.

• Since all British motor cycle owners know that the “0” ring in the carburettor mounting flange does not require a gasket between it and the phenolic spacer, and all BSA pre-unit owners know the drip shield is to be installed between the head and phenolic spacer, there is no chance of the spacer being installed incorrectly.

• A thin paper gasket should also be contact cemented and trimmed to the drip shield on the head side after the shield has been port matched to the head. Over tightening of the carburettor mounting nuts or bolts can bend the carb. mounting flange forward causing the carburettor throat to be deformed from round to oval, with the long axis in the vertical plane.

This has the effect of dropping the floor of the carburettor throat and exposing the edge of the bottom of the phenolic spacer. A simple repair would be to grind the spacer and head port accordingly. But, the best approach by far is to place the stripped carburettor body in a special fixture, heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit , and pull it back to its original shape.

• The fixture is simple to make from a 3/8” steel plate, an aluminium bar approximately the size of the slide and an appropriate length cap screw and nut to pull the two pieces toward each other.

• After the carburettor has been straightened would be a good time to treat yourself and your carburettor to a sleeve job. The benefits of this are hard to over emphasise. The short story is that even new Amal carburettors had too much diametrical clearance (approx. 0.009”) between the soft potmetal slide and soft potmetal bodies which increased quickly with use. This allows air to be leaked around the entire length of the slide instead of being forced down and across the pilot jet exit

ports in the floor of the venturi, during idle and partial throttle, to aid in the complete atomisation of the partially emulsified pilot jet mixture.

• A “Catch-22” situation occurs when the air leaking around the slide causes the engine to see a lean condition, actually a reduction in the amount of completely atomised fuel, and to begin to falter. The tuner, in turn, opens the slide and /or richens the pilot jet mixture so that the engine will get enough completely atomised fuel to run properly. However, this causes an increase in the amount of incompletely atomised fuel, which then starts the spark plug carbonising cycle in exactly the same manner as an IPO. This is the reason for an apparent paradox: People with worn out, air-leaking carburettors experience carbon coated spark plugs on a regular basis. A steel sleeve job decreases the slide-to-body clearance to approximately 0.004”, and since a hard metal running against a soft metal is metallurgically compatible, the wear is practically non-existent. It is obvious that a worn carburettor can mimic the symptoms of an IPO and make the best porting and matching job appear to have been a waste of time.

Examples.

• The following is a list of motorcycles in which an IPO has been diagnosed and corrected within the last six years. The examples have been selected specifically to illustrate the many different types of obstructions and the variety of symptoms they can cause.

1. 1956 BSA DB34 Gold Star Clubman. o The engine in this professionally restored bike was a real bitza. It sported a large Concentric MK I carburettor on a cylinder head with an intake port 3/16” smaller in diameter, which, when coupled with excessive clearance in the carb. flange holes and the downward pull of gravity during installation, caused a 1/8” high perpendicular wall at the bottom centre of the port for the pilot jet fuel mixture to ram into. o The owner reported that it ran okay at motorway speeds but loaded up and ran very rough under 35 MPH. After three or four start and

stop cycles, the only way it could be started was to replace the carbon coated sparkplug with a fresh one.

With the head still on the bike, the port was blended back about 11/2” into the head as a temporary fix. A full intake porting was postponed until the next valve job. The bike started and ran fine, time after time and the sparkplug colour remained a normal honey-brown.

2. 1960 BSA A-10 Super Rocket. o This bike usually started well but exhausted a visible amount of black smoke at idle and under light throttle, with the quantity increasing in direct proportion to altitude. Low speed acceleration was not stellar and the spark plugs showed light traces of carbon, but they never really fouled enough to create a misfire. The carburettor was found to have a leaner slide, pilot jet, float level, and needle jet setting than factory recommendations, and the idle mixture screw had little effect when screwed in or out. o The actual problem was that both carburettor mounting flange holes in the Monobloc were too large for the mounting studs, causing the whole carburettor to be mounted low and exposing approximately 1/32” of the bottom centre edge of the intake port edge.

The edge was ported to a match while still on the bike, and the carburettor was returned to factory specifications. The idle mixture screw became very responsive at one turn out, acceleration performance increased, all the adverse symptoms disappeared, and the fuel mileage increased approximately 10%.

3. 1961 Triumph TR6. o During reinstallation of the single Monobloc carburettor, the owner replaced the torn, thin(0.015”) factory paper gasket between the phenolic insulator and the intake manifold with a properly planformed, home-made gasket made from 1/16” (0.063”) thick after-market gasket material. The bike ran fine for a while until the idle became rough. The idle mixture screw became less sensitive, and the carburettor mounting nuts were tightened because they were found to be excessively loose. The roughness at idle and partial throttle got progressively

worse and a tinge of black smoke appeared in the exhaust. The problem was that the thick gasket material had been compressed and extruded circumferencially into the intake port. The obstruction was at its worst at the critical bottom centre because the idle fuel mixture impacting the gasket at that point had teased the paper fibres apart into a hairy fuzz. Replacement with a thin gasket did the trick.

4. 1962 BSA Rocket Gold Star Twin. o Desensitised idle mixture screw, rough idle, visible black smoke only from the right side exhaust at idle or when the throttle was cracked open sharply, and occasional intermittent misfire under load and at high speed, characterised this low mileage, fairly original bike.

The left- side spark plug was always clean. The right- side spark plug was always coated with soft black carbon soot after five minutes of idle and /or part throttle running on a fresh plug. o The root cause was a factory machining error common to some of the late model A10 Big Valve heads with casting part number 67-1549. The left-side carburettor mounting stud hole was drilled and tapped approximately 1/16” low in the head. This caused approximately 1/32” of the lower left- side intake port face of the head to be exposed for the pilot jet mixture to run into. o At reduced throttle openings, the fuel mixture was disproportionately diverted away from the left side of the Y-manifold into the right side.

The manifold was port-matched while still on the bike and all the problems disappeared. Both plugs subsequently developed an equal honey-brown colour. The A10 heads with this particular manufacturing defect are fairly easy to spot while still on a bike, since the carburettor, as mounted, is cocked slightly to the left. I have heard it rumoured from an “old timer” (i.e. anyone who has had 50 or more birthday parties) that this apparently unequal distribution of intake charge to the two cylinders, as evidenced by conflicting spark plug colour, was an on- going intermittent problem throughout the pre-unit twin’s production run. I have been told that the factory made an angled spacer to fit between the carburettor and the head to “point” the carburettor

in the direction of the lean cylinder.

I have never seen one, but I would like to gaze at one of these examples of engineering nonsense before I, too, become an “old timer”.

5. 1962 BSA A-10 Super Rocket. o After an engine rebuild, this bike emitted distinct black exhaust smoke from idle to partial throttle and the plugs carbon-fouled so badly that once stopped, the engine could not be easily restarted without a change to fresh plugs.

During the rebuild, the owner had substituted a reproduction carburettor drip shield for the missing original. The intake port aperture in the reproduction shield was smaller than the carburettor throat and, when mounted in position, presented approximately a 1/16” perpendicular wall for the pilot jet fuel mixture to impact. o Port-matching the shield cured the problem.

6. 1963 Matchless G12 CSR. o This low mileage bike had the optional twin carburettor kit installed. Unlike the right cylinder, the left cylinder produced blacktinged exhaust from idle to part throttle, and the spark plug accumulated excess carbon causing rough running and occasional misfiring. The left-side carburettor was found to have the lip between the “O” ring channel in the mounting flange and the throat bent up at a 20-degree angle into the venturi about 1/16” at the bottom of the carburettor directly in the path of the pilot jet fuel mixture. o The carburettor was stripped, the bare body was heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and the lip was tapped back in place with a hammer and steel mandrel.

machining error (see example #4), gaskets, head insulator block, and a drip shield, each of which intruded into the intake port and caused the pilot jet fuel flow to be disrupted ‘equally’ to each cylinder. o A clean up of all the obstructions produced a bike that now starts reliably every time.

8. 1966 BSA A65 Thunderbolt. o Desensitised idle mixture screw, visible black smoke from both exhaust pipes from idle to partial throttle, occasional misfiring under load, and carbon-coated spark plugs, were all a direct result of severely over tightened carburettor mounting nuts on this bike. The carburettor mounting flanges were bent forward causing the throat to be deformed from round to oval.

This dropped the floor of the throat and exposed approximately 1/16” of the edge of the bottom of the intake port face. o After the carburettor body was straightened to its original shape and sleeved, the problems disappeared.

9. 1975 Norton 850 Commando. o After a ring-and-valve job, a sleeve job on both carburettors and some minor surgery to correct factory-caused cylinder head flaws, this bike ran fine except for an unhappy idle. The left-side cylinder maintained clean spark plugs and good sensitivity to idle mixture adjustment. On the right-side cylinder, the spark plug developed a light carbon coating, the idle mixture adjustment was vague, and no trace of black smoke was visible in the exhaust. The carburettor-tointake port match was excellent on both sides. o The problem turned out to be in the 2” long, bolt-on intake 7. 1963 BSA Rocket Gold Star Twin. port extension piece which o With fresh spark plugs, this low curved downward connecting the mileage bike with a professionally carburettor to the cylinder head. rebuilt engine would start hot Inside the right-side extension or cold and run fine for three to there was a slight rise in the shortfour engine start / stop, cycles of side radius, or floor, of the intake five-to-thirty-mile duration, after port. The pilot jet fuel mixture which it became progressively coming from the carburettor was harder to start. No black smoke was hitting this bump and was being noticeable out of the exhaust, but forced to flow up and over it, causing both plugs developed a dry mottled deatomisation in the process. The black stain of carbon. floor was ported to remove the o The bike was found to have a bump and maintain a constant combination of obstructions dropping radius, which resulted in comprised of the following: a factory a good idle and a clean spark plug.

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This year, when you win, your club wins too! Just nominate British Motorcycle Club when you enter.

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The competition gives you the opportunity to show-off your pride and joy by entering the best photos of your vehicle for your chance to win. Plus, see some of Australia’s Conclusion.

• The physical size of most IPO’s may seem tiny and insignificant to the uninitiated, but the problems they can cause can make even an old timer cry. So, if you ride your bike hard daily, or if you only start and run it once a

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Weekly Winner Prize - $1,000 Cash for you and $500 Cash for your nominated Club year, you owe it to your bike and yourself to spend the small amount of time and effort necessary to inspect it for an IPO. Any British motorcycle owner with even the most rudimentary mechanical ability and hand tools should be able to diagnose and repair this

Best in Show’ Prize - $5,000 Cash for you and $2,500 Cash for your nominated Club. Check you email for more info from our secretary.

problem. The payoff can be a big one in terms of decreased frustration and increased fun with your motor.

(Unknown), Aug 1985

international jampot rally BY jim mcdonald

New Zealand AJS Matchless International Jampot Rally and Pre-Rally Tour, 3rd – 14th February 2020

What a fantastic two weeks of riding the South Island of New Zealand.

Approximately 2000 miles was covered on the Pre Rally tour, without any accidents or major incidents – just the odd breakdown or two. Accompanying the group was a Movie Documentary team, recording the movements, stories and the characters during the rally.

With sunny skies and a warm day in Nelson on the South Island of New Zealand, we were greeted by Murray McLean (Rally Organiser) and John Welch (President of AJS & Matchless NZ). A group of approximately 35 gathered for the briefing for the pre-rally tour for the next 10 days touring the South Island incorporating The Burt Munro Challenge. Riders from

the UK, Tasmania (the other South Island), mainland Australia, and New Zealanders greeted each with a run down on what bike they were each riding and a snippet of where they hale from. Backup vehicles consisted of a truck/trailer with full mechanics tools etc ready for any breakdown and a Chevrolet Impala with Trailer – not your everyday breakdown vehicle.

Monday (Day 1) First day’s ride was about 77 miles, just short jaunt, travelling from Nelson via Kohatu, winding through the Gowan Valley to Lake Rotoroa, then onto the town of Murchison. Riders had the choice of gravel roads through the Braeburn Track (several small fords) or on the sealed road to Murchison where all riders met for a late

lunch and kick back discussing the amazing scenery and ride.

Tuesday (Day 2) Well the rain god’s turned on the water works and torrential rain was the order of the day, however nobody’s enthusiasm or spirit was dampened, just a big test on magnetos and wet weather gear. Murchison to Franz Josef a total of 207 miles. Riders wiggled their way through the Buller Gorge, Westport, stopping at Punakaiki (Pancake Rocks) for a coffee as well as spectacular coast views and a raging sea. Through Greymouth, Hokitika and stopping at Ross for a break at the Empire Hotel viewing a large classic motorcycle and car collection. A long day on the bike, with waterfalls jettisoning out of the mountainsides, wet

foggy weather.

Riders were pleased to arrive at Franz Josef and get into some dry gear.

Wednesday (Day 3) Leaving Franz Josef, riders traversed the Haast Pass to Wanaka, Cardrona Valley onto Arrowtown. Dry conditions and spectacular views from the top of the mountains down into the valleys.

Thursday (Day 4) Early start than organised, as word was out that the road from Queenstown to Invercargill was to be closed at 9am due to road works after the recent floods. All riders and

backup vehicles made it to the checkpoint just in time to ride through. Stopping for morning tea at the town of Lumsden where the community had just pulled from the muddy river a complete locomotion and tender still intact after 90 odd years, with the wheels still able to turn and the timber floor of the coal area in surprisingly good condition.

A big attraction for this historic rail town. From there we moved onto Invercargill setting up for 4 nights either at the Burt Munro Challenge (Week of Speed) camping area or at the comparative luxury of the Ascot Hotel and Resort.

Over the next four days, people

were free to visit several collections, museums and points of interest, including the Burt Munro Challenge events - Hill Climb at the Bluff Hill lookout, Drag Racing, Beach Racing, Speedway, Track Racing and finishing off with the Street Racing. The Transport Museum was a highlight with fully restored trucks, tractors, cars, anything transport related was on show, plus a whole lot more. Motorcycle Mecca was a large warehouse, 3 floors of immaculately restored bikes – a huge collection to suit every taste.

Hayes Engineering and Hardware store housing a great collection of Burt Munro’s bikes and

the blustery days at Invercargill.

Tuesday (Day 9) Alexandra to Geraldine, through historic country towns, past the Brass Monkey Rally site at Oturehua, onto Naseby to view a private collection of bikes, including a super charged Matchless twin and a Vincent powered race car. From Naseby, riders took to the gravel

to traverse Dansey’s Pass – a very windy, steep, narrow and scenic road. Great riding - putting smiles on everyone’s dial. Following the Waitaki River, majestic glacier blue water we arrived at Geraldine.

Wednesday (Day10) Geraldine to Hanmer Springs via Glentunnel, Oxford, Cust, Rangiora, and Culverden.

Again so much

Spectacular Scenery round each corner

associated tools and paraphernalia.

Invercargill certainly is a town for the petrol heads.

Monday (Day 8) Riders headed off on some more fantastic roads through Gore, Roxburgh and onto Alexandra, quite often following the river valley and spectacular water ways. Another warm day which was a pleasant change from

amazing scenery, blue as blue rivers and spectacular mountains – all riders were in awe of the sights and road they travelled. A very warm day, so a relaxing soak at the Hanmer Springs followed by a few drinks and evening meal was most welcomed.

Thursday (Day 11) Hanmer Springs to Te Mahia Bay. Due to road closures on the Molesorth Road and Jollies Pass, riders took to the roads through lush green dairy country to the coastal town of Kaikoura, viewing the ongoing devastation of the earthquakes of 2016. Roadwork’s were the order of

the day, as extensive reconstruction of the coastal road takes place. Onto Blenheim, then to Picton and from there to Te Mahia Bay via a million corners and twisting roads which make up the Queen Charlotte Drive in the Marlborough Sounds. We settled into our accommodation at the Resort which overlooked a magnificent bay, a couple of yachts moored in the water, tropical forest surrounding us. A magic view to sit back and enjoy happy hour, drinks and nibblies before a seafood feast catered by our Kiwi Rally hosts.

Friday (Day 12) Te Mahia Bay to Nelson (again twisty turns and corners) through Linkwater to the

port of Havelock. Through the Rai Valley to the seaside town of Nelson to the Tahuna Caravan Park to collect rally packs for the AJS & Matchless Rally. Time to cleandown bikes, do any repairs, re-stock and revive.

What a tremendous 12 days of all things bike, great roads travelled, spectacular scenery and amazing collections to view and drool over.

A massive thankyou to Murray McLean for organising an exceptional 2 weeks of all things motorbike. Certainly a trip to remember!!

great time to catch up with the new rally riders that had travelled from all parts of the North and South Island.

Saturday the riders congregated at the carpark at Tahuna Caravan Park and headed to Moteka for another viewing of a private collection. This incorporated cars, trucks, and yes more bikes. Up over the Takaka Hill (265 interesting corners) with views to die for if you were game enough to take your eyes of the twisty road.

Into Golden Bay to meet for lunch at the Anatoki Salmon Farm. After a magnificent feast of salmon (hot and cold smoked, sashimi, and other various forms, salads and breads), rally goers participated in a friendly fishing competition.

Members attended the AGM of the NZ AJS & Matchless Owners Register, while others attended yet another collection of military memorabilia, motorbikes and whole lot more stuff at the property of local identity Paul Sangster. All a little overwhelming!!!

From Golden Bay, back over the 265 corners that make up the Takaka Hill returning to Tahuna Camping Park, rally participants readied themselves for the Rally Dinner held at the restaurant within the Caravan Park.

Guest speaker and bush poet, Paul Sangster entertained everyone reeling off one after the other extremely funny stories and poems. Each and everyone one in the room in fits of

Re-grouping at the town of Lumsden prior to the ride into Invercargill

International Jampot Rally 2020 (14th – 16 February 2020) Rally entrants numbered 105 including 7 from Australia and 14 from the UK. Friday afternoon we were welcomed into the private collection of race bikes, Vincents, Broughs, Peugot and Ducatis.

This was at the home of a Nelson resident and coincidentally his next door neighbour had just as big a collection for us to view. This was a collection of GP Race bikes.

What a treat, you just don’t know what is out there in people’s back yards. Both gentlemen were very knowledgeable and great hosts.

Back to the Rally base for a welcome dinner that evening. This was a

laughter. The evening finished off with prizes given out to category winners, along with each of the overseas participants receiving a wooden bowl made out of NZ Kauri tree, dated to be 10 to 20 thousand years old taken from a farm at Glinks Gully, Te Kopuru on the North Island.

Sunday morning breakfast concluded the Rally and participants said their goodbyes and down the road they went, all heading to various areas and home.

The International Rally and PreRally were exceptionally well organised and certainly a show-case for New Zealand. Each and everyone extremely friendly and generous with their time and knowledge. I can highly recommend travelling to New Zealand and riding their amazing roads, breathtaking scenery and the viewing the huge motorbike collections found in every corner.

Re-grouping at the town of Lumsden prior to the ride into Invercargill

New Zealand’s version of a Backup Vehicle for the Tour

Footpath maintenance, quite a common occurrence during the rally - clutch repairsprior to the ride into Invercargill

Just one of the many bike displays visited during the Rally.

Just one of the mint bikes on display at the Motorcycle Mecca in Invercargill.prior to the ride into Invercargill

One of the very few left in the world that haven’t been put into race trim.

Lake Rotoroa in the Gowan Valley 1952 500 Matchless - my bike for the Rally

Rain, rain and more rain on the way to Franz Josef, rest stop at Ross

ride to geeveston BY kerry dickson (3-11-2019) What a funny ol’ day it turned out to be. We were up early but decided not to ride into Salamanca as everyone had to ride back past our place enroute to Geeveston.

Paul got the Falcone out of the shed, kicked her in the guts and went over to the shop to get some fuel. A few minutes later I get a call to come help him push the bike home! WHAT! I dutifully did as I was asked. Paul kicked and kicked and kicked but the old girl did not want to go!

Next, he kicked the ES2 in the guts, she fired up, but then stopped. Kick, kick, kick, kick, kick. Do you think

that bike would start. Not a chance.

Okay, what else can we try (time is against us now!). The old faithful Norton Fastback is the go. Well – kick, kick, kick, kick, kick and then … she fired up. What is going on?

That bike is always a first-timestarter.

Then the Norton Big-4 came out and she fired up okay.

We looked at our watches.

Hhhhmmmmm. Something is not right. The club should have well and truly ridden past our place by now but we heard nothing! We decided to go anyway.

Some fresh fuel at Huonville, then on to Geeveston where, once we turned into the Main Street, were greeted

by a hoard of Brit bikes. Thank goodness the morning wasn’t all in vain. A good chat, a hot drink and before long it was time to head home again.

Everyone left in dribs and drabs with myself, Paul and Paul MARCHMENT (on his lovely old ’56 Beesa) riding together till we got to the top of Lower Longley. It was a lovely day (despite how it begun).

Once home Paul went to the Falcone and you’ll never guess – yep, first kick start and idled beautifully.

Over to the ES2, first kick and idled away. No idea what was going on this morning!

Hhhhmmmmm. Something is not right. The club should have well and truly ridden past our place by now

launceston distinguished gentleman's ride BY martin heatley

Launceston’s Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride 2019 On the last Sunday of September, 28 riders and their bikes gathered at the old Inveresk railyards to participate in the Distinguished Gentlemans Ride; a world wide event to look dapper and ride stylish bikes to raise money and raise awareness for research into prostate cancer and male mental health. In US dollars $5,874,286 was raised this year world wide. Over 7000 riders in 110 countries participated in this world wide phenomenon. More than $26 million has been raised since 2012. This amazing world-wide participation all started in Sydney, Australia (not Sydney, Texas) by a man called Mark Hawa.

Mark saw a photo of the television show Mad Men’s Don Draper, all dressed up in a suit, riding a classic bike. The image I have seen on the wonders of the interweb of said character is upon a Matchless Single. Not sure if that is the one Mark saw. After all Marlon Brando rode a Triumph Thunderbird in ‘the Wild One’ yet there are images of

him sitting on a Matchless twin with the older style ‘M’ badges without wings upside down forming a ‘W’.

Mad Men if you don’t know is a television series set in a 1960s New York advertising agency. Oh the wonders of gogelnet!

Mark wanted people to be on classic bikes or classic-style of bikes, preferable of the café racer genre, to gather together. Gather together, show off and raise money for good causes because the world can’t rely on their governments to do the same. So the DGR came to be. Such places as Launceston in Tasmania, Katoomba in NSW, Horsham in Vic etc, as well as many of the big smogs got into the act all over the world.

So on a beautiful day, the small but very impressive group gathered at Inveresk. We set off, riding through the Launceston CBD and then on backroads to Evandale for a regroup, then onto Longford for lunch at JJ’s bakery, where the upstairs room had been set aside for the DGR participants.

Although I was the organiser for

the Launceston gathering, I was unfortunately incapable of riding my bike as I had been in Hospital for a biopsy on my prostate a couple of days earlier. With the assistance from Ruth my wife, and William our son, we lead the way in our car.

Oh the shame of it all!

Nearly everyone made an effort to ‘dapper up’, Wayne even had a pipe!

This year the Distinguished Gentleman’s (and Gentlewoman’s) Ride will be on again, on the last Sunday in September. With the sad passing of Nigel Fox to the dreaded cancer, it is even more important that we get together, ride our classy bikes and look ever so dapper and donate to this worthy cause! Hope to see you either at Inveresk or join in another DGR else where, you know it makes sense.

If you describe someone as distinguished, you mean that they look very noble and respectable.

He looked very distinguished. ...a distinguished gentleman.

BRITISH MOTORCYCLE CLUB OF TASMANIA INC.

The Secretary, C/o South Hobart Post Office, South Hobart 7004 Tasmania Email: secretary@bmctas.com

The British Motorcycle Club of Tasmania encourages the restoration and safe riding of British and other Motorcycles.

Meetings are held on the last Tuesday of each month at the Hotel SOHO 124 Davey Street Hobart

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION I wish to become a member of the British Motorcycle Club of Tasmania (Inc.) and agree, if accepted, to be bound by the Rules, Constitution, By-Laws or Directions designed to further the interests of Club Members.

This includes attending the next scheduled club meeting to introduce myself and be welcomed as a club member.

Name: Address:

Phone: Mobile: Email:

British Motorcycles owned:

Other Motorcycles owned: Date: Signature: EFT transaction details: Annual Membership Fee: $40-00 Use surname only for identification

BSB: 807-009 Account No: 51101523

Office use only: The above named person is known to us and we believe him/her to be a suitable person to be elected as a member of the British Motorcycle Club of Tasmania (Inc.) Proposer: Seconder: Approved:

Ride safely, see and be seen Gary Smith