Motorcycles – Chasing Motorcycles

Timing the Magneto on your Matchless G12CSR

I read the manual on re-timing the ignition on the big twins (non-Norton). Here is my mild re-write with some extra thoughts.

To re-time the ignition – Twins (Magneto Models). Before proceeding to time the ignition, check the breaker point gap, which should be from .012” to .015”. Ensure that this is done first, as it will affect the advance point if you do it after.

Loosen the nut from the magneto driving gear, and release the gear from the tapered end of the magneto shaft with the correct extractor (part number 015374 – also used for the small crankshaft gear if that ever needs to be pulled).

Remove the inlet rocker cover and spark plug from the off-side cylinder (that’s the right-side of the bike). Insert a rod into the spark plug hole, or if you have it, a dial indicator gauge (if you’re really cool), or a spark plug timing tool as is available on eBay or other outlets (see pic).

Turn the engine in its normal direction until you have found top dead centre after the inlet valve has closed.

Hold the rod in the plug hole, and mark the rod where you can see it register, or mark your dial indicator, adjust the tool, etc… Take out the rod if you’re using it, and mark it higher up 3/8in (9.5mm) for the 500/600cc twins, or 11/32in (8.7mm) for the 650cc models. Put the rod back in (you DID keep it at TDC, right?) and rotate the engine backwards until the higher mark is at your registration point.

Put the ignition control lever on the handlebars in the fully advanced position.

DO NOT Disturb or move the engine. Turn the magneto in a clockwise direction (looking at the contact breaker side, not the shaft side. Keep turning until the contact breaker points are just about to separate as the fibre block moves against the cam.

You can use a piece of cigarette paper or similar super-thin paper between the points to do this, or a test lamp. When it separates, you’re at the exact right position. Press the magneto driving gear back in and lightly tighten the securing nut.

Recheck the timing by repositioning the piston and then tighten everything down. You can check with a degree wheel if you have the engine far enough apart.

3/8” = 39º 11/32” = 35º

And Bob’s your Uncle.

Matchless G12 (’60/’61) Wiring Diagram

I created a wiring diagram for my 1961 G12 Matchless that has colors and makes more sense to me. This is for all AJS/Matchless Twins produced in 1960/1961 with dynamo. Other diagrams (not in color) are in the workshop manuals.

Matchless/AJS wiring Diagram for Magneto Twins

Wiring Diagram — Matchless/AJS Magneto Twins, 1960-1961 (PDF)Download

1969 Royal Enfield Interceptor 750

I have a soft spot for Royal Enfields. I own a new 650 Interceptor and a 2006 Electra. These bikes aren’t the most exciting, but they are really, really nice, have a great heritage and are very well-built.

The original Interceptor was really an awesome bike. It was originally a 700 that was only sold in Canada and the US. Royal Enfield introduced their all new 736 cc twin cylinder engine in 1962 on the 750 Interceptor. The new engine was similar to the 692 cc engine; but there was hardly any part that was not modified or improved. The engine cases were beefed up to withstand the increased torque.

What sets this engine apart from other contemporary British twins is that the crankshaft was dynamically balanced from the factory which made these bikes one of the smoothest British twin engines ever. The Series 1 bikes had an automatic advance magneto, coil ignition and a new seat. There was a rare single carburetor model as well, but most were twin carb.

The Series II was introduced for 1969. It included a wet sump engine to improve oil flow to the crankshaft. The CB points were moved to the end of exhaust camshaft and the timing cover was redesigned accordingly. This engine was used on the Interceptor until the end of production in 1970.

This Interceptor is on ebay, and priced about double what it should be, since the close up pictures show flaws in the paint, no insignia and with that minimal attention to detail and high price, I personally wonder what else mechanically might be found.

I checked out the NADA book, and pricing for this model tops out just under $12,000 US for a show-ready model (I’m being generous), with “nice” models running around 6k. This model might be “nice” if it can be looked at and run. It seems to have much more chrome than what came from the factory. But when you look close up at that tank:

1969 Royal Enfield Tank — Close up on dents, scratched chrome and weak paint.

You can easily see the scratches in the chrome, dent in front of the filler cap and really bad copper paint. I’ve done much better in my garage. Also, where are the logos? look at the filler cap? When asking 2K over what a concours bike would cost, it should look like it was built by Vulcan.

I think this needs some work.

Find it here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1969-Royal-Enfield-750-Interceptor-II/333841938315?hash=item4dba87b78b:g:yI8AAOSwv8ZfdeZO

Matchless Twin Oil Pump Wet-Sumping fix

Matchless G12 Twin Oil Pump Wet Sumping fix, Step by step with instruction download

Since I have the engine of my ’61 G12 apart, I looked up the “Wet Sumping Fix” for Matchless Twins that involves adding O-Rings to the shafts around the input side of the pump. I decided to video the steps I took to share. The instructions on how to do this are in the Jampot Archives or I updated their copy here.

First, you need to remove the input side of the oil pump. While I’m sure you could do this while the pump is on the engine, I think it’s just easier to pull everything, take it apart, clean it and then put it back on the bike.

You only have to do the input side of the pump. There are “two pumps” on the oil pump, one that puts oil “into” the engine from the external sump, and another that takes oil “out of the engine and returns it to the external sump. We are only concerned with the input side. It is the smaller of the two, and is located on the intake side of the engine. DO NOT MIX THESE UP when reassembling.

This first video, I have disassembled the pump and I’m preparing the plate that will be counterbored:

Preparing the Input Pump plate for counterboring

Plate, ready for counterboring. I explain what gets machined, and what to skip.

O-Rings, Honda parts.

Once you have the plate all nice and clean and flat, you can get your 9/16 counterbore with 7/16 pilot and prepare your drill press (I guess you can do it hand-held in a pinch, but depth is critical. Make sure the depth is equal to the width of the O-Ring).

Counterbore installed, preparing to clamp everything down!

Once you get everything together, clamp everything down into a vice, line stuff up, check twice to make sure the pilot goes in and out of the hole smoothly so the cut will be correct. Use the depth gauge on the drill press to make damned sure you don’t go too deep. It’s better to go shallow, then check with a decent set of vernier calipers. I did this. It ended up being 1/128 in short, so I was able to just touch it one more time to make it perfect!

Everything aligned and ready to go.

First one complete

1/16 in. depth. I initially drilled it 1/128 short, then measured with my calipers

Action shot of the last counterbore on the back side of the pump plate.

Finished cutting, time to de-burr and clean.

Assembled, showing external O-Ring that will fit on the camshaft-side.

That’s about it. Follow the steps in the instructions, and I hope the videos explain the step-by-step procedures and break it down for you.

1956 AJS 16MS

“Restored a number of years back, but still looks great. Recently gone through. Runs Great.”

A Very nice 350cc Ride in the Inland Empire (near Temecula, CA)

Seller writes: “Rare 1956 AJS 16MS 350cc. Motorcycle is in incredible condition and sat many years in a private collection. Restored a number of years back, but still looks great. Recently gone through. Runs Great. Clean Title. Come take a look. Would trade for scrambler (triumph, Ducati) Bought through eBay in 2011 for $7000. Big price drop, so no low balls. Only selling to get a small trailer or offload style motorcycle.”

Find it on Craigslist here: https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/mcy/d/murrieta-rare-1956-ajs-16ms/7250377858.html.

This really does look like a clean restoration. I spotted a few nits, but really not that much. These are great riding bikes that will happily zip along at 60 mph, and they handle very sweetly.

The “S” stands for “Springer”.

The rigid framed AJS Model 16M 350 cc single was developed in 1945 from the military Matchless G3/L World War II motorcycle. Well proven in war service, the 350 cc single remained in production selling large numbers to the civilian market well into the 1960s. Simple and practical, the Model 16 needed minimal maintenance and was very economical. The company also produced an almost identical motorcycle under the Matchless name as the Matchless G3L. The only difference between the two was that the Matchless carried a magneto at the rear of the cylinder barrel, whereas the AJS magneto was at the front.

In 1953, the Model 16M was modernized with a dual seat replacing the saddle and rear pillion seat. In 1956 the Burman gearbox was replaced with a new four speed unit of AMC’s own design and in 1957 further improvements included replacement of the outdated generator with a crankshaft mounted Lucas alternator. The leaky pressed-steel primary drive cover was replaced with an alloy casing.

1951 Matchless G80 on Craigslist (CA)

Looks like it’s all there, but it needs some work. Bolt-on hard tail…

1951 Matchless G80 hard tail for sale in Carpinteria (1/4/2021) — https://ventura.craigslist.org/mcy/d/carpinteria-1951-matchless-ajs-g80-18s/7246124644.html

This is represented as a 1951 Matchless G80. It has a “bolt on” Hard-tail frame and at this point is “not street legal”. Buyer says “Alloy fuel tank has a few dings. Needs a few things to be street legal but runs/stops fine. OG CA ‘pink slip’ included. Not registered. $3400…”

I personally own a ’66 G80 and love the bike. It is more fun than anything I own, and can best be described as “easy”. This one needs a lot of love and the price is probably a little high for something that isn’t described as a “runner” and in reasonably good shape.

Parts are plentiful, and the club has a deep, deep catalog of spares, along with AMC Spares. Nothing is dirt cheap, but you’ll be surprised how reasonable it is to own.

Plus the singles had crazy mouse-trap valve springs you just have to love.

Bike is located in Ventura/Carpinteria. At this point it has been on Craigslist here for 23 days.

Dave Richardson — My Life in Bikes

I’ve never been a big fan of advertising on these pages, but this is something different. If you know Dave Richardson, you’ll know that he is a true Guzzisti. He has written and updated Guzziology for more than a decade.

He was THE dealer in Seattle for a generation, and knows more about these bikes than any ten people I know (except for a few that are awesome and like him, too, small club) So as many of you know, Dave closed his dealership recently, after, as most dealers will tell you, banging his head against the wall trying to get Guzzi to “get” the American rider, and cultivate the market that would BEG for these bikes if they really knew what they were all about.

So here it is. The back story. The “Ball Four” of Motorcycle Dealers. A Two-wheeled “All Creatures Great and Small”. I’ve got my copies coming. Enjoy

“My Life in Bikes” and

“My Life in Bikes – The Rest of the Stories”

Both Available on Amazon. Makes me miss my 72 Eldorado. So. Much.

Velocette Tach Drive Replacement

My Velocette is a 1959 MSS, that has the full “Venom/Thruxton” treatment. I put that it quotes, because it has the Triumph TLS front brake instead of the Velo TLS, and it uses an Amal Mk3 carb, which means that it starts and idles wonderfully.

I purchased it that way from a nice man near Sacramento, and it had only one issue — the tach drive was a 1:1, and the tachometer attached to the bike needed a 2:1. I needed to get it fixed, and I’ve put it off for quite awhile. The current coronavirus lockdown has provided me opportunity. I found a tach drive and now it’s time to install:

So I get the bike on the lift, and unhook the drive cable. Of course the spade in the cable fell out on the lift table, so I put a dollop of marine grease on it and re-installed it.

Then I removed the drive by unscrewing the fixing screws. It came out with the pilot shaft that fits into the driving spade deep within the crank case. When/if you have to do this bit, be sure that when you remove it there you are taking care not to drop it in as this could possibly happen. When you have it all apart, it looks like this:

To re-install, first attach the pilot shaft – use a little marine grease to stick it safely to the spade in your drive, and line it up with the engine’s drive spade. Insert a screw so you line the holes up as you’re getting it ready to offer up. Once it’s in, screw it down tight, then attach the drive cable.

Finished!

Moto Guzzi V7 Classic — 2500 mi Review

I purchased my V7Classic from Rose Farm Classics on August 8 of this year. About 8th I passed through my first 2500 miles as the weather in Chicago begins to close out the 2009 Riding Season. I think I could have cranked another 1000 miles out of the bike this year, but family and work prevented my riding on the Labor Day weekend and all day last week. We can probably blame precipitation for a few more lost days. That’s the way it is, balancing good riding days with happily accepted family responsibilities and work.

It's colder than it looks. Motionless at 44°. — It’s colder than it looks. Motionless at 44°.

Continue reading “Moto Guzzi V7 Classic — 2500 mi Review”

Michigan Moto Guzzi Rally Live with the V7 Classic

3:31– packing up, getting ready to leave soon. Too many delays trying to get out of town. I haven’t chosen a route yet. Guess I’ll just wing it, take 94 to the 31, head north and see if I meet up with some other folks. 4:19. On the road. Goodbye pic 6:30- Sawyer, Michigan, for … Continue reading “Michigan Moto Guzzi Rally Live with the V7 Classic”

4:19. On the road. Goodbye pic

6:30- Sawyer, Michigan, for water at a T/A truckstop

8:30-Holland. Got gas-42mpg. Pretty steady 80 mph cruise. Saw a little faster. Decided to take the “easy” way up through Grand Rapids. Checked the mileage to Interlochen, looks like I was about 100 off of my estimate for distance. Don’t know if I’ll make the rally tonight, the Sun’s down.

9:50-Checked into the Holiday Inn in Big Rapids. Temperature had dropped into the 50’s. Saw a couple of ex-deer on the roadside as well. Time change makes it actually an hour later. Beer and burger. I’ll hit the sack and get an early start for tomorrow morning. Continue reading “Michigan Moto Guzzi Rally Live with the V7 Classic”