- Joined
- Nov 20, 2001
- Messages
- 17,028
- Location
- Ely, England
short story long.
call two weeks ago for a throttle cable. sell it to customer. ask for address and he says 'Isle of Man'. I ask is there any accomodotion left out there as I can't find any. he says stay above the pub in Glen Mona. I say I'm going to book the flight now and I'm 'on my way'.
mechanic is going anyway. says he'll have a Matchless G3 for himself, a Greeves Trail bike for his mate and a 1971 BSA Bantam for me. all 175cc of it!
so I get to the IoM with flybe and over a few days Blatt is getting stick for the Husaberg not having run for over 2 years. as I'm staying in the pub I can' escape it either! so I volunteer after a few days to look at it.
IT'S A MESS!
FE501 2002
it has a tax disc on it that ran out in August 2005. the engine was rebuilt only '3 hours ago' by you-know-who. it has rust all over it. it has the wrong wheel spindle in the front wheel, all the rubbers are perished letting water get in and out as the "cover" isn't infact covering the bike!
Blatt will read this I bet but mate: it was a bloody disgrace!
I had no tools either
so what did I find and do to get it running.
I checked for spark. no spark.
I had to ask a pub customer for an allen key set
pulled the ignition cover off and a pint of brown rusty water ran across the pub car park....seriously > a pint! :cheers:
I dried this out and asked the same customer for a multimeter. he had one! and guess what? black to red was 3,000 on the original stator from 2002!
went into the pub kitchen and burnt my fingers trying to burn the plugs off in a gas flame
we had no pliers
fitted plug but no socket extention. used pliers off a chair that I found in the beer garden (rough pub - don't ask!)
now we have a spark
couldn't undo timing plug so I bent a 50p and a 20p piece trying to do it! they now reside on the wall of the pub!
timing was only slightly out.
next is tappets
no stepped 10mm but we pull the end out of my only tool - a magnetic screwdriver!
all 4 tappets are tight
the kickstart decomp is tight
sorted.
I look at the oil, creamy? oh dear! however, water could have been getting in via the frame or ANYWHERE!
next, we have the carb.
Blatt assures me that he has run fuel through it and it is OK?
two kicks and I'm sure the carb is the problem. I checked the spark again - still good.
I pull the carb and luckily for him I have brought a kit with me!
but the inside of the carb is completely clogged with that wet salt-type paste.
I call blatt for some carb cleaner on his way home from work.
getting the pin out of the fuel level bar I snap the post.
blatt arrives with can of carb cleaner and we spray and spray on the kitchen table and on the dinner plates.
next morning I finish the cereals and use a carpenter's hammer to tap out two float bowl gaskets form packet.
no airline so I use the overflow hoses
this was a disaster at the beginning as everything I blew on was blocked.
THEN I DISCOVER THAT THE HOSE HAS BEEN MELTED (AND BLOCKED) AGAINST THE EXHAUST AT SOMETIME.
with piece shopped off suddenly all orifices in the carb are clear! (Jesus, it was your miracle!)
we araldite the post
I fit the carb together and then to the bike.
we leave the choke cable free
I leave Blatt the task of fitting the tank while I go to the 'ramsey sprint'.
back at 7pm the pub is filling and they all know it is time the bike started. the banter is inncessant! "do you know if the TV works?" answer: "yes - unlike that husaberg (boom-boom!)"
this had better start
kickstarting is awkward as the kickstart only has half the normal action
we turn the taps on.
the landlord, Dave, brings his car over
I find some old hemp
the rope snaps with NO pressure on it
Blatt brings out a lorry driver's strap, 3" wide, the ratchet alone is about 3KG!
we fit it and here goes....
down a side road, no kit, no helmet.
with not even one turn of the engine it starts!
it screams its head off, there's nothing I can do.
I stall the engine
Blatt has caught the throttle cable fitting the tank (***!!!!)
now the landlord has lost interest,
so out comes the BSA BANTAM
I roar the full 175cc into life!
we strap the two together, we pull away and.....and.....the Husaberg bursts into life!
Blatt is grinning from ear to ear. he bends down to lower the idle some more and rests it on the exhaust for like 4 seconds
his skin blisters gently..... bubble, bubble....bubble, bubble!
we pull back up to the pub, blatt has a grin the size of cheshire let alone the cat!
suddenly none of the customers remember any bet!
Blatt pays for a sumptuous meal that evening - we're all happy!
regards
Taffy
call two weeks ago for a throttle cable. sell it to customer. ask for address and he says 'Isle of Man'. I ask is there any accomodotion left out there as I can't find any. he says stay above the pub in Glen Mona. I say I'm going to book the flight now and I'm 'on my way'.
mechanic is going anyway. says he'll have a Matchless G3 for himself, a Greeves Trail bike for his mate and a 1971 BSA Bantam for me. all 175cc of it!
so I get to the IoM with flybe and over a few days Blatt is getting stick for the Husaberg not having run for over 2 years. as I'm staying in the pub I can' escape it either! so I volunteer after a few days to look at it.
IT'S A MESS!
FE501 2002
it has a tax disc on it that ran out in August 2005. the engine was rebuilt only '3 hours ago' by you-know-who. it has rust all over it. it has the wrong wheel spindle in the front wheel, all the rubbers are perished letting water get in and out as the "cover" isn't infact covering the bike!
Blatt will read this I bet but mate: it was a bloody disgrace!
I had no tools either
so what did I find and do to get it running.
I checked for spark. no spark.
I had to ask a pub customer for an allen key set
pulled the ignition cover off and a pint of brown rusty water ran across the pub car park....seriously > a pint! :cheers:
I dried this out and asked the same customer for a multimeter. he had one! and guess what? black to red was 3,000 on the original stator from 2002!
went into the pub kitchen and burnt my fingers trying to burn the plugs off in a gas flame
we had no pliers
fitted plug but no socket extention. used pliers off a chair that I found in the beer garden (rough pub - don't ask!)
now we have a spark
couldn't undo timing plug so I bent a 50p and a 20p piece trying to do it! they now reside on the wall of the pub!
timing was only slightly out.
next is tappets
no stepped 10mm but we pull the end out of my only tool - a magnetic screwdriver!
all 4 tappets are tight
the kickstart decomp is tight
sorted.
I look at the oil, creamy? oh dear! however, water could have been getting in via the frame or ANYWHERE!
next, we have the carb.
Blatt assures me that he has run fuel through it and it is OK?
two kicks and I'm sure the carb is the problem. I checked the spark again - still good.
I pull the carb and luckily for him I have brought a kit with me!
but the inside of the carb is completely clogged with that wet salt-type paste.
I call blatt for some carb cleaner on his way home from work.
getting the pin out of the fuel level bar I snap the post.
blatt arrives with can of carb cleaner and we spray and spray on the kitchen table and on the dinner plates.
next morning I finish the cereals and use a carpenter's hammer to tap out two float bowl gaskets form packet.
no airline so I use the overflow hoses
this was a disaster at the beginning as everything I blew on was blocked.
THEN I DISCOVER THAT THE HOSE HAS BEEN MELTED (AND BLOCKED) AGAINST THE EXHAUST AT SOMETIME.
with piece shopped off suddenly all orifices in the carb are clear! (Jesus, it was your miracle!)
we araldite the post
I fit the carb together and then to the bike.
we leave the choke cable free
I leave Blatt the task of fitting the tank while I go to the 'ramsey sprint'.
back at 7pm the pub is filling and they all know it is time the bike started. the banter is inncessant! "do you know if the TV works?" answer: "yes - unlike that husaberg (boom-boom!)"
this had better start
kickstarting is awkward as the kickstart only has half the normal action
we turn the taps on.
the landlord, Dave, brings his car over
I find some old hemp
the rope snaps with NO pressure on it
Blatt brings out a lorry driver's strap, 3" wide, the ratchet alone is about 3KG!
we fit it and here goes....
down a side road, no kit, no helmet.
with not even one turn of the engine it starts!
it screams its head off, there's nothing I can do.
I stall the engine
Blatt has caught the throttle cable fitting the tank (***!!!!)
now the landlord has lost interest,
so out comes the BSA BANTAM
I roar the full 175cc into life!
we strap the two together, we pull away and.....and.....the Husaberg bursts into life!
Blatt is grinning from ear to ear. he bends down to lower the idle some more and rests it on the exhaust for like 4 seconds
his skin blisters gently..... bubble, bubble....bubble, bubble!
we pull back up to the pub, blatt has a grin the size of cheshire let alone the cat!
suddenly none of the customers remember any bet!
Blatt pays for a sumptuous meal that evening - we're all happy!
regards
Taffy
