Preparing for that big tour?

Wapping

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A guide from when things were so much simpler :augie

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I like the bit "Make sure that your set of tools are complete and that you have a good pair of goggles", I must buy a pair just incase I break down :cool: :D
 
Thanks for the heads up. I ain't going anywhere untill I can find a magneto and a carburettor, better to be safe than sorry.
 
Happy memories

It looks almost like my first new bike - a 1946 BSA 350 (KPE 11) although it did not have two vertical tubes to enclose the push rods. It was essential to carry a good set of tools and all bikes had a neat toolbox fitted around the back of the frame and easy to get to. Note that there was no rear suspension, just long springs on the saddle and thus not too comfortable on the pillion! (My first bike was a 1936 Velocette MAC 350 (CMX 863) which I was happy to sell for £5. It had 'girder' forks)
 
Wonderful stuff, but what exactly are "cycle parts"? As they say in Private Eye, I think we should be told!
 
Changing times.

In those days an engine had to be stripped down at least every 2000 miles for de-carbonizing, grinding in valves, filters washed, resetting tappets,etc.etc. Pretty well everything could be done with the toolkit that every biker carried and most riders were quite capable mechanics. I cannot remember ever going to a dealer for a repair or service - sometimes the blacksmith was required to do a bit of straightening out of foot rests etc. Now I find myself baffled by a plug change, but then they do last a bit longer these days. Of course a sparking plug could be taken apart and cleaned with a wire brush and the gap reset. Garages would clean your plugs by sand blasting, then test the spark under pressure - and invariably tell you that it was U/S - a plug costs 5/- which was a lot of money. Happy days!
 
no time to sleep with all that maintenance.sort out external lubrication system instead.
 


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