I keep thinking about putting one of the French made electric start conversions on my MKIIA then look at the cost and forget it for a while.
I'm I correct that the MK3 850 had the elec start ? Or am I talking Billy Bollocks ?
I keep thinking about putting one of the French made electric start conversions on my MKIIA then look at the cost and forget it for a while.
The Norton is fitted with a pair of Amal MKII concentrics with a K&N single filter (twin outlet) fitted where the standard air box used to live. It's got a PW3 cam in it so manages to use the extra fuel thrown into it though it does run a bit lumpy at low revs so may be going back to standard cam, carbs and airbox at some point in the future.
and your peashooters should be great.


ALJ 477T seems awfully familiar.
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i think i've mentioned that before. shocking memory![]()
I have the origiknal indicators to put back on, I am looking for the original mirror.
27,000 km.

Just joined this forum as I'm buying a GS 1200 later in the week. Plenty of great information and tips here on the GS, but my eye was drawn to this thread. For me modern bikes are lovely to ride, but not especially interesting and my real passion is for 1970s Italian stuff.
This is what's currently in my garage.
1972 Ducati 250 MK3. This is a very rare model in UK as it comes between the "coffin tank" and the later Blue / Gold MK3. I did a full refurb 2 years ago. Dog slow with the softest cam and restrictive exhaust, but lovely to ride when you're not in a hurry.
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1978 Ducati 900 GTS. I had one of these brand new at age 20 in 1978. When this one came up on Ebay 2 years ago I couldn't resist it. It was bodged from end to end and whoever came up with the maxim "there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Ducati" was not wrong. I was in two minds whether to just split it for parts, but in the end it's turned out very nicely - and the entry price for any Bevel Ducati is so high now that I'm confident I wouldn't lose out.
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1971 Laverda SF. This is an early model "Super Freni" with the big drum brakes. I bought this from Austria in March and it's only needed a polish up. I think it looks beautiful, it's well made and it handles well. The engine's no match for the Ducati though - typical 360 twin vibes.
Cheers,
Derek
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Parts for Ducati singles are surprisingly easy to get hold of. There's a couple of UK sources who'll get you pretty much everything. Twins are more difficult and more expensive. I got many parts from Australia, which was the biggest market for Bevel Twin Ducatis in the 1970s. That's half the fun of it though! On the Twin I found that the swingarm had been "modified" at the lower shock mounting points to make the seat height lower. This basically rendered the swingarm as scrap, but the same week I managed to get a freshly powder coated swingarm for a 900GTS on ebay for £25 - and it had good
bushes! Sometimes you have a bit of luck...