Hitchcocks Forum

Robf put me onto this: YouTube, kick starting....A new angle
It all sounds a bit complicated, but if you're having trouble firing up your bullet from cold, give this a try. I now turn on petrol and ignition, press in decompressor and slowly kick through, past ammeter reflection.I continue on to bottom of k/s travel before releasing decompressor, and then give one full swing from the top. RESULT,every time. If ammeter doesn't deflect until past halfway down k/s travel, give it a bit more from the top, or until it deflects before halfway.

BL....dy predictive text!

I don't think I understand this fully. All I do is take the engine to the compression stroke, and then ease it through compression until the piston is at top dead centre. At that point I release the kickstarter and give it a good swing. This gives you three full strokes to get the crank up to speed before the next compression stroke. The ammeter trick doesn't work on modern bullets with electronic ignition.

I use that method first thing in the morning, it usually starts quicker than the twenty or so kicks it takes doing it the standard way.

The procedure will be totally different too, if you have a high compression piston.

One of my efforts!

Isn't this the only way to kick start a four stroke single?

Sorry I didn't read the first post properly. I don't understand why anyone looks at the ammeter when the compression stroke is so easy to find. Kick it around to where the kick start stops due to compression. Pull in the decomp lever and hear the ptffff as the compression is released. Reset the kickstart at the top and one big swing. On the odd occasion that you flood the bike kick it over with the throttle wide open and the decomp pulled so as to clear out the combustion chamber. I've always found RE's to be one of the most willing starters and the supercilious sneers from the Velocette riding Velo-Fellows tend to fade when you apply the boot once for an instant result whilst they are still thrashing around trying to get a noise other than heavy breathing.

Simon the B50SS springs to mind as a pig of a thing to start as well, I had one here recently brilliant thing once you got it running but much muttering till it did start

Quite a hot bike though isn't it Norm? 10:1 comp as standard or some such. Quite fancy one of those actually.