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[Scalyback]

You couldn't make it up...

[ed.lazda]

Ha Ha!


Not very good about naming my bikes, although the previous owner has in his own mind already named it Arthur, after his dad who owned it practically from new.


Tootle to the next village yesterday, after a few miles started to be reluctant to rev (no more than about 1/4 throttle). Removed a fair amount of rust sludge from the inlet filter on the carb, and will fit an inline filter as well. Also found changing down gears difficult, especially top to third, and I'm about to go through the instructions in the Snidal manual on "Problems with gear changing". The speedo has a new cable and now works. It's all progress!

[Adrian]

Check the vent hole in the petrol tank filler cap too.

[Adrian]

For the front mudguard you could have a pair of alloy number plates with the present registration number pressed up and fitted to cover up the old number.

[Scalyback]

If it still has the original jets in the carb, then it will get upset between 3/4 and full throttle, start coughing. The parts book says 250 main jet, but with the difference with modern fuel, you need a 230 or 240. I ordered both, put one of them in to try and Kevin ran fine! Can't remember if it was the 230 or 240 though...

Other excitements can be worn slide in carb, leading to strangeness at different throttle openings.

[Scalyback]

Right, we sussed it maybe. Call the bike VTR800, and if plod do ask, say it's not a reg on the front, but the bike's name. YAY! Alfred sounds better though.

[Scalyback]

It's even got the correct fuel tap on it. Oh my goodness, it's BEAUTIFUL. (just like mine!)

[ed.lazda]

Simon, my workshop manual says you should *increase* the size of the main jet for alcohol containing fuel -- size increase of 1% for each 1% of alcohol. But maybe modern alcohol-containing fuel is different from that sold in the 1950s.

[Mark M]

We make the assumption that the original jetting was correct of course! A 250 main sounds rather large for a 500 twin and Scaley has demonstrated with his that a smaller one works better so....

REgards, Mark

[Scalyback]

[center]


As far as I know, you want to be putting 97 or 98 without ethanol in a Meter Minor. I took the 250 size from the 1958 RE parts book for the MM, and I guess the guy that restored the bike just followed the parts book. Once the slightly smaller jet was in, it ran better.