Lovely bike , sounding great after a rebuild using experienced, safe ' old school ' workshop pracitices, not common on others I've seen on RUclips !.I have a T140ES , one of the last out of Meriden , bought new by a friend in August ' 81 .Always an instant starter by kick with original Lucas Rita ignition , must admit these days the ' electric foot ' can be handy at times !.Good luck and fun with your bike.
Hi Dave looks like you timed the cams with 105 degree exhaust cam lobe centre which I learned the hard way on my 72 Bonnie with 3134 cams on inlet and exhaust. Also an easier way to start the bike is to nudge it past tdc and stand on the foot pegs with the bike on the main stand and just ease your body weight onto the kick. But the bike needs to be on firm ground. Cheers for the insight and the delightful video
Thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom. I will be getting a Bonneville this spring as an abandoned project and plan to put it together with my grandson. I also have a T160 which also has its own 'personality' The clutch and it's balancing has another personality all of it's own ! BTW that engine sounded lovely - well done.
Thank you and im shure the Bonnie rebuild will go well. May I suggest you join 'T140 OIF Classics on FB. That is a group dedicated to the T140 with many great experts on there that know what they are doing to help you if you get stuck. As for the T160 I have had three over the years and you are correct about the clutch on those. The paper trick to set them up is a pain and the electric start is fine if you always remember to kick it round first before starting it. I had all my clutches skimmed and it was only way they would work well, but even then they will need re skimming every 10 to 15k as I think the heat distorts the faces. Good luck with the Bonnie.
Very good, it's as smooth running as an RE mk2 Interceptor now. As you know, they were dynamically balanced when made. One thing you may not know is that both BP and Texaco E5 petrol actually contain no ethanol whatsoever. I use BP in my own Suzuki 1000cc V twin. Best regards from Burry Port, 15 miles west of Swansea.
I use BP 98 RON over here in NewZealand and its my preferred fuel. Ocasionaly if I'm out in the bush the villages often only have 95 available but the old girl can put up with that short term lol. The dynamic balance has made a big diffrence and the vibration has almost gone and same if not better than Jap twins. I had an interceptor back in the 80s. Awsome bike.
Thanks for posting the vid, lots of useful tips in there, I am sure it will help me if I ever have to do an engine rebuild on mine, I hope it won't be for a while yet haha! Happy riding!
Ive been riding and rebuilding theses for over 50 years now and can honestly say before I had mine done I would have agreed with you. Ive always previously only had them done statically in the normal way. This crank for example was done the year before and was spot on at 74%. It really opened my eyes on the difference the dynamic balance has made to my old girl. No more vibration and she's as smooth as any jap bike. Watch some of my ride videos and you can see and hear for yourself. I recommend the 3 minute Sound of Music one I made on the bike.
Thank you for posting this video, very helpful. I'm building my dream Bonneville for my 60th birthday always wanted one. Thx again BTW I'm a new subscriber so keep the videos coming.
@ood1134 Hi mate no I used my own design and used a fixed intermediate shaft with everything rotating around it. The cases are too weak to have rotation and the electric start forces all applied on just a 1/2" shaft all at once, so I just bored out the sprag and fitted a bush and then fixed the shaft in place basically. The sprag then rotates around the fixed shaft. You should also buy a 'PAZON Altair E' electronic ignition system. I got Andy there technical manager to re program it so the engine starts rotating before the coils energies to prevent any kick back, which destroys the sprag. Its freely available but you must ask for the E Version or just mention my name. I still have mine on test at the moment but once im satisfied it all works well together, then I will post a full video of the new starter design on here for all to use if the want. I am putting 5000 miles on her to test and will then dismantle and check everything over. Ive done 3000 now and all is good so just a bit more to go. There is a partial report you may find of use if you join the FB group T140 OIF Classics. I am a moderator on there. To find the article just search electric start and all will be revealed. Hope this is of use mate.
Thank you so much Dave, youre one smart cookie. I look forward to watching your findings regarding the 5000 mile breakdown report. I must admit I was very surprised to learn after looking how that sprag works, crazy and rubbish design. I'm sure your design will turn out much better. I purchased a Tri-Spark E I Anti kick back from Map Cycle hope that one works as well, I will check. May I be cheeky and perhaps temp you into making a second modified Dave design Sprag setup for me? Obviously charge me accordingly I could send you a new sprag. If not no worries gotta ask. Sent a request to T140 OIF Classics, Thx for your time Dave appreciate your input @@DaveWhellersVintage
@@stevewood1134 I am happy to supply any parts but only after I am satisfied the modifications are performing out on the road. Reliability is the target I have, and hope to have a full video and parts available in a few months. Unfortunately my house move has slowed the project down and do apologies for the frustration this has caused.
Yes you are correct though I still prefer copper gaskets personally. The issue was my mistake that should never have happened in the first place. I tuned the fuel off at high rpm with no airflow over the head as I was about to turn the engine off when my phone went and distracted me. Even with my 50 off years of riding and maintaining these bikes it was still a stupid mistake. I made this video to help others avoid doing the same.
The head over heated and if you look at the photos of the cylinders you can see the stains from the melted copper gasket. Ive never seen that before and shows were never to old to learn lol.
Composite gaskets and copper each have their pros and cons. Copper will weep oil but composite gaskets will blow between cylinders. One is a mess and one will leave you afoot.
@@JR-bj3uf ...actually is the other way around. Also; copper gasket would let you return home but at expense of damage the surface between cylinders (transforming the head in a real problem) and the composite ones just let you stranded
Its called a Givi Tall when I bought it but that was years ago, so they may have changed the name by now mate but just go on there web site and look through what they have. The installation kit is critical, so ensure you get the correct one with it. . Easy to fit and takes all the wind pressure off your body making long trips very enjoyable.
I noticed you have really thick spacers between the carbs and manifolds. Did you put slightly longer studs on it or was there enough threads on the stock studs to make it work? I've been wanting to put the 5mm spacers on my 78 T140, but when I tried it there was only a few threads sticking out on the studs. I was worried it wasn't enough.
I got a friend of mine to make mine but believe you can buy them from Amal. You can use the std stud if you leave off the o rings and compression cones for the o rings.
Lining up a C2 bearing in the crankcase housing whilst holding the crank vertical all at same time is almost impossible if you put the race in the housing first. A C2 bearing is a very close fit as it was explained in the video verse the C3 bearing. Doing it the way I have done it is very easy. If you use the three piece roller bearing kit you can seat the housing in the crankcase first but its still a proper fiddly job even then. Personally I prefer the two piece bearings as it all slots together beautifully as long as you heat the case up above 90C. This temperature is most important or you will never get the bearings to slot in cleanly. Hope this explains it for you.
Lovely job. Sounds real smooth. What was the name of the crankcase jointing compound you used. Did I here correctly `Avro Juice` ? and do you put it on before heating the cases or after ? About to do an engine rebuild on my T120.
Hi I use 'Permatex Aviation A Gasket Sealant Liquid' I clean up all the faces very carefully first and triple check to ensure there are no bruises in the jointing faces of the crankcase. Then I put the Permatex on thinly as in the pictures cold. Hope this helps. Happy to help if you get stuck. You should join T140 OIF Classics on Face Book. Its a private group of over 3000 now. We have stringent rules so you must complete all the questions before applying. Our group is dedicated to the T140 and has many Meriden and many other top people that will all be very happy to assist step by step as you need, mate. I am a moderator on there and will keep an eye out for you if you want to join.
The mixture ran way way to weak and as the motor was running at 2000rpm with insufficient air flow over the head. Im pretty shure the inertia kept her going longer then normal until the head over heated and bowed causing the gasket failure. I was lucky not to hole a piston as well. You can see the marks/stains in the cylinder walls from the melted copper from the gasket. The valves did get badly burnt and had to be recut. I made this video to advise not to do the same mistake. Same wont happen when your out on a run as the head is getting cooled from the air flow. At normal 1000 to 1200rpm it will just drain the float bowls and stop and ive done that for years with no issues. It was a stupid mistake I made turning the fuel off. My phone rang just after I tuned it off and totally distracted me.
@@MrJake-yx8ll I have already tried to explain what Im guessing happened. The fact it did happen cannot be ignored mate and it cost me a top end rebuild. It never happened to me before in 50 odd years of turning the taps off so hence my warning to others... If you want to try to make it happen yourself why not try setting the RPM at 2000rpm after fully warming the engine up. Then with the engine running at 2000 rpm just walk away with the fuel taps off. I hope your head doesn't overheat and blow the head like mine did. Best of luck.
@@MrJake-yx8ll Any carburetor set up to run a very weak mixture can melt a hole in a piston my friend. From this it is pretty clear your own understanding of how carbs work is some what challenged. . I hope this information lets you understand a little better now but would strongly recommend you do not do any work on a bike yourself and find someone with greater mechanical knowledge to further help you. ... Commandos are awesome bikes and most certainly never have soppy or weepy carbs. He or they clearly have no idea on how to maintain his or her bike if they have problems like that. Amals correctly set up should never have issues like that. They need to read the Commando manual before they set fire to the bike, or alternately sell the bike to someone that knows what there doing.
Available from - Graham Blighe - Improving Classic Motorcycles. web - www.improvingclassicmotorcycl... Email - enquiries@improvingclassicmotorcycles.com.
You turn the fule off it runs out of fuel and it does a couple of spits and stops so why would the engine suffer happens plenty when people run out before they hit reserve happened to me a few times over the years and never had an issue ...
Ive done the same as you and ran the float chambers out before putting the bike away. But this time something was different. I think the mixture become weak and with the bike forced to run at high rpm it just heated up real quick as the mixture weakened, the temperature rises obviously. Thats my best guess and the evidence is plain to see on the engines internals. You can even see the melted copper head gasket in the bores. . I wont be turning my fuel off again.
Well done! After rebuilding my T140, it took a lot more kicking than that before firing up!
The engine dries out literally but after a bit of help they always fire up lol.
Fantastic video! Thank you for taking the time to share it with the world!
Thank you
Lovely bike , sounding great after a rebuild using experienced, safe ' old school ' workshop pracitices, not common on others I've seen on RUclips !.I have a T140ES , one of the last out of Meriden , bought new by a friend in August ' 81 .Always an instant starter by kick with original Lucas Rita ignition , must admit these days the ' electric foot ' can be handy at times !.Good luck and fun with your bike.
Right on
Hi Dave looks like you timed the cams with 105 degree exhaust cam lobe centre which I learned the hard way on my 72 Bonnie with 3134 cams on inlet and exhaust. Also an easier way to start the bike is to nudge it past tdc and stand on the foot pegs with the bike on the main stand and just ease your body weight onto the kick. But the bike needs to be on firm ground. Cheers for the insight and the delightful video
Excellent work and video Dave. I love it!
Glad you liked it.
Thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom. I will be getting a Bonneville this spring as an abandoned project and plan to put it together with my grandson. I also have a T160 which also has its own 'personality' The clutch and it's balancing has another personality all of it's own ! BTW that engine sounded lovely - well done.
Thank you and im shure the Bonnie rebuild will go well. May I suggest you join 'T140 OIF Classics on FB. That is a group dedicated to the T140 with many great experts on there that know what they are doing to help you if you get stuck. As for the T160 I have had three over the years and you are correct about the clutch on those. The paper trick to set them up is a pain and the electric start is fine if you always remember to kick it round first before starting it. I had all my clutches skimmed and it was only way they would work well, but even then they will need re skimming every 10 to 15k as I think the heat distorts the faces. Good luck with the Bonnie.
Very good, it's as smooth running as an RE mk2 Interceptor now. As you know, they were dynamically balanced when made. One thing you may not know is that both BP and Texaco E5 petrol actually contain no ethanol whatsoever. I use BP in my own Suzuki 1000cc V twin.
Best regards from Burry Port, 15 miles west of Swansea.
Cheers mate
I use BP 98 RON over here in NewZealand and its my preferred fuel. Ocasionaly if I'm out in the bush the villages often only have 95 available but the old girl can put up with that short term lol. The dynamic balance has made a big diffrence and the vibration has almost gone and same if not better than Jap twins. I had an interceptor back in the 80s. Awsome bike.
Thanks for posting the vid, lots of useful tips in there, I am sure it will help me if I ever have to do an engine rebuild on mine, I hope it won't be for a while yet haha! Happy riding!
Glad it helped
In all my years I have NEVER seen a crank that needed balancing like that - I can't believe that it's right.
Ive been riding and rebuilding theses for over 50 years now and can honestly say before I had mine done I would have agreed with you. Ive always previously only had them done statically in the normal way. This crank for example was done the year before and was spot on at 74%. It really opened my eyes on the difference the dynamic balance has made to my old girl. No more vibration and she's as smooth as any jap bike. Watch some of my ride videos and you can see and hear for yourself. I recommend the 3 minute Sound of Music one I made on the bike.
Thank you for posting this video, very helpful. I'm building my dream Bonneville for my 60th birthday always wanted one. Thx again BTW I'm a new subscriber so keep the videos coming.
Glad I could help!
Have a question When you installed your electric starter, did you install a brass bush in your casing for the sprag gear?
@@DaveWhellersVintage
@ood1134 Hi mate no I used my own design and used a fixed intermediate shaft with everything rotating around it. The cases are too weak to have rotation and the electric start forces all applied on just a 1/2" shaft all at once, so I just bored out the sprag and fitted a bush and then fixed the shaft in place basically. The sprag then rotates around the fixed shaft. You should also buy a 'PAZON Altair E' electronic ignition system. I got Andy there technical manager to re program it so the engine starts rotating before the coils energies to prevent any kick back, which destroys the sprag. Its freely available but you must ask for the E Version or just mention my name. I still have mine on test at the moment but once im satisfied it all works well together, then I will post a full video of the new starter design on here for all to use if the want. I am putting 5000 miles on her to test and will then dismantle and check everything over. Ive done 3000 now and all is good so just a bit more to go. There is a partial report you may find of use if you join the FB group T140 OIF Classics. I am a moderator on there. To find the article just search electric start and all will be revealed. Hope this is of use mate.
Thank you so much Dave, youre one smart cookie. I look forward to watching your findings regarding the 5000 mile breakdown report. I must admit I was very surprised to learn after looking how that sprag works, crazy and rubbish design. I'm sure your design will turn out much better. I purchased a Tri-Spark E I Anti kick back from Map Cycle hope that one works as well, I will check. May I be cheeky and perhaps temp you into making a second modified Dave design Sprag setup for me? Obviously charge me accordingly I could send you a new sprag. If not no worries gotta ask. Sent a request to T140 OIF Classics, Thx for your time Dave appreciate your input @@DaveWhellersVintage
@@stevewood1134 I am happy to supply any parts but only after I am satisfied the modifications are performing out on the road. Reliability is the target I have, and hope to have a full video and parts available in a few months. Unfortunately my house move has slowed the project down and do apologies for the frustration this has caused.
top work👍👍👍👍👍
Thank you! Cheers!
Hi; factory changed to a composite gasket (that have a different torque procedure) to in theory eliminates that problem...
Yes you are correct though I still prefer copper gaskets personally. The issue was my mistake that should never have happened in the first place. I tuned the fuel off at high rpm with no airflow over the head as I was about to turn the engine off when my phone went and distracted me. Even with my 50 off years of riding and maintaining these bikes it was still a stupid mistake. I made this video to help others avoid doing the same.
The head over heated and if you look at the photos of the cylinders you can see the stains from the melted copper gasket. Ive never seen that before and shows were never to old to learn lol.
Composite gaskets and copper each have their pros and cons. Copper will weep oil but composite gaskets will blow between cylinders. One is a mess and one will leave you afoot.
@@JR-bj3uf The minefield of vintage motorcycles. If they were perfect they would be boring lol.
@@JR-bj3uf ...actually is the other way around. Also; copper gasket would let you return home but at expense of damage the surface between cylinders (transforming the head in a real problem) and the composite ones just let you stranded
Thanks for a very informative video. Where did you get the screen. I could do with one of them.
Its called a Givi Tall when I bought it but that was years ago, so they may have changed the name by now mate but just go on there web site and look through what they have. The installation kit is critical, so ensure you get the correct one with it. . Easy to fit and takes all the wind pressure off your body making long trips very enjoyable.
Its a Givi Tall
I noticed you have really thick spacers between the carbs and manifolds. Did you put slightly longer studs on it or was there enough threads on the stock studs to make it work? I've been wanting to put the 5mm spacers on my 78 T140, but when I tried it there was only a few threads sticking out on the studs. I was worried it wasn't enough.
I got a friend of mine to make mine but believe you can buy them from Amal. You can use the std stud if you leave off the o rings and compression cones for the o rings.
Question: It looks like the crank roller bearing races were removable, why did you not seat the race first then put the cases together?
Lining up a C2 bearing in the crankcase housing whilst holding the crank vertical all at same time is almost impossible if you put the race in the housing first. A C2 bearing is a very close fit as it was explained in the video verse the C3 bearing. Doing it the way I have done it is very easy. If you use the three piece roller bearing kit you can seat the housing in the crankcase first but its still a proper fiddly job even then. Personally I prefer the two piece bearings as it all slots together beautifully as long as you heat the case up above 90C. This temperature is most important or you will never get the bearings to slot in cleanly. Hope this explains it for you.
Lovely job. Sounds real smooth.
What was the name of the crankcase jointing compound you used. Did I here correctly `Avro Juice` ? and do you put it on before heating the cases or after ?
About to do an engine rebuild on my T120.
Hi I use 'Permatex Aviation A Gasket Sealant Liquid' I clean up all the faces very carefully first and triple check to ensure there are no bruises in the jointing faces of the crankcase. Then I put the Permatex on thinly as in the pictures cold. Hope this helps. Happy to help if you get stuck. You should join T140 OIF Classics on Face Book. Its a private group of over 3000 now. We have stringent rules so you must complete all the questions before applying. Our group is dedicated to the T140 and has many Meriden and many other top people that will all be very happy to assist step by step as you need, mate. I am a moderator on there and will keep an eye out for you if you want to join.
Why oul the headers glow when no fuel is being burnt, have i missed something
The mixture ran way way to weak and as the motor was running at 2000rpm with insufficient air flow over the head. Im pretty shure the inertia kept her going longer then normal until the head over heated and bowed causing the gasket failure. I was lucky not to hole a piston as well. You can see the marks/stains in the cylinder walls from the melted copper from the gasket. The valves did get badly burnt and had to be recut. I made this video to advise not to do the same mistake. Same wont happen when your out on a run as the head is getting cooled from the air flow. At normal 1000 to 1200rpm it will just drain the float bowls and stop and ive done that for years with no issues. It was a stupid mistake I made turning the fuel off. My phone rang just after I tuned it off and totally distracted me.
@@MrJake-yx8ll I have already tried to explain what Im guessing happened. The fact it did happen cannot be ignored mate and it cost me a top end rebuild. It never happened to me before in 50 odd years of turning the taps off so hence my warning to others... If you want to try to make it happen yourself why not try setting the RPM at 2000rpm after fully warming the engine up. Then with the engine running at 2000 rpm just walk away with the fuel taps off. I hope your head doesn't overheat and blow the head like mine did. Best of luck.
@@MrJake-yx8ll Any carburetor set up to run a very weak mixture can melt a hole in a piston my friend. From this it is pretty clear your own understanding of how carbs work is some what challenged. . I hope this information lets you understand a little better now but would strongly recommend you do not do any work on a bike yourself and find someone with greater mechanical knowledge to further help you. ... Commandos are awesome bikes and most certainly never have soppy or weepy carbs. He or they clearly have no idea on how to maintain his or her bike if they have problems like that. Amals correctly set up should never have issues like that. They need to read the Commando manual before they set fire to the bike, or alternately sell the bike to someone that knows what there doing.
Good video - where did you get your ignition light from?
Available from - Graham Blighe - Improving Classic Motorcycles.
web - www.improvingclassicmotorcycl...
Email - enquiries@improvingclassicmotorcycles.com.
In the description on the video is all the info about that.
You turn the fule off it runs out of fuel and it does a couple of spits and stops so why would the engine suffer happens plenty when people run out before they hit reserve happened to me a few times over the years and never had an issue ...
Ive done the same as you and ran the float chambers out before putting the bike away. But this time something was different. I think the mixture become weak and with the bike forced to run at high rpm it just heated up real quick as the mixture weakened, the temperature rises obviously. Thats my best guess and the evidence is plain to see on the engines internals. You can even see the melted copper head gasket in the bores. . I wont be turning my fuel off again.