SQ4 - a ride out

 My son made a surprise visit today to borrow one of my CTEK battery chargers. He's not seen the Huntmaster yet and we agreed that I would ride with him halfway home so that he could have a go on it. He was very pleased with it.

However, when he arrived on Square Four he was complaining that it wouldn't idle. I noticed that he'd left the fuel on and the ignition on, and the battery condition light was showing red. I got it started by bumping it down the hill and rode it to North Walsham; it was okay ish but it obviously wasn't happy at low engine revs - but it was charging.

After a bit of a chat at the North Norfolk Motorcycle Museum, I left to go home but it wouldn't start at all - the carburettor was dripping and the battery condition light was still showing red which suggests the battery is not holding a charge. Again I'd left the fuel on, so maybe it was overflowing and the float valve is not working properly, or maybe there's a leak. 

Eventually I got it started by rolling it downhill and and rode it home like a bat out of hell at up to 60 miles an hour. It was charging, and going fine and I got home safely though the front brake is a lot worse than the one on the Huntmaster. 

I put it on the battery charger when I got home and the battery condition light showed red for several minutes, which is unusual - normally if I put it on charge it will go to green straight away. After a couple of minutes it went to solid green which means it's charging or fully charged.

There's something wrong here.

Fashionable gear for 40's Weekend

First published October 2018

Some of you will know that we have a fabulous 1940's weekend here in Sheringham. The event was initially organised by the North Norfolk Railway and is still a mainstay event of their calendar, but in recent years '40's weekend has extended into the rest of the town.

Some 20,000 people visited Sheringham for this year's event, many of them turned out in 1940's costume. These YouTube videos give a good flavour of the event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2JeqVro8eU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5nx0tCIU_g

And there is a display of vintage military and civilian vehicles at the main locations: Holt NNR Station, Weybourne NNR Station, Sheringham NNR station and in Sheringham itself.

There's always a few bikes to look at:

2015 Event - Ariel W/NG from the Norfolk Motorcycle Museum at North Walsham

2015 Event - Royal Enfield WD/CO

2016 Event - Matchless G3L

And here's another G3L, a visitor from London at the 2018 event:

There's a vehicle parade on the Saturday, and this year I was riding my 1942 W/NG. Not being at all well prepared, I had no period attire to wear and I wore my Barbour lookalike - originally designed in 1936 - but that was about it. The modern flip front helmet didn't help.

The bike looks OK, the rider is trying....

So for next year I have a new hat to wear. It's a period Slazenger helmet, from the 1950's in reality:

It must be a good one, look at those famous names:

It's actually my size...

I'm not going to win any fashion competitions though.

Does my nose look big in this?

I've got these brown leather gauntlets made by Lawson's of London, known by the previous owner to date to 1960 or earlier:

They are in great condition, sheepskin inside and very comfortable. Just the sort of thing I used to wear when I started riding in the '70's.

And here it is in use in 2019, with a dapper chap from the VMCC Anglian Section on a Guzzi 500S - from 1936:

A few little updates

So, a two weeks is a long time with no blog posts, but I have been out and about and done some of the little jobs. As you will have seen, I've updated the regulator and all is working fine now. Unfortunately a 20 mile road test a few days ago revealed that all was not well with the old Italian dip switch that came with the bike, in that it appears to have several extra positions, most of which give no light at all. More on that later.

Still, the bike is going well. I have several old, original grease nipples courtesy of that nice Mr. John Mitchell of the AOMCC, and these have allowed the girders to be greased properly:

The girders are now bobbing up and down with every little ripple in the road. Secondly I've cut a screwdriver slot in the brake torque arm anchor to help me tighten it up:

This modification was inspired by the W/NG that lives at the Norfolk Motorcycle Museum, in North Walsham:

I've also had a look at the primary chain, which I found was tight at certain positions. I've backed that off a little and added some SAE 50 to the chaincase - everything sounds happier in that direction now.

Norfolk Motorcycle Museum

A bright sunny day, a day off, a wife looking for a few hours to pamper herself and a dog with a poorly foot leads to a day in the garage or maybe, since the SQ4 had not had any exercise for a while, a little trip out.

In a big shed attached to old railway buildings at North Walsham lives an interesting collection of over 120 motorcycles from the 1920's to the 1960's, put together by George Harmer, and looked after by George, his son Steve and a few enthusiastic volunteers. The museum opened in 1993.

It's more like a cross between a traditional bike shop and a museum, than a regular museum. I went to the National Railway Museum at York a few years ago, which is full of shiny railway locomotives and other exhibits in a spotlessly clean environment. Now, maybe I'm spoilt by living tens of yards from one of the best standard gauge heritage railways in the country, with all the grime, smoke & smells that that entails but it's taught me that I don't like museums filled with cold, dead, trains, cars or motorcycles.

So for me, this place is great. If you are old enough to remember Happy Hamrax, Joe Francis Motors or any of yesterday's bike shops - oily floorboards, dusty old bikes, shelves sagging with boxes of obscure bits - then you will love it.

Here's a few of the pictures I took while I was there - just things that grabbed my attention.

One of my favourites - Sunbeam S8

Velocette Valiant

Two Ariels - Arrow & Leader

Royal Enfield Robin diesel

Here's an overview of the museum, to give you an idea of the scale:

Another general view:

One of Val Page's finest - a 'Black' Ariel:

A Henderson Four:

A gem of British engineering - a Rudge Radial

Close up of the cylinder head showing the pushrod operated radial valves:

The museum has exhibits in varying states of restoration:

Slightly unusual, the Puch 'split single':

Here's the most interesting corner of the museum - the workshop!

Ariel W/NG at 1940's weekend

A couple of nice military bikes at the 1940's weekend in Sheringham last year.

Here's the Ariel W/NG from the Norfolk Motorcycle Museum:

And a visiting Royal Enfield WD/CO

A G3L pictured this year:

At the Norfolk Motorcycle Museum, I was lucky enough to be able to take some close up pictures of their W/NG:

0.303" period accessory

This bike is based on a frame that would have shipped from Selly Oak in the summer of 1944. Original aluminium cable strap:

Rubber cable sheath; no steering damper on this late machine.

Late 1941 engine.

Usual Ariel decompressor arrangement, and with rocker cover spring clips.

My favourite subject - curly copper fuel line.

Steel primary cover:

And again

Horn bracket, similar to mine:

And again:

Late footrests:

These are Ariel's tapered handlebars:

Original brake rod:

Another favourite subject - speedometer brackets:

Again:

The brake lever is straight:

Mine is cranked:

Here's Steve Carter's: