An old timer who'd been wrenching bikes for a living 50 years shared with me his opinion.. that Joe Hunt mags have no advance capability, and therefore he wasn't a fan. Myth? Reality?

I know on the harley units (which are the same except the timing cam inside I think), you could manually advance them or rather retard them for starting then slide them around to the advance position you had set.

Hi

No need to advance or retard them, once set up and tuned they will start first kick and run perfect all the time, my 850 has a worked motor and it runs great down low revs to hang on when you open the trottle wide open and when the motor is at working temp it will start without much effort on the kick start every time.

Ashley

The Atlas arrangement with the mag behind the cylinders has an auto advance unit on the original Atlas magneto sprocket - full advance is at 2500 RPM. The Commando arrangement with the mag on the timing cover is fixed fully advanced. Apparently they work just fine fully advanced - as reported from those I've sold them to. I know that race bikes run best fixed fully advanced. See the start up demo at the end of the video.

If the magneto is at full-advance even at idle won't there be a propensity to kick-back on start-up?

I had a friend with a faster than usual "stock" Triumph Bonneville. The only difference they could find was that the auto advance unit was rusted fast in the fully advanced position. I don't remember any kickback on that machine. Any other reports with full advance starting?

Anglophile wrote:If the magneto is at full-advance even at idle won't there be a propensity to kick-back on start-up?

That, or you must compromise the full advance value to allow starting. I can't imagine kicking the engine over with a 28 degree advanced spark. ??

I haven't put a timing light on my Joe Hunt maggie since it has been on the bike, when I set the maggie up I static timed it the same as with points so that the point in the maggie was starting to open on 28 degree mark and set the maggie so that the ajustments was sitting in the middle of the timing slot on the maggie housing, I just advance the maggie till I got some slite kickback on the kickstarter then backed it off till no kickback, then tighten the maggie up, no need to put a timing light on as it runs great and starts first kick every time, its been set up on my Norton for over 15 months now and the last 4 months with Jim's PWK carbies, both the Joe Hunt and the new carbies work so well together and has been the best improvements that I have done to my motor in 36 years of owning my Norton.

Ashley

Hi folks,I registered before some minutes to say only a BIG THANK YOU TO JSMOTORSPORTS because Jim with your great products and your advices we can to improve with success our bikes in Greece.As for the machinist craftman,i want to tell you that is a great soul with lion heart, my friend of mine John who owned the bike in video, sent to JIM this video with adaptor plate idea only to HELP NOT TO SELL. And the same did Jim, posted only to help all the guys who love to have a magneto on commando's timing cover without problems!Cheers Kostas from Greece.P.S.sorry for my English but when i was student in high school 23 years ago my mind was in British cafe racers!!!