Choke or no choke

Hi all
First post so treat me gently...please
Been a Triumph man for many years than I care to remember, but recently acquired a restoration project of a 72 Roadster.
Before I start the project this coming winter, taking the opportunity to do some research as off sick :cry:
I have a few questions I would appreciate some views on
1. Choke mechanism or just use ticklers ( mine appears to have no external mechanism but have open holes in carb top plates.... to be honest none of my Triumphs do and have no cold starting issues at all
2. I Have a Boyer system fitted. one of the coils is leaking, do I replace the single 6v coil or fit a twin outlet coil (boyer or otherwise).... and the difficult one as I have read much on this..... 6 or 12 volt ..just put on my tin hat
3. Many rubber components will require replacement including the isolaticics.... do I fit standard or the Vernier type offered by RGM/Norvil....
3. Warning lamp assimilator... keep or ditch as not a legal requirement.
4. Has anyone fitted an on board oil pressure kit

Many more question to come I'm sure
Thanks for your assistance

1. Choke mechanism or just use ticklers ( mine appears to have no external mechanism but have open holes in carb top plates.... to be honest none of my Triumphs do and have no cold starting issues at all

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You don't say where you live so no idea of temps, I used to not need the choke but do now even in summer for first 100 yrds, think its the new petrol as the carbs have been ultrasonically cleaned 3 times and still get weak mixture for first 2 mins without choke no matter how much I tickle.

2. I Have a Boyer system fitted. one of the coils is leaking, do I replace the single 6v coil or fit a twin outlet coil (boyer or otherwise).... and the difficult one as I have read much on this..... 6 or 12 volt ..just put on my tin hat

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Choice is yours, another 6V or replace both with a 12V dual, have ran with both and saw no difference.

3. Many rubber components will require replacement including the isolaticics.... do I fit standard or the Vernier type offered by RGM/Norvil....

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Vernier everytime but check the hardness of the rubbers, as a point of principle I never buy from Norvil, only RGM and Andover Norton. RGM rubbers have the reputation of being hard and take some bedding in. Mick Hemmings adjuster addon gives vernier adjustment on your old rubbers.

3. Warning lamp assimilator... keep or ditch as not a legal requirement.

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Well it tells you if your alternator has failed, your choice. The original one will have failed or be just about too, I run a solid state replacement.

4. Has anyone fitted an on board oil pressure kit

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Not me but a search on the board will find several versions. There is also a tell tale low pressure setup as well.

As far as your iso's, just replace the rubber and get the Hemmings adjusters. No need to buy a whole new setup. There's no advantage resorting to another type, except more expense.

I never used the choke on my 750. My 850 doesnt have them fitted , but since setting it up for better economy and in the last few years it is a bit of a bitch to keep going if you dont get your hand down onto one of the ticklers quick enough when cold. Once its been running about 30 seconds I'm off fro a minimum of a 1 hour ride. Your choice here really.

renew the 2 6 volt coils and keep the better one as a spare. If one dies when you are riding, at least you can limp along on one coil to get out of trouble [ which has never happened to me. ]

As for the iso's, up to you. I like the originals, [ well they could have been designed better but the design feature I would like isn't available even in the newer adjustable ones ] and it doesn't take me long to adjust them either.

Dereck

I didn't have chokes on my carbs when using the standard twin carb setup. I guess the short, straight inlet tracts keep condensational losses low.

After converting to a single carb, I found a choke to be essential.

Living quite near sea level in the UK, I've never needed to use the choke on any old British bike I've had, even in winter. With the Norton, from cold I tickle, start, and then keep the motor turning over at around 1,000rpm with the throttle, in less than a minute it ticks over by itself. The other bikes – all BSAs – were pretty much the same. If you live somewhere very different, then I can imagine your routine might differ. A Kawasaki Z650 and a Suzuki GS550MX I had in the '80s both needed choke from cold, but of course the setup was completely different and no tickler. HTH

Took the enrichers off of my 850's Amals 10 years ago and have never needed them (either before or after i removed them). The bike has "lived" at sea level (New York), at 7500 ft (Mexico City), and currently resides at 6400 ft (San Miguel de Allende) with no difference in how it started. I tickle the carbs, open the throttle about 1/8 turn and start, releasing the throttle and giving it a few slight blips. It will idle on it's own in 15-20 seconds. When the enrichers were installed, it always needed tickling anyway on a cold start so the enrichers did nothing useful that I could see. The fact that they "fail" in the closed position was another reason I removed them. Every so often during a ride I would wonder why the bike was running badly and it turned out that the enrichners had closed due to handlebar vibration.

After I installed the Alton E-Start in 2012 I reinstalled the enrichners, thinking that the rapidly spinning motor would suck in enough fuel with the enrichers closed to eliminate the need for tickling. But the engine still would not start from cold without tickling whether kick or E-start. So I re-removed them.

If your carbs are jetted right, you should always need choke for cold starting otherwise the motor will spit and fart for ages. Most bikes run rich enough to not need choke.

If you jet your carbs so you get best performance the motor will become much more weather-sensitive. So for road use, it might be better to stay on the rich side.

Just for the sake of the discussion, there is a big difference between a choke and an enrichment circuit.
The Mark I Amals come with a choke. I have always removed them and blanked off the hole at the top. My Bikes
always start cold by tickling first, cracking the throttle and kicking. I suspect that these chokes are really only
needed at very low temperatures, such as 20-30 degrees F, and what gentleman rides at those temperatures?

Now, the enrichment circuit, which is found on the Mark II Amals and the Mikuni carbs, is essential to
starting the engine when cold. It won't start unless it is on.

YMMV

We were taught that rich mixtures wash the oil of the bores and thus cause premature wear. If you do long distance riding, then the correct mixture is essential.
Dereck

It was the Mikuni-type enrichment circuit on the Mk2 Amals to which I was referring. The old type choke on early Amals was simply a crude botch-up.

lazyeye6 said:

I suspect that these chokes are really only needed at very low temperatures, such as 20-30 degrees F, and what gentleman rides at those temperatures?

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Er – me! But maybe I'm no gentleman! :lol: