Premiers

Well, stripped and cleaned new carbs, checked float height and fitted, set air screw out 1 1/2 turns out checked slide synch, petrol on, tickle, fired first kick a bit lumpy, idle a bit low so will warm up tomorrow and see how we go, pleased so far.

Great, set up when hot for tickover. Don't go daftly low with the tickover. You will also notice that they stay in adjustment better, and don't stall when slamming the throttle shut.

The quality now from Burlen is far better than at anytime in the past, I believe they have taken on additional staff recently which is a good sign. Reports of blocked jets, odd carbs and carbs with different jetting have not be heard of for many months now.

Once in use just check the security of the carbs to the head and the float bowls and carb tops for loose screws, other than that not a lot else to do really.

What's a sensible tick over, I know it's a personal thing.

For the sake of oil pressure, 1000 - 1100 is recommended.

Thank you, I've never had a decent tick over and I spotted a thread recommending 1000-1100,so your suggestion confirms that.

For the sake of the cam and followers 1100 min.

Esmerela said:

For the sake of the cam and followers 1100 min.

Click to expand...

Q: What do you call a Commando with a 800rpm tick-over...?

A: A cam grinding machine...!

At my local vintage club meet (which I only get to occasionally) the fashionable thing to do is start your engine from cold and let it tick over. The keen ones spend hours in the shed tuning their bikes for the slowest tick-over they can get.

They love to start up their cold bikes and show off their super slow tick-overs, with the bikes sounding like stationary engines at a steam fair as they spend ages togging up to ride off.

Most of ‘em insist on using cheap shite oil too “that synthetic oil is too thin boy”. I just look on, say nowt, and wince at the poor suffering cams and followers!

To be fair though, the way some of ‘em ride they’d probably not even notice if the cam lobes were half gone...

Fast Eddie said:

Q: What do you call a Commando with a 800rpm tick-over...?

A: A cam grinding machine...!

At my local vintage club meet (which I only get to occasionally) the fashionable thing to do is start your engine from cold and let it tick over. The keen ones spend hours in the shed tuning their bikes for the slowest tick-over they can get.

They love to start up their cold bikes and show off their super slow tick-overs, with the bikes sounding like stationary engines at a steam fair as they spend ages togging up to ride off.

Most of ‘em insist on using cheap shite oil too “that synthetic oil is too thin boy”. I just look on, say nowt, and wince at the poor suffering cams and followers!

To be fair though, the way some of ‘em ride they’d probably not even notice if the cam lobes were half gone...

Click to expand...

Most people and owners of vintage bikes or classic bikes don't normally ride much who are in vintage clubs they tinker more than anything and go to their club meets to brag about their bikes or I can get my bike to tick over 500/600 rpms and usually only ride short trips once a year or so or they trailer them to their club show or other clubs shows, a true classic should be ridden as much as possible letting them sit and not clock up many miles doesn't do them any good, another thing I hate about some of these classic/vintage owners they brag about how they restored their bikes to find out they paid someone else to do the restoration and the only thing they do is keep up the polish or keep the dust off them and some don't even put a spanner on them, but not all of them are like that, but there are a lot who do and I have met quite a few.
My Norton is no show pony but everything I do on it is done by my own hands, off course there are things I can't do myself but I always have someone who can, but I do most of all the work, I been to a few shows over the years and have never won anything but my bike get a lot of comments and the biggest and best is "man its well ridden" its only been in a trailer once in its 43 ownership to me when it lost the chain clip and the chain rapped and jammed between the PC and usually its a one off build and have only seen another Commando/Featherbed at the shows its been in where its been ridden in and rode home.

Ashley