Why Tickle?

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Tornado

Tornado

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Forgive the newbie question by why do we tickle our Amals prior to startups? I understand the need to initially fill the float bowl at first start in a while, but why do we do it at subsequent starts throughout a day? Shouldn't the float valve make the fuel level sufficient upon opening the petrol taps? Is there some reason to "overfill" the bowl via tickling?
 
It’s not to fill the float bowl, gravity will do that, it’s to ‘flood’ the pilot circuit with fuel so the engine gulps in plenty of it when being kicked.

Correct term is actually to ‘flood’ the carbs... ‘tickling’ is a nick name.
 
And the other version of the answer is “because the bike starts”!
 
Fast Eddie said:
It’s not to fill the float bowl, gravity will do that, it’s to ‘flood’ the pilot circuit with fuel so the engine gulps in plenty of it when being kicked.

Correct term is actually to ‘flood’ the carbs... ‘tickling’ is a nick name.
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So with fuel level at max by float valve alone, the pilot circuit fueling passages may not be filled and suction up the float bowl passages not sufficient upon initial kicking?
 
In my experience most old British bikes just need tickling for cold startup.
After that it's just kick and go.
The exception is my Commando if left sit for twenty minutes or so on a hot day.
Things dry out and it often requires use of one or both ticklers to fire up on the kicker.

The e start whirls it over faster so the ticklers aren't ever needed on restart, even in the above situation.

Glen
 
XTINCT said:
Back in the day, some folks ( me included ) would remove the chokes from new bikes.
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1st to go: Choke
2nd to go: Center Stand

I got my first Triumph (a 66) in 1968 and those were already gone. It's hard to find a center stand these days because not only did we remove them, we threw them away!

I have several British bikes - the chokes go the first day I get them - I guess it's just habit! On the other hand, I install center stands.
 
Tornado said:
Forgive the newbie question by why do we tickle our Amals prior to startups? I understand the need to initially fill the float bowl at first start in a while, but why do we do it at subsequent starts throughout a day? Shouldn't the float valve make the fuel level sufficient upon opening the petrol taps? Is there some reason to "overfill" the bowl via tickling?
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It's only required for a cold start (on most machines). A cold engine wants a rich mixture. Tickling the carbs floods them and puts raw fuel in the intake. It's the equivalent of pumping the gas pedal on a carburetted car - except that Amals don't have an accelerator pump to do that for us.
 
Tornado said:
So with fuel level at max by float valve alone, the pilot circuit fueling passages may not be filled and suction up the float bowl passages not sufficient upon initial kicking?
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Correct. The passages run just above the float and run to the back of the carb and down to the bottom of the bowl. It's a long way and they drain down again rapidly when the engine sits though that varies machine to machine. And faster if the gasket seal there is bad. The Amal site has some useful info.
 
marshg246 said:
1st to go: Choke
2nd to go: Center Stand

I got my first Triumph (a 66) in 1968 and those were already gone. It's hard to find a center stand these days because not only did we remove them, we threw them away!

I have several British bikes - the chokes go the first day I get them - I guess it's just habit! On the other hand, I install center stands.
Click to expand...

Yeah, for me a little different, lost the side stand kept the center stand, hacked off it's toe lever.
Long ago, my attitude, riding in SoCal, was "who needs a choke when you have ticklers? The darn things might hang down into the air flow at WOT."
 
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If you are using Mk2 Amals with the choke levers and you have the midrange jetting right, if you try to start the motor from cold without the choke, it will spit and fart like a pig. Once the motor is slightly warm, it will usually start very easily and run without the drama. I usually cold start with the chokes on and let the motor run at idle for a bit, before I take them off. Once you have got some heat into the motor, starting it is usually easy - even if the bike has been standing for an hour. It only has to be very slightly warm.
 
And I have to say in summer (UK) if starting the bike within an hour or so of last start I kick it over with no tickle and the petcocks off. It starts first time (usually) then I turn the fuel on.
 
I use methanol fuel, so the motor usually runs as cold as a nun's arse. At race meetings, the bike can be left standing for hours, then still starts without the chokes.
 
I
Steves said:
And I have to say in summer (UK) if starting the bike within an hour or so of last start I kick it over with no tickle and the petcocks off. It starts first time (usually) then I turn the fuel on.
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Interesting...my bike has been starting running nicely since I renewed the needle/needle valve....up until I stopped for fuel on a warm day after stop and go city traffic. She would not fire for many a kick. I did tickle, no choke. Wheeled it to the shade more for my comfort than the bike's, a few more tried and up she came. Might have been vapour locking or maybe flooded. But really think it was my just karma for trying to impress the twenty something Bonne riding gal that came over to ogle the bike while I was fueling....
 
ashman said:
You know trying to show off to the pretty ones the Norton will play up they get jealous you know.

Ashley
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She made it up to me later that evening after local bike shop BBQ Bike Night....was one of only a couple vintage rides there (even though this was a vintage specialty restorer shop)...was afraid to embarrass myself in front of all the on-lookers when I went to leave...but got a first kick fire up and everyone cheered!
 
They only play up when you are looking at a pretty one lol, any other time they don't care.

Ashley
 
There are some people who cannot tell by the way it feels when they are kicking their motor over, whether it is flooded or it has no fuel. When I used to ride bikes with kick-starters, I could always tell when the motor had a guts full of fuel. It always felt softer when I brought it up to compression, than when the mixture is right. If you use the whole stroke when starting the motor, you don't have any feel. I usually bring it up to compression and just flick it over the top.
 
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In my experience it is pretty hard to flood one of these. If I have a group watching, I always tickle the carbs just because if freaks so many people out!
 
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