Blast. I had typed a whole bunch of stuff, and then got distracted and hadn't saved.
What now follows will be an abridged version.
So it is now December. In fact in a couple of days it will be Christmas.
I have collected the engine from Nick. Since I neglected to supply carb etc he has not been able to test it.
Time to fit everything.
That was relatively easy - I had an ample supply of "special" engine bolts.
I have chosen to fit AMAL Mk2 34mm carb. It has been an eBay purchase and was previously fitted to a Lambretta.
The carb was a fiddle - despite the fitment of angled Intake from a Norton Commando (I believe).
I promise myself that I will sort out the Carb to Airbox (I do not want to modify the box) later on.
Will it start?
Kick, kick, ouch. B*gger.
repeat, quite a few times.
Eventually I get life.
For perhaps 30 seconds, and it dies.
Claiming victory, and exhausted I call it a day.
The Stormer lives and it is not yet Christmas day.
I have managed to achieve one of my (much) revised milestones.
January fails to see a repeat of the Christmas bonus.
I blame the Motoplat. It does seem to be indifferent in when it produces a spark.
I decide that an Electrex World kit will cure all my ills. I decide, however, that I would like Nick Brown to fit it.
He agrees on the proviso that:
1. I supply the unit (easy, I do not live a million miles away from their factory)
2. I deliver the bike to his home, as again he will be doing the work in his own time
Nick is a great guy, and this is a job well beyond my modest capabilities, not least because my Stormer backplate has already been modified to fit the Motoplat, possibly by Fluff himself back in the day. Nick believes that my bike is a converted Crosser, since the Engine and Frame numbers predate the FB era.
There are some issues, not least due to the fact that I need a new backplate, and I have also specified a lighting coild on the Electrex.
The bike will not start.
I fetch it (marvellous things these MotoLug trailers) and drop the bike off at Peter Houghton at ElectrexWorld.
Both Peter and I fiddle with the wretched thing for ages - in between variuous other commitments.
Peter can get the bike to run briefly (much as I did at Christmas) but not for any significant duration. We declare (well Peter does) that it is a fuelling issue. To his credit Peter has spent a significant amount of time on this - both he and I have spannered and pushed the ruddy thing up and down the yard outside the factory unit.
It is now May and I am hopeful that the MK2 I have had on order at Burlen will arrive any day, or month now. So I order a few more parts for the Lambretta carb.......
Oh, and another MK1 Intake manifold as mine appears to walked out of the garage.
Another thorough clean of the carb reveals blocked cold start jet, and a dodgy cold start plunger. Wild experimantation with Pilot jet gets it running and an idle of sort.
I will never put a used carb on again with an ultrasonic clean.
I have missed my worst case scenario deadline (my local village fete has a 2vintage/old/whatever you want" to parade. I console myself in the fact that I would have missed it anyway due to one of boy's being in a football tournament, but it still hurts. We live and learn.
At least now I know it is a runner I can get it finished and here it is:
Finished article.jpg
Finished front.jpg
Finished front number plate.jpg