What is a "B"KS cover?
Gary
Gary
G: Gearbox (Twin) G92 spring etc.
- Thread starter druridge
- Start date
A series "B" Kickstart cover. It fits the same as the "C" series cover but the casting is different giving a different look to the exterior. Perhaps somebody will post a photograph.
And use the valve lifter to kick start the engine. I have seen supposed Vincent experts fiddling around trying to find the long or short stroke and then booting the engine over without use of the valve lifter. That is an abomination and will lead to failure of something.
Basically it's much stronger & I think a tad heavier, Series "B" castings were beefier all round.
I am with Robert. Also, it is best to never start a Vincent on any stand. I indexed the KS so that when my heel was an inch off the ground when the bike would start. If I kicked too hard, my heel would hit the ground before hitting the cover.
If your bike stalls in traffic you need to be able to kick it and start off.
David
If your bike stalls in traffic you need to be able to kick it and start off.
David
Being in your 30's really helps if you don't want to use a stand at all for starting without falling over. It gets tougher at 70. Seriously, I find the Videan side stand is my best friend if I need to do a quick restart without using the center or rear stands and the front stands are pretty useless to me except for maintenance and repair. I wonder if any other motorcycle has ever had so many options for stands? I must carry 20 pounds or more of them.
I have to admit to using the center stand on my open D for cold starts. I do that with two primer kicks with the ignition off and one with it on. All three kicks are done with valve lifter to get through the first compression on the front cylinder. Since the bike has battery ignition, it is nearly always in the correct position from cold. If the bike stalled before stopping instead of being shut off with the switch, it might not be. I've learned to tell when it's wrong. I don't think I've ever followed through to the very end of the stroke. Maybe that's the key to avoid breaking the cover. In fact, I have a habit of recoiling just before that, in anticipation of a kick back. It's happened a few times, primarily before the bike was fully sorted out. You know, timing --- both ignition and valves. But it seems to happen if the engine was in the wrong position and tried to start on the front cylinder. There isn't time to build up enough speed and the resulting inertia necessary.
Once the engine is warm, I take the bike off the stand (I do have the C-style front stands as well), mount up and kick it over, again using the valve lifter. It usually starts in one kick. The bike has 8:1 pistons. Still, no problem, even at 76 and a mere 5'4" of "stature". I suppose all those years of exercise have paid off. Slacking off now a bit but the benefits still linger.
Gary
Once the engine is warm, I take the bike off the stand (I do have the C-style front stands as well), mount up and kick it over, again using the valve lifter. It usually starts in one kick. The bike has 8:1 pistons. Still, no problem, even at 76 and a mere 5'4" of "stature". I suppose all those years of exercise have paid off. Slacking off now a bit but the benefits still linger.
Gary
Bikes with either the "D" type stand or Dave Hills type can easily be started on their stands without your body weight on the bike simply by starting the bike from the right side. This works very well, and I prefer starting them like this. The early kick start covers the boss for the quadrant rebound spring/plunger is a solid piece that runs between the right hand lower screw hole and the screw boss just bellow the kick start boss. On the later covers this area has a hollow section that was cast into them, and this is much weaker than the early ones. It is very tricky to weld, not least because of grease impregnated into the casting, and I feel the cover would never have the same strength again.
I've always started mine on the centre stand (unless it cuts out on the road) and never managed to master the use of the valve lifter but can't recall hitting any stop.