1968 BSA B25 Starfire

[2LZ]

Originally Posted by TominMO

I remember a comment from long ago on British automobile manufacturing capabilities:

The British do a fine job of making burled walnut dashboards.

Funny thing. Many moons ago, my X wife worked with a gal who was selling a white 1970 MGB, spoke wheels with knock-offs, and all. She wanted it badly. I put my foot down hard. "Nope! I'm the family mechanic and there's NO WAY that POS will end up in this driveway!" So, a week later, there it was. I was dreading it.

I popped the hood every morning before she went to the office and checked everything. Fired it and warmed it for her. That damn car never missed a beat in the two years we had it. Started every morning regardless of weather. Never broke down once. I was actually pissed when I lost it in the divorce. I ended up loving that little thing.

[TominMO]

I also had a 1970 MGB, in British Racing Green. In China. It had been imported by an Australian diplomat and was right-hand drive. I was told it was one of only two convertibles in China. Also had it for about two years, 1984 - 86. Stuck a pair of nice sidedraft carbs on it. Ran great.

[cheesy]

Originally Posted by 2LZ

Don't ya wish you had that now just for man cave art????

Good lord, no. I'd always be reminded of it.

[2LZ]

Started some tinkering on it yesterday. Found a few things like the chain guard was just sitting there with no bolts. It looks brand new. No scratched around the holes or marring. Got her secure now. Better fine tooth comb the whole thing. 56 years is a lot of hands with wrenches.
New seat foam coming. The old one dumps dandruff on the swingarm when I sit on it.

[2LZ]

So, I went checked out the Lucas wiring harness this evening and it looks super-clean. No marrs, scuffs, corroded connections. Looks at least as good as any China bike I've had, if not better than the Bearcat.

I've been all over the Brit bike forums and I do understand that Lucas stands for "Loose Unsoldered Connections and Splices"....but I'll fine tooth comb it, clean and dielectric grease every connection. From everything I've readon the Brit bike forums, this is the best thing to make it a reliable setup.

[2LZ]

Found a factory re-pop of the exact brochure of the same BSA B25, early 1967 bike, color and all. Had it laminated today. More stuff for the car show in July.

BTW...the new metal tank came in and of course, the color is as close as the fine folks in India thought it should be. Taking the tank, oil bag, and battery cover, to a painter to match it all up. Hopefully I can get him to match the tank to the side covers. He's "an old bike guy who does noting but custom paint and great work". We'll see.

[TominMO]

Putting this here for your reference:

[2LZ]

Originally Posted by TominMO

Putting this here for your reference:

Thankfully, Mrs. 2LZ was kind enough to get me a small set of Whitworth wrenches and sockets from Santa. I never thought I'd need more of either.

[cheesy]

I put all my Whitworth wrenches in the trunk of my 64 Midget for the suc...er...gent that bought it. Then I had to get into old British bicycles. At least a 5/16W x 3/8W and 7/16W x 1/2W open ends cover 95% of the fasteners. Anything else warrants an adjustable. Continuing with Whitworth, I found an old Whitworth thread gage in my tap and die drawer. I haven't any idea when or where I got it.

[Magician16]

I had a '71 Triumph Trident, got to know Lucas electrical parts pretty well. That bike always ran great, but it could never keep the battery charged up. My headlight had only 2 modes off and flicker. I worked on electrics on both Triumph and MGB cars for friends because local mechanics wouldn't touch them.

[Darkrider]

LUCAs is also known as the Prince of Darkness lol

[2LZ]

The biggest problem Lucas electrics had was they always lived in wet, humid environments and the connections were plated, I believe? Correct me if I'm wrong. In dry CA climates, with the connections cleaned, with dielectric grease, it looks just as good as any other harness. Fingers crossed.....

[Darkrider]

Originally Posted by 2LZ

The biggest problem Lucas electrics had was they always lived in wet, humid environments and the connections were plated, I believe? Correct me if I'm wrong. In dry CA climates, with the connections cleaned, with dielectric grease, it looks just as good as any other harness. Fingers crossed.....

Truth be told i have yet to have any major electrical issues on my MG other then a weird issue i had when i was trying to install a headlight relay kit. I figure if i need to i will replace connections as needed with either Deutsch or Weatherpak connectors as needed.

[2LZ]

Thanks to our garbage ethanol fuel here, I had to order a metal tank. Of course, the color wasn't even close, so I ordered the correct paint from some place in the UK. I'll do it myself.

Then I had to take apart the brand new Amal carb to see if it had the correct float that won't be destroyed by our gas. Of course, it didn't. I ordered one of those today too.....plus ethanol safe fuek line as well. I have plenty....in the wrong size.

Bottom line? All in all, I'm having a great time with it. Now that I have the tank and seat off, the wiring harness is very minimal but looks like it's in fantastic condition. I really think this bike was just stores for a very long time and not really ridden much.

I'm discovering many things about owning a Brit bike. The forums are bone dry. "Just the facts ma'am" (Joe Friday). I research info....then bail, so far. No real chatter like here. Dry, but lots of great tech info. Many of these guys are more machinists than mechanics.

[2LZ]

Some actual work today. Did some fine-tooth combing. I'm REALLY trying not to tear this one down like the other.

The Brit bike is amazingly simple, though it uses some different wrenches. Even the dreaded Lucas electrics appear to be minimal. Though the Brits speak the same language, Chinglish was easier.... I need a Brit dictionary of terms and slang slogans. At least the Chinese tried.