1045 kit with 10.5 comp ratio, web 118 grind, kibblewhite valves and springs.

 

Back in the day, there was a drag racer RC Collins, and he ground the cams for mine, you have to use to cam cover gaskets and the inside of cam cover has been ground off some so the cams will turn without hitting the cam cover, ported head, welded crank, oil gate turned backwards because it took off so hard, we street raced these back in late 70’s. My brother had one the same color as yours. I have owned mine for 45 years.

 

I only had two bikes, both 350 BSAs, one was quite rare I found out much later. It was a 1938 or 1939 BSA works trials bike, I found out when a documentary describing bikes in a museum said “and now we come to the very rare B28 ?“ I think the model was. It was really too heavy, but all the guard’s, chain, clutch cover etc had been chrome plated, it had the up swept exhaust pipe and silencer which still had the original chrome on it in great condition, despite the heat shield it gave me some nasty burns. I ran it with the original rear tire. The other was a postwar B31 from the early ‘50s someone gave me it.
I used to go to Silverstone and Brands Hatch to see the bike races. There is something special happening when you get the air filled with the smell of Castrol R.

 

Very cool, do you have a picture of it?

 

Sadly not, when I left England my mother cleared out my room after a while and I lost a lot of stuff.
I have looked for photos of that model and I have come up empty-handed.
I am not sure if it would have been classed as a Gold Star at that time.
There were no springs at the rear and someone had fitted teles at the front.
I never could find a handbook for that model, it never dawned on me that one did not exist.
The gearbox had very close-ratio gearing and the bike did not go very fast until I put another gearbox in it. Before me someone had used a sidecar on it.
I rode it until someone ran into my side and the car bumper hit under my bum, I had the right of way and he just pulled out from a side street, I opened up the throttle just so he missed my leg and ended up on the sidewalk still upright but a bit shook up. I started using my car all the time and gave my bikes to a friend.
I loved biking but a few close calls closed that chapter in my life.

 

Is this it ?

 

The original seat looks similar, mine had no tool box, mine had the upswept exhaust pipe, the pushrod cover was one piece, the girder forks on mine had been replaced with telescopic forks and the timing cover went up to the magneto which in itself was a pain due to water getting into it, the BSA logo on the tank was a separate item and not a transfer, the electrics were by Lucas the Prince of Darkness.
You could give me any screw from that bike and I could tell you where it went, I fitted a new small end and bushing, I worked in the tool room at that time so I borrowed an adjustable reamer to do the job. The silencer had rusted out inside a bit and it was too loud so I stuffed wire wool down it, at night my bike left a trail of sparks behind it, quite something to see.

 

Had quite a few bikes , the last being an XL 600 single cyl thumper which I road mostly on the road . This post reminds me of a funny story many yrs ago .
A young cocky engineer bought a new road bike -- forgot make , & started riding it to work . He would park it as close to the engineering building as possible -- his mistake .
We began , very much on the sly , putting oil directly under the motor w/ a bit on the under housing which just about drove the kid bonkers for quite awhile !
It was nasty but very funny !
Most fun bike was a Harley utility 3 wheeler w/ a pan hd 45 I bought out of a junkyard . Really ran well after some TLC ---- loved the reverse & found you could squeal tires on a dirt road ! Came home from basic training & my grandfather had gotten rid of it as he couldn't stand yard clutter !
It had an amazing motor when in the dead of winter , outside , I would put the batt in , & just get it to ker-chug & the darn thing would start which was way before multi wgt oil !

 

These old Honda's have really taken off now that they turned 50! It seems like everyone had or wanted one as a kid. I could sell one a day if I could build them that fast.

 

After some time off I finally got my head out of my a** and started building bikes again. I have two going to Margaritaville Campgrounds for the Grand Opening in Feb and one going up North. I mostly have been building stuff for my three Grandsons so they can be learning and riding at a young age. Sadly, I traded my "6" for an SRT-10 because I had gotten DEEP in the car with around 8k invested over the year that I owned it but when the Dust settled I did well. After a long Day yesterday bouncing around Nashville, I brought home another R170 car so I am happy. Living the High Life again. I went to Bowling Green Ky several months ago to look at a Yamaha RD400 Twin 2 Smoker that was in amazing shape but made the mistake of taking my wife. By the time I arrive the Ether had worn off and I passed.

 

Showing all these vintage bikes here I figured I'd throw mine in to this thread
1985 Honda V65 Magna (VF1100cc)
I had this from 2010 and just sold it last year for more than I paid for it 10 years earlier
I bought it with only 21600 original miles on it
I have owned several motorcycles since age 15 and I'm gonna be 60 in January
I have never been without a motorcycle until now
I just chose to give up bikes and now fully enjoy my 6 Speed Roadster instead

 

I had a grey one of these. Was a 1980(something) gsx450. (pic I found on the net like it, I didnt take pictures of it for some reason. Busy riding it I guess)

My stepdad George aka ala_xfire had a rule. I couldn't buy a bike I couldn't pick up. I wanted a 650 or 750 cruiser. Which as scrawny as I was I couldnt pick up so no dice

I rode the crap out of it. I put over 6000 miles on it which some might say isnt that impressive until you factor in that I put over 6000 miles on it in ONE MONTH.

I loved the bike but I didnt like the handle bars being so far forward. With it not being a cruiser long rides would kill my back. Right after ticking over 6000 miles and before my first payment was due a guy drove into the side of the bike while I was coming up to an intersection. Totaled the bike out but didnt really hurt me. Cracked the side case on the engine.
The guys insurance didnt want to do a payoff on the bike with the miles it had on it and couldnt believe I had put that many miles on it in that short of a time. They dragged the whole thing out till I started telling them each time they called that I REALLY liked that cadillac the guy that hit me had and that was a real nice watch he had on too. They changed their tune, paid the bike off and paid for two high end helmets price tag wise which was weird since I didnt even claim the helmet I had on let alone a second one I didnt even have.

One last story that ties to this one. They told me they would get me a rental car till the settlement was done. Anything I wanted
So here I am at 19 years old and a blank check for a rental car. I went straight to hertz and tried to rent one of the new c4 corvettes that were just out. This was 84 or 85. Turns out you cant rent a car from hertz back then at 19. So I bounced all over the place trying to rent something.

Went from dreams of a fun car to renting a beat up 76 nova at ugly duckling rent a wreck....... Talk about a let down

 

I bet, its funny you mentioned renting Vettes from Hertz, in the 80's I was a C & E visitor (Christmas & Easter) flying into Nashville Tn and would drive the hour to our little town. I remember Hertz had 2 seater Caddy's and Vettes, I first picked the Alante but quickly turned around and got a Red Drop Top Vette knowing it would drive the country girls WILD since the C4 Vert had just been released. Not so good on the Icey Roads and I never did drop the top but sure did bag some Doe's!

How is your stepdad George Doing? He was always very helpful when I would ask my Dumb questions. I hope you guys have a great Christmas !

 

He passed away December 4th. There is a thread about it here : https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...ssed-away.html

On a side note I did get me vette in the long run, just many years later. I have a 1987 Corvette convertible.