baz said:
no you have missed my point i cable tie the splitter box to the frame to hold it rigged !,if you have the engine running and the the throttle open no slack in the cable ie pulling away etc and the cable splitter box is able to move about when you turn the bars it will pull one carb more open than the other ,i have proven this to a mate by connecting a vacuum gauge and turning the bars from side to side and seeing the vacuum go up and down,i found just moving the splitter by hand had an effect on the carb balance so ever since then on a twin carb bike i cable tie the splitter so it can not move ,this is just my opinion,,,,,,,,baz
I think you might have missed my point baz, I was talking about cable stretching, not individual movement. Just the same as a single carb/ cable arrangement requires the slack taken up from time to time using the adjuster. This is what we assumed was causing such frequent out of balance of the carbi's, one cable stretching a little bit more than the other, nothing to do with splitter box movement. I didn't like the extra size of the dual cable twist grip so preferred the splitter box. Neither made any difference to the carb balancing requirement. Either system is prehistoric in my view, depending on two individual cables to maintain precise simultaneous movement. A cross connected link arrangement between the carbi's makes so much more sense, with a rotating wheel actuated by one cable only.
Apart from erratic idling, the out of balance slides used to cause surging at low throttle opening, such as in traffic at low speed. When I think of all the little and not so little issues that used to plague us, it's no wonder the Japanese machinery seemed to do everything better, except be light and handle well. You almost had to be a masochist to stay faithfully with English machinery. But nowadays we've been able to improve so much on our Commando's, it leaves us a lot freer to enjoy the good things about them. Well that's how I see it. And it's interesting how people who know nothing about motorcycles will look at it and say, what a beautiful bike. Not all but most. So aesthetically it is very impressive as well, not just to us. Even my mate Sandy, owner of Staintune walked around it looking decidedly clinical and commenting about Commando oil leaks, fractured exhaust pipes and no end of vibration related problems finally said, if the cops pull you over it will be only to look at your beautiful bike. Prior to that comment, I was thinking he's probably just seen one too many Brit bikes. He's a bit of a Beemer man these days, but barely rides anyway, like so many long in the tooth bikers, which most of us are.
Getting way off beam, it also amuses me how there are so many non riding experts out there. Especially at the pub after a few beers. One guy was tearing strips off me for riding in shorts, told me all the terrible injuries he'd had, torn ligaments, broken bones etc. So I asked, how would wearing long pants save me from doing that? He just looked at me blankly, couldn't answer so had another beer instead. I'm not suggesting good riding gear is not necessary, but it won't save you breaking a leg etc.
Getting back to the Rocket Racer, twin FCD's are going on it and I'm expecting a very good result. They certainly aren't the cheapest carburettors.
Phil
