Starting for the first time

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HMNYC

HMNYC

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Hi all. I will be starting (attempting to start) my 73 Norton Commando 850 for the first time this Saturday. I have been working on the bike for 2 1/2 years but this will be my first attempt to get it going. The bike has a new ignition and starter. New carbs. New wiring harness. Crank case breather. All fluids are fresh and topped up. It turns over no problem.

Any tips or things I should prep would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Mike
 
If you don't have your air filter on, and if you get flames coming from the carbs, don't panic and don't use your fire extinguisher. Just kick it through a few more times with the ignition off and it will suck the flames in.
Hopefully your first start is a lot less exciting than that! I bet it will purr like a kitten.
 
Timing set correctly? That will be a big factor in how easily it will start. Personally, when I start a newly rebuilt engine of any kind for the first time I set the static timing at TDC or just 2-3 degrees BTDC which makes for a very easy start. You can set the timing correctly later. But for a first start you want it to go as easily and smoothly as possible to get everything going without a lot of starter-grinding, whether kick or electric.

If the engine has been sitting for a long time I think I would put a squirt of oil in each cylinder through the spark plug hole and dribble some down onto the cam/lifter area and spin the engine over a few times with the kick starter/plugs removed. Then put the plugs back in and have at it for real!

Good luck!
 
When I wake my 850 out of it's summer slumber (I live in AZ so don't ride it in the too hot summer) I always pull off the valve covers and squirt a liberal amount of oil on the valve train. I make sure that it dribbles down each push rod so that the cam and lifters receive a refreshing dose of life giving lubricant. I then pull the spark plugs and squirt oil down the each cylinder and work the kick starter a bunch to spread it around. Oh, I see that while I was typing that Mike added the oil thing also. I guess that now you've been double instructed. Good luck!
 
Awesome, thank you. That is exactly what I needed to know. I will report back Saturday!
 
You want some high quality whey protein powder, mix it with skimmed or semi skimmed milk.

And eat lots of chicken and tuna.

It’s the only way to minimise leg ache after a Saturday kick starting marathon...;)
 
Atlas Commando said:
If you don't have your air filter on, and if you get flames coming from the carbs, don't panic and don't use your fire extinguisher. Just kick it through a few more times with the ignition off and it will suck the flames in.
Hopefully your first start is a lot less exciting than that! I bet it will purr like a kitten.
Click to expand...

Ha, yikes. Hopefully a lot less exciting than that!!!
 
Fast Eddie said:
You want some high quality whey protein powder, mix it with skimmed or semi skimmed milk.

And eat lots of chicken and tuna.

It’s the only way to minimise leg ache after a Saturday kick starting marathon...;)
Click to expand...

I'm gonna make my kid do it... they heal up fast.
 
Big fan to keep the engine cool while making adjustments.

Used a small pump oil can and forced oil into rocker feed lines, rockers and push rod tunnels.

I see you are in the North East. If your garage is not heated you might want to try and get the bike warm. I used a torpedo heater to warm the entire bike up to about 60 degrees before I attempted to start it, air temp at the time was below freezing.

Fire extinguisher near by.

Even though it has an E-start I still kicked it. I did cheat and give a tiny squirt of starting fluid. Started first kick and then broke the cam in for 25 minutes with fan running. Dumped oil and refilled while everything was still warm.

Good to have a helper around just in case.
 
As others have said Extra oil into the valve covers would be good
Also don't let it idle 3000rpm would be good
 
Not yet mentioned, but as per Mick Hemming's gearbox DVD, the recommendation is not to run the engine for long periods (a few mins at most) with the gearbox in neutral. This is b/c the sleeve gear will not be seeing any lubrication as the main shaft rotates inside it. There will be no other gear rotating to kick up the oil onto the sleeve gear bearing surfaces.
He recommends having bike on CS so rear off ground and knocking it into first while messing about on the running engine. I would think holding the clutch (using a strap for extended work) in should also protect gearbox components.
 
baz said:
As others have said Extra oil into the valve covers would be good
Also don't let it idle 3000rpm would be good
Click to expand...
The workshop manual I have shows a drawing with a hand pump being used to pump oil into the rocker oil lines from down at the timing chest oil pipe. It doesn't show/explain where to make the hand pump connection...suspect you've got to pull the nylon line off the spigot...way too much fuss and drizzling from the rocker covers seems much easier.
 
Tornado said:
The workshop manual I have shows a drawing with a hand pump being used to pump oil into the rocker oil lines from down at the timing chest oil pipe. It doesn't show/explain where to make the hand pump connection...suspect you've got to pull the nylon line off the spigot...
Click to expand...

Which manual? Section? Page?

There's a drawing (Fig. C.41) in the factory manual, section C showing how to prime the crankshaft at the timing cover rocker feed connection with a hand pump.
 
L.A.B. said:
Which manual? Section? Page?

There's a drawing (Fig. C.41) in the factory manual, section C showing how to prime the crankshaft at the timing cover rocker feed connection with a hand pump.
Click to expand...

Of course you are correct L.A.B. My bad...misunderstood that diagram. Must've been skimming through the manual while reviewing the rocker spindle R&R process and saw that diagram. Just assumed it was for priming the rocker lines & spindles. But I guess they will fill nearly immediately (low volumes) on their own once the pump pressurizes.
In a related matter, I'm fitting my oil pressure gauge and was thinking it & its line should be primed with oil prior to first start up there might be a possibility of trapped air on the feed line from the head. Can pressurized oil force past air in a (somewhat vertical) line that essentially dead ends at the guage?
 
Tornado said:
In a related matter, I'm fitting my oil pressure gauge and was thinking it & its line should be primed with oil prior to first start up there might be a possibility of trapped air on the feed line from the head. Can pressurized oil force past air in a (somewhat vertical) line that essentially dead ends at the guage?
Click to expand...

The oil doesn't need to get past the air. If the oil pressure in the tube for instance, is 50 PSI then the air in the tube will be compressed to 50 PSI.
 
well, as soon as it starts I would have a strobe light hooked to the battery and the front little primary cap off, an assistant on hand to raise the rpm's to whatever your ignition says full advance and you check the timing - assuming you have it statically set when you did the install
 
Just prime the oil up to the head and start it, once fired up check to see if oil is returning back to the oil tank, if timing is set right even static timing is pretty close it should fire up on the first or second kick, once its started the oil will pump around the motor pretty quickly and if the carbies need adjustments to get it running smoothly then do it when its warmed up.

Ashley
 
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