Still Kickin at 70

With all this conversation on this thread about kickstarting your kickstart only Nortons (like mine) and uncertainties from an age group of guys who wonder how much longer or even if they are going to be able to contiue doing so, this may be getting off topic, but if you think they're difficult, you ought to attempt to kickstart an old ('86) KTM 500 MXer. 500cc sigle cylinder, high compression 2-stroke. As if not difficult enough, in and of itself, KTM saw fit to put the kickstart lever on the left side. The vast majority of people, who are right handed, are also right-footed (if that's a word) and attempting to kick something wrong footed makes it pretty close to impossible. My grandson wound up with one of these through buying, working on, fixing, selling, and trading ATVs, bikes, SxSs. He's a little bigger than I am (6'1", 210 lbs.) and is young and much stronger than this old man. Even so, it wore him out trying to start it the couple of times he was successful in getting it to start and run. As we joked, by the time you were able to get that thing to start, you'd be too wore out to race it.

And it had a 'short' high mounted kicker.
Rode a CR500 for years.. At least it was on right side.
It's all in the technique. Whole different deal.

Back in my Twenty's when I was more stout. 1 legged, 1 kick starts on TDC were the norm for the 850.
Saw a guy having a hard time starting his Sportster.
Asked if I could help, he explains it's a high compression stroker.
No worries, thinking I'm a BA. Thought it would be easy with that long kicker.
Brought it to TDC, nope, no joy.
It's all in the techinique. Again, whole different deal.

I have a 490 Maico MX, 12 to 1. Left side kicker, also left on the Ossas. The 490 is not too bad to kick over. The worst thing about kickstarting it is that it takes about 20 kicks from cold to get fuel in. Once warm it restarts in 1 kick.
It could really use a choke fitted for cold starting. One day I might get to that.

The Vincent 1360 is my toughest bike to kick over. It has 11 to 1 compression.
I now use a paddock starter for cold starting.
The only good thing about Kickstarting that 1360 is that it makes the 920 Norton seem easy.

A friend in Norway built an Egli with a 1200 cc version of this engine and 9 to 1 compression. The Prince squish heads really make kickover difficult.
He has never been able to kick start it nor have any of his motorcycle club friends. He has fitted an estart but that hasn't worked well either, consequently the bike sees very little use.
The three things that turn a bike into a wallflower seem to be

1. Difficult to start, either difficult to kickover or difficult to do a hot or tepid restart even with a good kickover. This is really common with old bikes, especially those with tired magnetos.
Quite a number of Westcoast Vincents have Mikuni carbs fitted. Every one that I have ridden with has been difficult to restart after a 30 minute to 1 hour start. Sometimes it takes 30 kicks to restart, even if they have hot EI ignitions.
The Amal equipped bikes usually go in 1 as long as the ignition is ok.

2. Annoying vibration level.

3. Frequently breaks down and needs to be hauled home.




Glen

cash said:

What a pack of cruel beggars they're just jealous.

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Actually I'm kinda in a quandary. I should have said "since I know your address, how about a phone number?" Turns out she lives on the same street as me about a block away. She says she walks her dog a lot do I need to keep an eye out for her. She's not hard to spot. Lots of curves in the right places.

I can still K start but I decided to install an E start so I don't screw up my hip, knee, ankle or foot as I, like so many of you, have been kick starting bikes for a big portion of my life.
When E start came about on motorcycles I was absolutely thrilled, no more gymnastics at the stoplight trying to fire a hard starting bike. I am still thrilled to have an E start on my 74 Commando. I get to spend more time riding or tweaking it instead of all the necessary theatrical prep to punch the kick start lever through.
For me, E start is just common sense.

Dan1950 said:

Actually I'm kinda in a quandary. I should have said "since I know your address, how about a phone number?" Turns out she lives on the same street as me about a block away. She says she walks her dog a lot do I need to keep an eye out for her. She's not hard to spot. Lots of curves in the right places.

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Dan, is her name Roxanne?

tried to find hobot's (combat?) commando hand start vid, but no luck yet...


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Lineslinger said:

I can still K start but I decided to install an E start so I don't screw up my hip, knee, ankle or foot as I, like so many of you, have been kick starting bikes for a big portion of my life.
When E start came about on motorcycles I was absolutely thrilled, no more gymnastics at the stoplight trying to fire a hard starting bike. I am still thrilled to have an E start on my 74 Commando. I get to spend more time riding or tweaking it instead of all the necessary theatrical prep to punch the kick start lever through.
For me, E start is just common sense.

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I don't have anything against E starters. In fact I appreciate them. At this point in life, I certainly don't have anything to prove, ie; being able to kickstart a Norton. It was just that the deal that came along on this Norton happened to be a kickstart only bike.

I have E start on my MK II.

12 E Wellington works every time.

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robs ss said:

But your photos you just posted show no kickstarter - how do you start it in public?

Pictures of your Norton Commandos

Looks like the paint might be salvageable? Time for a new build thread.

www.accessnorton.com

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Actually, just trying to make a joke. But, If you must know...I sheared the grooves off the CNW rear-set shifter that clears the kicker. Until that is repaired, I have to use the stock shifter that will not clear the kicker.

I'm having increasing difficulty with stairs since I began fussing with the Atlas this spring. Seems my right knee sort of collapses unexpectedly at times. I did get the T160 start lever and that helped a lot. Now I can just stand on the lever and it sinks to the floor. But ya know, the G80 Matchless uses so little leg force when you get the flywheel spinning... Maybe I'll just ride that and polish the Atlas to a high sheen. Save my knee for the necessary stairs.

I wonder if a paddock starter would be useful? That way all of the cold starts could be done on the paddock starter to save your knee for the occasional hot or warm restart.
I believe there are some 110v plug in models that are pretty inexpensive.
My 12 volt paddock starter was a free gift from a clubmate. He is a talented machinist and made a good job of building it. I use it a bit more every year and use it every time for cold starting the 1360.
It's also handy for rolling over until oil returns after a rebuild or checking out any kind of starting/ running issue that would otherwise have you kicking your leg off to get the problem figured out.

Glen

Dan1950 said:

I have E start on my MK II.

12 E Wellington works every time.

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Aren't you supposed to be watching for a certain dog walker?

Aren't Wellingtons what we call gumboots?
If she is as young and luscious as you say I cannot see her getting frisky with a (self described) overweight , bald old guy who is wearing gumboots.
On the other hand she might have a fetish for this.
Or it could be that her 6'5" Russian boyfriend Igor has the fetish, she might be the bait

Glen

worntorn said:

Aren't Wellingtons what we call gumboots?
If she is as young and luscious as you say I cannot see her getting frisky with a (self described) overweight , bald old guy who is wearing gumboots.
On the other hand she might have a fetish for this.
Or it could be that her 6'5" Russian boyfriend Igor has the fetish, she might be the bait

Glen

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This is what our Wellingtons look like.
They aren't good for pulling young chicks, with the possible exception of a horse girl who might use an old guy in Wellingtons to help clean a paddock.

worntorn said:

This is what our Wellingtons look like.
They aren't good for pulling young chicks, with the possible exception of a horse girl who might use an old guy in Wellingtons to help clean a paddock.


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Pretty sure "Wellington" (badass beef aside) refers to a pull-on boot.

Lineslinger said:

Aren't you supposed to be watching for a certain dog walker?

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Your right!

worntorn said:

This is what our Wellingtons look like.
They aren't good for pulling young chicks, with the possible exception of a horse girl who might use an old guy in Wellingtons to help clean a paddock.

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I wore Redwing Wellingtons when I drove OTR trucks, worked construction, etc they are slip on leather work boots, even a available with steel safety toes.

Now days Redwing is owned by a conglomerate so I try to find the best brand I can.

worntorn said:

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Leather Wellingtons lol nothing like those. Those are muck boots for cleaning stalls of horse shite

Maybe that's the problem, I've been wearing the wrong boots then.
I do get a lot of interest when I kickstart the Vincent. Most of it is from 80+ year old men. Let me tell you they get very excited by my Vincent!

Glen