Petrol head thread!!!

[billy rubin]

you never said you did BOTT.

[billy rubin]

loading

one toolbox for tuning tools: RAD meter, thermometer, feeler gauges, plug gappers, metric and SAE allen wrenches, special sized sckets for inner spark plugs, rebuild kits for the keihins, jets, all the way from 120 to 210, glassware, chain breakers,  and so on.

anothe tool box for the socket sets-- SAE, metric, whitworth

another tool box for the wrenches. also SAE, metric, and whitworth, plus a fe w adjustable wrenches, breaker bars,  and so on.

one tub for chassis- tire pumps, pipe extensions, carb extensions,

another tub for specialty tuning-- all the parts to rebuild the magneto, three times, rebuild parts for the belt primary drive, extra this and that. plus the starter motor for the triumph, hand-held.

a gear box for all the different sprockets i might need-- primaries in two sizes for the triumph, as well as two size rear. then three or aso different sprockets for the kawasaki. an extra chain for each.

a tub for fluids-- oil, grease, spray cleaners, cable lube, chain adjusters, funnels and so on

another tub for leathers, boots, and helmets.

another tub for stuff we forgot

then the ticycle to carry th estarter motor and the battery. a popup tend. two folding tables, two stools, two chairs, a tarp

three cans of C12, and three cans of Q16

a five gallon can for high test for the kawasaki. the triumph gets 4 to 8 mpg, depending on which fuel im using. the kawasaki gets about 90, no matter what.

maybe ill bring my leg brace in case i screw up my knee again.

where's the spare tire for the trailer?

[Icarus]

^ Looks like you have it well organized for the trip, Billy. I/we will be waiting anxiously to learn about your adventure and the development of your quest.






^^ I never rode BOTT but I did build some machinery to compete in that class.  I had a talented rider and a very competitive bike, but my rider was not reliable. Sometimes I would spend a bunch of money and careful attention to the bike in anticipation of a BOTT race. The damned rider filed to show up at the track too many times. I think that he might have had some trouble with pot or worse.  I finally gave up on the whole deal. I did like that Kawasaki though. It would run head to head with top riders who had Cosworth Triumphs and others with factory Harleys.

[billy rubin]

that 750 twin was underrated. theres one sitting in my warehouse right now that my son bought

[Icarus]

The Kaw' was regarded as a road toad when in its stock form. It was a docile commuter style kind of bike concealing the heart and muscle of a Lion.  The one I had was bought for junk from a "buy here pay here" used car dealer. It seems that the engine was frozen up.    The problem was not uncommon. The electric start feature had a sprag assembly that locked up on occassion. An easy ten minute fix, but the used car dealer did not know that. 75$ and I had the beginning of a promising race bike. Of course I lavished a lot more money on the bike. New swing arm, overhauling and customizing front suspension, new adjustable rear shocks, custom pistons, cams (two of them), carbs, custom exhaust, lighter stronger wheels, a lot of tires, and a bunch of other stuff. I had a rev limiter set at 8200. The sound it made caused me to have goose bumps. I expect the Triumph might do that for you.

[billy rubin]

i dunno. maybe im different, but racing the triumph makes my heart rate go down.

when im waiting in the starting box, im tense. i check everything, i start the motor to warm the oil and the cylinder head, i check the stuff that came loose last time. i push the bike forward as othe racers leave the line in front of me

then i pull up to the line with the motor running in neutral and wait for the course to clear. the starter waves me out, and then it all goes quiet. everything goes away. very calm. i dont hear anything but the motor. i dont see anything but the runway. i put the box into first by hand, because i cant reach the foot controls until im tucked, and roll away from the line.

it takes about a hundred feet to get settled into the tuck, and im going slow the whole time, just wobbling along. then when my feet are up and in the right positions and my chest is on the tanks, and my head is down, i open the throttle. the motor looks for the cam, finds it, clears the pipes, and we're off.

first gear is over in about three seconds, second i drag out to 7000, third to 8500, and then in fourth gear i just hold it wide fucking open and concentrate on getting out of the wind. fourth takes me from around a hundred miles per hour to one thirty five, but i still have a quarter mile after i top out. thats where im looking for a hundred and forty. i think a run is about 40 or 50 seconds. id have to look.

the whole time the motor is roaring, the wind is rushing past my helmet, the vibration is trying to knock me apart, but its still dead quiet inside.

the world goes away, and theres nothing in my life except the motorcycle and a long yellow line running out of my sight.

 and then i pass the flags and slowly roll the throttle back. at a hundred miles per hour i can sit up, and that immediately slows the machine down. no brakes to speak of on this old bitch.k then i tool back to the pits at thirty or forty, sitting up and steering with one hand while i unwind.

check the timing slip, decide what to do, and either fuel and tune, or go right back to the line.

[billy rubin]

racing!

took two days and 1200 miles to get here

slow first day. the son did an easy 100, 104, 106 on the little 250.

tomorrow in the morning i run the 650 triumph. tailwind is expected

theres a turbine streamliner here. never seen it. sounds like a jet engine, obviously

my blood pressure is going down. tomorrow when i run it will start bottoming out.

a friend of mine hit 140 on his 72 BSA lightning. another friend has a 1967 BSA hornet in my class. he s aiming at my speed record and has a lightweight rider to do it with. he once held the record at 131, but i bumped it to 135. we ll see what he does tomorrow

i am alive here. ill put pictures up as i take them.

[Icarus]

Billy check in with us if you can. Your last message was two days ago. 

[Tank]

Billy check in with us if you can. Your last message was two days ago. 

He popped on today (15th July) but didn't post.

[billy rubin]

busy!

so much going on

the turbine car went 200 plus. i was adjusting my carbs and heard a low flying jet. it seemed to go by too slowly. so i lookef up and it was a streamliner with a jet turbine engine going by in the pits at ten mph.

i heard a haysbusa go by at 240. i was busy with the kids ninja. they started at 102, 103, 104 . . .

then i got them situated and the air density went up ! and thry started hitting 106 and 107. then yesterday there was a tailwind and the number 2 son cracked the record at 108.814. immediately after his brother broke the same record at 108.433. if the brother had done it first they both would have had records. but only one gets the paper.

i couldnt get mine to go fast. only 126, 127 . . . jetted up and got 130, but thr air density went down and i fell to 126, 127 again. retarded the spark from 31 to 27 and fell to 123, 124. not the right  way to go. so advanced to 30 BTDC and left it thrre. i was going yo run that wsy but a BSA guy pointed out a brokebn fork cap and misding motor mount nut, CEI 26tpi thtead,unobtainable . . .

[billy rubin]

a friend had a spare so iput it on and waited for morning. today i got to the course, pulled the fuel tanks and retorqued the cylinder head. then i afjusted the valves and was ready to go when they called the races because of rain.

[billy rubin]

[billy rubin]

i am simply too busy to take ictures of all the incredible machines there. other people eere doing it

ill see what i could find.

130 was my high. the motor is not right but the chassis is fine, tracks straight hands off at 100 mph, no wobble or weave.  i do know that the timing needs to be 30-31, but i knew that before. ive got the jets matched to the typical relative air density, and so ill make some changes

[billy rubin]

got to ditch the magneto.

a friend went 134 on his 67 bsa hornet. hes my comrtition but he shredded two belt drives and had to quit.

another friend took his 72 BSA A65 750 to 142mph. hes been working on that machine for 8 years that i know of. an imressive record that he deserves.

did i mention the 7s aeromacchi? the trident that cracked 140? the cunninghams and the ford roadsters?

the lowey 52 studebaker had two engines  but they coudnt get the fuel synched between them.

jeez three or four 200mph vettes a 63 ranchero, a few mustangs, only one big bore harley, a tiny woman on a big buell and her huge husband on a tiny ninja . . .

wonderful

[billy rubin]

jainie is like 4 feet 11 inches and runs this buell at 140 something. she has the same tank problem that i did but put on a cut-flat tank to get out of the wind.



she runs a 250 ninja like my boys, but is in a different class because she has to lower it. shez still ony 107 against their 108