1930's Hints And Tips Part 2

With the snow falling outside could there be anything better to do but keep a promise? So here is part 2 of Hints and Tips, 1930’s style, interspersed with advertisements from the sponsors. Where would we be without then and where are they now?

CARBURETTERS AND FUEL SYSTEM

FLOODING

58. If the flooding persists, try the effect of lowering the float a short distance, say 1/16in. down the needle; this is accomplished by filing a small nick in the needle the required distance under the existing nick and anchoring the float at this point. Finally, see that the carburettor is fitted absolutely vertical.

BRAKES

Care of Linings

38.- Washing off Grease

Attention to a few small details will often turn poor brakes into quite efficient ones. Grease on the linings, due to over-lubrication of the hubs, is a frequent cause of inefficiency. Examine the linings, therefore, and if there is plenty of wear left, wash them thoroughly with petrol, using a small stiff brush, such as a nail brush, and allow them to dry. Do not burn off the petrol by setting the linings alight; this may fuse the wire bonding.

ELECTRICAL ACCESSORIES

Voltage Control

23. Present-day motor cycles are almost invariably fitted with voltage control of the dynamo, i.e., the lighting system incorporates a device that regulates the output of the dynamo according to the state of charge of the battery. Owners of older systems can usually obtain conversion parts from the makers of their particular set.

BOWDEN CABLES

Soldering

Soldering a Nipple

34. Soldering a Bowden nipple is an easy job, but requires care if it is to be done efficiently. First, the soldering iron must be properly “tinned”, or, in other words, covered with a bright, silvery coating of solder. The bit should be heated, its point filed clean, and then, before it has time to cool, dipped in the flux and rubbed on a stick of solder.

Before a Bowden cable is severed, the wire must be bound by an impregnation of solder, or it will immediately unravel when cut unless it happens to be of the special “non-unravel” type. Apply a little flux to a section of the wire about half an inch long at the spot where it is to be cut. Then dip the hot iron into the flux, and, pressing it on to a stick of solder, pick up a blob. Run the solder into the cable vary carefully, making sure that all the interstices are filled. When the solder has set, the wire can be safely cut with a sharp pair of pliers.

If an old nipple is to be used again, all the old solder must be run out by pressing the hot iron against it and then tapping it to dislodge the molten solder. A gas flame will do the job even more easily than the iron. The nipple must, of course, be absolutely clean. Then, having dipped the end of the cable into the flux, thread the nipple on to the wire, leaving about 1/16^th in. (or rather less, depending upon the type of nipple) protruding, and apply some more flux to the cup of nipple itself.

Pick up some solder with the iron, and apply it to the nipple, allowing the solder to run down inside the nipple. Then, with an old clean penknife or a clean screwdriver, turn back the separate strands of the protruding cable, and splay them out radially in the cup of the nipple. Finally, fill the cup with solder, and the job will be complete. If this method is adopted a perfectly neat job will result, and, due to the splaying out of strands, there will be no chance of the nipple pulling off.

The book is full of advice for the home mechanic with helpful tips from an era when a motorcycle was a cheap form of transport for families. How times change. When consumables become more expensive and motorcycles are seldom seen in bad weather. Cheap winter hacks seem few and far between today and appear to be more costly than buying an old car.

In the days of central heating, working from home, better public transport (?), the question and answer can be the same two words. Why bother.