RealClassic – August 2019

the bores when in situ on the pistons.The
compressionringsfittedfine,though.Iwas
abletosourcenew,one-pieceoil scraper
ringsfromCoxandTurner,who just said ‘No
problem’onceIgavethe dimensions of the
ringsIrequired.Ihaveused them beforefor
hen’steeth pistonrings and it’s well worth
keeping them in mind.
Theenginewasrebuilt withanew
timing chain,various seals and gaskets.
Thenumber andtypes of head gaskets that
won’tfitprovedquiteamusing (not).Ialso
encounteredauseless base gasket which
would haveripped ifIhad triedtoget itover
all of the barrelstudsatonce. Some aspects
of this jobwerealaughaminute, Icantell
you. Thegearboxwas leftalone.Itworked
fine on thetestride andthe shafts turned
niceand smoothly while disconnectedfrom
the engine,withnoapparentleaks.Ifitain’t
broke...
Reassembling the clutch and primarydrive
wasuniquelyinteresting.Ihadtoworkpretty
hardwithapullertoget the engine sprocket
offitstaper on the crankshaftwhenIstripped
the engine.ThestandardLucas alternatorhad
beenreplacedbytheownerwith an Electrex
Worldself-generatingflywheelignition unit

Featherbedtwinsareunlikemostothhheerr

British machines in accessibilityterms...

andmuch else ofcourse carbon deposits

Oncethebarrel’s off,all is revealed. It’s aNorton

twin, so the singlecamshaft lives in front of the

crankshaft

Not all historyisbunk.The ‘P’atthe end of the

enginenumber reveals thatthiswasoriginallya

Policemachine

Pulling offthe outer primarychaincase reveals
astandardsingle-strandchain,andadecidedly
non-standard ElectrexWorld electricsset-up

Oneofthe joysof non-

unitconstruction is that

the enginecomes out

without disturbing the

gearbox

The oil pump pushes oiltothecrankbearings,and decent pressure reallyhelps theirlongevity.Key

togoodoil pressure is this oil seal.Which is maybe20years past itsbest.Also nearbyisthepicof

where thatsealfits in the timingcover, andwhere the second seal is.Sounds almostmythical...

Below:WithBe opwoo ’ le eonthebudget,hisNortontwin

usescha