First ride, first breakdown

Made in England

Made in England

There's been lots of progress. I have received my new classic-style black and silver number plate and fitted it. The repaired rev counter core is back and I have reassembled and refitted that too. I had a change of heart and removed the old contact breaker points igntion system, replacing it with a Boyer Mk4 electronic ignition and new 6V Lucas coils for better reliability. 

These units replace the mechanical auto-advance mechanism with a simple magnet, and the contact breaker points plate assembly with a couple of contact-free pickup coils. These connect to a 'little black box' using the existing wiring, and the box then has outputs for the igntion coils. It precisely controls the ignition timing without any moving parts, giving a more stable idle, easier pull-away from low revs and more advance at high revs for greater power. And it's fit-and-forget, unlike the fiddly contact breakers. Not bad for £90 I think.

And there are a few finishing touches like the "Made in England" sticker on the frame.

More importantly, it's time for the first ride. It's nice dry day, so I pack some tools and a mobile phone in a rucksack and give it a go. She starts without fuss, I warm her up and nothing seems amiss. I jump on, pull in the heavy clutch, with great conscious effort engage first gear with my right foot, and pull away.

First impressions, while still going down the drive, is that the front brake does not do much! Modern bike brakes are so good you can lock the wheel just with a two-finger squeeze. This beast needs a firm grab with all four fingers just to avoid overshooting the end of the drive into the road. Perhaps it will bed in, but if not I can always try new brake shoes.

I want to get off the main road ASAP, but find that braking and changing gear with the wrong feet while indicating with the wrong thumb is too much for me, and the indicators can wait. Onto a little country lane, and I get a chance to try going up and down the gears.

She's going alright! There's lots of noise, lots of 'character', but it has to be said not a vast amount of power. Perhaps there is some tuning needed, or engine issues, or maybe I have just not mastered fiddling with the air control as the engine warms up.

A mile down the road, and already I have had several friendly waves. I turn her around, and immediatly find myself in a friendly conversation with a local farmer. This bike seems to be a good ice-breaker!

Tidy wires are happy wires.

I'm nearly back home now, so I decide to be brave and hit the B-road out of the village. Waiting at a junction, the engine stops. No great surprise, as I have not really got the idle speed sorted out. It's a bit of a rigmarole though, as I have to get off, push it somewhere sensible, put down the centre stand and then restart the engine.

Only it won't restart. Then I realise all the lights have gone out too. Oh dear. Two miles on the clock, and I have already broken down. I push her into a nearby car park belonging to, ironically, the local garage to investigate. Sure enough, the main fuse has blown. No problem, I have plenty of spares.

At home.

So I walk the half mile to my place, pick up some fuses, and walk the half mile back. I fit a new fuse, and... nothing. It too has immediatly blown. Clearly something is wrong, but this wiring system where there is only a single fuse, rather than one for each circuit on more modern vehicles, does not help to figure out what.

So I head back home again, this time pushing Bagheera along the pavement, which is thankfully mostly downhill. Still, by the time I have pushed the bike back up the drive I am a frustrated sweaty mess.

 A cup of tea later, and I get out the trusty multimeter. I am really hoping that my shiney new electronic ignition system has not gone pop. First I remove the battery to avoid any further damage, then measure the resistance across the main fuse -- it's zero, so no wonder it blew. Oddly, it measures zero even though the ignition switch is off. In fact it does it even when the ignition switch is disconnected. Strange. 

The only things the battery is connected to with the ignition off are the bridge rectifier and the zener diode, but at least that means the new electronic ignition unit is not the problem. It does not take long to find it's the bloody zener diode that's shorted out. The one part that is no longer made! 

I disconnect it and everything is OK again, the lights work and more importantly there is still a spark at the plugs. I can't ride the bike like this though, as without the zener diode the battery will overcharge and get damaged.

Not wanting to replace the antiquated diode for a third time, I decide instead to fit a modern solid state regular/rectifier unit. This will replace both the diode and the old bridge rectifier, and hopefully give more reliable operation and a better battery charging profile.

A bit of internet trawling soon reveals that there is one stand-out manufacturer of these, they make them especially for classic bikes and they have a great reputation. £60 later, and a 180W Podtronics regulator is on the way. And for good measure, I also order a new genuine Lucas ignition switch as mine is shakey and is missing one of its contacts (Triumph originally set them up so you could run the lights, or the ignition system, or both).

It occurs to me that I have now replaced the entire electrical system, every single component and wire, with the exception of the headlight and rear light cluster!

How far will I get next time? Stay tuned...

TOTALS TO DATE: Hours: 130. Cost: £6220. Miles ridden: 2. Breakdowns: 1.