Hundred mile stone reached (part 2)
…and it started up first kick! I kid you not, nobody was more surprised than me. The correct thing to do after starting a rebuilt engine is to ride it straight away. Letting the engine idle does no good, it just generates heat which the new piston rings can’t get rid of because they are not yet worn in. However I have an important check to do before can ride anywhere - I need to check the ignition timing. When I fitted the electronic ignition system, it included alignment markings to get the timing about right, but not spot on. Having had the engine failure before while running it ‘about right’ I was keen to check it before putting the rebuild engine through its paces. An over-advanced ignition can damage the engine because the spark plugs set fire to the mixture while the piston is still moving up, causing a lot of pressure on the piston and rod and generating a lot of wasteful heat. It can even melt a hole right through the piston. The timing is checked using a...