Whee, first decent run out on my CSR

Information relating to the Matchless G2 or AJS Model 14 250cc Lightweight
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clanger9
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Joined: Sat Jun 20, 2015 9:38 am
Location: Chester, UK

Re: Whee, first decent run out on my CSR

Post by clanger9 »

Ah, it's a Herald! I thought there was something vaguely retro-Suzuki about it, but it looked a bit "new"

There was an interesting article on Herald in last weeks MCN - it seems the importers are doing a good job with a solid Chinese motor and then adapting/upgrading it for European tastes. And why not!

Enjoy the ride, that's what matters most. I hope I'm still rockin' it when I get to your age... :D
1989 Moto Morini Dart 350
1993 Ducati 750SS
SPRIDDLER
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Location: WEST SUSSEX UK

Re: Whee, first decent run out on my CSR

Post by SPRIDDLER »

clanger9 wrote:There was an interesting article on Herald in last weeks MCN
Yep, the first of the two 'Owners Reviews' linked to that article is mine, written in March. They must have 'lifted' it from another bike review website!

The identical Sinnis and the Herald have 'dealers', some of which are either merely rider training outfits or box-shifting chancers in short lease grubby ex sweet shops.
The 400 quid cheaper Sinnis has a distributor 7 miles from me in Brighton but I chose to get my Herald from Haywards of Cambridge, a long established 'proper' classic and modern bike dealers. The owner, now in his 90's still goes in and set up the business after he was demobbed in '46 as a despatch rider. Cambridge is a 220 mile round trip for me, but I don't make 'cheap' or 'easy' a priority as in my experience that's often been a diesel-spilled road to poor quality, service, and/or hassle for which life is too short.
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starfield181
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Location: WILTSHIRE UK

Re: Whee, first decent run out on my CSR

Post by starfield181 »

Hi Clanger,

Bit disappointed that you are complaining about lack of brakes on your CSR (nice looking bike by the way) as you seem nto have what looks like a Japanese TLS brake fitted. I was going to do similar mod to my G5 with using a wheel with Honda hub I built up for one of my MZs. Did you fit this wheel and was it an easy mod?

Also intrigued as to how you fitted a rev counter.

PeterF
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clanger9
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Location: Chester, UK

Re: Whee, first decent run out on my CSR

Post by clanger9 »

Good spot! Yes, I think it's a Honda CB350 TLS hub and no, I didn't do the mod myself.

I bought the bike as a "modified wreck" i.e. it appears to have been converted to a racer/lookalike racer in the 70s using contemporary bits (f/glass tank, Borrani rims, John Tickle clipons, homemade rearsets, etc) then thrashed to within an inch of its life for the next ten years or so.

The front brake is actually "pretty decent", but there's a limit to how much braking you can safely use through skinny forks and a simplex frame... I just need to remember I'm not on my Ducati. ;)

In true cafe-racer style, the rev counter is a £6 aftermarket bodge using a electronic rev counter off eBay and modified to read correctly on a 4-stroke single. Not quite authentic, but it is really tricky to fit a mechanical rev counter to a Lightweight. It was either that or £200 for a Smiths replica...
1989 Moto Morini Dart 350
1993 Ducati 750SS
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clanger9
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Joined: Sat Jun 20, 2015 9:38 am
Location: Chester, UK

Re: Whee, first decent run out on my CSR

Post by clanger9 »

View of the clocks with aftermarket rev counter:
Image

Note the cunning use of the former handlebar mount...
1989 Moto Morini Dart 350
1993 Ducati 750SS
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