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FINISHED IT!

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 7:33 pm
by Jaglifter
Finally got my 1947 Velocette on the road, after a 6 month struggle with the DVLA.

I can now ride flat out and (almost) keep legal.

Now loking to extract more power. 25 bhp is probably possible!

Hope the pictures work....

Image
Image

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 7:58 pm
by Wicky
Is that a CBX550 front brake? :wink:

Looking good shame you'll have to wait till the end of the salty winter before you can have fun in the sun.

What was the problem with the DVLA?

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 8:47 pm
by firestorm996
Niiiiceee!

Great job there!

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 9:45 pm
by bikerpiker
Very nice bike, ..that's some exhaust, its shaped like a fish :!:

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 10:34 pm
by Jbrebel
That looks superb...

Much envy :D

Well done you!

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 11:29 pm
by Hankie
Superb job you've done there. I always wondered where you get the spare parts from to renovate these old machines.

ChrisH

Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 11:58 pm
by BarryH
Its a credit to you. I love seeing these old bikes on the road. I'm lucky enough to live 2 mins from the London to Brighton route and see hoards of them when a run is on. Enjoy it.

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 8:56 am
by Beamish
A beautiful machine, seriously good work mate.

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 9:09 am
by Jaglifter
Thanks for your comments folks.

I made the front brake. machined from billet. Its based on a 250 Honda twin leading shoe. The original Velocette brake is terrifying.

DVLA was a nightmare. Luckilly I'm in the Velocette Owners Club and they gave me lots of help and a dating letter. I also had to find a Co who would insure an unregistered machine.

It really is brilliant to ride, but still use the SP1 for serious stuff. Biggest difficulty is remembering which side the gear change is on. Getting it wrong on the Velo isn't too much of an issue, but it is on the SP!

Most of it was bought off e-bay, sand blasted and powdercoated.

Hope to bring it out to one of our meets next year.

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 10:48 am
by sirch345
An excellent job there JL :!: Well done mate 8)

I know what you mean about the original front brake as the one on my 1959 Triumph 650 Thunderbird was rubbish too :!: I ended up fitting a twin leading shoe brake complete with wheel from a Honda :!: probably not something an enthusiast would do, but hey I was only seventeen at the time :lol:

The sound from the exhaust of those old British bikes is something you don't seem to get from todays bikes :!:

Chris.

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 12:59 pm
by Bluefox
Really nice job there matey,this is another one on my to do list,i'd love to restore an old Brit,
just out of interest don't they call that type of exhaust a fish tail ?
In my early teens a good friend of mine,his father had a nice collection of Velocette's,what great fore sight must be huge collection by now.
I can still remember the smell of his workshop full of these old bikes....unforgettable.

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 2:06 pm
by Stratman
Bootiful :lol:

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 6:38 pm
by alan
very very nice Jag love the fishtail exhuast well done

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 6:58 pm
by iggy1966
Looks superb Jaglifter

I'd ;love something like that in my garage.

Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 8:24 pm
by Jaglifter
Yep the can (silencer in Old English) is a Fishtail and it sounds like nothing else. Melifluous is the word I think!

I'm currently running it on a Brooklands can - louder and more top end. I've also tried a straight through pipe, which gives better bottom end but not so much a peak revs. (Tuning this stuff is easy and rewarding cus there is so little power in the first place!).

I have another engine/gearbox and I'd love to put it into something like a 250 TZR frame............... the DVLA :twisted: would probably want to arrest me if i tried to register that :roll:

Perhaps a VTR 250 frame would do the job??