NOW I've really done it!!!

[snowbeard]

well I've really done it now!  I just became the proud owner of a slightly dubious 1960 Super Rocket Basket Case! 

just picked it up two nights ago, it was all laid out and I at least got some pics as I boxed it up.  I thought I would be very anal and write everything down, I got thru very little before I was overwhelmed, but at least I got these.
 

 

 
the fellow had an affinity for red powdercoat, hence my posts about removing or painting over powder!!!
 

 

 
at least it came with a sweet front wheel, I know these as my spitfire has the same one.
 

 
not so familiar with the rear, but at least it's red too!! ;-)
 

 
the frame was so pretty it got to ride in the front with me
 


all home packed and safe.  At least one of these boxes is actually (mostly) full of beer



all sorts of things to deal with already, only one fork leg, but the fellow probably has it and actually promised to buy one for me when the time comes if he can't find it.  the pistons are +060, barrels the same (so I was told) and "just need to be honed". no generator, no carb, no front fender, no rear fender stays, no seat, some strangeness around the frame, I haven't probably realized the half of it...

it's really hard to tell what will be original at this point, the fellow said the engine was in the frame when he got it, so there's a chance the numbers are matching.  I'll certainly have lots of questions on this one, I guess the first of which is do parts books contain all the possible part numbers, or only the ones that "should" be on that model? 

it will be fun to go thru this thing properly, learning more that can benefit my first love, the '57 spitfire that started all this!!

 
 disclaimer: some of you may see this post repeated around the web, but I have a feeling that being an A10 I will be relying heavily on you guys here. :-)
 

 

[RichardL]

Snowbeard,

Looks like years of fun ahead for you and good stories for us.

I didn't see your other posts about removing chrome and powder coating, but the question made me curious as to what could be done with the barrels. You probably already have more in-depth knowledge than what I found after one minute of looking but, since I was on the page, I thought I'd clip what I saw. Here it is:

1. PREPARATION

Depending on the base material (substrate), we will carefully clean off any pre-existing powder coated or painted
surface by chemical stripping or utilizing sandblast media ranging from mild to aggressive granulations, or using glass
beads for other color effects. (what does sandblasting do, and what is glass beading?) During this process, all rust and
metal corrosion is removed so that when your piece is finished, it is better than brand new!

If the part you bring to us is already powder coated, we will take every step to avoid sandblasting to remove the existing
finish, and instead suggest that the piece be chemically stripped of the coating. The reason for this is that IF the piece
was properly prepared and sandblasted the first time it was powder coated, the coating should be so difficult to remove
that your part could potentially be ruined in the removal process. Properly applied powder coating finishes SHOULD
NOT be able to be sandblasted off easily! What if my parts are chrome plated?

Richard L.

[snowbeard]

Looks like years of fun ahead for you and good stories for us.

oi, are you casting asparagus upon my abilities!!     



no, you're absolutely right, I will provide hours of entertainment with this project I'm sure.  and I am a rank amateur at all this, I've had my Spitfire for just about 1.5 years, and while I've felt I learned a lot, I know I've barely scratched the surface. 

I'm one of the young bloods to this "sport", I'm 34, and have only ridden motorcycles for about six years now, starting with a free Suzi GS650 that needed a non-rusty tank and a carb cleaning. I'm a chemist by trade, but a tinkerer by birth, did a lot of woodworking in my youth, and just got into the metal side of the world with the bikes.

just so you guys don't hold anything back for fear of offending me, I'll take any info you care to share, if I already know it, great, if I don't, even better!!   


in fact, you're absolutely right (even if it wasn't your intention!) that I should strip the barrels.  I actually was thinking that they might one of the few parts I leave red, but you reminded me that powdercoating the barrels reduces cooling efficiency greatly!  crap. ;-)

well, thanks in advance, I look forward to really bringing some extra traffic to this site!!

[rocket man]

hi mate good luck with the bike looks like a lot ove work love the red paint was his name  saten by eany chance  hottttttttt

[LJ.]

Great Stuff Snow! I'm kinda envious, take your time with this and enjoy it.... I'd love to do a basket case but doubt if I ever will. Your reports and write ups will enable us to participate with you online sort of. Good luck with it, hope all goes well.

[Brian]

Great stuff Snowbeard, strange as it might seem I reckon that is the best way to get them. A lot of work to rebuild but at the end of the day you will have a bike that you know intimately. You will know the condition etc of every nut bolt and washer.

Happy rebuilding.

[coater87]

 Hi Snowbeard,

 Looking at your pics, I would have thought we owned the same exact bike, except your bits are red, mine are rusty, and you seem to have a fair amount more of them then I do!

 I sure hope you keep us up to date on this one, because you are certainly not alone on the "bits of bike in boxes" thing!

 Lee

[snowbeard]

ha ha! thanks Lee 

all I have to add at this point is a great ebay score on an un-cracked, complete rocker box on fleabay, and a carb built up and hopefully ready for it! 

I think getting the head sorted, fixing the cracked fins and probably having the valves looked over is high on the list.  also splitting the cases and cleaning and measuring the cranks, journals, etc.  I expect these will need some attention, and I also hope to do many of the "updates" that people talk about.  (feel free to fill me in on what I might want to do here, bearings, balancing, etc?) 

need to find a correct tank, or maybe a nice aluminum cafe tank. since I don't have a lot of the original bits, it might be fun to create a period based custom.  correct or upgraded front forks, maybe a belt primary, four spring or SRM clutch, build a cafe seat, yada yada yada...

so many projects, so little time.  luckily I don't expect this to happen overnight. 

[rocket man]

hi mate have you thort ove the srm needle and end feed conversion
also they do hex sludge trap end caps they repair fins aswell
sump plate kit which is a sump plate with fins on and a drain bolt

[mrshells]

Wow
thats very red !! LOL
so it will be ready for summer then ?

[snowbeard]

HA!  I'll be lucky if it's done by summer 2011!!  I'll be happy if I can just get the spitfire ready this summer.

good point on the SRM parts, so the end feed conversion is probably something they do there, no?  might be cost prohibitive for me to send my engine across the pond...

but the sludge plugs and bearings and sump plate might be in order.  so far I'm just biding my time and watching ebay for good parts on a special deal, my budget is very limited (read blown just buying the bike!) so it's all on the down low as far as the wife's concerned.

so is Roy Bacon's restoration book really the best guide for doing the whole bike top to bottom?  any other references?


by the way, anyone got a good estimate of the worth of a FiGlass 5 gallon racing tank made to fit an A10? :)

[rocket man]

the frame and engine numbers are diffrent on a bsa mate

[snowbeard]

right, thanks for that, rocket man  :)  I just meant "matching" in that if I ever do the offical dating certificate, they may actually have come together from the factory.  they do at least both correspond to a 1960 super rocket, so I gots that going for me...   

[rocket man]

hi again one ove the common problems with the a10 was when the timing side
bush wore oil was starved to the end conrod on the side with the numbers on
so what happend in some cases the conrod whent throue the casing
distroying it so it was replased with a diffrent one you may be lucky
to have one with original cases in my case it was a conrod throue the
case so i dont have the original number on my engine but my frame is
a super rocket one and the engine has all the super rocket parts in it
so im not botherd about it good luck with you project and i would put a new timing side bush in
then at least you now its good for another few years ive had the srm needle roller end feed
conversion do for peace ove mind the bottom end is then good for 200 thoused miles
with regular oil changes its a devimead conversion i would strongly recomend
its a pitty you dont live in the uk just replace the bush you can get them from srm and at
least you know your getting a good product ive heard about a lot ove bad bushes being made
and also change the oil every 1000 miles or so wich will help alot

[snowbeard]

gotcha Rocket man,  mine has been lucky so far and has what appear to be matching case numbers.  whether they match the despatch records from the factory for frame and engine is beyond me, but like you say, that's not really what makes it fun to ride!!

so I thought I'd add my little update, I've given up on being a unit officianado  and have decided to dedicate my efforts to A10's altogether!  I just traded my rolling, (matching numbers was the high point of it) 1971 BSA Thunderbolt project for a ton of A10 bits and parts!



one good basket with shot sprocket, one shot basket with good sprocket, can I make one good basket out of these?





nearly the full setup to make my front end, I have the half width hub already, so with some bushings this will just about set up the super rocket!!



anybody need some timing side gears!?  I have enough for three bikes here, and the two actual bikes I am working on also have all their gears...



with this pile I was already rewarded with a new centerstand nut to replace the one I lost on Saturday's ride!




probably my happiest part, new thick flange barrels, +040 that look to be recently honed but never installed, new wellworthy rings for +040 pistons (which is what is on the con rods), and a brand new set of Hepolite +060, 9:1 pistons with rings, wrist pins and clips.  these are what both my other barrels are bored to (+060), both for the super and the spitfire!




and a half width wheel, likely for an A10 (WM2 19 with the larger axle size spacer), with drive side and brake plate.  I realized in the process of putting all the parts in the pile that the drive and brake plate must be a late 60's unit halfwidth, as the axle is differently sized from my other A10, or the bearings in the wheel.   but I got a bearing spacer that makes it fit the axle, if I want to go that route.  I'll have to really think hard on this one, as we've already discussed that it isn't proper for the bike and will cause havoc amidst the brake setup anyway.  I do have the full width wheel for the bike too, so it's not like I have to change over. I really just wanted to be able to interchange the wheels from both A10's, just in case...