New member, new A10

[CrispinA10]

Good evening from Faversham, Kent, UK. After a long time saving, have just bought my first BSA, a 1960 Super Rocket in Rocket Gold Star trim. I have owned and run my 1965 Enfield Continental GT since I was 17 in the 1970s and decided I needed something with a little, ok a lot, more oomph. A few minor issues to sort out, but it changes gear smoothly and even more surprising to a Royal Enfield owner, doesn't leak oil. Not a whiff let alone a trickle. Not only that, it ticks over smoothly and twitters gloriously, So, 80 miles on the clock from engine rebuild so just another 900 or so to run it in gently.
I'll be attempting to get my head around the magneto, and will shortly be posting regarding help with the prop stand, which snapped off at the bracket and I'm puzzling how to get the old clamp off - it appears that the bracket was bolted on before the engine went back in. But more of that with a proper post.
You can see the stand still nicely in place in the picture I've just spent far too long working out how to resize.
Crispin Whiting

[Andreas Larsen]

Hello and welcome! 

That is one fine looking bike, makes me want to go out in the garage and polish the side covers like a madman! Everyone on here will help you out with any problems you might encounter, remember the search function in the top right corner, you'll find a lot of useful posts on here. I hope you'll enjoy the bike! 

Andreas

[Topdad]

Nice bike Crispin, ask away ,you'll find anice bunch of guys world wide to help and have a laugh at the same time, no oil leaks , I may have a few questions myself , cheers from Liverpool , BobH

[scotty]

She's a beauty Crispin 

Welcome

S

[a10 gf]

wow, looking great indeed. Thanks for the fine intro post & welcome.

[RichardL]

Well, Crispin, it looks like when you set your mind to getting something you pick a good one. If she runs reliably or repairably you have a real winner. Regarding the "Search" function, I think the one underneath the picture of Erling riding his plunger in Norway () is the one you want to use.

Richard L.

[muskrat]

G'day Crispin, welcome aboard.
VVVVery nice bike mate. A big step up from a Royal Oilfield. Did you do the resto and rebuild?
Cheers

[WozzA]

Yes ... she's a lovely example ...  you'll be happy with that 4 many years. & welcome to the forum.

one thing bothers me though..  you said
 " she doesn't leak oil. Not a whiff let alone a trickle"
   are you SURE there's any oil in her?      

[unclerob]

Hi, and welcome! Looks like whoever built it did a good job, you don't see that many replicas where the builder went to the trouble of fitting the proper footrests...and a 190 front brake! Best not to say too much about oil leaks though....you know what they say about tempting fate!

[stu.andrews]

Very nice bike. You will find all the guys on this site are most helpful.
Wishing you many miles of happy riding!

[CrispinA10]

Many thanks for the warm welcome. I'm sure I'll be picking BSA brains all over the globe as the last time I rode or mended an A10 was when I was 15 and we spent a long summer thrashing an old Gold Flash (five quid and a packet of Woodbines) round a field in South Darenth.
Just spent an hour hacking round the lanes on my new machine and am still deeply impressed. It still doesn't leak oil, and yes, I have checked to make sure there's some in the tank - golden green and deliciously viscous and right up to the level line. No idea what it is though. Might be straight 30, although as the engine has had a complete rebuild I might switch to multigrade at the 300 mile change on the grounds that there should be no crud for modern detergents to release.
I can search the threads for advice on that.
Clubman's clip-ons (ace bars)  are a bit uncomfortable, but I do have a pair of original DB34 bars which came with the bike. I've always been happy with the clip-ons on my Enfield, so might give them a try. Might even buy a new crash helmet as well. I'm still using the Everoak Racemaster and goggles I bought in 1975 for £4/7/6d at the Schweizo Bros closing down sale in Dartford, so probably time to upgrade.

[Topdad]

Hi Crispin, one thing we dread here is an oil thread 'cos they slide on and on... ( sorry couldn't resist  ) Very many thoughts re oil in these machines. The oil system is quite basic, consisting only of a gauze strainer on the sump plate and another around the feed into the oil tank . In the crank there is a sludge trap designed to collect any harmfull bits of debris .it works by centrifugal force and the type of oil ,straight mono doesn't keep the crap in suspension so drops it there whereas multi grade is designed to carry the crap round to be cleansed by that systems filter,which we don't have ,in standard trim. So if you go to multi you need a filter plumbed in ,many posts showing this done or if you stick with mono clean the gauzes regularly and change the every 1000-2000 miles at least , hope that helps and I'm sure any things I've cocked up on will be explained fully by someone else, best wishes Bob.

[stu.andrews]

I'll go with exactly what Topdad has said.

[unclerob]

Just a thought Crispin since you're close, theres a classic jumble in Ashford this Monday....you might find a replacement sidestand...

[bsa-bill]

Hi Crispin, I'm a bit late with the welcome  but agree with all the comments re the bike - nice one