back in the mid sixties, my next door neighbour had a Gold Star with a close ratio gearbox. I was so jealous. That thing could get up to about 60mph in first gear! Sounded fantastic too. He knew which leg to use to start it too. ;-)
Back in the sixties I had a triumph 350 then a Norton ES2 500 single. Passed my bike test on a 1949 DOT street bike with a 197cc Villiers engine. 3 speed gearbox and a top speed on the speedo of 55mph. Girder forks at the front and a hard tail at the back!
When I was lad aged around 15/16 my old Ariel Red Hunter 500 single threw me over the handlebars whilst I tried to start it, its an experience one never forgets. Lovely sound on this BSA though, brings back fond memories. And how clean and detailed does he keep it, bloody awesome.
Err, I was taught *never* to kick it off on the stand. There was a legend of a guy used to ride a Manx Norton around Wolverhampton: when it stalled at the lights he had to jump start it! lol
There are a lot of parts on this bike that may not be correct for the model, for example the early 50's Lightning seat . I am not even sure the head light mount is BSA. But none of that really matters he has lashed togather a very nice looking bike that sounds great.And I would be proud to ride it. In fact the whole top tree looks to be from a late 70's Japanese bike,my guess Kawasaki? but I am not the last word in vintage motorcycle authenticity.
Jeff, It's a Taylor Dow Superleggera top yoke, a period mod. for Goldies. And the seat is the right one, albeit with some extra padding. The BSA Lightning was a 1965 model, by the way, not early 50s. The fuel tank looks like a Lyta alloy job, again, a common mod. in the 60s. I agree, it's a lovely old bike.
I well recall the awe I felt in the late 60s (possibly very early 70-s) after switching from kick start British bikes to an electric start Honda. Absolutely magical!
lorenzo magazzeni Hi Lorenzo, I had a 1961 Clubmans DBD 34, started easily, find compression, ease it over tdc and give a long kick, started every time, on full retard ignition and a tickled carb.
I do not want to see this bike start up in suburbia. I want to see it carve through tight bends in a suitable country road! Surely not too much to ask!
Beautiful. Always thought the BSA had a great look. The tank and badges had a jewel like quality,at least to my young eyes. Saw one go up in smoke at a gas station in the west end of Duluth. When the tank blew it made a perfect smoke ring that floated over the station. My interest in motorcycles was at it's beginning. Your BSA is gorgeous.
Happy memories of my ' 63 Rocket Goldie, 842 SRO but yes that left leg staarting procedure , not the way to do it !.Complete with Eddie Dow Duetto 2LS front brake like mine had , when properly set up was incredibly powerful.
You really have excelled here with this total restoration, it looks absolutely superb, well done. But need some advice on how to kick it into life, have a read about OGRI he'll show you how its done. ha,ha, only funnin with ya. Top class and thanks for showing us this beautiful example of British metal.
Brings back memories. BSA, Triumph, Arial, Norton, Matchless and Vincent were all great bikes. Not a lot of displacement but all were smooth and quick on acceleration. In the 1950's an English bike with 650cc was considered a big engine. That's 40 cu in, now some of the new Harley's are well over 100 cu in. Quite a difference.
And then in the 1960's came Honda - vibration free, far more reliable, and lighter. That and strikes in Britain put an end to British bikes. Harleys are a niche market bike.
What a bunch of twats. He at least owns a bike you can’t possibly own. I have had so many of people like you criticize the way I start my Vincent. Because I climb up on her and do the job with my right leg. They say I should do it on the ground with my left leg. Jealousy knows no bounds. I have owned (oh, pardon me, caretaken) my Vincent for 21yr now and had it with people telling me how it should all be done.
Dog sounds keen , let him have a go starting it next time ! I've got a '62 RGS which usually goes first or second kick with no choke, quarter throttle and mag lever on full advance - kicks back sometimes. Slightly rich carb settings but runs like a dream.
I had a copy in edinburgh in 60s . The guy who made it seemed to design in advance of bsa. Clip ons, rear sets. gold star hubs, brakes a aluminium head that could take twin carbs, red frame white tank with unicorns on it! Frame red and drilled for lightness!
That's one extremely good looking bike, and I want one! Then again looking at your attempts to kick-start it, at my age there may be a possibility of getting hernia from doing the same.
A lot of folks seem pretty concerned with your starting procedure. How about you go and enjoy that terrific sounding beautiful bike you have there. I wish I had one like it. Thx j.
In the 1970s I used to have one quite like it - 1959 Super Rocket model, but with separate pipes and silencers. It sounded better than this one actually, although it didn't look as nice. (And it had a totally inadequate single-leading-shoe front brake.) I would start it off the stand, right foot on the crank, jump to raise left foot to at least the same height and use my weight to bring the crank down. One kick was nearly always enough. Fantastic bike, fond memories. You could go from 15mph to 95mph in 3rd gear...
hi thanks for your kindness , i have owned this RGS for some 18 years and enjoy the pleasure , as you see a lot of negative comments but im sure they like the bike
My Beezer was a 54 A10 which cost me a tenner in 1965. Would just about do the ton with a favourable wind and a downhill slope. Usually started easily with a couple of prods and a bit of choke.Happy days.
