I remember drooling over these on the forecourt of my local dealer in South London as teenager back in 1967. The UK model had a larger 5 gallon tank and there were also factory accessories available to enable the Spitfire to compete in production bike races. I saw it in action at Brands Hatch circuit. A very fast and inspirational machine.
Something that might draw interest to the channel, is have viewers send in a pic of their latest bike or project. And show it! Ive seen other channels do this and it gets a big response.
I used to have a 1954 Norton Dominator. I had racing linings fitted the the front brake. I used to stop the bike using just two fingers. My mates nearly fell off if they borrowed the bike and weren't expecting the stopping power!
Always liked these. That one sounds just fine! Never did get to ride one. Did the Rocket III instead and that was a fantastic machine. Love the drywall screw idea - I’ve got a Triumph T-140 tank to do and will certainly use this. Riding my vintage Triumph gives me joy I can’t get from my later and much faster bikes. If you’re ever replacing tyres, look at the Avon AM 26 bias-belts - they’re fantastic on this sort of bike. 👍🏻
I fix old bikes. Good job on the Caswell. I think I may have been one of the people that is partially responsible for the new colored tank kits. Years ago I called the company and suggested that with the clear epoxy you see nasty metal under it. Hah
I never had an interest in old British bikes. I bought a Thruxton 1200R and was blown away by it. That led me to Weems and your channel. Your enthusiasm, descriptions, and history lessons made me fall in love. I will now be broke for the rest of my life and you are on my wife's sh@@tlist 😂 Thanks for the great content!
Beautiful day, bugs in the teeth, great running 57 year old British iron. I'm about to join you--- riding my '67 T100 to work on a 60 mile round trip commute. Videos like this make me wonder--- why would anyone buy a modern bike? For the same amount of $$$ you could get three or four great oldies.
I love old bikes, there's a 68 Greeves 360 here shiny as can be......................but, every ride on my 2021 890R KTM is more addicting. It is the twin that pulls like a four from 6000 rpm on up. Modern has it's place. All these Wheelhouse videos make me want another old one though.
I just got in my truck to go up to Northern Vermont and pick up my BSA b50 special at the bike mechanic and your video popped up! It's a nice day here in Vermont and watching your enthusiastic video is a good omen for me right now!
Nice work and great on-board footage! BSA kinda shot themselves in the foot with some ignition problems on the early bikes (bad points cam). Too bad 'cause they're bitchen bikes and very fast. I built a nice motor for my '67 A-65 (dynamically balanced crank, Venolia lower-than-stock-compression pistons and taller than stock gearing). Thing totally hauls ass on the highway. Brake tip: line the inside of the brake hub with sticky sand paper. Then slowly turn the wheel by hand while engaging the brake shoes. This will shape the shoes to the drum for significantly better braking performance. Magnetic drain plug is also a good idea and makes it easy to drain the sump when it fills with oil after not being run for a few months.
Video is good, interesting and of course a nice bike. Music is overpowering, far too loud and just too much - I had to keep turning the volume down when playing and back up when not. Just a constructive criticism 🙂
I was happy to see you chose caswell sealer as that is what I will be Be using on a vintage Suzuki tank..first attempt on sealing a tank for For me.love the brit bikes as my dad always owned Triumphs And I rode my buddy in in grade school dads BSA's 441 Victor And a 500 Gold star. Love the channel.
I beleive the fastest one was the 1st one. It featured 10.5 to 1 comp, racing camshaft & Amal GP10 Carbs. I am sure this bike may have been in the higher 120's mph. One of the popular conversions was the timing side main bearing upgrade from Bush to bearing and oil redirected to crank end. I had a 69 Lightening with Firebird pipes and the peanut tank, Oh the sweet sound of those high pipes. All the bikes with the high pipes BSA Norton Triumph had great sound, Not sure if the mufflers were glass packed. Also ridden the Hornett good Vibrations.
Did the screws take all of the old liner off... or do you just pour the new liner over what won't come loose? When I'm painting a tank or cleaning the inside or doing a liner, I use silicone tapered plugs that I buy on amazon. (I think they're used for powder coating, to keep the threads clean.) A bag of various sizes is 15 bucks and they work well. I'll stick two into the petcock holes and they seal it up... you gotta kinda screw them up in there good and tight, but that'll stop any leaking. If I'm painting, I'll use the smaller plugs to put in tank badge holes and other holes I don't want paint to get into. And for the gas bung hole on the tank, get some expanding plumbers plugs. The one tool I didn't know I needed until I bought one. They have a wing nut on top that expands the rubber plug when you screw it in. You put one of those in your gas hole you can hold the tank upside above your head and shake it... nothing's coming out. And it's quick and easy to put on and take off. If you go to Amazon and search for "1.5 inch expansion pipe plug" you'll see what I'm talking about. That's the size that works for my triumph tanks, but I have a few different sized plugs for oil tanks and other things. I'm paranoid about leakage and getting chemicals or liners on paint.
Congratulations! Son! WOW! 10,000 Followers! Great Job sealing the tank on this sweeeeeeet Spitfire and protecting that original paint! Ready to ride! 😎🌵❤️ Mucho
Great video. Brings back some memories. I tore around on a 1968 BSA 650 Lightning in the late 60’s, early 70’s. A teen with no helmet and no eye protection. Just jumped on it and rode. I never thought it was exceptionally fast, but it was exceptionally fun.
Hi from the UK. Interesting about the tank. I repatriated a Hornet from the US and it had a fibreglass tank which I did reseal it, but after about 6 months I found the seal was breaking down. The bike started running rough and became hard to start or get to tick over. Stripped the carbs and they were clogged with black sticky stuff. Got a replica tank in alloy from India. It’s great quality. Love the show and some great bike. CT
@@wheelhousegarage you know what, although it was built here in the UK it’s really a bike for the deserts and tracks of the US. It’s an awesome machine and NOISY. Love your channel. Christopher
My repair lasted 25 years. I used a two-part aviation tank sealant which produced a rubber bladder. Ethanol finally seeped in around the petcock threads and softened the entire underside of the tank. I’m ready to buy a steel replacement. 65’ Spitfire Hornet.
I bought a 1967 MK2 when it was about a year old. It had twin Amal GP carburettors with a central "fag packet" float chamber, and was faster than the MK3 which had Amal Concentrics. BSA made the change because the GP setup cost several times as much as the Concentrics. The BSA engine has a weakness in that the crankshaft end float was controlled by the small timing side main bearing, and if it wore the result was some serious engine damage. The MK3 is more rideable than the MK2 as the latter has a bit of an all or nothing power delivery, with it coming in between 4000 and 7000 rpm and not a lot of useable power at lower revs because of the racing carburettor setup.
I used to ride a 1972 BSA A65T that I rebuilt and did everything to the engine. The last model Thunderbolts came with Lightning cams, BTW. I had encounters with wasps too often. Once, One got into my helmet. I couldn't stop because of where I was, so I got to feel it walk all the way around my head and sting me on my ear at least twice. When I finally got to stop, it was long gone. I got stung on the face again that day. After that, I got a leather face mask. Luckily, wasp stings just give me a rush.
I've used Caswell Tank Sealer on several bike fuel tanks including two fiberglass tanks and all are perfect with the oldest more than 12 years old. I don't drain the tanks ever. The sealer is excellent. The instructions must be followed of course. Great sounding bike. Old school pushrod twins just sound magical to me.
Hey Bill..Another Awesome ride on a "close to home/heart" bike. I grew up around Brit Bikes as part of my family..mainly my Uncle..BSA's and 1 Triumph. Sitting on a milk crate as a 5year old and he started his Gold Star(made into a Desert Sled) What a Sound! I just finished last year my restoration of a 1966 A65L Lightening,,a tribute to my Uncle. Love, Love.what you do here and never ever will get tired of that scenery up there! Thank U for All You Share! Most Sincerely... SCH
Hello Steven! I really appreciate your kind words here and I'm so pleased that you're enjoying the videos. Nothing like the sound of a Gold Star! Congrats on your Lightening!
"These brakes are great!" That is something you will rarely hear about any old british bike. Cool that they work! This particular BSA to me, sounds better than all the other old bikes you have fired up, it just sounds tight and quiet and has a nice snort to it. I had a 73 Triumph 750 Tiger, first year with Lockheed ft disc brake, that sucker would chirp the front tire at 60 mph, it stopped pretty well! The electrics? A very sore subject. Needed a magneto. 1973 was the year of the walkout/strike at Triumph, not a banner year for Triumph bikes. Although Ted Simon rode a 73 500 around the world and got it new from Triumph. 60,000+ miles on his bike.
Doing something similar on my 69' Tiger, tank had an old Kreem liner which I had to soak in acetone for 3 days to get about 85% of the old liner out. Screws, more acetone, shaking, power washer and finally most all of it is gone. Now I am soaking it in vinegar for 5-7 days to eat the rust. I hear the great thing about the Caswell product is that you can put it over rust and it will still work. Trying to get all the rust out of my tank, but still sounds like a great product that will work in adverse condition. Keep up the good work on the videos they are awesome!
Rock n roll!! Great old bikes! I had an A65 Star (1964) back in 1974. Big ends were knocking when I bought it so did a full engine rebuild (on paper round money). Mine had a single monobloc but it was quite warn out so treated it to a new concentric. I never bothered fitting a choke, it always seemed to start first kick with just a tickle and it was running 6 volt Lucas electrics!!!! Watching your video, riding through some gorgeous scenery, makes me wish I'd kept the old beast. I've enjoyed some of your other BSA videos too, the Victor etc. Keep em coming. All the best, Phil (UK)
just a note for anyone lining a petrol tank make sure the coating system you are using is ethanol resistant, if it isn't it will turn into a gooey mess that will destroy the bike as it will jam up the jets and make the bike run lean and the engine will go bang,
I looks for all the world like you're riding through the East Coast of New South Wales, Australia, beautiful country. The bike you're riding is my all time favourite, I was 13 when it came out and I've lusted after one ever since, though never did have the pleasure. Great series, thank you.
What a Blast! Received the shirts, well worth the short wait for 3xl. Will be spreading the word about Wheelhouse Garage all of 2024 riding season in Central IL.
I had a 67 500 Gold Star and loved that rubber bung center tank bolt, way better than the Bonnies I also owned from time to time. If you can keep these old Brit bikes purring like that, may you find many more of them to resurrect.
Always remember......a british bike is like a woman ........she must always be warmed up before you ride it !!!😁 (my wife will kill me if she reads this 😂😂😁). Peace out ✌
You know what makes me so mad 😡 is you literally have every motobike I would ever want and I quietly think that the mass public isn’t aware of these vintage gems 💎 but yet here they are on full display, possibly driving up the bargaining price with the historic research! It’s cool 🥹😑😕! Love the videos bro 🧐
I had a 1966 BSA hornet and ran a 327 four speed. I ran it and a half mile and beat it by 100 feet. These things were faster than hell. No mufflers stack pipes.
I had a 1966 BSA hornet and ran a 327 four speed. I ran it and a half mile and beat it by 100 feet. These things were faster than hell. No mufflers stack pipes.
Love that Spitfire! I have a 1970 Firebird Scrambler. I had a 1971 B50MX , but it got stolen about a year ago.Love Beezers. Hey where did you get that duckbill for your helmet?
Gravel does a better job in the tank if it's acquired some rust from sitting empty too long. Fit a four (UK) gallon tank like it came with and a straight bar so you can lean on the wind and enjoy its handling like it was built, those cowhorns keep your body TOO vertical so the blast tries to ram you back till holding on gets to be a real effort, IF you're using all its 53bhp... the original GP cabs were bitches to keep in tune. All brit twins ride better, ride faster with low flat bars. The norton straight bar like many 1960s dominators had factory fitted. Or the Vincent straight bar, your wind profile is better for fast riding. Over here nobody used high bars till the chopper craze made stupider guys adopt a Fonda/Hopper style that never fitted their typical 500/650 twins- bikes that were hardly ever hogs. Seeing a hog here was an event.
Thank you for a video from a beautiful part of a US, just found your channel. However I'm a current and long time BSA A65 owner and some of your comments and bike behavior are strange to me. First you claim you had a Lightnings and Thunderbolts but this Spitfire is much faster - there were no technical differences between those models in 1967 other than single carb in Thunderbolt case giving it more torque at lower revs. Engines compression ratios, "racing" camshaft and primary / gearbox ratios were all the same. Bike looks and sounds well but you kicked it to life like no compression was there. I have to slightly hop on my kicker to overpower compression of my bike with my 85 kg of weight. Perhaps it has lower compression pistons installed. I had them in my former A65 and liked them a lot. Contrary to popular belief they didn't make bike any slower but much easier to start and less vibratory. If this is a fresh acquisition, congratulations are in order - it looks like a good one.
Great lookin n sounding bike man, I guess I should've waited for today before I started asking question about what happened putting in the tank yesterday....lol.... cheers 🍻
My Brother had one . I rode it quite a few times in high school. Vibration killed headlight bulbs and zener diodes . Nice Smiths gauges and aluminum rims. Lucas was the weak link with British Rubber.
Nice bike and as you-say , it's all about the-Fun . I've ridden a few BSA 650's and really enjoyed them (loaned over summer ) never a Spitfire though . I have a W650 I ride regularly which is similar-enough , more like an old A10 and it has a kick-start unlike the newer W800-model (what were they thinking ) . 70 next-year and I've owned most of the (now) older-cult-bikes but I'd still love a BSA 650 and a Commando , two that I've never-owned .All my 250-kph+-bikes are long-gone, back to the simpler-stuff these-days . I Was going to get out for a ride today but it's nearly 3 and the rain has just started , maybe tomorrow... Dave nz
Your wife lets you do this at the kitchen table??!! I used to reload for my pistol league at the dining room table, but that was between marriages. That was a great bike, unfortunately a Beeser, but they looked better than the Triumphs.
Nice quiet engine on that one. It sounds like it's got a bit of life left in it. A fellow that I know had a Thunderbolt, which was the single carb version, and that went more than well enough. The Lightening is a step up from that.
ive owned truimphs and bsa lightning and thunder bolt its the sound thats awesome and they got plenty of looks too, but riding them and hearing the engine like tappets clunking brings real classic bikes into their own now i own an indian scout no more kick starting like the old british bikes use to p..s me off at lights stalling trying to find neutral and kicking it with 5cars behind me
I'm jealous! The snow storm is just clearing up here. The '67 Spitfire is the sweet street bike in the BSA line., love mine! You are lucky w/ a great road to ride w/ a "Horsepower Hill'! Cheers
I know it’s not a pom bike but I hotted up a Yam SR 500 and caffed it up and to this day it stands out as my favourite bike amongst many Ive had. Big 500 single, mucho love.
What many people believe that drum breaks don't have the stopping power of disk. Not true, the only advantage to disk is the repeated hard breaking. Disk fade less and are less effected by heat.
Great video of a great bike. As for the drum brakes, there is nothing wrong with them, they work fine. People who claim they don't, don't know how to setup a drum brake properly.
Not that my memories of the 1960-70 are exact. But oil leaks, and unreliability were my take on the UKs ohv twins of this period. Old designs, over tuned end game..
what a crime , to hear such a beautiful bike choked almost to death . 1 , throw those carbs and air cleaners away , as far a you can . 2 , fit the correct Amal GP carbs and float's with the correct bellmouths . 3 , Fit the original straight through exhaust system that it was designed to be run with . 4 , Ride it like it deserves to be ridden , between 5 and 7,500 rpm . Its a sports bike , not a piece of agricultural equipment .
Back in the day I thought the Spitfires were the most perfect looking bike. Now it just part of a list of tops. However I always picture them with lower flatter handlebars and that throws this example off a bit for me but great none the less. Of course in those days it was advisable to disassemble the engine and check if the piston clearance was too small before your rode it or so I've heard tell.
Some 40 years ago I got a second engine for my A65T when it was needing some work done on it, and that was a Spitfire engine that had been raced in the TT. It was fast and I was using it with my touring set up.
I got into 650cc British bikes in the early seventies. First Triumphs, then BSAs. Both were fast. But the BSAs seemed to have more low end torque than the Triumph. I thought it might be a longer stroke engine than the Triumph’s? Was a long time ago…
@@jimifed2798 Hmm… Yea, mine was a single carb unit construction late 60’s. But for some reason that engine pulled like a tractor compared to my T-6 Triumph. That BSA could just about pull away from a standing start just idling.
