Ton Up NC Snow Day: BSA 4x41

How to Kickstart a Vintage British Motorcycle

There are few things more satisfying than kicking an old motorcycle to life. Whether this follows a total resurrection of a once left for dead machine or after a momentary pause on a country ride when you just stopped to take in the scenery. That moment when the perfect combination of air, fuel, spark collide and explode never ceases to leave one with an ear to ear grin. Its one of those things everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime and completely contrasts the complete lack of emotion and effort involved in modern push-button ignition systems. Without going into great technical detail, what follows is a step-by-step instructions on how to start that old Triumph, Norton, BSA etc.

1. Shift the bike into Neutral (this is located 1/2 click between first and second gears). A good way to make sure your bike is in Neutral is to check and see if the bike rolls or the rear wheel turns freely without the clutch engaged.

2. Bring the bike outdoors or at least open the garage or shed door (Brit bikes are not emissions free machines and do create quite a bit of poisonous gas when running).

3. Make sure you have fresh gas in the tank. It is good practice to drain your tank if you plan on storing your bike for a while or at least add some fuel stabilizer to the gas to prevent it from getting stale. Stale gas typically has a very strong sweet shellac-like odor to it.

4. Turn on the gas. This is done by moving the petcock lever (located on the underside of the gas tank) from the horizontal position (off position) to the vertical position by pushing the lever downward.

5. Enrich your fuel mixture by actuating the choke lever, usually located near the clutch lever on the left side of the handlebar. If your bike has no choke lever there is a "tickle" button located on the outside of the carburator that can be depressed to release some extra fuel into the carburator (do this on both carbs if you have more than one.)  You want to tickle until a little bit of fuel seeps out of the button onto your finger.

6. If your bike has a compression release (not all do), actuate the lever or button. This will make the bike much easier to kick over. If your bike has no compression release, skip to step 7.

7. Flip out your kickstarter (typically located on the right side of the bike) and with a mild amount of pressure push it with your foot until you feel some resistance (you may have to push the kickstarter all the way through once and repeat to achieve this end.) This puts the bike on its compression stroke.

8. Turn on your bike with your key. Make sure your kill-switch is in the "on" position, if you have one.

9. With a moderate amount of pressure, kick the bike all the way through. When you hear the bike beginning to start a small twist of the throttle can help the bike start and begin to idle. Be wary of kickbacks, some bikes are known to bite you in the shin or eject the rider if not careful.

10. Turn off your choke and if the bike keeps on idling you are ready to roll. Turn lights on for safety. Congratulations you just kickstarted your bike.

Ton Up NC Membership Info.

Ton Up NC is always looking for new members. 

To be considered for membership you MUST: 1- currently own a vintage British motorcycle 2- live in the great north state 3- be willing to participate in the planning and execution of the annual Bull City Rumble every Labor Day weekend 4- have an interest in vintage motorcycle racing. 

If you can check ALL of those boxes and would like to be considered for membership in Ton Up NC, please send us an email at TonUpNC@gmail.com

Shh, White Lightnin'

Chad fires up the BSA 441 for the first time in 2014.

...or so the late George Jones lyric goes. Since 2009 the American Historic Motorcycle Racing Association (AHRMA) has held one of the East Coast's best kept secrets: The Carolinas White Lightening Cross Country Classic. The race has been held for the past several years in Chester, SC and is one of the highlights of the AHRMA vintage cross country calendar. The course is a great combination of single track trails, fire roads and grass track as it zig-zags in and out of the woods on the South Carolina farmland. Ton Up NC members have particapted in the event for most of its history and it typically signals the beginning of the racing year for most of us. What follows is a quick glimpse at what you've been missing out on if you've never attended. This year the event is scheduled for March 12 and 13, 2016. More info. here.

Jim and his Triumph T25T

The starting line.

Ton Up NC's Eric P. gets the hole shot on his Honda Elsinore MT250 (unfortunately, the Elsie blew up after a lap)

Camp Ton Up Chester, SC.

Talking shop with Malcom Smith's former mechanic.

The post-race steak dinner.

Chad takes home first place and hold's Scott's "Cool Bike" award for his AJS (pictured above).

Ton Up NC = Riding, Racing and Restoration of Vintage Motorcycles.

If you would like to be a support our mission and the annual Bull City Rumble Vintage Motorcycle show, please visit our webstore and purchase a shirt, poster, patch or sticker.

Ton Up NC webstore: tonup.bigcartel.com

After the Flood... The BSA That Refused to Die.

The Johnstown Flood of 1977

Johnstown, PA has earned the nickname "The Flood City" the hard way. The Conemaugh River has spilled its banks on numerous occasions. Beginning with "The Great Flood" of 1889 (this past May 2014 marked the 125th anniversary) and later in 1894, 1907, 1924 and most recently in July of 1977 (37 years ago next month).

A TV report on the 1977 Flood.

You might be wondering,  "What the hell does this have to do with motorcycles or Ton Up NC?" Well, while on my travels, I came across a bike with an incredible story. Although the 1977 Johnstown Flood claimed many victims (85 people to be exact and $200 million in property damage), one BSA that was left for dead was determined to be a survivor. Many years after the flood, in the mid 1980's, a couple of kids were down on the Conemaugh River bank with their father digging around in the sand and dirt when they hit something solid: a motorcycle tyre, but try as they might, they could not budge the tyre from its resting place. The kids alerted their daddy who helped them dig some more, soon out of the dirt appeared a fork, handlebars, a tank and after hours of digging, they unearthed an entire motorbike: a BSA Lightening. The family wheeled the bike home and there it sat again for many years, until recently. A couple of years ago, the father figured that someone might have some use for this rusty old machine, so he contacted the local British Bike guy and turned it over to him to use as a parts bike. That's when the seemingly impossible happened, with just a few tweaks and a change of the carburetors, the bike fired up. Despite being buried for many years under 8 feet of water in the flood and then left to die under debris, dirt, and sand  in the midst of a flowing river, the inside of the engine and tank had never seen any water. Some things are just too tough to die. What you are seeing in the pictures that follow is the bike in it's original unrestored state: original paint, rust and all...

Here's an audio clip of me talking to the current owner about the bike, enjoy...

-Brian

Ton Up NC = Riding, Racing and Restoring of Vintage Motorcycles

Support our mission and the Bull City Rumble by purchasing something from our webstore here:

Ton Up NC Store

Ton Up NC: 10 Years of Vintage Speed Demonology 2003-2013

Ton Up NC founding fathers in 2006: Patman and Marcus

Ton Up NC was founded in 2003 by one Marcus Rogers and Patrick “Patman” McGraw after a chance meet-up in Raleigh, NC. The story goes: Patman, then astride his Triumph Triple, was sitting at a local pizza joint (Lilly’s to be exact) enjoying a cold one and a hot slice, meanwhile Marcus rolls by on his angry Norton Commando (sure to cause a commotion wherever it is). Patman, recognizing the sweet tune of the Birmingham twin, chases down the Marcus and wallah, several beers later, Ton Up NC was born. 

Well, that was ten years ago and a lot has changed: unlike in 2003, cafe racers are currently the bike de jour, the Bull City Rumble Vintage Rally has taken on a life of its own and we’re not as young as we used to be. Meanwhile, a lot has stayed the same: Ton Up NC’s mission continues to be the riding, racing and restoration of vintage motorcycles, members continue to compete nationally in the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association (AHRMA) series in vintage road, motocross, cross-country and trials, the annual Bull City Rumble continues to be a major focus of the organization and much time and care is spent maintaining and riding our vintage machines. So with this blog post we raise a toast to all Ton Up NC members, supporters, family, friends and you. Here’s to another decade of vintage speed demonology!

Ton Up NC 2013: L-R Chad, Jim, Eric P, Marcus, Brian (Eric G absent)

Ton Up Highlands 2013: L-R Doug, Patman, Daniel

Ton Up N⋆C est. 2003

10 Years of Speed Demonology

You can help support the Bull City Rumble and Ton Up NC by purchasing something at our webstore here.

-Brian