The Siegfried follies

Work on Siegfried the Simson has been stalled for weeks due to cylinder head parts compatibility. The lesson learned is to measure everything. The mistake I made was in ordering 9mm valve guides to match the 9mm valves that came out. Trouble is that the correct diameter valves are 8mm which we discovered when the new valves arrived. In exasperation Stu Rogers is making valve guides from scratch. Another thing is that the pattern carburettor will create problems in lining up the fuel lines. Reading magazines like Classic Bike and Classic Racer shows that alternatives were out there, perhaps I should have gone for an Amal but too late now. On balance the demands of the refurb have not been too onerous, but with the snags that have cropped up I would now be very cautious about taking on anything more demanding and would certainly in future pick up a matching donor bike if one were available.

Boxing Day ride

A lovely dry, still afternoon so out on the Streetfighter for my big local lap, 65 miles. Loadsa twisty stuff but roads slimy plus mud from tractors made it a steady run. Streetfighter runs great and is very nice to ride.

Good luck Stu, we are all depending on you .........

Lengthy phone call to AKF determined that they do have 8mm valve guides but in 14.07mm oversize. The guides Stu has fitted are 14.10 oversize. Rang Stu who said forget it I'll make them myself. Great. I can't take any more expensive to and fro of parts from Germany so delighted at this.

Sent from my iPad

Kawasaki galore

I had a track day booked for Sunday 15th Dec 13 but No Limits rang to say it was off due to low numbers- but here's a rain check for 2014. Great. The thing is that I had rushed out to MOT and tax the F1 in case I could not make the Bongohitch towing contraption work. In the event my recently purchased Renault Scenic, bought to replace the van which has a blown engine, also blew it's engine. The tow bar is on the Scenic. The idea of the track day was to take the unfitted fairing lowers along in the car. This is because the F1, like the Streetfighter, would not take the full quantity of radiator coolant when refilling. You seem to need to ride and refill until it will. On the F1 the radiator cap is inaccessible with the fairing lowers fitted. Hence the plan. So in the end I've ridden it a couple of times anyway with minimal coolant top ups needed so I'll put the lowers on and park it up for winter.

Wise after the event

A few months ago another Simson 425S, a Hungarian barn find in very poor condition + bent forks, came up for sale complete in Cambridge. It sold for £350 on e bay. I was advised to buy it for spares but didn't. With cylinder head rebuild costs now becoming serious maybe I should have. Next time....

Siegfried still headless

The cylinder head saga continues. Up in Wisbech Stu Rogers has shortened the new inlet valve guide and fitted both new 9mm internal diameter sintered bronze guides. He has also machined the new hairpin spring ends to give a little float to help prevent breakage. The head had tulip shaped valves in both inlet and exhaust with 9mm stem diameter. The exhaust should be a normal shape. A new pair of 100mm long valves with 36mm heads duly arrived from AKF in Germany and were forwarded to Stu. This made the phone ring. The new valve stems are 8mm. So now the quest is to see if they can be swapped for 9mm stem items. I have a sinking feeling the answer will be no. This is because the T model, Siegfried is an S, did have 9mm stems but only 34mm heads. We want to avoid having to replace the valve guides for 8mm even if I can find them.