A few French parts

Im not sure if I've done the right thing here.
A short while back, I found a chap on a French website selling some parts for a Manurhin scooter.  I contacted him and enquired about a carburettor (i still needed one at that stage), rear light and switches.
He initially thought he could help me with the carb, but it didnt come off.  But he did have a whole load of other parts that I might be interested in.


He sent me some photos and asked me to indicate any bits that I wanted.  There was nothing I REALLY needed right now, but certainly some parts that I was going to need one day and so I made an offer.  We eventually agreed on a price for the parts and postage.

So for £71, I now own
1 x rear wheel hub (the sort with the cush-drive - I'm not sure if this is the sort I should have on my bike)
1 x set of wheel spokes (in case i do decide to rebuild my rear wheel with this alternative hub)
2 x brake cables (I havent checked them, but the bike came with out cables so I'm hoping these are the right ones)
1 x chain (again, i needed one)
1 x new cylinder head gasket
2 x covers for the handle bar switches (I think these were the bits that most attracted me - eventually I will find the switches I want but who knows in what condition - now at least I have some clean covers for them)

I think I have paid far too much money for these bits  (the postage was never going to be cheap coming from France) but I have them now, and perhaps I am going to have to get used to spending a bit of cash now and then just to make a little bit of head way

As an aside, all this negotiation with the French man was conducted by via 'Google Translate' translations - its not always 100% accurate, but it's jolly good and I am extremely grateful for the service.  I simply wouldn't have been able to make the communications 10 years ago (well certainly not as easily and quickly)
I have put a translation gadget at the foot of this blog for the benefit of people who might need words translating now and then

Carburettor repair

I guess that when it comes to rebuilding old (and relatively rare) motorcycles, beggars cant be choosers over the parts they need and acquire.
I was really disappointed to find that my original eBay purchase of the bike didnt have a carb on the engine.  I thought this would be a real stumbling block, but within a few weeks I had purchased a Gurtner J14 (from Roy) and I once again re-enthused that perhaps I could get my machine up and running.

However, on stripping the carb I was faced with a couple of challenges - why is nothing ever simple?
Firstly there is no fuel-in banjo fitting.  I thought this would be a simple thing to overcome, but no-one that I spoke with (from Scooters, to lawn-mowers to vintage motorbikes) could find anything that was remotely close, and so I prepared myself to make a suitable fitting (and stole a little selection of brass tubing from my dads garage)

The second challenge was to repair the bodge of someone elses doing - I find it incredible that some people think they can overcome mechanical problems with the most outrageous and inappropriate bodges (though that said, in this instance, this bodge probably did work and got some fool out of trouble for a while).  At some stage someone has sheered the top cap retaining screw in the chamber body, and to make things worse then simply rammed in an oversized screw into the remaining couple of millimeters of hole.  This has distorted the slide chamber, making the needle slide impossible to remove without filing flat the distorted chamber wall



I had a couple of options to repair this.  One was to purchase a left-handed 2.5mm drill bit and gently left-hand drill the sheered remains out - I read somewhere on the internet that using a small piece of brass tube that fits snugly in the hole can help centrally align a pilot hole.  The theory behind the Left-hand drill is that it would reduce the amount that the thread was driven futher in and might perhaps even help to unscrew the thread (much like an ezy-out).  I discounted this option as my pillar drill doesn't have a reverse drive

I decided in the end to drill the old thread completely out with an oversized hole, and plug that hole with a 4mm dia piece of aluminum rod, and then re-drill and tap to the correct M3 size

Incidentally; as I was tossing and turning one night thinking about this problem, I wondered about what adhesive I should use to bond the plug into the drilled out hole.  In the middle of the night on my iPhone i started to read forums where people had asked the same question with regard to petrol resistant adhesives.  Lots of people were saying that JB weld was the stuff to use but it wasn't easy to find in the UK.
In my local hardware store, they sold "Araldite Rapid Steel" which claims to be "Ideal for most types of metal including steel, aluminum, iron, copper and brass, and is oil and chemical resistant" ..... "oil and chemical resistant?" what about petrol?  I decided to put it to the test.
I made up a sample piece of two bits of aluminum rod bonded together with the 'rapid steel' - left it to harden for a couple of days and then submerged it i petrol for 5 days. The result?  Well, no degradation as far as I could see - so I'm going to use it.  It will certainly be good enough to get the thing running and give me time to find another Gurtner chamber if necessary 


Drilling the hole out to 4mm is a maginal job, Ive just about avoided breaking the wall of the slide chamber, but it has distorted it a little.  
After flatting back with needle files and emery paper, the job is quite neat but it has exposed a patch of the 'rapid steel' adhesive.  If my test piece is anything to go by, I shouldn't have much to worry about.  I'm guessing also that petrol shouldn't really get up the sides of the slide.  We shall find out.

In the meantime - while Ive been thinking about and fiddling with this repair I was having a little email paper-chase too.
Klaus Faak of Faak-Tilmanns UG had come back to me saying that he could supply Bing carburettor parts, but not Gurtner carburettor parts, but suggested I speak with Jean-Noel Benech in Toulouse who might be able to help.


Monsieur Benech came straight back to me with a Gurtner J14 parts list and asked me to identify the bits I needed.  I was amazed that I could simply pick the bits I wanted from a parts list.  I sent him my wish list and I await his reply with prices.  Maybe I wont have to make my own banjo after all


UPDATE; I never did hear back from M. Benech, but I did manage to buy another Gurner carb - and used that as a donor for the banjos

Crankshaft pin still challenges me

I was delighted and extremely grateful to Roy, Reg and Bernie who all had something to contribute to my enlightenment of this odd flywheel/crankshaft alignment pin.  A little flurry of phone calls and emails gave me much encouragement.  My understanding now is that it is certainly a little pin that sits in a blind hole on the shaft that locates the flywheel keyway.  Apparently other DKW motorcycles have used this arrangement.

Reg modified his shaft and had a keyway machined into the shaft.  I still have to work out my solution as I had originally intended to try and start the engine without splitting the crank case.  I tried drilling the sheered pin out the shaft, but it would appear that its hardened and the drill bit wont cut it.  So I am left pondering.

It was during these conversations that Roy pointed out to me as to why those starter ratchet sprocket (as mounted on the flywheel) might have been so heavily damaged, and so dreadfully knocked off center.  He wondered if the engine might have been seized at some stage and an enthusiastic bodger had tried to free the seizure by hammering a cold chisel (or more likely a screwdriver) onto the ratchet sprocket.
Aha! a mystery solved perhaps.
However this raised another really important question - and one that might be influential on wether I should split the crank case.
If the crankshaft had been whacked and whacked to the extent that it buggered the starter sprocket like it is...... had the crankshaft itself been bent?  Up until this point I hadn't thought about wether the crankshaft was true or not.

 I dont own a dial micrometer so I couldn't accurately measure this immediately,  but i was curious enough to get a feel for how true the crankshaft was.
I rigged up a bit of stiff wire on the engine case and bent it to shape so that it was gently touching the crankshaft.  Rotating the  crank sure enough revealed that there was indeed a slight oscillation.  But in my opinion only slight.
In order to give myself an amplified sense of the oscillation, I placed the flywheel onto the shaft and nipped it up.  Spinning the crankshaft now and measuring the movement on flywheel in relation to the engine case didnt really give me a sense of horror.

I concluded that the crank was good enough.  It was certainly good enough to continue with trying to start it without splitting the case yet........ if indeed I could solve the alignment pin without having to take the crank out and to a machine shop.

I am going away for a few weeks now for work and so this is going to be perfect thinking and decision making time.

Replacement Cylinder Head Stud

I am a true believer in the power of WD40 and its ability to release anything that has got stuck.  However, people often forget the other magic ingredient in getting things unstuck with WD40...... time!
WD40 will unstick anything if you give it enough time to penetrate.  A little squirt of WD40 daily for a week or two will in my experience unstick pretty well anything.  
So why oh why didn't I listen to my own mantra when it came to unbolting the cylinder head a number of weeks ago when I started to strip the engine?  In my excitement, I sheered one of the cylinder head studs.  I was very annoyed with myself and have wondered for a few weeks how I was going to replace it.

Its a M6 x 120 stud.  I thought other scooters might have something similar, but Gransport scooters werent aware of anything this size, and nor was my local lawn mower repair center, so when I popped into Vale Onslow the other day to ask about a possible carburettor banjo (they couldnt help), I hesitatingly asked about cylinder studs - I say hesitatingly because the old fella there behind the counter has a clear distain for scooters and, I think, amateur hobbyists like myself, however to his credit, he went off to have a search through his Aladdin's cave of vintage motorcycle parts.
To my delight he came back with a brand new M6 x 120 stud (albeit a little narrower on the shank).
"Wow! Thats great" I said, "Thank you, what is it off?"
"A Yamaha" he replied
"What model of Yamaha?" I asked thinking it would be a useful reference for anyone else foolish enough to snap a Manurhin cylinder stud.
He looked me in the eye, "Just a Yamaha" he said pointedly.
He is a wise old man and I am not worthy to push him further.  As I left the shop £2.40 lighter, I think we were secretly both pleased with the transaction and if I am not mistaken I am sure there was a twinkle in his eye.

Another Manurhin on the UK market

Only a few days after the Taunton located DKW Hobby was sold on eBay for £360, A Hampshire located Manurhin comes up for sale on eBay.  Whats going on?  Is it that time of year when people clear their sheds out?

I was attracted to this one as is was a Manurhin (and not a DKW) - again there were lots of parts missing.... but lots of parts that I could do with.
I decided that £295 was as much as I dared bid without having to ask the wifes permission first.
After a week of 17 bids by 6 people, it sold for £297.  Damn - missed it by 3 quid, I am going to have to man up a bit and take a nagging on the chin in future.

Once again its good to see that Manurhins are coming out of dusty sheds, and who knows perhaps it means more parts about to come onto the market

Another shed find sees the light of day

For a week no one seemed to have noticed this bargain on eBay (well thats what I thought).  Being no bids, I had planned to slip a last minute offer in and do the seller a favour by taking it off their hands for them.  What an idiot I am.

To be fair, this wasn't really the right scooter for me - its a DKW Hobby after-all, but it did have a handful of bits that would be useful to me, AND it was in the UK so pick up costs would be reasonable, so despite the fact that I would have to sell 75% of this scooter, I was rather excited that it was on the market and with no bidding action happening.  Bernie had contacted me in the week to say he had seen it and was possibly interested, but I sensed that he probably had other projects to finish first?;-)

So Sunday came and the auction was within a couple of hours of closing, and I was convinced it was mine, but blow me, other people had ideas of their own.  A little bidding frenzy saw 5 people thrash it out over 11 bids with a closing bid of £360.  I was amazed!

I was amazed firstly that 5 people wanted it..... who are those people?
and I was amazed that it went for as much as it did - Way above what I think its worth in that condition;  I can buy a complete manurhin for 380 euros in France at the moment.  It made me think that perhaps my original bike was a bargain.
Congratulations to the winning bidder and I wish them the best of luck with their project (and would be happy to hear from them if they have any bits for sale that I'm after)

To buy or not to buy?

Bernie sent me a link to this Manurhin for sale, suggesting I should cut my losses and save the ripped knuckles and loss of sleep and just buy it.

As advertised on www.cotswold-classics.co.uk

I must admit it is tempting.  At just the cost of a handlebar switch under a thousand pounds, I think this is a great price.  It makes me think that my own project is really just a hobby and certainly not an investment.  I am currently up to £321 on my spend, and there is plenty more to go - the powder coating on my Vespa cost £300 alone! So there is not much money to be made in resuscitating an incomplete non-runner (I should have listened to my dads advice who told me to never buy a non-runner)

I tried to justify to Bernie my reasons for not simply buying a running machine.  I didn't have a rational argument (and I hope my wife never puts me to the test on this - she always wins our arguments) other than;

1. I like a mechanical challenge - it keeps my mind occupied
2. I like an excuse to tinker in my garage - it is my escape and is good for the soul
3. I've rather enjoyed talking with the people I've met so far on this project - I don't think I'd find the same community simply by just being an owner.  I think you have to earn your badge :-)

The early bird catches the worm

But sadly this bird wasn't early enough.

I nearly choked on my cup of tea when I fell across this advert on a French website.
A Manurhin rear light! my understanding is that these are as rare as rocking horse stuff.
I excitedly fired off an email to the seller, and was bitterly disappointed when I received the reply "I'm sorry, its too late"
I guess I'm going to have to get up earlier to get these worms.

Beside the fact that this chap was including 2 honkers in his sale, I am intrigued that he suggests that the light cluster might also suit a MotoBecane or a Bernardet - is this true? maybe I could widen my searching?

The elusive woodruff

Look closer.

Look closer at that technical drawing of the flywheel and crankshaft arrangement, and you will see that there is an item No. 14 seemingly pointing to nothing.  Stupidly, I have been simply ignoring this.  I have been scouring the drawings for something that looks like a woodruff key, and not seeing it, i have simply ignored all labels and parts ID.

That is until Roy sent me a parts catalogue.

It would seem that I have all technical exploded diagrams, but with the addition of Roys parts lists, I now have a complete picture, and that item No.14 is not just an empty line.  There is in fact a tiny little component at the end of that line, and it is identified in the parts manual as;

Roy mentioned (though he wasn't sure) something about perhaps a little ball bearing that sat in a depression on the shaft.  So perhaps there shouldn't be a woodruff key in my shaft after all.
I wonder what a "V positioning magnetic cotter" might look like?  And how would I know if mine should be a 14a - "Positioning pin magnetic cotter"? (I dont seem to be able to identify what part No. 103 306 is)

I have a Carburettor

Hoorah!
I have got a carburettor!
Reg put me on to Roy, and Roy had a bunch of parts that he was happy to sell to me in order to recoup some of his expenses so far on his own Manurhin project.

Roy has clearly been researching and working on his project for a while and had a lot of information to share.  We spent a good hour chatting on the phone before getting down to the dirty business of trading.
The fantastic thing was that not only did Roy have a Carb, but he had a Beltomatic ignition breaker as well (that curious spring arrangement on the end of the driver pulley)
I was very happy to agree to his suggestion of £70 and he included a photocopy set of the Manurhin parts manual (in English!)



Now i actually have one of these spring devices in my hand, I can see how it works and actually if push had come to shove, I could easily have replicated this with a home made device.  However, having the real thing is a delight.  I must say when first saw the broken bit on my engine I was quite disappointed - I thought that this was going to be virtually impossible for me to source - especially as most bits I'd seen for sale on places like eBay were of the DKW Hobby lever type arrangement.

I am starting to deduce that perhaps my Scooter is a little younger than the 1957 that I'd originally assumed.  Im not sure how or why I came up with 1957 in the first place - I think Rui had written it in the eBay ad when I bought the scooter in the first place, but I dont think he was in any better position to assume it was a 1957 machine.
My change of mind about its date of manufacture is coming now down to this french designed beltomatic ignition control device.  Manurhin took the licence to build these scooters from DKW in 1957.  They only manufactured for a few years, but the development of the ignition cut-out switch safety feature (as opposed to the DKW clutch lever) was some time into the manufacture of the french scooters - So maybe my bike is more like a 1959 model?
I think I shall have to get onto the Vintage Motor Scooter Club to help me verify the age of this bike

 Complete with the carburettor is the right angle mounting pipe (manifold) to the cylinder barrel, and the rubber breather pipe (complete with filter) that reaches round from the carb to the engine casing.

The rubber pipe has got some perished cracks in it, but nothing that cant be fixed with some rubber repair compound

I was so excited that Roy had a Carburettor to sell that I didn't even ask him what sort, or what condition.  So it was a nice little surprise to find that its a Gurtner Carb.

Once production was underway in France, the Gurtner J14-454 was the carb of choice for Manurhin.  DKW Hobbys were fitted with Bing 4-14-1 carburettors and it would appear that most carbs that Ive seen for sale for Manurhin/Hobby are Bings.

Incidentally, I did find (via the very helpful Constance at BingPower in Germany) a chap called Klaus Faak, a "dealer in oldtimer spare parts" at Faak-Tillmanns, who told me he could supply a new Bing carb to my specifications for 350euros.  While this sort of price is way beyond my budget, its good to know there is a fall back.

I dont know what the condition is inside the carb (or if indeed its ever been robbed of jets and float) but I do see I am going to have to do a little work on the fuel-in banjo which should fit over the little brass thread in the center of this photo

All in all - Excellent news.  I am very excited.  I am getting closer :-)

Feeling inspired

A contact through Bernie lead me to Jon.  I chased the lead in the hope that Jon might be selling some Manurhin parts, but alas, it turns out Jon was himself searching for parts - A recoil spring for his starter.  This spring was the last bit he needed to get his scooter up and running! (makes my own project seem like a very long and arduous journey).

Jon acquired his 1959 "Manurhin Hobby" through a friend of a friend.  Originally bought new in Hastings, It was last taxed in 1973 - and (due to commitment to other projects) Jon is keen to get it going with as little intervention as possible (it needed a new belt drive) and to leave it in its 'as found' condition (which I rather like the look of).

I really like the look of Jons scooter - with the original paintwork.  I  am envious of finding a bike with everything on it, and Im intrigued about that bit of trim down the length of the body.  I don't think I've seen one of those before.

Flywheel starter sprocket

Now I have a starter mechanism, my worries have turned to how it engages with the flywheel.
Those ratchet teeth surely cant be the genuine article can they?  Why is it made of two plates (one on top of the other)?  The two plates are riveted onto the flywheel and have clearly had a good old bashing at some stage.  Not only are the teeth damaged but the whole assembly has been knocked off center.

The scribed lines in the photo are concentric with the crankshaft and illustrate just how far off center the plates are.  You can see also that the plates don't even align with each other!

I think I am pretty well committed to getting this bike back on the road now, so for a little light relief this evening I decided to drill those rivets out and remove the knackered ratchet sprocket in order to measure up and make new.

The two sprocket plates (I'm not sure what to call these fellows) appear to be more than a home made bodge - perhaps they are as fitted at the factory?

I could if I wanted simply turn these plates over, swap their order and rivet them back as is - the backsides arent too damaged and I am sure it would be "good enough" and certainly "better".  Perhaps this was the original design intention? to be able to make good when they wore out?

Im not going to do this however.  I think I will make a new single sprocket out of solid 7.5mm steel plate

So I think I have a solution for this bit.
BUT I am still confused about the fitting of the flywheel to the crankshaft.
The flywheel has a keyway in it, but the crankshaft doesn't.
Of course the alignment of the flywheel (with its integral breaker points cam) and crankshaft position needs to be accurate and secure in order to create the spark at exactly the right time so I am surprised there is no keyway dowl.
There is however an odd 'spot' on the crankshaft.  Look closer and its a little hole - but no deeper than maybe a millimeter.  I wondered if this might be a hole for a location pin (that in this case has sheered off)...... or am I just fantasizing?  maybe its just pitting?

Looking at the exploded diagram for the engine, I am none the wiser.

Searching Searching Searching

The interesting thing about this project is that so far I don't seem to be getting my hands dirty very often.  Usually with a 'project' I like to slip out to the garage in the evenings while the family are watching some rubbish on the TV, but so far most of my free evenings seem to be in front of a computer screen searching for engine bits.

I've been searching websites for parts AND for people.  When I am not bidding on some parts, I am sending speculative emails to people who might have something to offer (in either parts, knowledge or contacts) and I have been delighted by the lovely response I've been having from all sorts of people.  I love the way someone will say "I think I know of someone who....... " and a brand new connection will emerge.
So far I have perhaps a dozen 'Manurhin contacts' in my list.  Some I'm still awaiting replies on, but many have been really very helpful and interested.  I wont share too much detail about these people on this blog (other than the fact that I appear to have a little collection of Ron's, Ray's, and Reg's), but I am very happy to facilitate connections for anyone who might be interested.  And this makes me wonder yet again if there is (or should be) a Manurhin owners register or club.  Everyone seems to have a number of contacts, but no-one has them all joined up, and many of the people I have spoken to so far are also searching for missing parts for their own projects.  It would seem to me to be very easy to set up a little network where we could trade parts amongst ourselves and help to look out for each others missing parts.

A conversation with one such chap tonight has indeed come up with some vital parts for my engine :-) - more on that in a later post

As much as I love searching for Manurhin stuff on the internet, I am very much looking forward to doing some work on this bike that requires me to get some oil under my fingernails again :-)

Starter mechanism

I've got a starter!
Bought it from a German seller on eBay (obviously someone who was prepared to ship to the UK this time)
I made an offer of 30 euros and including the postage, I paid about £40.  I was delighted.

The rubber / spring trunk thing needs tidying up and it needs a new cable and handle, but otherwise it all seems there and I spent a lovely hour stripping and cleaning it (though the photos shown here are 'as received').

Im still not sure if I can rebuild this engine one bit at a time.  Perhaps I will have to purchase a complete engine and work from there - however I felt that I ought to do something, and when this part came up at a not unreasonable price, I went for it.

I guess that eventually, in my attempt to bring this all together, I will accumulate a whole bunch of 'spare' parts that I can either keep or sell

Rear wheel investigation

When stripping the frame down the other day I was curious as to why the rear brake cable was secured to the frame on the opposite side to the brake drum.  My arrangement has the brake drum on the off-side of the wheel and the chain sprocket on the near-side of the wheel - and yet the brake cable was secured to the near-side of the frame.  The wheel had clearly been removed in its recent years as it was loose, there was no chain, and the brake cable was not attached.  I thought nothing of it and assumed that someone had simply not reassembled it correctly.










Looking at the technical drawings, I think the rear wheel should have the chain sprocket and the brake drum on the same side of the wheel.  So what have I got?

I stripped the wheel down to investigate, and it is clear that what I have is not what is in the technical drawing.  Was there a variation that I dont have drawings for? or have i got a bodged rear wheel?

The brake assemble looks to be all there and in good order, but the (galvanised!) sprocket had been bolted on with home-shortened bolts.

I was quite enthusiastic about the bike first thing this morning, but now I feel depressed again - perhaps this bike is missing too many things to ever be hopeful of bringing it back to life

The network continues to expand

I love the way this project is blossoming.  Every now and then another conversation blooms into something fascinating.

I had a little flurry of email conversation the other day with Alex, a Frenchman somewhere in France.  I discovered his intention to sell his 2 Manurhins via a French classified ads website.  Sadly he didnt have any parts to sell, only complete bikes and his suggestion of 5000 Euros for the 2 was way out of my league.  He asked me to make an offer for one of them but not wanting to offend, I kindly declined.

And then I had an email reply from Bernie at the British Two Stroke Club.  I'd asked him what he knew about Manurhins.  He was most apologetic "I am afraid as far as your scooter  is concerned i am completely in the dark as far as info goes, I'm sorry but i have only info on bikes".  No need for apologies Bernie - At least he knows now that should he stumble over Manurhin people or parts, he can direct them my way.

Reg's fabulous Manurhin is an inspiration.... For sale I think!

Out of the blue, I recieved an MMS message from my brother (who happens to be rebuilding a Garelli Monaco Capri) with a photo of a classified ad from someone wanting to sell a Manurhin.  I had no idea how old the ad was, but I called the number anyway and as luck would have it I got through to a fabulous chap called Reg who was both interested in my project and interesting to listen to about his own project.  He hadn't sold his bike yet and at £1200 it sadly wasn't something I could buy.  Reg didnt have any parts for sale, but he did have information and contacts that he would be happy to share with me.  
Interestingly, Reg was the first person I had spoken with who could/would share with me his experience of actually riding a Manurhin - He said it was a very easy and pleasant experience - which is interesting because the chaps at Icenicam would appear to disagree......


I fell across this fabulous review and history of the Manurhin - It make me laugh and wince at the same time