BereIsland Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Its a Ariel Red Hunter 500cc single cylinder made in 1951, have always hankered after an old classic bike and when this one came up I grabbed it. It will be fun for the summer months poodling around the back roads I thought if I sat on my bike like Miriam I would look gorgeous too. Not Steve Link to comment
Jerry_75_Guy Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Wow! That's a beauty Steve Nice find! Link to comment
kcscout Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 I thought if I sat on my bike like Miriam I would look gorgeous too. Not Not. Yep, gotta agree with you there. The bike is a beauty, though. Enjoy the ride. Link to comment
BereIsland Posted November 8, 2007 Author Share Posted November 8, 2007 Thanks, I have struggled with the kick starting, there's alot of things to do that doesn't involve an ignition key, it hasn't got one. Turn on petrol, tickle the carb, prod the kick start until you get compression, then 1/3 timing advance, a little choke, then pull the leaver around to lift the decompression valve. Now your ready to give her a good kick and at the same time close the compression valve with the leaver. Normally she takes about two or three goes to get her started. Link to comment
Paul Mihalka Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Congratulations, beautiful! Contemporary with my first bike, a Matchless G80 500cc thumper... Link to comment
boatzo Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Thanks, I have struggled with the kick starting, there's alot of things to do that doesn't involve an ignition key, it hasn't got one. Turn on petrol, tickle the carb, prod the kick start until you get compression, then 1/3 timing advance, a little choke, then pull the leaver around to lift the decompression valve. Now your ready to give her a good kick and at the same time close the compression valve with the leaver. Normally she takes about two or three goes to get her started. How did you figure all that out? I'm sure it didn't come with an instruction book. And as for sitting on your bike, I am afraid that Miriam has you beat, great looking bike though, enjoy. Link to comment
Paul Mihalka Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 My procedure was to turn the motor with the kick start to the point of compression, lift the decompression and move the motor just past compression, release the decompression (!) and give it a good kick. Oh, the finer things of now vintage bikes... Link to comment
EffBee Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Thanks, I have struggled with the kick starting, there's alot of things to do that doesn't involve an ignition key, it hasn't got one. Turn on petrol, tickle the carb, prod the kick start until you get compression, then 1/3 timing advance, a little choke, then pull the leaver around to lift the decompression valve. Now your ready to give her a good kick and at the same time close the compression valve with the leaver. Normally she takes about two or three goes to get her started. Attractive as she is, young Miriam looks like she'd be much more cooperative than that. Oh. . . .you meant the bike. Actually, after he retired and before he passed away last year, my dad spent his last 18 years rebuilding the bikes of his youth. He was born and grew up in Argentina and all of his motorcycling passions were based on British bikes. He restored a Red Hunter and even though he'd never owned one, a Square Four simply because he loved them. There was a '49 Matchless with a fully functioning Lucas battery (with Lucas, not Yuasa, innards ---- no one could believe it!) that won the Del Mar Concours three years straight, including overall once. There were two Triumphs, an Enfield, an AJS 7R, and a few others. The Matchless was his passion, the Red Hunter his first. I took more than a few laps around the block on these gems. Just by their lax and loping nature, they harken back to simpler times. You'll need a straw hat, some baggy tweeds, a pair of high lace-up boots, and a winding country lane. Enjoy. Link to comment
Paul Mihalka Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Straw hat? No! These bikes are fast! Before I got into helmets, the favorite head wear was the French beret, a la Clement Salvadori. It stays in place even at the very high speeds of 70mph, keeps the hair in place (yes, I had hair)and it looked very proper... Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Steve, good on you. Enjoy! Link to comment
ShovelStrokeEd Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Great find, Steve. I have had a yen for a Velocette, either a 350 or 500 for years. One of these days, I'll find one, at a price I can afford. I'm with Paul, BTW, on the starting drill. Use the compression release to just take you past the compression stroke and then give it a good kick. Don't forget the one kick for nothing to break loose the clutch plates. Saves on the lurch going into first. Link to comment
Beemr69 Posted November 9, 2007 Share Posted November 9, 2007 Ah Steve , about the 666 thang Link to comment
BereIsland Posted November 9, 2007 Author Share Posted November 9, 2007 Thanks, I have struggled with the kick starting, there's a lot of things to do that doesn't involve an ignition key, it hasn't got one. Turn on petrol, tickle the carb, prod the kick start until you get compression, then 1/3 timing advance, a little choke, then pull the leaver around to lift the decompression valve. Now your ready to give her a good kick and at the same time close the compression valve with the leaver. Normally she takes about two or three goes to get her started. How did you figure all that out? I'm sure it didn't come with an instruction book. And as for sitting on your bike, I am afraid that Miriam has you beat, great looking bike though, enjoy. I do have the instruction book but the starting procedure was shown to me by the guy I bought the bike from, although I will try Paul's method, thanks Paul. I'm at work now but the Suns out, when I go out to get the sandwiches I shall ride the beast back. Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted November 10, 2007 Share Posted November 10, 2007 I thought if I sat on my bike like Miriam I would look gorgeous too. Not Not. Yep, gotta agree with you there. The bike is a beauty, though. Enjoy the ride. I think it's just the background of the photo that makes the difference. No, I think Miriam's the winner. Great bike, though. I pick up some of the Brit classic bike mags from time to time (Classic Bike, Classic Bike Guide) and drool over all the gorgeous old Brits (that doesn't include you, mate!). Since I barely manage to get around to doing the maintenance on my modern bikes, I'm hoping just reading about them and looking at the pictures will satisfy my yen for one. Link to comment
BereIsland Posted November 10, 2007 Author Share Posted November 10, 2007 Bill, I actualy found the Ariel in one of the Classic Bike Magazines, bikes are advertised all over the UK but luckily this one was in Romsey only 10 miles away from where I live. The pictures in the adverts are very small but I did smile when I saw the registration number. I would expect "FRV 666" could be valuable if it could be sold separately but its a non transferable number, so it will die with the bike. I rode the bike yesterday to a company that makes Hovercraft in Southampton, I have now something noisier then there hovercraft Link to comment
BereIsland Posted November 10, 2007 Author Share Posted November 10, 2007 Take a look at how Ariel guaranteed their bikes in the 1950's. If you had trouble with the gearbox you were expected to remove it from your bike and send it back to the manufactures Steve Link to comment
Gary in Aus Posted November 10, 2007 Share Posted November 10, 2007 Messrs Joseph Lucas for the electricals , The famous Prince of Darkness The number plate is apt . Link to comment
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