I bought (same price as a 4 speed bike) mine- brand new in Paris in 1966, rode it to Spain, petrol problems with Spanish fuel, walked it from Barcelona - up to Perpignan (where I could find a shop to fix it), along the Med to Genoa, then north to Turin and then I had to walk it up to the tunnel at Mt. Blanc*, bribed the guard to let me ride it through the tunnel, into Switzerland, Lichinstin(misp.) into Austria - Vienna then north up to Graz where it finally died. I left in a parking lot in Graz and took the train south tio Venice, Greece etc. It was am anmazing machine - I was carrying far too much lugage and so I usualy wound up walking up the moutains, but hell on wheels comng down. * French guards must have heard that I was coming through and were madly waving to get me to stop - yeh sure!
Me too. I acquired a good one mid 1960s and bought a new front tyre for it. The friction drive motor proceeded to eat its way into my nice new chunky tyre. I gave up and was given a moped.
I remember seeing a 1973 Solex bike sweepstake offer on a Kellogg's breakfast serial TV commercial and associated cerial boxes too. I believe 73 or 74 was the final year of Solex bike production. I was 9 at the time.
The original Velosolex company was taken over by Renault and then by Motobecane in 1974, and then closed for good in 1988. The machinery to make the S 3800 eventually ended up in Hungary. The last complete bikes made with this machinery were made in 2005-06. The last ones actually had CDI ignitions. thanks for watching sharing your experiences of them, cheers Richard
In Japan, the car manufacturer Daihatsu imported and sold Solex in the 1970s. Also, in parts of Europe, the motorcycle manufacturer Yamaha sold and supplied parts in the 1980s. I got a used Daihatsu Solex in Japan, bought parts from Yamaha in the Netherlands, restored it, and rode it. It was slower than an old lady's bicycle. (^｡^;) It has been sleeping in my garage since then and I haven't ridden it since. I thought about restoring it again for the first time in 40 years. Thank you for a great video!
I didn't know that ! I'm the other way around, I'm french and only ever owned japanese bikes (I'd say around 20 of them, I used to restore and resell them when I was a student)
*Epic pull down Richard. Would have made a great part 1 and 2 video. Great restoration and interesting piece. Can't say I have seen one of those before. I would have put some oil around those rings though when you put the head back on. Love to see it in action*
Hi it is a part 1 and part 2 ,did you notice I oil the bore before I put the piston in ,I was going to assemble it this weekend but have got covid .such fun 😁
@@richardrestorations oh sorry my bad. I thought the bike at the end was your finished project for some reason 🤪 Yes spotted you oiling the bore. Hope you get well soon. Looking forward to seeing the next part.
As an 7 year old boy, my janitor had an old, rusty 1 & bcse . I helped him clean the school classes, He took the motor off, & gave it to me as a push bike❤ lovely memories. Thx. For sharing😊 this was in 🇳🇱
Thanks little restorers I'm halfway through the reassembly but unfortunately covid has struck our house so I think I'll be on a go slow for the next two weeks
Finally ! An honest restoration with appropriate tools ( not some clown with pliers, hammer and screwdriver being used as a cold chisel !) My mate had one of these in the 60's; very temperamental until I replaced the condensed for him. ( I had a lot of experience rebuilding Villiers motors ) Brings back memories ! Excellent videoing and editing ! What did the Harley Riders think of it ?
Thanks for watching and for your comments appreciate it , the Solex next to the bikes it's not the one I'm working on however one of them did have a ride of it the other guys were laughing their heads off , was hoping to get the other video out of assembling the bike out next week but have got covid in the house, such fun
Haha started off at 16 repairing lawn mower engines' spent couple years assembly Toyota Hilux ,making craft jewelry for galleries , installing kitchens, done a adult apprenticeship to be qualified builder making houses , set up a repair company for earthquake damage houses , and a classic car repair company, in all I've spent 40 years being self-employed, taking on the new challenge to build up TH-cam channel has been pretty hard so far with a lot of cost with no returns so far. Yep so these hands of done a lot and the Brain has been through a lot as well. Thanks for watching and showing an interest in my channel.
Loved your video, have restored three of these 1700's over the past 10 years , just a few comments if I may, as someone has already mentioned the main bearing is crimped in, if you don't do this it has a tendency to move out of housing, you will know when this happens as the big end will rub against end cover! Also that motor at some stage has had a new big end fitted as it has a needle roller bearing, original was plane bronze bushing, possibly was replaced with later piston and barrel as well , if so you are in luck as late set up produced a bit more power!! Also none of my 1700's had a coaster rear brake set up all worked on caliper rim brakes front and rear, however could be different I guess from where bike came from, good luck with fuel pump and the throttle valve assembly, cheers.
In the late 80's I bought two Solex 2500 (one running, one almost complete, as parts donnor) for 20 bucks. Drove one a few months and then sold all for 50 bucks. Wasn't a bad deal, back then. Meanwhile usable Solex change hands sometimes above 2k.
Hammering on the stator plate risks moving the main bearing. It should be drawn on using spacers and the flywheel nut thus putting no stress at all on the main bearing.
My mates dad had one back in the 60s, i couldn't stop it and crashed into a wall. Though my motorcycle career i always remember that crash and rode more cautiously. It hurt..
How did you refit the big crankshaft bearing which you forced out of it crimped seat? Why did you not replace this crucial € 5.- part? This motor will not last.
I appreciate what you're saying, but it wasn't that dirty and if you look at a lot of the other "restoration videos "they have a lot of " painted on Rust" I don't believe in that
THE BLOKE WHO USED TO COME AND SHARPEN OUR GARDEN SHEERS AND LAWNMOWER BLADES HAD ONE, HE USED TO HAVE A STAND ON THE BACK WHEEL AND HE CONNECTED THE DRIVESHAFT WITH A RUBBER BELT TO A SHARPENING STONE THAT HE USED TO SHARPEN THE BLADES WITH, I've never seen a crank and connecting rod like that before,
Yes there was gaskets installed, and it did run on the bench test run, halfway through reassembling the bike ,but I've had covid so it's slowled down a bit sorry for the delay
Vous voilà heureux propriétaire d'un vélo Solex . Mon premier tour en vélo avec moteur était un solex celui de mon père c'était début des années 1980. J'ai donné à un collectionneur des bidons de Solexine. Here you are happy owner of a Solex bike . My first lap in bike with engine was a solex that of my father it was early 1980s. I gave a collector cans of Solexine.
Le Solex. La 2cv des Vélomoteurs Toute une Époque. Existe aujourd'hui en version électrique. Le Solex , est toujours fabriqué . Mais plus en France. En Asie , je crois !?.
Most french ideas can be considered cheap and nasty... No exceptions with this thing... It'll be interesting to see how it handles whilst riding it... 😐🏴🇬🇧😐
Yes, I had one of these bikes before.. Now I see the important.. Why they made it a girl's bike?. In if they made it a boy's bike.. Which a lot of young men use these motor bikes.. Make an it a girl's bike.. You never know when that change set rotates the back wheels.. Might break when you're going up a Hill up 45°.. Had a really Closecall with a big dumpster. was a big one.
I can assure you these do not go uphill ,and I must admit I'd rather look at a girl than a guy on these bikes, glad you the survive the dumpster to be with us, thanks for watching
For the life of me i cant understand why you invest money in a rust remover but don't give it a chance to work at all. I'm not at all surprised that several skrews have been torn off.
When i was 14, my teacher in Vietnam has this god awful bike. It was like you wouldn't want to touch this. Nobody wants it. Nobody would buy it. It was the WORST bike in the world. 99.9% people ride Hondas or suzuki or yamaha. But my teacher he was an OG, his hairs was perfect, a 100mph wind wouldn't mess it. One day, he shows up at my house. Turn out, he's a friend of my dad.
I had one of those when I was a kid in the 1980’s! Somebody gave it to me, so I fixed it up and rode it around my suburb for a long time. Then I got pulled over by the cops who threatened to tow it and give me a ticket, so I quit riding it.
I had a 1700 as my daily drive when an apprentice, and I loved the simplicity of it!
I'll be careful admitting to that might give away your age.
@@richardrestorations Somewhat, maybe, it was bought second hand. Can't believe it was fifty years ago.
@@leifvejby8023 Time races from us but the wrinkles race to faces us. that was a poem I wrote 40 years ago😀
I bought (same price as a 4 speed bike) mine- brand new in Paris in 1966, rode it to Spain, petrol problems with Spanish fuel, walked it from Barcelona - up to Perpignan (where I could find a shop to fix it), along the Med to Genoa, then north to Turin and then I had to walk it up to the tunnel at Mt. Blanc*, bribed the guard to let me ride it through the tunnel, into Switzerland, Lichinstin(misp.) into Austria - Vienna then north up to Graz where it finally died. I left in a parking lot in Graz and took the train south tio Venice, Greece etc. It was am anmazing machine - I was carrying far too much lugage and so I usualy wound up walking up the moutains, but hell on wheels comng down. * French guards must have heard that I was coming through and were madly waving to get me to stop - yeh sure!
I’ll say it again, I love your car!
I remember seeing these in France when I was a kid on holiday in the 1960s - I really wanted one.
Watch this video first Mr Bean th-cam.com/video/t5eRT32QWdg/w-d-xo.html
Usually struggling up an incline with a lady of ample proportions dressed in black not assisting the bike by peddling……..
Me too. I acquired a good one mid 1960s and bought a new front tyre for it. The friction drive motor proceeded to eat its way into my nice new chunky tyre. I gave up and was given a moped.
I always wanted one, but went down the NSU Quidkly route as a lad at school was selling one for £ 3.00!
Same. It was also annoying that 14 year olds could ride them in France.
I remember seeing a 1973 Solex bike sweepstake offer on a Kellogg's breakfast serial TV commercial and associated cerial boxes too. I believe 73 or 74 was the final year of Solex bike production. I was 9 at the time.
The original Velosolex company was taken over by Renault and then by Motobecane in 1974, and then closed for good in 1988. The machinery to make the S 3800 eventually ended up in Hungary. The last complete bikes made with this machinery were made in 2005-06. The last ones actually had CDI ignitions. thanks for watching sharing your experiences of them, cheers Richard
In Japan, the car manufacturer Daihatsu imported and sold Solex in the 1970s. Also, in parts of Europe, the motorcycle manufacturer Yamaha sold and supplied parts in the 1980s. I got a used Daihatsu Solex in Japan, bought parts from Yamaha in the Netherlands, restored it, and rode it. It was slower than an old lady's bicycle. (^｡^;) It has been sleeping in my garage since then and I haven't ridden it since. I thought about restoring it again for the first time in 40 years. Thank you for a great video!
Mr Bean riding a solex might bring back some memories th-cam.com/video/t5eRT32QWdg/w-d-xo.html
I didn't know that !
I'm the other way around, I'm french and only ever owned japanese bikes (I'd say around 20 of them, I used to restore and resell them when I was a student)
Ahh. That sweet sound of success! Amazing job so far!🎉
Yes! Thank you!
*Epic pull down Richard. Would have made a great part 1 and 2 video. Great restoration and interesting piece. Can't say I have seen one of those before. I would have put some oil around those rings though when you put the head back on. Love to see it in action*
Hi it is a part 1 and part 2 ,did you notice I oil the bore before I put the piston in ,I was going to assemble it this weekend but have got covid .such fun 😁
@@richardrestorations oh sorry my bad. I thought the bike at the end was your finished project for some reason 🤪 Yes spotted you oiling the bore. Hope you get well soon. Looking forward to seeing the next part.
Большое вам спасибо)
Вы отличный специалист 👍😉
Thanks for watching and for your encouragement😃
I really like that bike and so far it's looking good
I enjoyed your video so I gave it a Thumbs Up
Glad you like it
As an 7 year old boy, my janitor had an old, rusty 1 & bcse . I helped him clean the school classes, He took the motor off, & gave it to me as a push bike❤ lovely memories. Thx. For sharing😊 this was in 🇳🇱
Bravo bravo i have won in morocco.👍💐♥️thank you....
Phenomenal amount of work. Really enjoyed the whole engine tear down and reassembling.
Hope we get to see you taking it for a spin in the next part 😉👍
Thanks little restorers I'm halfway through the reassembly
but unfortunately covid has struck our house so I think I'll be on a go slow for the next two weeks
My French teacher Madam Leandre used this wonderful bike in Pondicherry when she working in Alliance Francais. Bye gone those wonderful days.❤
22:35: just undo ONE nut to release the big-end bearing from the crank ..... and the piston release gets a load easier
I subbed to see part two of this restoration. ☺
Very interesting video, Thanks for sharing.
Great job on bringing this bike back from the dead. Now you have the only Zombie Bike in the world!! Fine job sir and thank you for sharing.
That's going to run like a winner! I'm halfway through reviving a 1962 Moby AV88. Race?🏁
Boy they sure have come a long way in building bicycles since the 60's.
Top speed of 20 ks my e-bikes got a top speed of 50ks
1967 my first bike i love it thx
Finally ! An honest restoration with appropriate tools ( not some clown with pliers, hammer and screwdriver being used as a cold chisel !) My mate had one of these in the 60's; very temperamental until I replaced the condensed for him. ( I had a lot of experience rebuilding Villiers motors ) Brings back memories ! Excellent videoing and editing ! What did the Harley Riders think of it ?
Thanks for watching and for your comments appreciate it , the Solex next to the bikes it's not the one I'm working on however one of them did have a ride of it
the other guys were laughing their heads off , was hoping to get the other video out of assembling the bike out next week but have got covid in the house, such fun
Excellent job 👍👍👍
Thanks mate for watching👍
Those hands have done a lot of hard yakka over the years, good effort on this little engine…
Haha started off at 16 repairing lawn mower engines' spent couple years assembly Toyota Hilux ,making craft jewelry for galleries , installing kitchens, done a adult apprenticeship to be qualified builder making houses , set up a repair company for earthquake damage houses , and a classic car repair company, in all I've spent 40 years being self-employed, taking on the new challenge to build up TH-cam channel has been pretty hard so far with a lot of cost with no returns so far. Yep so these hands of done a lot and the Brain has been through a lot as well. Thanks for watching and showing an interest in my channel.
Nakopat do vajec za takovou renovaci.
Loved your video, have restored three of these 1700's over the past 10 years , just a few comments if I may, as someone has already mentioned the main bearing is crimped in, if you don't do this it has a tendency to move out of housing, you will know when this happens as the big end will rub against end cover! Also that motor at some stage has had a new big end fitted as it has a needle roller bearing, original was plane bronze bushing, possibly was replaced with later piston and barrel as well , if so you are in luck as late set up produced a bit more power!! Also none of my 1700's had a coaster rear brake set up all worked on caliper rim brakes front and rear, however could be different I guess from where bike came from, good luck with fuel pump and the throttle valve assembly, cheers.
Excellent work as always 💖💖
Thank you! Cheers!
They're a fun ride.
In the late 80's I bought two Solex 2500 (one running, one almost complete, as parts donnor) for 20 bucks. Drove one a few months and then sold all for 50 bucks. Wasn't a bad deal, back then.
Meanwhile usable Solex change hands sometimes above 2k.
Last shot: unforgettable...!
Bravo Good job.👏👏👏👍💐♥️
My french girlfriend had one of these in Paris 1975, used it for many years to commute daily to university ....etc
amazing. good work dude!!!
Really enjoy your videos! You are amazing! Question, do you sell your restorations or,keep? Thanks!
very good
I have one of these engines in a bucket somewhere, it has a swirl type piston and head, externally it looks the same as yours
Hammering on the stator plate risks moving the main bearing. It should be drawn on using spacers and the flywheel nut thus putting no stress at all on the main bearing.
I remember Raleigh. Made. One. Of. These. Rollers. On front. Tire. !!!
Parabéns belíssimo trabalho abraços.
I read that those engines were hard to start, were they?
you can rotate the bore to remove piston 22:57
My grandmother had one in the early 1960s in Denmark.
My 83 year old great great grandma had one in france .
Has She still got it
@@richardrestorations that was 40 years ago sadly.
My mates dad had one back in the 60s, i couldn't stop it and crashed into a wall. Though my motorcycle career i always remember that crash and rode more cautiously. It hurt..
Yep lovely bicycle brakes onto the rims always stops you fast
Restaurada bicicleta elétrica 🚲😉
Haven't come across any old electric bikes restored yet
How did you refit the big crankshaft bearing which you forced out of it crimped seat? Why did you not replace this crucial € 5.- part? This motor will not last.
Thanks for your feed back cheers Richard 😀
Афигеть. На то время вертилятор, центробежное сцепление, золотник вместо лепестка, свет...
There's a gang that goes around on these solex going to cafes and they're called the gray beards😂
@@richardrestorations
😊😊
Bom vídeo! nas antes de fazer a desmontagem eu faria uma lavagem com água, desengraxante e detergente para tirar a sujeira pesada.
I appreciate what you're saying, but it wasn't that dirty and if you look at a lot of the other "restoration videos "they have a lot of " painted on Rust" I don't believe in that
@@richardrestorations O importante é trazer essas relíquias de volta. Parabéns!
Bravo
No he visto que hayas puesto la junta del cilindro y tampoco la de la culata del motor.
THE BLOKE WHO USED TO COME AND SHARPEN OUR GARDEN SHEERS AND LAWNMOWER BLADES HAD ONE, HE USED TO HAVE A STAND ON THE BACK WHEEL AND HE CONNECTED THE DRIVESHAFT WITH A RUBBER BELT TO A SHARPENING STONE THAT HE USED TO SHARPEN THE BLADES WITH, I've never seen a crank and connecting rod like that before,
Судя по тому, что прокладки не ставятся, он не будет запускаться 😊
Yes there was gaskets installed, and it did run on the bench test run, halfway through reassembling the bike ,but I've had covid so it's slowled down a bit sorry for the delay
I remember seeing so many beautiful ladies in Paris in the 1970's riding petrol bikes!!
I can assure you I don't look beautiful on it😜
@@richardrestorations Hahaha!
I am born 1960
and would like to purchase this Solex
Vous voilà heureux propriétaire d'un vélo Solex . Mon premier tour en vélo avec moteur était un solex celui de mon père c'était début des années 1980. J'ai donné à un collectionneur des bidons de Solexine.
Here you are happy owner of a Solex bike . My first lap in bike with engine was a solex that of my father it was early 1980s. I gave a collector cans of Solexine.
Will this work? Next video? When???
Sorry
Le Solex.
La 2cv des Vélomoteurs
Toute une Époque.
Existe aujourd'hui en version électrique.
Le Solex , est toujours fabriqué .
Mais plus en France.
En Asie , je crois !?.
Those are some very crow like crowbars.
Ulez?
Ace años busco una para restaurar me gusta mucho
spiders all said : you stickin' around ? hell no, i'm out see ya.
Quite often when I pull stuff apart it's full of spiders luckily we don't really have poisonous spiders in New Zealand😱
@@richardrestorations - good - when i do, i try to be outside and say "run for the hills you".
They didn't have any spiders back then
А что же кольца не поменял.
too many mistakes. sad, it should have been good.
No! Need a video of you riding it.
Never ever cut any screws of a Solex. ALL are specially formed and u have to use ONLY ORIGINALS to get it stabile !!!!
It s ur life on the saddle !!!!
Most french ideas can be considered cheap and nasty...
No exceptions with this thing...
It'll be interesting to see how it handles whilst riding it...
😐🏴🇬🇧😐
For a bad idea they did sell 8 million of them, can you give me some stats on the English ones sold, thanks mate
Yes, I had one of these bikes before.. Now I see the important.. Why they made it a girl's bike?. In if they made it a boy's bike.. Which a lot of young men use these motor bikes.. Make an it a girl's bike.. You never know when that change set rotates the back wheels.. Might break when you're going up a Hill up 45°.. Had a really Closecall with a big dumpster. was a big one.
I can assure you these do not go uphill ,and I must admit I'd rather look at a girl than a guy on these bikes, glad you the survive the dumpster to be with us, thanks for watching
Reminds me of the ex mrs
🥃👏👍🥃👏👍🥃👏👍🥃👏👍🥃👏👍🥃👏👍
Thanks for the encouragement😃
А дальше?
voulez venir me reparer le mien
merci😊
Mbah kung pernah punya
Thank you for taking the time to watch my video and leave a comment. It means a lot to me!
For the life of me i cant understand why you invest money in a rust remover but don't give it a chance to work at all. I'm not at all surprised that several skrews have been torn off.
When i was 14, my teacher in Vietnam has this god awful bike. It was like you wouldn't want to touch this. Nobody wants it. Nobody would buy it. It was the WORST bike in the world. 99.9% people ride Hondas or suzuki or yamaha. But my teacher he was an OG, his hairs was perfect, a 100mph wind wouldn't mess it. One day, he shows up at my house. Turn out, he's a friend of my dad.
Sometimes things are so uncool they become cool, thanks for sharing your story, cheers Richard
Is a French made :
Solex
gk jelas
Part 2 of the videos coming out shortly sorry I've had covid so it slowed me down a bit,
I had one of those when I was a kid in the 1980’s!
Somebody gave it to me, so I fixed it up and rode it around my suburb for a long time. Then I got pulled over by the cops who threatened to tow it and give me a ticket, so I quit riding it.
Yeah I got pulled up in the 80s I ended up getting a faster bike Kawasaki triple 2-stroke😱