One way of resolving the fork seal issue is to fit gaiters. My 78 Bonneville has always had them and they have 2 advantages, 1, they keep the dirt off the seals, and 2, when the seals do start to leak, no-one can see!
Before you tear the forks apart, try running a feeler gauge around where the seal meets the stanchion. This has extended the seal life on a few of my bikes. Possible future video?
I hope you get one Ken. They are really great bikes. They are strong and powerful enough to keep up with modern traffic, while still retaining the classic vintage look and feel. Best wishes, Mike
A handy little gadget to have is a 'seal mate' - simply a thin flat plastic tool with a hooked end. Thin enough to fit between the fork seals to remove debris but pliable enough so it won't cause damage. I've used one on a couple of my machines - worked a treat. (Obviously no good on damaged or kinked seals).
Many thanks Dave for this great tip. I mentioned it to my friend Geoff and he has one of the little plastic tools. I’ve borrowed it and hope to try on my fork seals soon. Best wishes, Mike
drain the carbs fill the tank and but some stabilizer in it pull the plugs and spray some fogging oil in the cylinders then turn the motor by hand to coat cylinders
Good to see you out, the weather seems to be the same hear in Lincolnshire, I am just popping out on my Gen 2 Aprilia Tuono in the dark to test out head lamp LED bulbs! 4 degree's Centigrade, chilly
You had me worried for a minute there Mike, thought you were gonna announce you were going back to Blighty 😮 Horrors! All the best and enjoy tomorrow’s holiday.
Thank you very much Ian. Sorry, didn’t mean to shock you 😉. Hope you will enjoy the Thanksgiving video tomorrow. Thanks for your best wishes. Same to you and your family.
I am going to install one of the valves that have switch on it. I’m gonna hook it to the horn, so if you turn the key on without opening the oil valve the horn will honk.
Your bike wet-sumping reminded me of my old BMW K100RS. When it would sit on the side stand for just a short while, after starting it would smoke for a about a half a minute until the the oil burned out of the cylinder head. Remember, these inline 4’s were laid over on there side, with the top end actually sitting below the crank, so a little bit of oil would leak by the piston rings when you had it on the side stand. I think maybe this top-end lubrication contributed to the longevity of these engines, some going hundreds of thousands of miles! Your big Norton 850 sounds so good at 50 miles an hour and turning a smooth 3 grand! Thanks Mike!
I only use non-ethanol in my motorcycles and power equipment. It's about $3.80 per gallon here in SE Michigan, but worth it. I am lucky as there are at least 3 stations that sell it in my area. As always I enjoy your videos.
Hi Marty, hope all is well. I was chatting with the guys at our club get together for boxing day yesterday and we were chatting about coming back down to Silverton next year. Would love to meet up if that would be possible? I would be happy to send you an email with more details if you would be still willing to have us come over? Best wishes, Mike
Snuck another ride in before the weather changes. Whilst replacing fork seals Mike & all is removed I would put a set of gaitors on will definitely save your fork seals from grit & protect slides from damage ,extending seal life. Great Vid as always Cheers Greg.
Snow flurries today here in Cape Breton , Nova Scotia, Canada. The Africa Twin has been put to bed for the winter! Your Great videos will help get me through the next six months. Thanks for that Mike.
When you said Fork Seals, I groaned too. I did battle with them on my 71 CL450 a few months ago... sigh. I see my Triumph Sprint 900 has a weepy one, so I bought a sealmate as some have suggested. We will see how she does. I found heating the fork tubes helped significantly, and they popped right in. Made a PVC slide hammer as well. Always get a big thumbs up from me mate, and I'm not here from the algorithm.
Hi Mike, my Triumph did the same thing a week back, it’s never done it before, as it’s my first British bike, Panic 😱 I thought the Engine had failed, smoke everywhere, but now I know what it is, I drop the sump plug when it’s been stud for a While to check, I’ve been told if you park the bike up for a time make sure the pistons are at the top, this can help stop wet sumping, so I’ll give it a try, glad your still getting out riding over there Mike, commando looking great 👍,this week will probably be the last time I get out on my bike, as we’ve got a cold snap on its way. Cheers Martin.🥶🌨❄️☃️🇬🇧
Thank you for another good ride Mike. On the subject of wet sumping, possibly you could prevail on one of your people, to try the mechanical shut off that shots off off the ignition system.
Great video, great bike and ride!. When you did talk about the carbs, my tip is to use STP injector cleaner or better, the STP full system cleaner,..works instantly, you can actually feel the carbs waking up from a hibernation..
Great video, Mike, always a pleasure to ride along with you. Your bike sounds really good. But, you left us hanging, which of those cars was Dave's new, old car?? I assume it was the 308. Glad to hear your Barber video #1 has gone viral, maybe 2-4 will follow.
I never could prevent my 1970 Roadster from wet sumping. It would take about a month of inactivity for a smoky start, so not overly problematic. An anti-sump valve of any sort was a scarier proposition than a bit of mosquito control.
@@TheMightyGarage I like the "ride it more option". Curious - Does your MK2A not have a breather? My MK2 would have dumped half a pint on the cul-de-sac. I've gotten used to draining the sump and I have a little filter system for reuse. Hassle when you want to take it out on short notice, but its the only reliable (noninvasive) solution I've found. I read a bunch of legend/theories about position of the motor during storage having an impact. Any experience with that? Some say kick it to compression before leaving it, something about where that aligns the parts but I've never had any luck with that. Assume if there was such a solution we'd all know it, but curious whether you've experimented. Great Series!!! Thanks for all of your work sharing this!
$6.30 for 1.21 gallons of non-ethanol fuel is Sterling 4.68 for 4.57 litres, or about 1.02 Pounds per litre. Today's UK price for (ethanol) fuel is 1.44 Pounds per litre.
I think I to start the bike.( 1977 triumph t140) for a ride this afternoon. Here in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, near the border with Germany, the same weather as in Oregon I guess. I like your videos.
Mike, I’m a proud new owner of a 1972 Combat. Been enjoying your videos, thank you. The silencers you got from Commando Specialties; are they the baffled, or unbaffled units? They sound great.
Awesome! Congrats. They are great bikes. I hope you have a ton of fun with yours. Yes, the silencers from CS are baffled (to my knowledge) and they are very good although several of my friends have the Emgo pipes and they sound really good and raspy! Best wishes
In Marine engines when leaving over the Winter they run the engine on a 50 to 1 two stroke mix to get some oil over rings valves etc. They also use use a fuel stabiliser. To stop the fuel breaking down and that is the standard unleaded petrol. Ethanol sucks in the water and attacks components not designed to run with it. Is that done on Motorbikes left over the winter?
Bike needs a clean?? You should try riding my Cheshire back roads when the farmers are silaging maize. The roads are filthy for about a month. No chance of keeping a bike clean.
Thanks Mike another interesting little video. Petrol is now E5 or E10 over here in the UK now, I've not seen any ethanol free. The price of E10 is about 1.45 per litre which by my reckoning is £6.60 per gallon or about $8 .90 I think . E5 "Super" is dearer, but not everywhere stocks it.
Look forward to seeing more of your videos Mr Mighty. I can live vicariously through your exploits till I get to reunite with my Commando hopefully in March. Have you come across the TH-cam channel Lemon Drizzle Cake Gang? Great channel with 'Middle aged men on Middle Aged Bikes' Highly recommended. Cheers and safe riding N
Thanks Nick. Yes, I have watched the Lemon Drizzle Cake Gang. The guys make some really nice videos. I have enjoyed watching them very much. Cheers, Mike
Another fan of your videos, just wondering how Dave got on with his wet sump project,and do you think it's worth fitting a inline valve to prevent it .
I'm running a manually operated ball valve on the feed line with an ignition cut off micro switch to prevent a start unless valve is fully opened. No more wet sumping on my 850. I blew a crank shaft seal in half from trying to fire up with a sump full of oil. Also there's risk to having no oil left in tank, so nothing feeding pump to pressurise head or crank bearing during first few minutes of running while oil has to be pumped back to tank.
You think your petrol is expensive - -I'm in New Zealand, and the petrol I use in my VW Passat V6 costs me (it's gone up a lot this year) $2.75 per litre. US gallons are 4 litres, so that makes it $11.00 per US gallon. - and guess what . .well over half of that is made up of many forms of taxes / levies.
Another wonderful movie . I was thinking on my bikes where possible I always fit a inline fuel filter , is it sensible to plonk one in the Norton or are they not fitted for a specific reason . I never suffer dirty carbs . Cheers Mike .
no skeeters in the cul-de-sac !! Yep- ride it !! these vids cutting up your riding skills? 15yrs ago I had a Brit customer say the exact same thing about fuel prices-"when compared to UK...".
Brought smiles to my face…..miss my Nortons….
There’s pride for you “ she’s looking a bit dirty “. I’ve booked my appointment at Spec Savers, Mike, I couldn’t see any dirt. Ray 😎🇬🇧
😉😉thanks Ray. She’s a 10-footer 😊
One way of resolving the fork seal issue is to fit gaiters. My 78 Bonneville has always had them and they have 2 advantages, 1, they keep the dirt off the seals, and 2, when the seals do start to leak, no-one can see!
Thank you very much Rick for the advice. I appreciate it. Cheers, Mike
Congratulations on going viral, Mike. Strange choice of words these days. I always give you a thumbs up before I hit play. That's confidence!
Hehe.. that was funny! Thanks a lot as always for your comments and the thumbs up 👍👍 Cheers, Mike
Before you tear the forks apart, try running a feeler gauge around where the seal meets the stanchion. This has extended the seal life on a few of my bikes. Possible future video?
I recently discovered your channel and I'm enjoying your videos. I've always wanted a Commando and these videos are motivating me to finally get one!
I hope you get one Ken. They are really great bikes. They are strong and powerful enough to keep up with modern traffic, while still retaining the classic vintage look and feel. Best wishes, Mike
Loved the mini car show but loved the commando best!
A handy little gadget to have is a 'seal mate' - simply a thin flat plastic tool with a hooked end. Thin enough to fit between the fork seals to remove debris but pliable enough so it won't cause damage.
I've used one on a couple of my machines - worked a treat. (Obviously no good on damaged or kinked seals).
Many thanks Dave for this great tip. I mentioned it to my friend Geoff and he has one of the little plastic tools. I’ve borrowed it and hope to try on my fork seals soon. Best wishes, Mike
@@TheMightyGarage sounds like a video subject, and btw who sells them?
Black and Chrome, my favorite color....good video....
Man!!! Wish I'd have bought that Commando in 74, instead of that Suzuki 750 Water Buffalo. It was a really great bike, but wow!! To own a Commando!!
drain the carbs fill the tank and but some stabilizer in it pull the plugs and spray some fogging oil in the cylinders then turn the motor by hand to coat cylinders
Part 2. That disables the ignition system. That would be a bloody good mend, if it works.
A big thumbs up from me ! 🇬🇧🏍
Cold wet rides are the worst. But always try to take advantage of a opportunity. Enjoyed the vid Mike.
Great video
Wish we had non ethanol pumps in the UK!
Things no one ever said on their deathbed ''I wish I had spent less time riding my 1974 Norton Commando''
I second that .have owned both the 750 and 850 . Just an awsome experiece. .there aint nothing like a norton
Good but chilly vid, no knees knocking yet 😄
Be good Mike 😎
😉😉 Thanks David. Cheers, Mike
Mike really enjoying the channel, how on earth do you and friends like Geoff manage to keep so many bikes running as sweet as they do.
Thanks very much for your kind note. He he, yes it feels like it is almost a full-time job keeping these old bikes roadworthy 😀
Good to see you out, the weather seems to be the same hear in Lincolnshire, I am just popping out on my Gen 2 Aprilia Tuono in the dark to test out head lamp LED bulbs! 4 degree's Centigrade, chilly
Great looking and running bike.
Awesome bike and lovely exhaust sound..... LIKED!
Exact bike I owned for 15 years, though mine had the 2.4 gallon Hi-rider tank.
Cheers Mike! Always look forward to your posts and morning tea.
Thank you Larry! Cheers, Mike
You had me worried for a minute there Mike, thought you were gonna announce you were going back to Blighty 😮 Horrors! All the best and enjoy tomorrow’s holiday.
Thank you very much Ian. Sorry, didn’t mean to shock you 😉. Hope you will enjoy the Thanksgiving video tomorrow. Thanks for your best wishes. Same to you and your family.
I am going to install one of the valves that have switch on it. I’m gonna hook it to the horn, so if you turn the key on without opening the oil valve the horn will honk.
Would love to learn more about where that kit came from and how it worked out for you!
Your bike wet-sumping reminded me of my old BMW K100RS. When it would sit on the side stand for just a short while, after starting it would smoke for a about a half a minute until the the oil burned out of the cylinder head. Remember, these inline 4’s were laid over on there side, with the top end actually sitting below the crank, so a little bit of oil would leak by the piston rings when you had it on the side stand. I think maybe this top-end lubrication contributed to the longevity of these engines, some going hundreds of thousands of miles!
Your big Norton 850 sounds so good at 50 miles an hour and turning a smooth 3 grand! Thanks Mike!
I only use non-ethanol in my motorcycles and power equipment. It's about $3.80 per gallon here in SE Michigan, but worth it. I am lucky as there are at least 3 stations that sell it in my area. As always I enjoy your videos.
Thanks for sharing, definitely ride her more often Mike such a beauty 👍🏴
Will do! Cheers, Mike
Love the shout out to Itchy Boots! Great ride again, Mike. Cheers!
Thanks again Marty! Cheers, Mike
Hi Marty, hope all is well. I was chatting with the guys at our club get together for boxing day yesterday and we were chatting about coming back down to Silverton next year. Would love to meet up if that would be possible? I would be happy to send you an email with more details if you would be still willing to have us come over? Best wishes, Mike
Don't forget that rear iso mate 😄
Snuck another ride in before
the weather changes.
Whilst replacing fork seals Mike & all is removed I would put a set of gaitors on will definitely save your fork seals from grit & protect slides from damage ,extending seal life.
Great Vid as always Cheers Greg.
Thanks a lot Greg, best wishes, Mike
Love Brit bikes. Your videos take me back in time to my good old days. Thank you from Texas.
Thank you Martin. Glad you like them! Cheers, Mike
Snow flurries today here in Cape Breton , Nova Scotia, Canada. The Africa Twin has been put to bed for the winter! Your Great videos will help get me through the next six months. Thanks for that Mike.
Hola.mike..estimado buen giro..saludos Rafa de mardel plata Argentina
Hola Rafael!
When you said Fork Seals, I groaned too. I did battle with them on my 71 CL450 a few months ago... sigh. I see my Triumph Sprint 900 has a weepy one, so I bought a sealmate as some have suggested. We will see how she does. I found heating the fork tubes helped significantly, and they popped right in. Made a PVC slide hammer as well. Always get a big thumbs up from me mate, and I'm not here from the algorithm.
Noraly has her “big thumbs up”
But you have your “cheers for watching” 🥰
Many thanks! Cheers 😉, Mike
I owned this commandos twin brother
Hi Mike, my Triumph did the same thing a week back, it’s never done it before, as it’s my first British bike, Panic 😱 I thought the Engine had failed, smoke everywhere, but now I know what it is, I drop the sump plug when it’s been stud for a While to check, I’ve been told if you park the bike up for a time make sure the pistons are at the top, this can help stop wet sumping, so I’ll give it a try, glad your still getting out riding over there Mike, commando looking great 👍,this week will probably be the last time I get out on my bike, as we’ve got a cold snap on its way. Cheers Martin.🥶🌨❄️☃️🇬🇧
Thanks a lot for the tip Martin. Hope all is well. Hope you have a great new year. Best wishes, Mike
Thank you for another good ride Mike. On the subject of wet sumping, possibly you could prevail on one of your people, to try the mechanical shut off that shots off off the ignition system.
Morning Mike, thanks for video, always a pleasure - Sunday morning cup of tea and one of your videos. Might go out myself a bit later.
Keep em coming 👍
Will do! Thanks Colin. Cheers, Mike
Great video, great bike and ride!. When you did talk about the carbs, my tip is to use STP injector cleaner or better, the STP full system cleaner,..works instantly, you can actually feel the carbs waking up from a hibernation..
Thanks very much for the great tip! Best wishes, Mike
Great video, Mike, always a pleasure to ride along with you. Your bike sounds really good. But, you left us hanging, which of those cars was Dave's new, old car?? I assume it was the 308. Glad to hear your Barber video #1 has gone viral, maybe 2-4 will follow.
If it had been the 308 I’m quite sure Mike wouldn’t have been able to resist making a video.
I never could prevent my 1970 Roadster from wet sumping. It would take about a month of inactivity for a smoky start, so not overly problematic.
An anti-sump valve of any sort was a scarier proposition than a bit of mosquito control.
I totally agree. I feel the same way! Best wishes, Mike
@@TheMightyGarage I like the "ride it more option". Curious - Does your MK2A not have a breather? My MK2 would have dumped half a pint on the cul-de-sac. I've gotten used to draining the sump and I have a little filter system for reuse. Hassle when you want to take it out on short notice, but its the only reliable (noninvasive) solution I've found. I read a bunch of legend/theories about position of the motor during storage having an impact. Any experience with that? Some say kick it to compression before leaving it, something about where that aligns the parts but I've never had any luck with that. Assume if there was such a solution we'd all know it, but curious whether you've experimented. Great Series!!! Thanks for all of your work sharing this!
Used to warm hands on cyl head.
Difficult choice when the weather starts to turn chilly & damp, car or bike .. 😂
Thanks for sharing Mike. atvb t .. 👍
$6.30 for 1.21 gallons of non-ethanol fuel is Sterling 4.68 for 4.57 litres, or about 1.02 Pounds per litre. Today's UK price for (ethanol) fuel is 1.44 Pounds per litre.
I think I to start the bike.( 1977 triumph t140) for a ride this afternoon. Here in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, near the border with Germany, the same weather as in Oregon I guess. I like your videos.
Keep up the good work with the videos. You do a great job and show some wonderful motorcycles.
Many thanks, I really appreciate it. I'm glad that you like the videos. Best wishes, Mike
Mike, I’m a proud new owner of a 1972 Combat. Been enjoying your videos, thank you. The silencers you got from Commando Specialties; are they the baffled, or unbaffled units? They sound great.
Awesome! Congrats. They are great bikes. I hope you have a ton of fun with yours. Yes, the silencers from CS are baffled (to my knowledge) and they are very good although several of my friends have the Emgo pipes and they sound really good and raspy! Best wishes
Nice video I always drain my Xt600e carbs if I’m parking it up for a time it seems to work, looking forward to more of your videos keep biking👌
In Marine engines when leaving over the Winter they run the engine on a 50 to 1 two stroke mix to get some oil over rings valves etc. They also use use a fuel stabiliser. To stop the fuel breaking down and that is the standard unleaded petrol. Ethanol sucks in the water and attacks components not designed to run with it. Is that done on Motorbikes left over the winter?
Bike needs a clean?? You should try riding my Cheshire back roads when the farmers are silaging maize. The roads are filthy for about a month. No chance of keeping a bike clean.
I run my trident on 101 low lead avgas with a wee bit of Morays upper cylinder lubricant and she goes very well. Trouble is I need a 4 gallon tank now
Thanks Mike another interesting little video.
Petrol is now E5 or E10 over here in the UK now, I've not seen any ethanol free. The price of E10 is about 1.45 per litre which by my reckoning is £6.60 per gallon or about $8 .90 I think . E5 "Super" is dearer, but not everywhere stocks it.
There are ways to get the ethanol out, if you can't buy the non.
Look forward to seeing more of your videos Mr Mighty. I can live vicariously through your exploits till I get to reunite with my Commando hopefully in March. Have you come across the TH-cam channel Lemon Drizzle Cake Gang? Great channel with 'Middle aged men on Middle Aged Bikes' Highly recommended. Cheers and safe riding N
Thanks Nick. Yes, I have watched the Lemon Drizzle Cake Gang. The guys make some really nice videos. I have enjoyed watching them very much. Cheers, Mike
First haha
Great clip. Im wanting to get a Norton 850 in the next couple of years. You based in USA?
Hey guys looks like he started another wildfire near his garage this time ..look out for his norton firestarters 🔥
Another fan of your videos, just wondering how Dave got on with his wet sump project,and do you think it's worth fitting a inline valve to prevent it .
The bike with the AMR fix is showing no signs of wetsumping. My other bike has a full sump.
I'm running a manually operated ball valve on the feed line with an ignition cut off micro switch to prevent a start unless valve is fully opened. No more wet sumping on my 850. I blew a crank shaft seal in half from trying to fire up with a sump full of oil. Also there's risk to having no oil left in tank, so nothing feeding pump to pressurise head or crank bearing during first few minutes of running while oil has to be pumped back to tank.
You think your petrol is expensive - -I'm in New Zealand, and the petrol I use in my VW Passat V6 costs me (it's gone up a lot this year) $2.75 per litre. US gallons are 4 litres, so that makes it $11.00 per US gallon. - and guess what . .well over half of that is made up of many forms of taxes / levies.
Yikes, that is expensive! I know, we shouldn’t complain here. I guess it wasn’t too long ago when gas was about $.99 a gallon! Best wishes, Mike
Another wonderful movie . I was thinking on my bikes where possible I always fit a inline fuel filter , is it sensible to plonk one in the Norton or are they not fitted for a specific reason . I never suffer dirty carbs . Cheers Mike .
Hey if that wet sumping is a big issue you could sell that beautiful machine to me???? Just a thought.😀
😉😉 Ha ha, I will keep that in mind. Best wishes, Mike
Haha dreams are free
@@rickydee5863 yea...too bad that dream machine wouldnt be.
🥶🏍👍🏼🖖🏼⚙️⚙️⚙️👌🍺
no skeeters in the cul-de-sac !! Yep- ride it !! these vids cutting up your riding skills? 15yrs ago I had a Brit customer say the exact same thing about fuel prices-"when compared to UK...".