bruce pederick
Level 2 Member
Victoria
27 Posts |
Posted - 29 Mar 2006 : 8:53:41 PM
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The site seems to be a bit dead lately, so to add to the "Things we used to do"
My second motorcycle in 1946 was a 1929 350cc Calthorpe, Followed by a 1929 OHV Norton 500cc and then to various Velocettes.
Petrol was still rationed after WW2 and we received one gallon of petrol per month.
My home was on a farm , although I was living in Adelaide, my Dad had plenty of power kerosene. So I used to get a drum & deposit my one gallon, maybe a bit more traded somehow, add metholated spirit, and power kero plus white spirit( shellite) as much as the budget would afford and off we would go with comparatively unlimited fuel compared with my mates. I carried a little bottle of white spirit in my pocket to fill the carby bowl for starting. It was also necessary to have a few bits of wire of different thicknesses to put through the main jet , depending on the quantity of methylated spirit one had acquired for the particular month's mixture. That was great on old iron barrelled engines. But then I acquired a 1939 Gold Star BSA , All alloy engine. On my first ride with aforementioned fuel mixture I felt my leg getting wet ! On looking down the oil tank was overflowing. REason ? The alloy motor did not get hot enough to vaporise the kerosene,!!! Fortunately fuel rationing was lifted soon after so we got back to normal !!
Bruce Pederick
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