[Matt1995]

so I finally got my 01 bullet 500 "marketplace" bike up and running today, several kicks later. I got a mikcarb on it. I took it apart cleaned it yesterday. actually made a bowl gasket for it to with some gasket paper and an exacto knife. came out pretty good and it works. i have a few questions hoping you guys could answer for me. So im not really sure how to make the proper adjustments on this carb. it took quite a few kicks before it finally fired up and every other kick it would sound like it wants to go. I have a Boyer ignition kit in it. JRC engineering said I could put a pwk or mikuni carb on for better performance. what do you guys think? should I tune up the one on it or maybe do an upgrade? (I live in upstate ny about 453ft above sea level, if this helps)
I also want to do an oil change on it. I got an oil filter. I've read that 15w50 is used quite often with these bikes, but im not sure if theres a different oil I should be using. bike has a little over 2000 miles on it according to the od. what oil would you recommend?
The other thing im looking into is a nice solo seat. I found one that I really like however its in india (like most parts). have any of you ordered solo seats from there? if so, worth it? any solo seat kits in the US?
Thanks for reading, looking forward to seeing these comments!
-Matt 
 

[Adrian II]

Hi Matt,

carburetor choice? Hitchcocks have a tuning guide for the stock Mikarb VM28 depending on your state of tune, otherwise you can go up to a 32mm carb without further porting work in the cylinder head.

Amal:

Mk1 Concentric, Premier Mk1 Concentric, Mk2 Concentric, 389 Monobloc, old-style 289 with separate float chamber, or perhaps a TT9!

Mikuni:

VM32, TM32 flat slide or TM33 flat slide pumper.

Keihin:

Genuine PWK, FCR33

OKO

PWK clone!

Wassell:

Mk1 Concentric clone. Mk1 i Premier Concentric clone!

Dell'Orto:

PHF32 Pumper, PHBE32

As you can see, there is next to no choice - have I missed any?

I recently had a solo seat shipped from India KNOWING it would not fit, and that I would have to make my own sub-base to adapt it to the frame (1961 Redditch Bullet), but it's still a good seat, and with a bit of work it will go on OK. Check the pictures in the Indian listing carefully and make sure it's compatible with your frame, or be prepared for a little work.

A.

[AzCal Retred]

Oil - 15W-50 is great. Change early & change often, it has a lot of wearing-in to do.

Points are fine. This a 22 - 24 HP machine, happiest at 50-55 MPH. Points are cleanable, field repairable, roadside time-able with a stick. If your voodoo electrical ignition goes south, you'd best have an identical one squirreled away.

The stock Mikcarb works well for my needs and has good parts & info support from Hitchcocks. The 28mm Mikcarb will give decent performance on a stock machine, for free...

Stay on top of the valves, they are tightest when cold. Check at TDC compression, pushrods should spin freely. Too tight and you have starting issues as compression will bleed off due to a partially open valve. Expect a noisy valve train.

These machines are made to be used by "mechanically sympathetic" riders. They are mechanically user friendly, but you are looking at 1940's tech here. It AIN'T a race bike, abuse it and it'll turn to cack. Don't lug it. Don't spin it hard. it lives between 2000 - 4500 RPM happily. The motto is "55 all day, 60 for awhile, 80 one time." Keep it stock for awhile to learn it's general "vibe".

The electrical wiring is "creative". As an "01" it should have an AC headlight. Study up on the schematics until they make sense. The voltage regulators tend to be optimistic, charging at 15-16V. Check the battery water often.

Have fun - ACR -

[Richard230]

I kind of hate to bring the subject of oil up as everyone hates an oil thread. But I am still scratching my head as to why RE and many other motorcycle manufacturers call for "semi-synthetic" 15W-50 grade oil and not full synthetic oil. All of the articles that I have read say that no one really knows how much synthetic oil is in a semi-synthetic oil. It would seem to me that using full synthetic oil and extending the oil change interval after the engine breaks-in would make more sense from both an environmental and economic viewpoint. Apparently modern synthetic oils provide very good and long-lasting lubrication and there are plenty of them made just for motorcycles on the market.

[AzCal Retred]

The only pragmatic difference I ever saw was on my old Toyota Tacoma. Regular Pennzoil 20W50 oil pressure dropped maybe 20% after 1000-1500 miles on my gauge, Mobile 1 made it maybe 2500 miles before doing the same thing. But pretty much any brand name oil you buy today is better than the 1950's era equivalents. Petrochemistry has come a long way in 70 years.

[Richard230]

Petrochemicals do seem to have come a long way since the 1950s (certainly their hype and advertising spin has), but not as much as the advancements in metallurgy and manufacturing. The latest BMW motorcycles now require 5W-40 full synthetic oils, and of course auto engines are using 0W-20 stuff. How would you like to put that weight oil in a 1950's auto or motorcycle engine? 

[AzCal Retred]

Well, maybe mixed 50/50 with STP...

Ont appealing thing about the Pre-Unit designs is the motor oil doesn't interact with the clutch plates. Clutch wear bits don't circulate in the motor, STP or TB Zinc won't screw up the clutch.

[Richard230]

Well, maybe mixed 50/50 with STP...

Ont appealing thing about the Pre-Unit designs is the motor oil doesn't interact with the clutch plates. Clutch wear bits don't circulate in the motor, STP or TB Zinc won't screw up the clutch.

I tried using STP in my 1963 Ford Falcon. While it did make the engine run quietly, it also took about 30 minutes to come out of the can. 

[AzCal Retred]

@ #7: Maybe STP is more a Southwest thing. My pappy used it religiously, but air temps could easily hit 115F - 125F in the Needles area. STP at 125F is a lot less viscous that at 70F. STP mixed with Whiting Brothers finest Ray-Lube reclaimed 30W motor oil kept my Dad's old cast iron 6-cylinder Chevys running long after they should have been rebuilt. The heavily mineralized desert water would eventually seal up any weep holes it ate in the block with a lime stalactite plug, sometimes with some help from corn meal or sawdust. You do what you need to do when money's tight.

[tooseevee]

@ #7: Maybe STP is more a Southwest thing. My pappy used it religiously, but air temps could easily hit 115F - 125F in the Needles area. STP at 125F is a lot less viscous that at 70F. STP mixed with Whiting Brothers finest Ray-Lube reclaimed 30W motor oil kept my Dad's old cast iron 6-cylinder Chevys running long after they should have been rebuilt. The heavily mineralized desert water would eventually seal up any weep holes it ate in the block with a lime stalactite plug, sometimes with some help from corn meal or sawdust. You do what you need to do when money's tight.

        Well, it was a Cheyenne Wyoming thing, too 

         Being a car kid, I "knew it all" by the time my mom sold her '36 Chevy and bought a '47 Chevy in 1949 when I was 11.

           I can vouch for the fact that the engine did turn over a hair faster in the morning after being outside all night, every night, after a cold Wyoming night if it had STP in the crankcase with the 20Wt. that was in there. The STP was way thick and sticky and clung to the cylinder walls whereas the 20 wt just drained off as soon as you shut the engine off.

     I also put an electric hydrothermal cooling system heater on it very soon after she bought it. Batteries lose a lot of CCA over a Wyoming winter night. And the instant heat was one of life's great simple pleasures.

       My single mom HAD to get to work every time. There was just no other choice then.