17 replies to this topic

[Andy.T]

Got myself an AJS 250 Stormer and going to do some classic scrambles, anyone an expert on tips for reducing the clutch drag, my gearbox tends to crunch and the bike lurches forward when put into gear, not to bad when its warm it just annoys me. (have cleaned out inside cases and changed the oil) Also does anyone know the best way to check if the gear oil in my gearbox is R40, I think its R40 just not sure and would like to change it to an EP mineral, if it is R40 anyone got any tips to flush it out.
Regards Andy

[davieboy]

No advice I'm afraid but I have just sold my 1983 twinshock Husky and would like to go older.

I'm thinking of a Stormer also.Let me know how you get on with it.

[Andy.T]

davieboy, on Sep 10 2009, 08:22 PM, said:

No advice I'm afraid but I have just sold my 1983 twinshock Husky and would like to go older.

I'm thinking of a Stormer also.Let me know how you get on with it.

I will be riding the bike this weekend for the first time,in fact first ever Scramble. I think the clutch is a bit better now as I pulled the clutch apart and cleaned up the steel plates. Still not sure about the oil in the gearbox as it smells like Castrol R40 so for now thats what is going back in. Hope I survive on Sunday must refrain from seeing the red mist.

[davieboy]

Andy.T, on Sep 10 2009, 08:42 PM, said:

I will be riding the bike this weekend for the first time,in fact first ever Scramble. I think the clutch is a bit better now as I pulled the clutch apart and cleaned up the steel plates. Still not sure about the oil in the gearbox as it smells like Castrol R40 so for now thats what is going back in. Hope I survive on Sunday must refrain from seeing the red mist.

My advice would be try not to go faster than you are comfortable with.Try to keep the bike upright.
You lose a lot of time and get very frustrated when you fall off and have to re-start the bike.
I fell off a lot my first season.
Don't get too down if everyone clears off ,just finish and enjoy.

[Andy.T]

davieboy, completed the Scramble on Sunday, the old AJS was brilliant it really did fly and handled like a dream, must give credit to the previous owner as he had all the work done on it like the Fluff Brown rebuild and all the Fluff extras. The only criticism with these bikes is the clutch as they do tend to drag. I took your advice and just stuck to a speed that I was comfortable with but still managed to get my foot stuck in someones front wheel at one of the jumps when a few riders collided, thank God I purchased descent boots. There is a Stormer on Ebay dont know if you have noticed it, starting bids at £1000.

[davieboy]

Glad you had a good day.
Yes I have seen the Stormer on e-bay,I will be very surprised if anyone bids on it.It's not worth £1000 in the state it is in.
I'm buying one,advertised on Bultaco UK website.A 1971 410 for £950 with a lot of new parts.I'm going to get it this sunday.

[Andy.T]

davieboy, on Sep 15 2009, 05:22 PM, said:

Glad you had a good day.
Yes I have seen the Stormer on e-bay,I will be very surprised if anyone bids on it.It's not worth £1000 in the state it is in.
I'm buying one,advertised on Bultaco UK website.A 1971 410 for £950 with a lot of new parts.I'm going to get it this sunday.

Just had a look at that bike on the website and it does look as if its a bargain, hope you get a good one, I think mine is but then I did pay £1340 for mine and thought that was cheap as it did have the fluff air box and under slung expansion chamber,engine rebuild, MK2 Amal,new rear shocks, new forks and springs and so on. Let us know how you get on with yours and how you find the clutch.

[davieboy]

Your bike sounds like a good one Andy.Lots of good mods on it for that money.

[davieboy]

I see there is another 2 Stormers appeared on e-bay,both 370's.
One looks pretty standard and another with a few of the mods you have on yours Andy.
Very nice looking bike.The alloy sidepanels and underslung expansion chamber look good.

[Andy.T]

davieboy, I do know the owner of one of the bikes he is the bloke that got me interested in doing the PRE65 Scrambles (its not the one with the Fluff extras) yes the other one does look a bit like mine however I have a Greeves aluminum tank on mine it looks good but not 100% sure If I would rather have the original.

[davieboy]

Bought the 410 Stormer at the weekend.
Needs a few small jobs before it is race ready.
I will report as I go.
Haven't had a bigger engined,long stroke 2-stroke for a few years and forgot how much they kick back.
Almost broke my ankle last night starting it with trainers on,big mistake.Boots only from now on.

[davieboy]

Rode the Stormer for the first time on sunday.
Bike seemed to be runing roughly and would not rev too cleanly,thought I would give it a go anyway.
Completed about 6 laps of practice,pulling strongly,pretty torquey,no need to rev it too hard.
Then it just spluttered and stopped,at the furthest away corner fron the car,as always.
Pushed it back to the car,put a new plug in and away it went.
Started my first race,running fine,quite enjoyed it though the suspension needs work.
Only a 4 lap race so finished no problem.Wouldn't start again all day so day over but quite enjoyed my few laps.
Vibration is quite bad,maybe because it is a 410.
Have since learned it is the carb that is the starting and running problem.The old Amal mk 1 is worn out.
Saving up for a new mk2.

[Andy.T]

Glad you like the AJS, sorry to hear your ride was cut short, most people do say that the Mk 2 Amal is the best way to go. I have still only done the one scramble on mine but am looking forward to doing as many as I can next year, still need to try and improve my clutch though and a modified clutch pressure plate that fluff sells is on my Christmas list...thats the only thing I like about Christmas is the presents... and booze.

[davieboy]

I have been looking at Mikuni VM carbs,I know a few of the guys who ride pre-75 use them,work well on CZ's.
They are supposedly better than Amals,I'm not too sure about eligibility,will need to inquire.
I'm not too bothered about originality if the bike runs cleanly.Like most of these things questions are only asked if you start winning and there is not much chance of that.

[davieboy]

Bought an Amal mk2 carb for my Stormer,brand new from Burlen Fuel.£97 jetted to my spec ready to go.38mm.
Needed an inlet manifold which I got fron Fluff,carb sits at a different angle now so does not mate with the standard airbox.
I'm working on an airbox at the moment.
Haven't had time yet to test ride the bike but it started 3rd kick and revs out much cleaner than it did.Need to get it out and test some jet sizes once I fix up an airbox.
Just shows you the difference a new carb makes.
I'm thinking of a new Amal mk2 for my Sherpa now even though it runs well,I could maybe get it running better.