Ratchet appears to be correctly assembled, although I can't see ratchet spring. To ensure correct return spring tension, the kickstart shaft also needs to be in the correct position in rerlation to the ratchet. Viewed from the left side (outside the crankcase) the chamfered hole for the spring should face forward i.e. at 9 o'clock when the ratchet is fully disengaged against its stop.
woody's earlier response gives an excellent overview of what to look for.
While your engine is apart, now would be a good time to attend to the crack in the crankcase above the ratchet ......?
Left hand gear change would have been better for sure. Wonder if it's possible to mod the gear change and brake, with a shaft across the frame for gear change?
I would challenge the idea that it's "better" ; right side brake would operate by cable - definitely not better in terms of feel or effectiveness. Modification : anything is possible with the necessary skills and financial wherewithall, but why would you even bother ? It's an old bike ; just accept it and enjoy it for what it is.
On 1/31/2024 at 10:27 AM, halfway said:
I used to own the bike when I was a late teen
Did you struggle with left foot brake / right foot gearchange, and did you consider changing over control sides when you last owned it ?
Why not retrain your brain and feet to operate the bike as it is - definitely the more practical (and cheaper) option !
New stanchions the way to go, as others have said. What many users don't appreciate is that the unplated insides of the stanchions are also susceptible to rust.
I'm not sure how much left-handedness / righthandedness plays a part in how natural either set up feels.
In my own collection of bikes I have both right change / left brake and left change / right brake ; the gearchange of these also varies between up-for-up and down-for-up. In use, after the first brake use or gearchange I can usually cope once on the move. I also have one twist-and-go bike that can sometimes feel quite strange with no foot controls and handlebar levers for both front and rear brakes.
I once asked a very capable rider with great experience in trials, motocross, grass track racing and road riding what was his most memorably testing bike to ride. His answer ? A pre-war Indian........with left hand throttletwistgrip - hand operated gearchange and foot operated clutch.
It's quite possible that the fibre heel on the points has worn excessively (particularly if the cam/flywheel centre has been run dry) ; this can have a big effect on timing.
Cam and fibre heel need a light smear of HMP grease to prevent this
2.5-2.7mm. BTDC is the measurement of piston travel at which the points begin to open. First, you need to set the maximum points gap by rotating the flywheel......
If it's an original tail lamp, this would have separate bulbs for stop and tail functions. Yes, it's true that green wire is for stop lamp bulb, black wire for tail lamp.
Thanks, mcman56. Can't see why universal regulator should not work on an Alpina.
LSMO - I don't have any accurate means of measuring resistor/diode performance. Is polarity an issue ? - this is AC, after all.
Additionally, if I understand its function correctly the resistor/diode affects only the stoplamp / LT igntion coil circuit. I believe there must be other ways to provide a stoplamp : LEDs and a small battery, maybe ?
"3 wires from the engine" - what are the colours of these ?
I'm assuming red, green and yellow. If this is the case, the black? wire from the HT coil should be connected to the red. Green (originally feed to stoplamp switch) needs to be connected to a reliable earth. Yellow you can insulate and ignore - this is the wire from the lighting coil. This applies to the original Femsa wiring.............which may have been altered in the last 50 years.
The foregoing is simply to provide a spark and get the engine running. HTH
These resistors were o.e. fitment on several Bultaco models supplied with direct AC lighting, including many of the Sherpa ranges, and were I suspect relatively common. Could maybe have been used by other makes, too. Unfortunately, the availability of genuine Femsa parts has long been in decline.
You don't state your location, but as with most other old bike parts, eBay is your friend. Leastways, that's where mine came from...........
Resistor is a proprietary Femsa item RSA1X-7 (Bultaco pt. # 85.21 - 217).
If you simply want to get the bike running without stoplamp function, just connect the green wire to a reliable earth/ground. This will enable the mag. to produce a spark.
Just checked a couple of mod. 85 resistors with analog multimeter. They both measure 4.7 ohms across the tags of the actual resistance; one measures 22 ohms, the other 25 between the spade terminal on the green wire and the frame mounting bracket (earth/ground) i.e. with the diode in circuit. Can't vouch for the accuracy of my meter, mind you........... HTH
My 85 is a late one - well into the 6000's, and has the same details as your later one.
Bultaco went to welded-on footrest mounts ser. # 2328 onwards. Not sure about the recessed s/arm pivot or steering lock fitment, although addition of a steering lock took place on contemporary? Sherpa model 91 quite early on in its production.
Rearward chain tensioner and chain oiler swing arm from ser. # 2546 onwards.
This information from Bultaco parts listings, not from personal experience of examining every Alpina 85 ever made, you understand.....
Model 85 had a roughly 4-year production run and underwent many detailed changes.
Your gearbox if original is more akin to Sherpa 91/92 than model 80 ; I believe all Alpina mods. 85/97/98/99 had a spline-fitting clutch centre from the outset.
It follows that the mainshaft and layshaft are the same as Sherpa 91/92, as are the two 5th. gear pinions. (Mainshaft bearing at the clutch end is same as 91/92 at 17mm. i.d.)
The 13mm. /14mm. change that woody mentioned took effect on the other end of the mainshaft, i.e. also affecting the sleeve gear (5th.) and its bushes. Again, if original splined shaft this won't be an issue.
You could simply replace all the intermediate pinions with a (secondhand ?) set from a Sherpa 91/92, retaining your original mainshaft and layshaft and 5th. gear pinions, if desired.
As far as I know, the selector forks will also interchange.
All of the above - unless someone out there with practical experience of this conversion knows differently, of course........
A gearbox strip will determine what's needed, anyway.
Look for a PROPER Sherpa. Messing about with things is expensive and it will probably be cheaper to buy a genuine, good example of a Sherpa in the long run.
stpauls - In my experience, doing anything to these old heaps is likely to turn out expensive.
We don't know how much elbow room the o.p. has, pricewise.......
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1975 M151 Kick-Starter Chatter
in Bultaco
Posted · Edited by lorenzo
Max -
Ratchet appears to be correctly assembled, although I can't see ratchet spring. To ensure correct return spring tension, the kickstart shaft also needs to be in the correct position in rerlation to the ratchet. Viewed from the left side (outside the crankcase) the chamfered hole for the spring should face forward i.e. at 9 o'clock when the ratchet is fully disengaged against its stop.
woody's earlier response gives an excellent overview of what to look for.
While your engine is apart, now would be a good time to attend to the crack in the crankcase above the ratchet ......?