2003 Royal Enfield 500 Deluxe

Comparison of old and new inner chaincases:


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The weight of the old one, with the starter gears including the infamous sprag clutch, plus the starter motor!

Touch of polish on the new case - used it mainly on the gasket surface in the hope the mild abrasion will smooth the surface.

New inner chaincase now fitted, along with chain tensioner, clutch basket, crankshaft sprocket and primary chain.


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Slight pause while I wait for clutch holding tool. Couldn't think of a work around to get the centre nut torqued down.

Yes, you can weld or rivet a couple clutch plates together but I don't have welding or riveting kit and anyway, new plates would be more expensive than the tool and take the same time to arrive.
 
That looks so much cleaner, nice work! You know I kept reading about your sprag clutch, but I never really knew what one was, so I had to look it up. Basically it locks in one direction and then freewheels in the other direction. Instead of a starter gear that disengages when your not using it, a sprag just freewheels, if I understand this correctly. I could see how that could be prone to mishap.
 
Basically it locks in one direction and then freewheels in the other direction. Instead of a starter gear that disengages when your not using it, a sprag just freewheels, if I understand this correctly. I could see how that could be prone to mishap.
I don't know the ins and outs of it, but one thing sure to kill the sprag is if the engine kicks back. So if your battery fails to get the engine past tdc and the engine kicks back, or if the timing is way off and it kicks back, the load is in the wrong direction, sprag can lose teeth, which then migrate around the chaincase seeing what mischief they can get up to. Or the sprag can break apart - seems the rider is immediately aware he has a catastrophic problem. In some instances, the sprag loses all its teeth or so I've heard.

All these scenarios sound dire and the advice is, don't use the starter. And my thoughts were, why carry all that weight around if you're not going to use it?

But, yes the engine looks quite tall and handsome without the motor up front.
 
I didn't want to waste two clutch plates, no did I want to put any unnecessary force on the clutch basket, so I made this tool to hold the inner rotor thingy. The tool needs to be offset to allow you to get to the centre nut and you can add another lever if wanted, I found it wasn't necessary so didn't bother.
 

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Excellent - I envy people that can make stuff, but I'm going to wait for the one I've ordered - might even be here today. Meanwhile there's plenty more to be getting on with. Obviously, not just bike-related.

But on the Enfield front, wundering about fashioning a piston stop. Here's two candidates:

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That tdc finder tool, well, you need to judge when the rod has just about reached the top or is kind of dropping, and it's not easy to turn the engine slow or hold it still at just the right place. Could cross-drill at the hex, tap and fit a grub screw. But not too sure if I could do that and it would be a shame to mess up the tool on a daft notion.

Seen on-line vids where people knock the centre out of a spark plug, run a tap through and fit a threaded rod. If I go down that route, would probably use the hollow XS650 turn signal mount - make it easier to use by letting the compression out.

Would be useful to find true tdc and mark it on the stator/rotor, plus timing marks. Bullet folklore is you don't need to worry about that, setting the points to open 0.8mm before tdc is good enough. But it's all a bit fiddly and guesstimate for me, I think timing marks would make it easier to set static or could even use a strobe.

Just musing . . .
 
I made one of those spark plug TDC finders, when the piston connected with the rod, due to the angle of the rod, the rod jammed scoring the piston a little, I freed it up but found I could rock the crank back and forth with no discernible movement of the rod. Personally, I would never bother trying to find TDC again, unless I had the head off and used a dial gauge on the very top of the piston. Just my two bob's worth.
 
All good points Tohlhot.

I've made the sparkplug piston stop - my limited production facilities and the end product:

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but haven't decided whether I'll use it. Potential problems include - mark the piston? Get tangled up with a valve? Tool falls apart and leaves part in the cylinder?

Have rounded the end off smooth, and I tapped most but not all the way - the threaded rod has been wound in tight and seems well stuck.

The answer is probably go very slowly and carefully, so would wait until I have the alternator nut installed and use a spanner.
 
There is a work around for clutch holding tool. Doh!

Somebody from the Unofficial Royal Enfield Community pointed out that with the bike in gear and the rear brake applied, the centre of the clutch would be held. So I put the brake pedal & rod back on, wound the adjuster to hold the brake firmly on and torqued up the clutch centre.

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Primary all back together now. The biggest source of $$#$**@# was feeding the two alternator wires through the little rubber grommet.
 
Nailed everything back on, adjusted the tappets - a most satisfying job - and pulled 'er down off the stand.


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I'm sure the bike feels lighter, just pushing it around in the yard. And in my eyes, looks a bit more classic.

Have just been out for an eight mile test run - nothing fell off, stopped working or leaked. And there is definitely a noticeable reduction in mechanical noise - might be due to losing the starter clutch or might be doing the tappets?
 
Very nice write up Raymond, thanks for taking us along! :thumbsup:
You're Welcome!


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Took the Bullet to Galashiels - it would be more accurate to say the Bullet took me - for some shopping. Gongoozlers hanging around when I came back to the bike. They complimented the bike's good condition. People think it's a lot older than 2002 but that's fair enough, it looks like a museum piece, it's built like a museum piece, it acts like a museum piece, hell it is a museum piece.

Quick washdown but will need some kerosene on a cloth or summat to take me sticky fingerprints off the exhaust.
 
It's a good question, TT but I ain't got an answer. I guess the thing shakes but I never think much about vibration, so maybe it's just not at an annoying frequency? Yesterday, went out three times on the Bullet, felt like it was running good so I might have done some good by adjusting the tappets. Certainly less mechanical noise but the exhaust sounded a touch boomier.

No need to feel envious - go and track one down for yourself. The bikes imported to the USA suffer from mostly being l/h 5-speed gearboxes - some owners convert them back to r/h change. The l/h change was done to meet DMV rules. Just like the electric start it's an afterthought and just like the electric start it brings problems. Serendipity that I ended up with one of the later r/h change, 4-speed iron heads.

My impression of the old iron head - if you want that 1940s feeling, it's the real deal, more so than the newer unit engines and much more so that the new Classic 350s. Don't get me wrong - I'm sure those are great bikes.

But it will only suit an owner with patience, mechanical sympathy and willing to do a bit of work. Definitely calls for owner involvement. Probably not a good choice for urban riding? The rewards come on a quiet country road, just chuffing along in top gear, no hurries, no worries.
 
Having owned a number of big singles, Yamaha SR500 and Aermacchi Harley-Davidson Sprint 350s, I find that their vibrations are no more annoying than those of the numerous twins I've owned. Seems the two Honda CB450s I owned had the most noticeable frequency. Everything vibrates. It's the way of the universe.
 
I don't pay much mind to my 650's vibrations either. I have fitted handlebar weights and that did seem to quell the high frequency buzzing a bit, but I don't find the rest of the vibrations too annoying. Cruising along in the 3500 to 4000 RPM range, I think it's pretty smooth actually.
 
I don't pay much mind to my 650's vibrations either. I have fitted handlebar weights and that did seem to quell the high frequency buzzing a bit, but I don't find the rest of the vibrations too annoying. Cruising along in the 3500 to 4000 RPM range, I think it's pretty smooth actually.
It goes to show what fine tuning will do.
 
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