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Glyn said :-
I never calculate my hourly rate Ren, but I nearly always make a profit without that involved. The Triumph cost me £1600 at the end of proceedings so there is £1k there. The most notable loss was the Yamaha Dragstar that had a faulty gearbox ( the vendor failed to mention this). Even doing it myself I lost about £500 overall but did ride it for 600 miles. I made a good gains on the Honda 125, the ZZR1100 ( loved that bike), the CCM, the Deville and the Diversion. The TZR is worth about £2k more than it’s cost me but I expect to lose a few hundred on the Suzuki Intruder. Next project? Well I’m into negotiations with a local widow on the purchase of her late husbands 1983 Mercedes S class 380 SEL which has sat in an air conditioned garage for 20 years. It has a 3.5ltr V8. And covered only 37k miles. Am I getting over confident here?
08/04/2026 19:02:57 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Regarding the S Class. Firstly do you have the space? Secondly it's worth remembering car parts tend to be heavier than bike parts - is the knee up to it? Otherwise GO FOR IT! If it keeps you entertained and you're having fun where's the problem?
09/04/2026 07:53:49 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
I prefer the E class but the early S class are very nice.....it'll be a keeper.
Just sayin.
Upt.
09/04/2026 09:26:11 UTC
nab301 said :-
Glyn , It's a V8 petrol of course you want it , on second thoughts though while not really familiar with them , I'd imagine they're a bit of an oil tanker in the handling dept, presumably automatic and google suggests it's an all alloy engine , not sure how all that would fare after decades of lying idle ?
Nigel
09/04/2026 13:29:50 UTC
Glyn said :-
Good points Nigel. Considering its capacity it only has 150 hp so nowhere near a rocket ship making 0-60 in just under 10 seconds. It is in exceptional shape. However, it has an Achilles heel that is well known and documented. From 81-84 they used a simplex timing chain that was very fragile and the results were catastrophic in the event of failure that happened more often than Merc would like to admit. In late 83 they upgraded the chain to a duplex. Some cars were modified but most of the early ones were scrapped as a result of the chain breaking. What has this one got? I don’t know but the current owner is allowing me to remove a cam cover to find out. The early chains expired at anytime after 40,000 miles. So I’m estimating the cost of replacing the chain, 5 guides and tensioner if I buy it. This job is not for the faint hearted I’ve been assured, but I’m riding high at the moment , what could go wrong?
09/04/2026 18:11:13 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Timing up a V8 Merc with new components, oooo a real head scratcher, it might already have the better chain on of course. I would imagine it's a fit it once and check it 20 times sort of job. I think the last chain cam engine I timed was a Gardner 240. That was on an engine stand too.
We want pictures!
10/04/2026 11:25:01 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Oh yes....that was about 45 years ago. But you never lose it?
10/04/2026 11:26:58 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Just read that Lancashire lad Jeff Smith has died aged 91. Great motocross rider in his day. Ian will know but I think he was on the BSA and British teams.
Upt.
10/04/2026 12:34:26 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Yes, he started on Gold Stars when but a youth and went on to be world class on the unit singles especially the B50 motocross bike. I actually met him a couple of times as he used to come over to the UK and visit his old mechanic from those days, the late Fred Barlow. Fred ran a small bike shop in Tamworth specialising in Norton Commandos (which is how I knew him) and the BSAs which he could make go very well.
Jeff seemed like a very nice bloke and very approachable.
10/04/2026 12:41:56 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Re the Merc: I'm quite often tempted by cars but then I remember (a) I have nowhere to put one and (b) as Ren says, car parts are heavy and awkward and also require lying down underneath them. I was cured when I had a Triumph Stag as a daily driver in the late 1990s. Mid life crisis me? I did 70,000 miles in 5 years and had to replace, amongst other things, the engine (twice due to a foolish error I made), gearbox and differential. Not to mention multiple other parts. As I was using it as my only car, much of it for work, I had to pay people to do the heavy lifting so I wasn't without wheels, although I did borrow Electra's MG Maestro (which I'd donated to her) as backup. That was actually a very capable car despite the knockers.
The Stag was a lovely car but in the end it was only financially viable with the mileage allowance from work. I decided to move it on before it ruined me.
Stag and Maestro......
10/04/2026 13:01:07 UTC
nab301 said :-
All this reminiscing about timing chains and old Brit classic cars (Maestros and Stags )reminds me of the 10 yrs I spent in a motor factors way back , customers would come in looking for a service kit ( points , plugs , condenser, rocker cover gasket )" oh and better give me a timing chain , it's a bit noisy" ! I used to cut them from a large roll (standard 3/8 simplex or duplex)and supply a split link , (mercs I think had a different pitch) I only ever fitted one ( to a friends car) A Dolomite 1500 , so relatively easy.
More recently I realised that The Enfield primary duplex chain is just a std 3/8th and that purchasing a 5metre roll locally is cheaper than ordering a chain from a bike specialist ...
Nigel
10/04/2026 14:58:24 UTC
Glyn said :-
The Merc chain pitch would be different otherwise they wouldn’t be able to be charging £136 for it. It is over 2 metre long and seems to change direction 6 times per revolution.
10/04/2026 20:49:29 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
So are you going for it Glyn? I look forward to many tales of frustration, challenges overcome and finally success....
11/04/2026 14:11:31 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
What do you think Ian?
Customers will be able to purchase the complete package for £8995 on the road, including VAT, with the finished machine assembled at Watsonian’s Moreton-in-Marsh factory. All sidecars will be finished in black, with five colour options of Bantam available.
“We have a great working relationship with BSA and it’s rewarding to develop new products with British brands,” Managing Director, Ben Matthews said. “The 29bhp Bantam is more than capable of powering a lightweight sidecar and is the perfect introduction to ‘a bit on the side’ for novices.”
11/04/2026 21:15:37 UTC
Glyn said :-
I visited the Watsonian website Up’t and have to say the Bantam is rather good looking. They are the experts but I would think 29hp out of the 350cc will leave you wanting on any incline. I’ve considered turning my Suzuki 600 Intruder into a Rhino trike but suggestion is that it’s not really powerful enough and I should be looking at the 800 as a minimum capacity. I’m still interested in the big Merc Ian but the owners son in law has suddenly gone very quiet on me even cancelling an appointment I had on Thursday.
12/04/2026 09:00:59 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Upt': lookes quite good. They also do one using the Benelli Imperiale which has a more powerful 400cc engine and is a similar price. There's someone who regularly posts on a couple of FB pages who has one and appears very pleased. Interesting that the front tyre on the Bantam (why use a name that's associated witha weedy 2 stroke?) has the same very round profile as the one currently on my B'Zuki.... Less than £9K is a decent price. My outfit stands me in at under £5K which seems like good value. Provided I can sort out the handling of course! It's interesting that both have illegal left hand indicators.......
Glyn - might be good news on the Merc. For some months I was chasing a CCM SR40 at a local bike shop. Apparently it belonged to the son of the proprietor and despite my showing lots of interest the deal never happened, which is how I ended up with the B'Zuki after some aimless scrolling. With regard to the Intruder, I'm not sure why the 600 shouldn't be able to drag a trike OK although obviously not as fast as a bigger engine. It should be able to do 70 all day even with the extra weight.
Have you tried a trike yet? Not sure where you might be able to do so.
12/04/2026 10:02:08 UTC
ROD¹ said :-
I believe that the Bantam is a replacement bike, because Benelli have discontinued the 400cc Imperiale.
12/04/2026 11:02:33 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
You're probably right Rod, I lose track.... I do wonder why they didn't use one of the larger models but I suppose the target was to retail as cheaply as possible.
12/04/2026 11:27:05 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
The B passed er MOT bless er.
I might have a beer to celebrate. Still isn't taxed for this year yet and with 10 of your c's showing on the display it might wait until May. It might have to be nice warm English beer.
Pffffffftttttt.
Upt.
13/04/2026 17:10:59 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
That's a blummin big picture.
13/04/2026 17:11:22 UTC
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