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There was a good-natured rivalry back in the day between Triumph and BSA riders.
I still have an old T-Shirt from the 60's that says: "I'd Rather Push A Triumph Than Ride a BSA".
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In 1960 I bought a used Triumph 200cc scrambler. It was one of the first bikes on the market that had decent off road capability. I learned a lot about trouble shooting problems with that bike. I probably pushed it more than I rode it. When I was a Freshman at college first semester students were not allowed to have cars so I took the little Triumph with me. I rode it daily until on a cold day in December I couldn't get it started. I was so irritated I sold it to an upperclassman. He took it home with him over Christmas break and had his father, who was an ace mechanic, check it out for him. The reason why it wouldn't start was a sheared off pin holding the vertical shaft of the Lucan distributor to the lower drive gear. A twenty cent fix IF YOU know what you are doing. This little tidbit of knowledge helped me close a fantastic deal on a 1966 Bonneville 650cc a few years later. It had the identical problem and the frustrated owner sold it to me for a pittance. I paid him and loaded it up in my pickup and stopped off at a hardware store on the way home. After spending less than a quarter and a half hour I had it running like a top. I never did have the heart to tell the original owner what the problem was.
You DO realize that your old '66 Bonneville would be worth a ton of cash today if you still had it in nice running condition!!??
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LOL I do realize that Kooblekar. However paying storage on all the old toys I used to own that are valuable now would have kept me in poverty.
A good friend of mine bought a 1966 Dodge Hemi (Coronet 440?) in 1966. He drove it for thirty years and paid thousands of dollars in storage fees over the years. He sold it in the 1990's for several times what he paid for it. The IRS audited him that year so he totaled up all of his storage fees and upkeep costs over the years and he just about broke even. However he did have a lot of fun with it over the years.
I don't think the 440 was a hemi. The hemi was a 426.
I wish I still had my Suzuki X-6 Hustler! It would be worth about six times what I paid for it. Besides, it was fun to ride!
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It was a 426 Street Hemi Catman but the Model of the car was a Dodge Coronet 440. It was a two door hardtop with bench seats and a three speed column shift. My buddy took the Hemi stickers off of it and put on some 383 decals. It was a real sleeper. He almost paid for it the first month street racing. You are right about the 440 cubic inch MoPar, it was not a Hemi but a wedge head. With some good tuning and the same two four barrel setup the Hemis came with it was one hell of a torquer. Some of them came with the six pack (three deuces) from the factory and they were very impressive. I hope that clears up the confusion.
GL2
Got it. Well, at least I was half right. Yes, those Hemis were something else! The new Hemis that Dodge makes are a pale shadow of the 'real thing', IMO. But since this is a motorcycle forum, I'll shut up about it.
I know the Ducati Desmo singles are worth a lot of money now! I wish they were still being made.
Got it. Well, at least I was half right. Yes, those Hemis were something else! The new Hemis that Dodge makes are a pale shadow of the 'real thing', IMO. But since this is a motorcycle forum, I'll shut up about it.
I know the Ducati Desmo singles are worth a lot of money now! I wish they were still being made.
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Catman,
I am going to be building my "dream garage" in a few months. When it is finished one of my first purchases is going to be a CNC mill and lathe. The son of one of my cousins is going to be graduating with a mechanical engineering degree with a lot of CAD design experience in a year. I have offered him a job when he does graduate and if he accepts I will be putting him to work helping me with some of my dream projects. With my CNC equipment and his abilities a Desmo engine might be one of the first projects. In my mind I can see a Parilla 250 scrambler look alike with a CNC built Desmo motor. If you remember what those Parilla engines looked like you can visualize how the Desmo valve train could be disguised under the apparatus for the valve train of the Parilla.
What a great project! I vaguely remember what Parilla engines look like, but it's been over 40 years since I got a good look at one. As I recall, they weren't too dissimilar from a Desmo Ducati single. I think the latter is gorgeous!
Gun, You gonna mill a engine out of billet? WOW!!!!!!!!
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That is part of the "dream" anyway Mac_Muz. The real grunt work will be done by my employees.
GL2
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