TALES FROM THE SHED

Ah, summer. The time to ride lots and spanner less. Unless it rains all day, in which case there’s often that sudden mysterious urge to carry out the service the old ruin suddenly needs, and maybe fit a new part or two, maybe a tyre. Maybe the chain’s slack? This is likely, given the somewhat excessive damp of the early summer.

There is also that mysterious guilt / cussedness thing, whereby I sometimes just feel contrary and decide that the roads are too busy in Cornwall and Devon in summer, so why not do some spannering and avoid the queues? The answer to that Why Not? is easy, too. Because this entire year so far has been frustrating – seriously so – in the old bike spannering department. And as I do not enjoy endlessly grousing, you’ve been treated to the odd riding report and a little modern bike fiddling – and there’s more to come, because I have got tired of my relentless failure to make a canvas purse out of the pig’s ear which is our A65T project. But, while your attention is on matters BSA…

I bought a new sidestand for it. This is easy to do, as several vendors sell them. The item which came with the bike when I acquired it was possibly from an oily-frame BSA single – and possibly not. It looked vile and was seriously bent in mischievous dimensions. Hurrah – off to consult the Great Online Parts Lists. Anyone rebuilding a BSA like this one should be well served with bits for it, because lots of those bits are