Piston question, and other mysteries

[Doug]

Glad to have you with us Jan....

Doug

[oliver90owner]

(why didn't I think of that?     )                     from Jan


Surely you're as smart as any Englishman is likely to be.       from Hotator


Jan,

Maybe it, because you're not an Englishman

The first Honda motorcycle engine I stripped out to repair a broken gearbox really amazed me.  I took great care in dismantling then found that the design allowed nothing to be put back in the wrong position.  I was real impressed with those Japanese!!!  Almost idiot proof.  And no gasket between the crankcase halves - amazing accuracy/precision for those days.  The Listers are not quite like that, but usually there is no problem matching wear patterns.  If you come unstuck the tolerances are probably so large it would practically make little difference

Hotator, 

I only regard myself as reasonably smart because I have made the mistakes before!!  Or might it be my near 60 years of experience of life?  My motto is ' I am right, the other 9 billion are all wrong'  At the age of four, I took my christmas bicycle apart even before Mum and Dad got up on Christmas Day, 'cos it had a flat tyre and would not pump up with thee pump provided, and included with the bike was a spanner set for it.  Guess that is when I started repairs/restorations!

We used to have a (now not PC) term of 'double Dutch'.  I am sure it would not apply to Jan, even in ye olde days!(it was usually when no one else could read or understand what you had written)

Jan , I intend to strip one of my Lister Juniors at some time - I keep oiling the cylinder through the plug hole and turn it to keep it free.  The other one is a neat little runner - someone else did the restoring and I have confidence in the workmanship.

Regards, RAB

[ListerA28]

@dkwflight, thx for the link!

@oliver90owner
I bought the engine from a collector, at first I thought I made a bad buy (is this correct English?)
The longer I own the engine, the more I grow fond of it, especially after timing the ignition according to the manual...
The only thing that upsets me a bit, is the unbalance.
At normal revs a bit shaky, but at high revs frightning!
I cannot explain why, even with its unbalance and such, I don't want to get rid of it, but want to get it in perfect running order 
strange, aint it?
The cilinder was rebored, at least a little brass plate on the hopper says .010"
I loaded the attached gen with 1500 Watts, which would be about 2hp, you can hear the engine work, but that's it
Next to my Lister and Wolseley I ride a BMW motorcycle which I maintain myself, and as you said, hardly something can be done wrong.
In daily life I'm a telecom engineer, but this ole engine technology is tangible and gives you dirty hands  and great for relaxation 
I hope you keep us posted when youre going to take "Junior" apart

br  Jan

[rosietheriviter]

The first Honda motorcycle engine I stripped out to repair a broken gearbox really amazed me.  I took great care in dismantling then found that the design allowed nothing to be put back in the wrong position.  I was real impressed with those Japanese!!!  Almost idiot proof. 
Regards, RAB

Yes, RAB -

My brother raced a Honda 305 back in the early 60's and I watched him work on his Honda several times out of curiosity.   I agree with you 99.9 percent!

The only exception being - the 4 speed transmissions were able to be assembled incorrectly allowing a much smoother transition between ratios.  Example - 1st gear = 20 to 1 reduction, 2nd gear = 12 to 1 reduction, 3rd gear = 4 to 1 reduction and 4th gear = 2 to 1 reduction from the factory.  Swapping one gear from the 1st-2nd shaft with one from the 3rd-4th shaft resulted in a 20 to 1 1st gear, 15 to 1 2nd gear, 10 to 1 3rd gear, and 2 to 1 4th gear reductions resulting in a much more control for racing applications.

These numbers are not necessarily accurate but the concept is

Rosie.