And then the time came to fire it up for the first time…
Ignition on, fuel taps open, kicked it once, kicked it twice , a third time and it fired up! That first joy quickly went when I realised it was only running on one cylinder.
I tried the basics first of course, fuel and spark were present. Checked the timing, swapped the carbs, still no joy. Then back to more basics, checked the compression. Disaster. The right hand cylinder had no compression whatsoever. A leak test quickly revealed the issue. As much air was coming out of the exhaust as I was putting into the cylinder.
A day after I finished building it, I took the engine out again and lifted the head. Root cause: A bent exhaust valve. The picture shows what should have been a closed valve. The torch behind it clearly shows it isn't...
No marks on the piston and I am sure that during assembly nothing touched either. I think I have accidentally placed the head with the exhaust valve open onto something on the workbench before assembling the engine and bent the valve then.
Anyway, a new valve went in, I put the engine back together, installed it into the bike again and was really happy with the attention to detail I have put into the build. It is so easy to work on!
Then the moment of truth. Ignition on, fuel taps open, kicked it once, kicked it twice and to my delight it fired up on both cylinders and ran beautifully.
Last weekend I had the chance to take it out on the road for the first time and I am chuffed with it. Ground clearance in the corners is sufficient, just, but other than that it runs, steers, rides, brakes and handles like a Honda
It will go on a rolling road somewhere in the coming weeks to fine-tune the carbs.
Here are two more pictures for you to enjoy. I will upload a few more later on, my brother and girlfriend like photography...
I would also like to thank everyone that helped me building this bike. Dolf, Martin, Frans, Joep, the members of the Rosbief Racing Team, THANKS!!
Guys and girls, thanks for all your kind comments and feedback during the build and ‘till later!