So the Jota was fixed and ready for collection. The head gasket had been blown full out, presumably by the hydraulic lock. While the engine was apart a new set of oil rings were also installed as inspection suggested the Omega originals might not have been settling in. Finally more head scratching around the starter motor which for some unknown reason is too tight to the intermediate gear. This is not a new problem but one that had existed before the engine was rebuilt – possibly something to do with crankcase repair necessitated by a broken chain (I wasn’t aware that this had happened before I bought the bike back in 1987).
So the engine sounded great and first impressions were that it was smoother and perhaps a bit more powerful? The ‘clack’ that I’d reported when I collected the bike first time round had gone. I sailed down the M74, M6, M61 and I think the M60 to firstly meet an old friend in Whaley Bridge. He’d gone on pillion to Le Mans in 1995 on the Jota (yes with the hump seat you had to be good friends) and it was fun remembering the trip 🙂
By the time I got home everything was fine – now I can enjoy the summer…
….or maybe not!
The bike ran great for the National Road Rally (NRR) until it suddenly developed a whirring noise from the primary side of the engine. There was no smoke or any indication something was wrong just a whirr that went up and down with the motor. Consultation meant game over for the NRR and a call to the Automobile Assocation 😦
So investigations have begun to trace the source of this noise. The primary chain was slackened off with no change. Cam chain tension seems fine. The bearing behind the ignition given the okay. The clutch pushrod removed to eliminate the potential of a spinning clutch slave cylinder piston and all the starting side removed in case there was trouble in there. Now the primary chains have been removed which ought to show if the noise is engine or gearbox derived. I’ve also left off the starter sprag alignment tag as maybe this was rubbing?
An unexpected discovery was the overall condition of the clutch slave cylinder. I’d been told the hydraulic fluid was going black very quickly possibly due to the repaired cylinder being too soft. Certainly once I removed the boot there’s something going on in that it appears to have aluminum powder on the upper surface. Whatever the outcome of other lines of inquiry I’ll revert back to the original case.
So I’ll leave it on a cliff-hanger…when I start it this time will the noise be gone….
Nick 🙂
Bent screwdrivers, big hammers and old Laverdas 