{"id":257,"date":"2025-08-23T12:00:01","date_gmt":"2025-08-23T16:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/?p=257"},"modified":"2025-08-23T12:05:21","modified_gmt":"2025-08-23T16:05:21","slug":"b40-350-engine-out-milestone-toes-intact","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/2025\/08\/23\/b40-350-engine-out-milestone-toes-intact\/","title":{"rendered":"B40 350 Engine out…. milestone (toes intact)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Hope it\u2019s clear now how the engine stand works. The extended leg lets me lay the motor down on either side, which is handy for maintenance, or for when I just want it to think about what it\u2019s done for the past 64 years. The top end is fully accessible, which is both exciting and mildly terrifying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I still need to go get proper bolts and washers, but for now I\u2019m using the frame bolts just to hold it in place. You know, the old \u201cdon\u2019t worry, it\u2019s temporary\u201d approach \u2014 the same philosophy that keeps duct tape sales strong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the last photo, you\u2019ll see the stand was not yet painted, but I did manage to install some Amazon.ca plastic plugs. Because nothing screams \u201cprofessional restoration\u201d like $4 worth of imported plastic caps.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Removal Process (or: How to Test Your Friendships)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Exhaust valve release cable<\/strong>: Removed from the top end. No drama here, which immediately made me suspicious.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Oil feed lines<\/strong>: These deliver oil to the top valves and gravity drains it to the sump. I put hoses over the feed points with the nuts attached to keep out dirt. This was mostly successful, except for the bit where I got oil on my shirt anyway.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Distributor wire<\/strong>: Disconnected, which means the bike can no longer spark \u2014 or judge me silently from the corner.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Generator wires (3)<\/strong>: Removed. These are responsible for charging the 6V battery and coil. I labeled them carefully to avoid future \u201cwhy won\u2019t it run?\u201d meltdowns.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Clutch cable<\/strong>: Still attached inside the right side, so I disconnected it at the lever and wrapped it around the top. Very professional. Definitely not what you\u2019d call \u201cfarm-engineered.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Carburetor<\/strong>: Removed and covered with a precision-machined dust shield (aka a scrap of cardboard). NASA, eat your heart out.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Kickstart lever & gear shift<\/strong>: Already removed earlier during the \u201cexhaust pipe fiasco,\u201d which you may recall was resolved with a Sawz-All.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. Engine mounts<\/strong>: Three bolts: front, rear (stud with two nuts), and cross bolt underneath. Each one removed without incident \u2014 which makes me think the engine knew what was coming and decided not to fight.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Extraction Team: Me + Neighbor<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This was a two-man lift. We raised the front, lowered the rear, twisted the motor clockwise, tilted it right, rotated it 90 degrees, and finally set it down on cardboard. If it sounds like a complicated dance move, that\u2019s because it was. I\u2019m pretty sure we invented the \u201cBSA Salsa.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    With the engine out, I wrestled it into the stand and bolted it in. Front bolt first, then rear. It now sits like some ancient relic on display \u2014 equal parts intimidating and oddly majestic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Plan<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    One of my friends from the CVMG London branch, Mario (because every restoration needs a Mario), has generously agreed to help me break the engine down and rebuild it. I\u2019m confident it\u2019ll run, since I had it running before disassembly. The clutch plates, however, appear to be fused together after a half-century of napping in a shed. I even tried the \u201ckick it in gear while pulling the clutch\u201d trick. The result? Nothing freed up, but I did get some excellent cardio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Stay tuned \u2014 next chapter will likely feature me discovering what 60 years of British engineering looks like from the inside.<\/em> Spoiler: probably oily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Just got back from the weekly Saturday morning 9:30 coffee at McDonald\u2019s, where the London branch of the CVMG convenes to drink caffeine, swap stories, and gently remind me that buying a 1961 BSA was a \u201clife choice\u201d I\u2019ll be explaining for years. Everyone congratulated me on my milestone (translation: the engine is out and I\u2019m still married) and then promptly volunteered me to create a flyer for the September Swap Meet. Apparently, I \u201clook like someone who knows computers.\u201d They asked, and for once I didn\u2019t lie \u2014 though in hindsight, maybe I should have. I’m trading BSA knowledge with Mario for how to work his technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I missed all the early spring swap meets, but I\u2019m catching the late ones with a shopping list that currently reads: Exhaust\/Silencer, clutch bits, and possibly a therapist.<\/strong> There\u2019s one on September 6th and another on the 28th, which should give me plenty of chances to buy rusty parts at premium prices and ask enough questions to risk a lifetime ban. Now the only challenge is convincing Holly to subcontract the flyer project before the club finds out my real design skills peak at \u201cWordArt.\u201d :o)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Hope it\u2019s clear now how the engine stand works. The extended leg lets me lay the motor down on either side, which is handy for maintenance, or for when I just want it to think about what it\u2019s done for … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-257","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-engine"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":279,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257\/revisions\/279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}