1971 BSA Thunderbolt

[Slow Hand]

Here's a project I'm pretty excited about. I picked this up at the same time I gt my XS1100. It was bought new in '71 in Germany and the original owner had it shipped home when he returned. He rode it around until he rear ended a car in '82. He striped the front end down to rebuild it and never got around to it. So, I'm the second owner of a 43 year old bike!

Here's she is when I hauled it home, fresh from the barn...





After getting it unloaded and a quick wiped own of the seat





Last weekend I visited a local guy who does work on old Brit bikes and came home with some important parts.





I had some time to play yesterday and got it back to roller status





And a couple of cans of engine degreaser later, it's looking a lot better!



The motor seems to be free, so I'm going to drain and refil the oil and see if I can get it to fire on some starting fluid. Hope to have a chance to work with it this weekend, but we'll see. I'm hoping to get it up in decent running condition and eventually tear it down and give it a nice restoration. Nothing award winning, but I think it'll be something to be proud of when it's done!

[Rasputin]

There was a fellow here who had a Thunderbolt for sale. It was in pretty awesome shape. I will try to see if he still has it and then take some pics of it for you if I can. IIRC it was a 69 or 71 model. I also think it was a Royal model...whatever that means.

[650mark]

'71 beezer

In '71 I went to the local bike shop in Tacoma Washington to buy a new CB750 Honda and they had a '71 BSA 650 Lightning sitting in the corner looking like it needed a good home. It was about $600.00 less than the Honda so I bought the BSA, my buddy mike bought a new 750 Rocket III. We put 1,000 miles on them in the first 30 days to break them in and then we took off on a road trip. We did 6,000 miles in the next 2 weeks and both of those BSA's ran perfectly and reliably the whole trip. We changed the oil in them somewhere in Montana on a golf course but no other service at all until we got back home. A great bike despite the bad reputation the Beezers have had through the years. Good luck with your refurb. Oh yeah, if you need a rotor puller I have one

[Slow Hand]

In '71 I went to the local bike shop in Tacoma Washington to buy a new CB750 Honda and they had a '71 BSA 650 Lightning sitting in the corner looking like it needed a good home. It was about $600.00 less than the Honda so I bought the BSA, my buddy mike bought a new 750 Rocket III. We put 1,000 miles on them in the first 30 days to break them in and then we took off on a road trip. We did 6,000 miles in the next 2 weeks and both of those BSA's ran perfectly and reliably the whole trip. We changed the oil in them somewhere in Montana on a golf course but no other service at all until we got back home. A great bike despite the bad reputation the Beezers have had through the years. Good luck with your refurb. Oh yeah, if you need a rotor puller I have one

Great history! How long did you have yours? Younhear all kinds of bad press about Brit bike reliability, and compared to the Jap bikes, they do need more upkeep. But from what I've read as long as you maintain them, they run just fine!

[650mark]

I had my bike for about 2 years. the frame developed a crack while on a ride through New Mexico and since those bike held their oil in the frame it was spewing out all over the place. found a welder in some little gas station who welded the crack shut and I made it home. called BSA and they sent me a brand new frame for free, took real good care of the situation. they even had the state issue me a new title. was riding home from a bike show in Denver Colorado one night and a cop ran through a red light and hit me. broke the bike up pretty well but I didn't get hurt. just lucky. the city manager was at my door the next morning with his checkbook and an attorney asking "how much to make this little problem go away"? seems this was the 3rd time that cop had hit someone in the last 6 months. I suppose it could have been worse. fixed the bike and sold it soon after, didn't want to press my luck

[James England]

Great history! How long did you have yours? Younhear all kinds of bad press about Brit bike reliability, and compared to the Jap bikes, they do need more upkeep. But from what I've read as long as you maintain them, they run just fine!

No they don't...believe me. In my teens, I went from a Suzuki GT125 to a 650 Bonneville, then a 750 Bonneville, then a Norton Commando. British bikes are completely incomparable to Japanese ones in performance and reliability, build quality. They are not reliable, leak oil permanently, shake themselves to pieces, lose parts due to vibration. The pistons move up and down together, there is no crank balancing. My fuel tank split due to vibration, bulbs often blew daily. Vertically split crankcases with insufficient bolts mean they leak. Electrically, they are laughable.

A friend bought a brand new Bonneville and spilt petrol on the fuel tank...it brought the paint off.
.

British bikes have their 'charm' but, as pieces of engineering, they are very poor. No amount of maintenance will compensate for that. Touring? Forget it. I never once got to Scotland, 350 miles away, when I was at university, without something happening. And I was there for four years. I lost a muffler on one trip, split the tank on another. Lost all four indicators. Lost a tappet inspection cover. The ludicrously long side stand usually snapped the welded lug off the frame. Bent a valve at 90mph. My header pipes cracked off twice. My wiring harness caught fire once and I ended up taking the bike home on the train. The list is endless. The biggest relief for me was trading my Bonneville in for my first XS1100. It was like going from a horse and cart to a flying saucer.

But, as a project, and for local riding about, great!

It's well known here in the UK that the demise of the British bike industry...Triumph, Norton, BSA, Vincent etc is a case history in corporate arrogance, resistance to change, industrial disputes etc. They had world dominance in bike production...look at the performance of the Vincent Black Shadow..... And then blew it. The end was when Bonnevilles were made at the Meriden works in Coventry. Shortly after that, deservingly, it collapsed....

[James England]

Not disparaging your project though! I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun with it and make the bike lovely. I'd just be aware of the limitations. Never plan a trip of over 150 miles.......

Right up to the 1980's, British bikes were very common here in the UK and could be had cheaply as everyone was buying Japanese. More common than in the USA, I bet, so my own experience of them is probably more than yours. My friends had Royal Enfield Crusader, Triumph Tiger Cub, Triumph Trident, Ariel Square Four. We spent all out time fixing them, not riding them!

[jjz28]

James, that almost sound like an old Harley.lol Back in the day, I heard, you had to keep all the bolts tight or parts would fall off due to vibration. I like Harleys, I have nothing against them but I wouldn't own one. Harley is a name way before it is a bike. On the other hand I really like the looks of the old british bikes. I think this BSA could make a cool ride.

[James England]

James, that almost sound like an old Harley.lol Back in the day, I heard, you had to keep all the bolts tight or parts would fall off due to vibration. I like Harleys, I have nothing against them but I wouldn't own one. Harley is a name way before it is a bike. On the other hand I really like the looks of the old british bikes. I think this BSA could make a cool ride.

Oh yes, a cool ride definitely. The Yamaha XS650 can be modified to make the pistons not move up and down at the same time, even though it has a counterbalancer for the crankshaft. I often wished they did that on the Bonnevilles etc. the vibration is caused by two pistons moving up and down at exactly the same time and no counter-rotating shaft to counteract the crank.

They are a cool ride but certainly not a means of transport as such.. Commuting on one would be a nightmare and a long trip would probably be a short one. I never once set out for Scotland without wondering whether I would actually get there...seriously. And my Bonnevilles weren't that old either. I suspect to the folk of the US, the British bikes have a certain cachet..like the Harleys still do here. Because they aren't that common. I grew up with British bikes....my first was a 200cc Triumph Tiger Cub. It was old when I had it and I once managed a stunning 35 miles without it breaking down. I sold it for £40 and bought the Suzuki GT125 which was incomparable. So, I suppose that's why I don't rate the British bikes. Different for you over there though. Maybe a bit of romance attached to them. They really are primitive though and the Lucas electrics were truly horrendous. Now, they sell for stupid prices, even the Tiger Cubs.

[650mark]

james , no doubt jap bikes are better but to say the brit bikes you've encountered are so poor may be due to poor upkeep by their owners. mine was very reliable and worked great. I have friends here that have ridden their old brit bikes for years with minimal issues. but these guys take the time to do the required maintenance when due and fix small repairs before they get big enough to cause a failure. and I know many, many guys riding jap bikes that break down frequently. again, lack of maintenance. it's all relative.

[James England]

james , no doubt jap bikes are better but to say the brit bikes you've encountered are so poor may be due to poor upkeep by their owners. mine was very reliable and worked great. I have friends here that have ridden their old brit bikes for years with minimal issues. but these guys take the time to do the required maintenance when due and fix small repairs before they get big enough to cause a failure. and I know many, many guys riding jap bikes that break down frequently. again, lack of maintenance. it's all relative.

Agreed but it is the design side of things which is inescapable. Poor castings, tappets and pushrods, primitive carbs etc etc. they were Ok in their day but if anyone asked me to do a 1,000 mile trip on a Japanese bike or a British one, in a similar state of maintenance, I know which I'd pick. Your friends may have owned them for years but....miles?.... I went from Scotland to Monte Carlo non-stop on a Kawasaki Z750. I doubt a British bike would have even made getting to the ferry. Four of them was enough for me. Primitive design, poor manufacturing tolerances, awful electrics.....that is quite simply why the Japanese took over. If British bikes had been reliable and well made, the Japanese would not have dominated the market and destroyed the UK bike industry in only a few years. People here were sick of eternal messing about addressing those faults you mentioned, usually due to poor design, oil leaks, bits dropping off and never ending pratting about. Honestly, I did it. We all did. When the Japanese arrived it was like a breath of fresh air, welcomed by many, many people. As machines, they just cannot be compared in design. Yep, nostalgia and nice to have around, like an old dog that doesn't do much but, for reliable use, good design, user features, switchgear, wiring, even the frame....not much good.....

Really, truly....what sort of use did you put yours to? Sustained high speed? Thousands and thousands of miles, one after the other? A blast to absolute top speed and back down again? When I had my British bikes, there's no way Id have dared do any of those. My mate who bought the brand new Bonneville from Meriden still insisted it was superior to another mate's Suzuki 750 'Kettle'...Even when the Suzi towed him home. Laughable really.

There's some interesting books over here as to why the British bikes became extinct. Old moulds, poor casting, worn out lathes with imprecise engineering, labour disputes resulting in 'Friday afternoon specials' which never worked properly, poor wiring, lousy switchgear. management who resolutely refused to change. The books have some great quotes from CO's. eg "so the Japs have indicators...what are arms for?" And , in response to electric starts...."haven't these riders got legs?" Etc etc..........

[James England]

Not that I have a bee in my bonnet or anything?

I just remember those fear- filled journeys along the A66 to Carlisle, in pre cell phone days, wondering what the bike would do next and whether Id get there. A leg covered in oil, perchance? A silencer vibrating off? maybe a valve pushrod bending? Tappet adjusters unscrewing, despite lashings of thread lock? Oh no.....lets have an entire tail light fall off the Norton Commando and find the 'Isoelastic' rubber grommets working out of the swinging arm, making the bike weave dangerously along what used to be a single track road with passing places (now three lanes) Mind you, despite those faults, at least we got there eventually. Now, as to serious,, journey stopping faults..........oh I can't go on! It's too traumatic! I'm off to polish my XJR1300 as therapy.......... Enough of the good old days of British glory and thundering big twins.......

[barrelguy]

"...and the Lucas electrics were truly horrendous."

Absolutely correct! My first car was a 1960 Austin Cambridge. Positive ground, Lucas wiring.

Lucas - Prince of Darkness
LUCAS - Lights Unsafe, Caution After Sunset
Lucas - why do Englishmen drink warm beer? Fridges wired by Lucas.

I could go on

[fredintoon]

Years ago I was talking to a former Matchless dealer from Toronto, this is his story:-
" I was in England at the Matchless/AJS factory.
I asked the boss what he knew about Yamahas as someone had opened a Yamaha dealership just down the road from my place.
He said, I gave an apprentice money to go buy one and we brought it back here to tear it down and check it out.
That little bike is a jewel and it'd cost us more to build it in our factory than what they are selling it for retail.
I think we're f**ked."

[fredintoon]

"...and the Lucas electrics were truly horrendous - - -

Hi barrelguy,
we used to install Lucas electrical equipment on Bristol aero-engines and that stuff worked perfectly because we were willing to pay top whack for top quality.
For the sniveling pittance that British vehicle mfrs were willing to pay it's a tribute to Lucas that their vehicle electrics worked at all.