back to basics... the good oil

[Resto-Rob]

Hi guys,

I have just moved from New Zealand to Germany and at rick of sounding like an complete amateur... i have no idea about what brand of oil or what grade of petrol to use in my C32 Bulldog? I know some grade are similar to back home but i would just like to know what everyone else uses   Also, do you guys use upper cylinder lube mixed in the fuel? back home in my AJS i used Morley's which seemed to do the trick
I have no manual for my bike so i assume the gearbox oil is the same as the engine?

I have not yet run this bike as i am not sure about the oil pump adjustment.
The oil pump adjuster is set to 1. Can anyone fill me in on how to adjust the oil pump correctly?

Thanks guys!

[Black Sheep]

I user Morris's SAE 50 in the engine and Morris's self-levelling semi-fluid grease in the gearbox. I put a few mls of 2 stroke oil in the petrol too.
As for how much oil to go through the drip feed, I set it to use a plunger full about every 3 miles. It seems to work OK at that, even theough the handbook recommends a plunger full every 6 miles.

[Resto-Rob]

Thank for that Black Sheep. I havent heard of using a semi fluid grease in the gearbox but it makes sence!
The two preunit motorcycles i had prior to the ones i have now ran SAE 50 in the gearbox as well as the engine... That made things easy
Can i assume the the grease would be a good idea for my 1927 BSA as well? It will be a while before she is on the road but it would be good to know as i have no manuals for her.
Thanks again!

[Black Sheep]

The semi-fluid grease is good for older gearboxes which were specified to be grease-lubricated or which had no effective seals. On the Douglas I just filled it right up using a 50ml syringe and the surplus worked its way out past the mainshaft and lubricated the primary chain most effectively (and the silencer and the new drive after a run...).
Newer bikes like my 50's BSAs and Norton 99 used SAE 50 in the gearbox, though that is pretty much the same viscosity as EP 90 gear oil. I either use SAE 50 or classic EP90 depending which tin has most in at oil change time. Not very scientific, I know. The Norton gearbox has covered 220,000 miles on this regime, the only failure being a layshaft bearing which is a common problem on Norton gearboxes.
Best of luck with the Douglas - ours is great fun to ride - the other bikes are tending to gather dust!

[podge]

Hi Resto-Rob.

Like Black Sheep I have used self levelling grease for the past 5 years in my 1932 A32 Douglas - no problems. I also have a 1962 Norton Jubilee that should use SAE 50 in the gearbox. I replaced the oil seal on the main drive shaft but the SAE 50 leaked out - tried EP 90, still leaked a lot but less than with the SAE 50. For the past two years I have used " Groil ", a mixture of 60% Self levelling grease and 40% EP 90 with no detrimental effect - it does'nt leak now.

Regards

Paul