FRANK WESTWORTH
There are some jobs on some bikes that I simply do not like. Maybe I should type that again – in capitals for emphasis? In this particular case I had a problem. Not a major problem, really, but a major irritation. My most wonderful in every measurable way and certainly entirely perfected BSA is a complete horror to heave onto its centrestand. It really is. Why? Because – or so I assumed – the stand itself is bent – badly bent.
This is common enough, and has afflicted almost every repatriated BSA and Triumph I have had the pleasure of working on. It’s also common on AMC heavyweights, and for the same reason. It appears that our transatlantic cousins like to start their motorcycle engines while standing on the footrests while the bike is standing on its centrestand. This failure has been so common with post-1971 BSA and Triumph oily-frame machinery – both twins and singles – that I wonder why the BSA Group failed to redesign the stand, long before Triumph did for later Bonnies. But I do have a theory…
Having both a 1971 BSA A65 and a 1972 Triumph T120V side by side in The Shed makes for an interesting opportunity for a comparison between the two. I’ve yet to ride the BSA far enough for any form of on the road consideration, but working on the two machines is throwing up all manner of tiny, almost insignificant but entertaining differences. The most obvious – ignoring the different power units and cosmetic trim stuff – is the difference in height between the two