While clearing the contents of my late father's garage, I found most of the components of a 1960 B33 engine. I think he got it as a potential spare engine for his racing Manx Gold Star replica, but we never got the chance to speak about it. This is my starting point for a long-term project which I hope will be a tribute bike to my Dad's memory. I have yet to get a frame or wheels or gearbox or many other things, but what I do have (at the moment) is a good supply of enthusiasm!
I want to get an engine stand for the bench but need to know first roughly how much the engine weighs. There are many sites on the web which tell me the weight of the bike as a whole but I haven't yet found anything specifically relating to the engine. I know that it's pretty substantial with all the iron components.
Can anyone advise?
The BSA Data book for 1960 gives the engine dry weight as 103 lb or about 47 kg.
That's excellent, many thanks.
I have an old copy of Classic Mechanics (June/July 1986). There's an article on stripping and rebuilding the B31/B33 engine. The author John Gleed says a useful tool is a length of steel strip, 5/16" or 3/8" x 1 1/2", with a 3/8" hole drilled in one end. The end with the hole is bolted to the back of the head*, the other end is clamped in the vice.
I'm thinking this would be a simple and useful tool, to be used with or without the engine stand according to the job you are doing.
I haven't gone very deep into my engine so I don't know how good this article is, but it might be of help and there are quite a few copies of the magazine on Ebay.
*The head of the engine, not your head... :)
Quote from: Rog1 on 08 Dec, 2020, 18:01
*The head of the engine, not your head... :)
Whew, thank goodness you clarified that! ;D
Thanks for the tip. I was initially looking at the Sealey MES01 to sit on my bench, but the rated weight of that is only 30kg, enough for my Bultaco engine but not enough for the BSA. Then with the information I got here, I thought I would have to go up to the MES02 but the floorspace in my shed is quite limited. However a strip of steel in the vice should be quite manageable.
I found this arrangement quite satisfactory for a B31 engine build recently.
Quote from: martinh10 on 09 Dec, 2020, 09:56
I found this arrangement quite satisfactory for a B31 engine build recently.
Marvellous, and so simple!
Bloody Hell! That's a clean ,very tidy workshop!
Only for photos!