On the Grey Flash, a handed pair of AMAL levers are fitted to either side of the handlebars for manual control of the choke and magneto advance/retard. When acquired, none were present, or needed – the choke had been stripped from the carb and the incorrect magneto fitted didn’t feature manual adjustment.
Franc Trento sorted me out with a pair. They were not perfectly matched but it was a great starting point.
Then Peter Johnson mentioned that he had found a similar lever in boxes of stuff he was sorting through.
This seemed like a good opportunity to make a up a more authentic-looking pair, so we came to a deal. Once the lever had arrived with Bert, he selected the best parts to make up a set.
There are some minor discrepancies visible but we feel the levers are close enough to what would have originally been fitted.
A hunt has also been on to try and track down some vintage control cables. To us, nothing would be worse than having this important machine adorned with modern plastic-covered cables…
Bert managed to find some NOS items being sold on eBay. These will be used to construct a pair of correct length control cables. The devil is in the detail – very exited about this find!
As so often has been the case, brother Franc Trento has been the inspiration behind so much of this restoration. When I visited him back in 2005, I was blown away by the levels of detail he’d achieved with his assembly of the Jack Ehret Black Lightning.
It made me realise just how important getting all the tiny, seemingly insignificant details was – it’s something I’ve never forgotten. Thanks Franc sensei!
Grey Flash 2751 