The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

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Baggy Trousers
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#1411 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

My defective computer has never made any sound, so I’m not privy to what Sammy Miller is saying in the video but I imagine he is discussing Burt McCollum single sleeve valves and the Sunbeam rotary valve engines. Both are of technical interest. Myself and Sammy, only a few years older than me, are now pretty deaf, so several of our many conversations had to be assisted by the late Colin Dommett, a mutual friend and Sammy’s famous trials companion – Philip will know of him. Sammy Miller’s knowledge is encyclopaedic, although much of his restoration work is undertaken by outside enterprises.

Probably the sleeve valve motor is by Barr and Stroud but as far as I know, was fitted to very few bikes of the period, although George Brough offered a Superior model with this type of engine. I do not know if the Sunbeam engine went into production. The sleeve design was adopted by Argyll cars a century ago; more recently and, most significantly, by the Napier Sabre H24 and Bristol Centaurus aero engines.

Lest the fanciful notion that I’m some sort of Nimbus freak gain wider public acceptance, I attach a shot of yours truly, Honda-mounted at The Bungalow last year. I managed to get within 36 minutes of the record! But I reckon that a creditable effort by a little 500 single with an octogenarian plus rider battling others insisting that they share my road with them.

Nevertheless, in view of the above, I feel a little hesitant in posting a drawing of another rotary valve engine - a design which with further development might have achieved some technical and commercial success. As with all similar arrangements, as well as the sleeve valve construction, heat transfer was a fundamental problem - I had a 1918 Daimler with double sleeve valve engine and so have some practical understanding of the problem! But advances in “conventional” design rendered most of these departures from technical orthodoxy unnecessary.

And whose design is this novel valve arrangement? Whisper it in confidence to only a trusted few; it was a NIMBUS!

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Dave the bass
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#1412 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

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"Mad 'erbert!" :)
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pre65
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#1413 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by pre65 »

Baggo, did you realise that one can make YouTube videos show text on the screen, so even without sound you can see what is being spoken ?
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Mike H
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#1414 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

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He's right, he's not wrong!

-
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Baggy Trousers
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#1415 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

pre65 wrote: Sat Oct 28, 2023 8:24 pm Baggo, did you realise that one can make YouTube videos show text on the screen, so even without sound you can see what is being spoken ?
No, Philip, I didn't.

To an old fart like me, most of the cyberverse remains a mystery. I thought that I managed remarkably well to download/upload/sideload/unload the photos in my last appearance. Previously, the machine told me that there were too many pixels or something, so I was amazed to see them appear as an attachment. It is a great frustration not being ale to access the advantages had by generation Z or whatever alphabetical milestone we have now reached, so if you could explain how I conjure the subtitles, I'll be grateful.
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#1416 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by pre65 »

See post #1414 (above your post) where Mike highlighted the relevant area.
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#1417 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

pre65 wrote: Tue Oct 31, 2023 5:17 pm See post #1414 (above your post) where Mike highlighted the relevant area.
Gotcha. Ta muchly.
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#1418 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

Baggy Trousers wrote: Wed Nov 01, 2023 3:18 pm
pre65 wrote: Tue Oct 31, 2023 5:17 pm See post #1414 (above your post) where Mike highlighted the relevant area.
Gotcha. Ta muchly.
PS Discovered the subtitles don't work well with Corelli oboe concerti.
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#1419 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by pre65 »

Baggy Trousers wrote: Sun Nov 12, 2023 12:54 am
Baggy Trousers wrote: Wed Nov 01, 2023 3:18 pm
pre65 wrote: Tue Oct 31, 2023 5:17 pm See post #1414 (above your post) where Mike highlighted the relevant area.
Gotcha. Ta muchly.
PS Discovered the subtitles don't work well with Corelli oboe concerti.
Oh dear Baggo. :(

Does your computer have a headphone socket ? I find headphones essential to get any sort of sound quality out of a PC or laptop.
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#1420 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

[/quote]

PS Discovered the subtitles don't work well with Corelli oboe concerti.
[/quote]

Oh dear Baggo. :(

Does your computer have a headphone socket ? I find headphones essential to get any sort of sound quality out of a PC or laptop.
[/quote]

The Corelli bit was a joke Philip. Admittedly not a good one but my jokes seldom are much good. I think it's the Devon water.

I had never noticed but since you ask, yes, the machine does have a small jack hole but I have no headphones to plug in. I have not possessed these since my crystal set days and I doubt if my old SG Brown (hospital type) cans would allow much in the way of HiFi. The computer is the cheapest model of Asus and I hate it, but it works most of the time. I also have a Toshiba Satellite which is a vastly superior bit of kit and which came with, I think, Windows 95, but was upgraded to Vista; none of the Microsoft gizmos seem to want to talk to it now - hence buying a newer one with the godawful Windows 10.

But I'm feeling righteous as I have spent the afternoon rotating the drivers 45 deg, in their mounts. I do this at roughly six-month intervals to give the spider a break. 15" Tannoy cones are a bit weighty.

Supposed to be dry tomorrow - might go for a ride to warm the oil before changing and the winter hibernation.

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#1421 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Mike H »

But I'm feeling righteous as I have spent the afternoon rotating the drivers 45 deg, in their mounts. I do this at roughly six-month intervals to give the spider a break. 15" Tannoy cones are a bit weighty.
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Baggy Trousers
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#1422 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

Philip - this has nothing to do with bikes but having just completed a history of Avantic amplifiers (and the associated Bal-AMi juke boxes), I was wondering if you still have a connection with Witham :?:
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#1423 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

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Baggy Trousers wrote: Fri Nov 17, 2023 6:29 pm Philip - this has nothing to do with bikes but having just completed a history of Avantic amplifiers (and the associated Bal-AMi juke boxes), I was wondering if you still have a connection with Witham :?:
Not a connection as such, but it's approx 21 miles from where I live.

I go near Witham on my weekly visits to see my Mum.

Did you want some local information ?
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#1424 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by Baggy Trousers »

pre65 wrote: Fri Nov 17, 2023 6:50 pm
Baggy Trousers wrote: Fri Nov 17, 2023 6:29 pm Philip - this has nothing to do with bikes but having just completed a history of Avantic amplifiers (and the associated Bal-AMi juke boxes), I was wondering if you still have a connection with Witham :?:
Not a connection as such, but it's approx 21 miles from where I live.

I go near Witham on my weekly visits to see my Mum.

Did you want some local information ?
No, not really but thanks.

I just remembered that you had some association with Witham and was curious. That's all.

I once enjoyed a loose connection with the town; I saved up for my first Keil Kraft balsa kit (made in Witham) free-flight model in 1949, fitted with ED 'Bee' diesel engine in 1950. Later spent a couple of nights on a "Safari" camp bed made in Hounsfield's Witham factory, part of which was let to André Rahmer's Beam Echo (marketed as "Danson") projection equipment production as well as for the manufacture of the superb "Avantic". I would be surprised if much evidence of this activity could still be seen - a pity, for many of the post-War electronic developments provide an interesting history.

But to get things back on topic, I can relate that I bought a footpeg rubber from Bridge Street Motorcycles in the town.

However, norra lotta people know that. I suspect even fewer are interested! :roll:
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#1425 Re: The Audio-Talk Motorcycling thread.

Unread post by pre65 »

Now then Baggo, this is partly off topic, so I hope no one complains. :wink:

Firstly, Bridge Street Motorcycles are still in Witham, and still trading.

Secondly, are you sure about KeilKraft being made in Witham ? I ask because in Wickford, where I lived for many years, there was a KeilKraft factory, and the web site I looked on (link below) makes no mention of a Witham facility.

KeilKraft info

https://www.wickfordhistory.org.uk/cont ... /keilkraft
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