*** Cleveland Motorcycle Information Needed ***

[Ken Lee]

and I thought I had a rare bike , it seems everyone's got one now !!! my Cleveland is now with me and the engine is in bits , quite a 'Chinese puzzle' but well made little thing , I am making new big end and have to make bearing retainer as mine isn't there but generally it's ok , as far as piston availability is concerned , I am going to get 'Baby Triumph' rings to fit my piston , these pistons are being manufactured by - http://www.veterantriumph.co.uk ,
and may fit Clevelands , the rings will , I think I may have to spend some time rubbing them on emery paper as I think they are slightly too wide but they will fit , pistons are the same shape and are 64mm diameter , slightly more than 2-1/2 inch of the Cleveland but the Cleveland barrel will take a re-bore unless you want to skim the piston down a little , I do not know the compression height so that would have to be checked but I bet it's the same . I also have a number G286G (the latter G is upside down) stamped on the case so perhaps this is a common number for a model year ??? my engine number is 15291 and is a 1919 , 1920 Clevelands have a slab sided tank with an under rail , plus foot-boards and a few other differences like size of gear change lever and brake lever , which are larger than earlier years . I know a friend with a 1920 who's engine number is in the 203++ area and also a 1919 in the 140++ number . I will try and put some pictures of mine on here too .
Oh yes CHIEF the centers on the con rod is 6-1/2 inches and 0.435 thick at the big end and 0.90 wide small end , which takes a wrist pin of 5/8ths so any 6-1/2 rod will probably do as long as it takes a roller bearing big end . Best of luck with your rebuilds , Ken
Pics to follow as I have to re-size them first PS CHIEF are you sure your engine number starts with an A not a 4 ??
PPS TOMMO - any chance with that research paperwork yet please . Ken

[Ken Lee]

Here are a couple of pics of my 1919

[Ken Lee]

here's an interesting one , self explanatory but thankfully the rest of the bike is in quite good nick , Ken

[Tommo]

Ken
I was waiting to see if anyone else wanted copies of it but as it appears they don't I'll get on to it and send it asap.
Anybody else interested please post a request in the next couple of days as I won't be happy if I have to do this more than once

[Ken Lee]

many thanks Tommo , I can wait a while if anyone else would like a copy too , all good wishes , Ken

[CHIEF]

My Strange Collection Of Parts

Hey Ken The Pictures Of Your Cleveland Look Great!i Tried To Forward Pictures Of My Collection Of Parts To Help With The Discussion But They Were Rejected I Will Have To Try Another Method The Motor Number Is 'a' Not 'four' But I Only Have The Upside Down 'g' At The End No Letter At The Start. Can You Give Me The Distance Between The Front And Rear Motor Mount Holes On The Frame My Motor And Tranny Holes Are About Half A Hole Shorter Than My Frame Holes! Do You Have Any Dimensions Of The Crank Pin ? I Have A Drawing But Not Good Enough To Get Sizes From .the Crank Pin Appears To Have A Head On One End And A Taper On The Other . It Appears That The Bearing And Rod Are Placed On The Pin And Then Pressed Into The Flywheel ?? Right/wrong?? I Think That Is All For Now As Other Questions Arise May I Pester You And The Others In The Future?? I Don't Know What I Can Offer In Return But Try Me!! Fred [chief]

[CHIEF]

Cleveland Motorcycles

Cory
Hello From The East -ontario That Is-
Are You Still Playing With Cleveland Motorcycles?
I Have A Fine? Collection Of Parts That I Am Attempting To Assemble
The Only Thing I Know For Certain Is That It Is A Flat Tanker . It Has Valanced Fenders And Must Have Come With Electrics As There Is A Headlight Shell Mounted On A Permanent Bar Across The Handle Bars As With Yours The Tranny And Motor Came From Different Collections .two Of My Latest 'discoveries' Are The Fact That The Motor Mount Holes In The Frame Are Farther Apart Lengthwise Than The Mounting Holes In The Crankcase/tranny By About Half A Hole!! There Is Also A Manufactured Depression In The Rear Fender In Line With The End Of The Magneto!! Have You Come Across These Features In Your Collection ? And What Are They All Indicating ? After Reading Your Article I Am Leaning Toward A 1920-1924 Model Year Possibly Originally With Electrics . Any Assistance Will Be Appreciated . Chief [fred]

[Ken Lee]

Hello Fred , The distance between the mounting holes on my 1919 is 13-1/4 inches , you are mostly right about the crank pin , it is mushroom shaped or head on one end as you say but not a taper but a parallel shaft that is an interference fit in the flywheel , I will try and post a picture later with the dimensions on , I am still learning and am not an expert but we can all help each other and if I am wrong on anything please let me know , feel free to pester Fred !! The flat sided tanks had two top frame rails that the tank fitted between , best wishes , Ken

[CHIEF]

Crank Pin Etc Etc

Hi Ken Finally Back To The Important Stuff Had To Take Some Time Off To Go For A Bike Ride For A Week And Then Pay My Dues By Taking The Wife Fishing .life Is Tough In Canada!!!!!!!!!!!! The Pictures Of The Crank Pin And Dimensions Are Great I Should Be Able To Build One At Home. Would You Mind Doing The Same For The Piston? I Have Checked Out The Triumph Site And The Piston Looks Similar To The Drawing I Have Of The Cleveland Piston. I Will Contact Triumph And See If They Will Give Me Some Dimensions Of Their Piston I Have Come Across A Book Titled 'the Illustrated Directory Of Classic American Motorcycles' By Tod Rafferty It States That 'the First Clevelands Were Built By The American Cycle Manufacturing Company Of Hartford Connecticut From 1902-1905 And Then Our Bikes Were Built By The Cleveland Motorcycle Manufacturinc Company In Ohio From 1915-1929 Eight Pages With Good Pics An Decent Info. On The Web Site 'motorbikes24' They Only Have The U.s.date 1915-1929 But Also Show Cleveland Motor Cycle Co 1911-1914 Of Middlesborough Gb I Checked With A Member Or The British Two Stroke Club And He Felt The End Of One Manufacturer In Britain And The Start Of Another In U.s.a.was Just A Coincidence If You Would Like I Will Attempt To Copy The Pages From The Book And Send Them To You I Think Thats All For Now Catch You Later Fred

[Ken Lee]

Hello Fred , I'm an idiot , yes the Triumph piston looks the same but there is one major draw back !!!!!!! the gudgeon pin is 90 degrees to the Cleveland one !! so that's a no go-er !! sorry to get your hopes up , didn't realise till I took pictures of mine then the penny dropped , sirry irriot !!!! I will post pics and measurements soon , I was hoping to have it up and running by now but other things get in the way , like riding my other bikes , I'm off to Holland tomorrow but will try and post pic before I go , I have to make piston rings for mine too that's why the piston isn't fitted , the bottom end is all done and ready . I have Tod Rafferty's book thanks for the offer of photo copies , I think the Cleveland companies were all separate , certainly the English one was . Life in Canada certainly sounds tough , can't be that tough though , my fiance lives in Toronto and I can't extricate her full time (perhaps it's me !!) good luck , Ken

[Ken Lee]

I have put three pics on , sorry I do not know how to put large ones on so just click on pic and it should give a larger size , let me know if you want any others , all the best , Ken

[Ken Lee]

Just confirming where I took the compression height from and too , Ken

[CHIEF]

Oooops!!!!!!!!!!!! Good Thing You Spotted That Minor Problem!! If You Have A Chance After Holland And Before Your Girlfriend Comes For A Visit Could You Take Enough Measurements For Me To Attempt To Build A Piston? It's Not Necessary To Put Them On A Picture As With The Others Just List Them With Some Description Of Location I Can Always Check With You If I Need A Further Explanation Thanks For All The Help Fred

[Ken Lee]

Hello Fred , hope these are ok , a bit bigger job to make a deflector piston but best of luck , I think I'd find a flat top ali one and build the top deflector up !!? I find it easier to say it with pictures , let me know if you need any other measurements , you could put a new thread on this site just specifically asking for a piston but check the bore size as they changed , later models were larger inch motors , not too sure when they changed but my piston is 2-1/2 inches diameter , best of luck , Ken

[Ken Lee]

For those interested in Two stroke Clevelands , there is one for sale in Missouri , see http://www.prewarcar.co.uk/show_prew...p?car_id=52898 , happy hunting , Ken