1965 circuit breaker

[D.Ed]

The timing on my 65 bounces all over at idle. Have installed NOS springs and weights to no avail. The springs are too weak to hold the weights in at idle. Anyone have any experience with this and found a stronger spring?

[T. Cotten]

The timing on my 65 bounces all over at idle. Have installed NOS springs and weights to no avail. The springs are too weak to hold the weights in at idle. Anyone have any experience with this and found a stronger spring?

D.Ed!

I chased my tail with one of my '65s until I put the timer on a Sun automotive distributor analyzer.
There isn't any advance 'curve', its basically off-on.
My issue was diagnosed by phantom arrows lighting up all over the dial, and well as at the proper degree. The points were "bouncing".

How slow are you idling, anyway?

....Cotten

[D.Ed]

D.Ed!

I chased my tail with one of my '65s until I put the timer on a Sun automotive distributor analyzer.
There isn't any advance 'curve', its basically off-on.
My issue was diagnosed by phantom arrows lighting up all over the dial, and well as at the proper degree. The points were "bouncing".

How slow are you idling, anyway?

....Cotten

I would guess right around 1,000. How low do you need to go to get timing to retard or should it stay advanced at idle?

[T. Cotten]

That should be ideal, D.Ed..

No potato-potato, right?

You're are at the mercy of your own patience, observation, and attention to detail to determine the problem.
Heavier springs could be installed, but the NOS should be adequate. Don't throw them away.

Please choose "blade" style points, and avoid the skinny "finger" type.

....Cotten

[D.Ed]

No potato-potato. Had the skinny points in there. Have a set of Standard brand here that look like the blade style. Will install them. Should the timing retard at idle like a cone advance unit does or should it stay advanced? Off topic, the float I got from you last month got my carb working good. Had been using the ones Starklite sells for many years, but this summer it swelled up and drug on the inside of the bowl. Installed a new one and it only lasted a week. Looked fine, just got bigger. Had to break it to get it out of the bowl. Thanks for sharing your hard earned wisdom.

[T. Cotten]

D.Ed!

As I posted, it advances almost immediately, fully by a 900 to 1000 RPM or so idle. It parallels the manual advance behavior of a lumpy idle when retarded, but smooths out advanced.
Please remember its entire purpose was prevent kick-back on the starter. Its as much an auto-retard when stopped as an auto-advance when running.
Cone motors are out of my zodiac, but I imagine their various springs give and extended curve. It would be fun to play with them, if one had diagnostics, like maybe a dyno.

The greatest grief I had with my '65 timers was slop for the housing's studs in the points base slots, allowing the point gaps from front to rear change upon adjusting the timing.
By '66, this was cured.

(I dropped an auto-advance shaft into a manual housing for one of my Knucks, and cut a snap-ring groove for a Kaw 900 piston ring into the points base to rotate upon.
Timed and held in place with a wingnut, it is far, far better than the '65's!)

.....Cotten
PS: Are you getting better fuel mileage now, since you have replaced a float that weighed three times as much as an original?

[D.Ed]

[
PS: Are you getting better fuel mileage now, since you have replaced a float that weighed three times as much as an original?[/QUOTE]

Now that you mention it I think I am. Was out late the other night thinking I should be hitting reserve soon and wondering if I did would I have enough to make it home. Not a lot open around here after midnight. Checked when I got home and still had a good 2 gallons in the tank. Will check mileage with next refill.

[T. Cotten]

D.Ed!

Did you get a mileage figure before switching floats?

Was the Starklite also set to ¼"? Or much deeper like a brass float?

...Cotten

[D.Ed]

Bike spends all its time on curvy, hilly, back roads. Average was 20-22 MPG. Yes set at 1/4".

[T. Cotten]

That's interesting, D.Ed!

Since the Starklite is the exact shape and weight as a made-in-India brass float, I would have thought it would require the same 3/8" to .410" setting to keep from flooding, running rich, etc.
Did you find yourself tweaking the needles much for the lighter float?

....Cotten

[D.Ed]

That's interesting, D.Ed!

Since the Starklite is the exact shape and weight as a made-in-India brass float, I would have thought it would require the same 3/8" to .410" setting to keep from flooding, running rich, etc.
Did you find yourself tweaking the needles much for the lighter float?
....Cotten

I've owned this bike for 36 years. Ran it steadily for 20 years including 2 cross country trips. Than it sat for 11 years while I rode a 1986 FXRP all over hell and back. Since coming out of retirement 5 years ago, when the Starklite float went in, I've just putted it around local a bit until this year when I started riding it short hops almost daily. Has always run rich with the Starklite float. Was constantly tweaking needles and never could get it right. Since installing your float, after the initial adjustment, I haven't touched it. Definitely runs cleaner and smoother.

[T. Cotten]

Many thanks....


....Cotten

[DCoul]

I think I set my nitrophyl float to the stock level. It's supposed to be different?

[T. Cotten]

I think I set my nitrophyl float to the stock level. It's supposed to be different?

DCoul!

There are various "nitrophyl floats" on the market; Few can claim propriety to that name.

Tedd's and other's can be set at 1/4" unless they swell.

Starklite's 'nitrophyl float' properly smells like fish farts when it comes out of the package!
But it weighs as much as a brass.
Swells too.

...Cotten

[DCoul]

Mine model was "ducky", "ducky", something like that.