Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Specifications Engine Type Push rod OHV three-cylinder four-stroke Bore x stroke 67 x 70mm Compression ratio 12: 1 Ignition system lucas Rita electronic Transmission 5-speed Carburetors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 30mm Amals Frame Type Full double cradle steel tubular Front tire 3.50 x 18 Goodyear slick Rear tire 4/4.50 x 18 Goodyear slick Dimensions Dry weight 380 Ibs. 6.3 gal. Fuel capacity CRMC in Lngland - a CRMC member. Peter Spencer-Hayes. came over here to liveand started things up. rd always fantasized about going racing myself without ever getting up the courage. bu t then after one of the shows ( looked at the BSA and it looked right back at me and said .( don't belong in a beauty show: take me to the track! '" So I did." To good effecl. for after finishing third on his first outing "'ith Ihe bike in the fall of 1981. Phillippi dominated the SoC'll Classic Championship in 1982. in spite of blowing up the engine fairly disastrously when a main bearing wenl and broke the can rod. However, he was able to repair the cases by welding them. and though his job as a dental phOIOgrapher restricted his outings on the bike in '83, it's still the one to beat when he does bring it out for the odd classic evenl. Remarkablv, the engine in Phillippi's BSA ,;'as in excellent condition internally when he got it. and after cleaning up the electrics, changing the oil and plugs and hooking up the battery. it fired up first time after seven year' inactivity. A complete tear-down and rebuild for the '82 season after his first two races n'v{'aled that the bike has all the right stuff inside, including handrelieved gears drilled for lightnesseverywhere, including on the camshafts, oil pump and so forth. The crank had been beadblasted except on the journals,. and as an additional safety check Phillippi had Ihe rods Magnafluxed and X-rayed. as well as the pistons. Amazingly, the same Iriplex chain is still used that the bike was fitted wit h when he got it: constant checks reveal no stretching. The single-plate clutch has hC"dvier springs from standard, and a set of three 30mm Mark I Amal' are fitted, with the usual BSA Triumph trick of a mechancial linkage controlled by a single throttle cable. The carbs carry the spun alloy vclocit y stacks designed by Jack Shemans which were apparently good for a couple more horses. Gearbox is a five-speed Quaife. as on most racing triple. Phillippi acknowledges a debt of assistance to Jack Wilson of Big D Cvcle in Dallas. still the foremost T~iumph racing man in America. and it was Wilson who suggested fitting Lucas Rita ignition after 'Phillippi had expt'rienced considerable problems with the poims: sound familiar, triple racers? '"Switching to electronic ignition was the best thing ( did.'" says Phillippi. "It gave me at least five more horsepower and five times the r(')jablity. We al 0 saved weight by throwing out the battery, so the bike now weighs 380 pounds dry - around 400 with oil and fuel.'" 38° of ignition advance is employed. runningon 115 octane racing fuel and using 12:1 compression. After tracking down practi ally every member of the BSA Triumph pil (Tew fWIll Ihe early seventies. Phillippi was able to acquire from one of tht'm a reprint of the test figure"obtaillt'd from theteam'sdynoat the end of Ihe 1971 season: these showed Mann's bike 10 be the most powerful. producing7J..1 bhpat7.800 rpm. measured at the rear wheel. againsl69 hp for the Aldan'l machine. Phillippi usually revs the bike nowadays to 8.500 rpm. Power comes in at around 4.200 rplll with tht, works cam fitted to the bikc'. The 'highboy' frame (so called because it had a higher headstock than the post- 70 'Iowboys') was originally fittt'd with the early-type fairing without the di Ii nct ive 'let ter-box' slot for the oil cooler. The latter was onlv filled after the '70 Da\'tona debacl~, when all the bikes o~erheated: tht,reafter they were modds of rd ia bi Ii IY and Mann's machine was reputed 10 have gone four races without having the head lifted. A1dana'sex-Hailwood mach ine was cOIl\"erted to a kttt'rbox fairing for '71. while retaining the earlier frame - hence the rdie\"ing of the frame tubes by Macias' n'l'IT\' rncn The .~6-i;tch whedbase is compact for an early '70s 7S0, and unt il you get u,ed to t.he riding position there's a very real possibility of cramp in tht' legs. The big tank nestles nicdy into yout- chest. and on a banked circuit like Oaytona or Talladega the st rea mIi ned rear of the seatena bkd the shorter riders 10 blend right into the line of the bike in the interests of windcheating. In fact. the AMA did make the faclOry cut the seat down by a couple of inches becduse they claimed it was ag-dinstthe rules. The clutch action is realh' stiff, and 0 is the throttle. There w~s also a great d,'al of vibration. Phillippi had 10 install a new crankshaft after the blowup and that might be the culprit. Braking is one of the BSA's fortes. thanks to the twin 10 inch Lockheed discs which were fitted up front in the 1970 71 off-season 10 replace the Fontana drum originally used on the bike. Combined with the 12 inch Honda rear disc - yes, the factory tcam did use those back then - Ihe\' gave superb SlOpping power at th~ expense of strong lever e[fon. and rciati""ly littk dip from tht, front forks. Ilow good to sec such a historic bi ke sli II bei ng used for the purpose for which it was designed. rather than langUishing in somcone's garagcora museum. A winnt'l" in 1970at Talladega. it's slill winning 14 years latcr in Ihe hands of its elllhusiaslic owner: classic racing fans have reason 10 be gratefulLO the likes of Greg Phillippi for ignoring the pundits and lelling onlookers derive full enjoyment from eeing their bikes in action again. • Take advantage of money-saving close outs from dealers and manufacturers. Read Cycle News Want Ads. ~. M-STAR MOTORCYCLES, INC. 740 Easl Sanla Mana Santa Paula, CA 93060 (805) 525-3364 Dealer Inqulnes Invlled

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