@@JohnHoganArtist According to GPS it’s 5% fast. However , that’s better than both the Busas which are 8% fast. Interestingingly ( or not!) the only accurate speedo on all my machines is the chronometric smiths speedo on my 1958 BSA Golden Flash. Possibly by chance rather than design?

@@calderdale6795 The quality of your GPS device can influence how well it interprets the satellite signals, and so its reliability may be relative to the clocks on both the Bird and Busa. As you say, the old fashioned mechanical clocks may be more reliable than anything else.

@@chancha1916ks Well I’m getting on a bit so the more upright position suits me very well. Since that vlog was done I cut back the screen lower edges slightly so the bars could be raised a little more. I had bar risers on my Busas , but this conversion is infinitely better , for me anyway. I haven’t noticed any buffeting with my taller screen. You will need to fit mirror spacers as well.

@ thanks. I’ll get a set ordered

@@DavidHunter-n8p I find that a lot of owners I’ve spoken to tend to make excuses for their bikes rather than admit they got what they paid for. Just my opinion of course !

@@garymillerlcs Thanks Gary. All the Dragonflys were bought up by Pride and Clarke when Douglas went bust . Hence all the Pride and Clarke bikes are registered TYP. The bike will be available soon. I have to down size and quite a few bikes will have to go.

@@calderdale6795 Thanks very much for your message. That’s very interesting to hear. Yours is TYR though. Was this not a Pride and Clarke one then? Ours was registered in June 1957 I believe. If you do end up putting it up sale, maybe you could let us know when and what company is selling it. I’m not sure however whether it’s actually possible to communicate via KZbin though other than on the comments! Gary

@@johnmignano7872 Good idea John .

@@Prepare2Survive The cars still going strong. No A/c option in the UK back then , not really necessary here ! The great advantage of the old cars is the simplicity of the electronics……very little to go wrong unlike today’s offerings. I’ve owned my 1958 Ford Anglia for 52 years…..since I was a student. Everything dead simple , just adjust the contact breakers now and then……that’s it ! If there’s another big coronal mass ejection like the Carrington Event in 1859 ? every modern car and most electronics everywhere will fail. My old Anglia will start and run !

@@calderdale6795 Yeah, cars with old points ignition and carbs are EMP and solar flare proof. Especially if they have a manual transmission so you can pop start them if the starter motor is fried. You'll still have to worry about the ignition coil getting fried so you should probably keep a spare one of those in a faraday cage. From what I heard from the empdoctor on youtube is some modern cars won't have issues and there are simple devices you can add to help protect them. My option I have for my modern cars are I have a spare ECU in a faraday bag I keep in the car. If swapping out that ECU doesn't work I also keep a Zizzo Liberte folding bicycle in my car so I can ride that to get home. Older cars are more simple and a lot of cars from the 80s and 90s were overbuilt because they didn't have advanced computers back then to be able to figure out how strong or durable a part needed to be so they just overbuilt the part instead. The main downside to older cars compared to modern ones is parts availability and being able to diagnose a problem much faster using a scan tool like the one made by Innova that I use for my 2004 Toyota Corolla and 2016 Toyota Yaris.

@@Prepare2Survive Of course you have Yellowstone to worry about as well !

@@calderdale6795 Yellowstone is over 2000 miles away from me. Not something that would effect me right away. Would likely take several hours. What's you opinion on the earth's geomagnetic excursion explained in that Suspicious0bservers youtube video titled - THE Earth Disaster Documentary

@@calderdale6795 This is my 2nd time trying to post this reply to you. I'm assuming youtube censored my comment because I asked your opinion of Earth's geomagnetic excursion. When it comes to Yellowstone, I'm over 2000 miles away so it would likely take several hours to effect me which should give me enough time to get home and hunker down for a few years. I'll try to finish my question that was censored in another reply right after this one.

@@GeoffScott-lb5yr Thanks Geoff. I would definitely recommend extending the two cables to make the job much easier. Just make sure the cables are heatproof and fixed well away from the exhaust pipe ( the aluminium shroud over the starter is actually a heat shield ).

@@theyoungestboomer Can I suggest you look out for a centre stand ? I did quite a lot of work on refuburbing the bike and the centre stand made things so much easier. My bike with one lower bolt is vibration free , just make sure the bracket is thick enough to really secure the exhaust. However , if you don’t fit a stand I would use the two bolt holes. Also check the rubber mounting of the end cans.

@@calderdale6795 Thanks. I agree a centre stand is a good idea. I've never liked paddock stands as I don't trust myself to operate them alone and my wife can't be trusted to hold the bike up :) I can't find a genuine item but there are a couple on eBay I'll look at. Is yours genuine Honda or another brand?

@@theyoungestboomer Yes , you can’t use a paddock stand with the back end stripped out! Mine is genuine Honda . Make sure you get the spring and fittings as well.

@@MargaretPenny-s1n Sounds like you had the top model called the Supermatic with a variable gear , full suspension and leg shields.

@@Svejky001 Yes , that is the bolt that came with the kit.

It’s an optical illusion Bob.

It was built buy someone that knew what they were doing. @vortecks

I used so called “Prestige” parts from Introcar in the UK. I carefully compared the new and old drop links and could see no difference. Still expensive though. If you find suitable boots let me know please.

@@calderdale6795 Thanks, yes, I have looked at Introcar and Flying Spares, my "usual suspects" for parts, but they are still painfully expensive! I found some on Ebay for a better price, but made in China. Will likely end up with the Introcar parts eventually. Thanks for the reply!

Well , I was lucky enough to be given a cheap action camera by a friend who was “upgrading”…..nothing special , which has an external microphone 3.5 m jack. It also came with a cheap mic with a fairly short cable. I have the camera on the side of my helmet with the microphone tucked into the foam of the helmet just in front of my mouth. Another friend told me to put an inline volume control between the camera and the mic { available on Amazon). It’s set about halfway which gives reasonable sound quality , but you just do a test run and see how it sounds. I just did what they told me!

Lorries in the UK have speed limiters restricting them accurately to 56 mph. On the flat it gives a very fair indication of speed. A later check with GPS confirmed my initial thoughts. The Blackbird is consistently 5% fast over the range , my Hayabusa is 8 to 10% fast increasing according to speed. Try it yourself and put some content in your channel. I’ll be happy to be your first subscriber.

Yes , Honda seemed to get everything so right ( for me) with the Blackbird. The difference between your Shadow and my Interceptor was Honda reliability. The Enfield had too many electrical faults amongst other things. Only bike I was happy to see departing back to the dealer permanently.

I haven’t needed to do any work on a rear shock so no video I’m afraid. However , the club ,RREC , are setting up a new register for the Arnage/Seraph series which could prove to be useful for practical seminars and workshops.

The problem didn’t show up until a year or so in the sunshine when the bend in the plastic became discoloured. Other problems became apparent as time went on and my views on the “ good value “ changed! I was glad to see the back of it when the relays started to give trouble among other things. The Honda that replaced it still is totally reliable.

@@calderdale6795 Everything Honda is reliable and dependable. I didn't care if my Hondas had a warranty because it was a Honda. Nuff said.

I find it is best to strim long wet grass first , then pick it up when dry with the deck lifted. If you can’t hear the hum of the blades rotating shut down the deck drive and clear the deck and/ or the discharge chute.

@@calderdale6795 think ill invest in a stick like yours, cheers

@@calderdale6795 a quick question if that's okay, have you tried the four blade setup or just the regular twin blades? Thanks

@@bidders77 Four blade system from new and still original blades in use .Better cut , pick up and balance.

42 ins , but I tend to run the RH wheels inside the last cut which reduces it to about 33 ins. I’ve just done a 14 year appraisal of this mower if you are interested.

Hi Derek , hope all is well with the operation and bike fix. A new Bentley starter is between £500 and £600 as opposed to the £85 standard motor aftermarket one.The second hand Arnage one was £250.

Hi there is possible to tell me the part no and were you got from as I got a green label 3 years ago and had the click but it has always started (so far) I always look when you bring out a new post as when I got mine every time I went out and left it far a few hours and drove home the amp meter was low and then warning lights would come on (even after new battery ) and getting it checked out by a auto electrician then I saw you told of putting on isolators and never had a problem since .and the car has done just 32000 miles so thank you so much

@@GeoffScott-lb5yr Google BMW X5 (E53) starter motor and you’ll get lots of choice.. I used Autodoc , their part number for the Ridex I chose is.2S0187 . They have other makes but that one had a 47 % discount and was the cheapest. You might need to use an impact screwdriver to get the Phillips screws out of your old solenoid unit. Later starters use Torx screws so reuse those.

Thank you so much

Hi there will be interesting to know how many parts will have to be removed in order to change the starter motor

Same here! I saw one coming home from junior school in the fifties and loved the look of it in stone and green . Also never had a Velo because I never could start them. Recently had a ride on a Viper which was much quicker than the Fly for the same cc. My chum had to start it though!

It only looks like that once a year Derek ! Kawasaki v twin engine has been exceptional…..(hope it stays that way ).

@@calderdale6795 hi Alan definitely are reliable engines your be pleased to know I’ve dropped the bmw and got a new Kawasaki ninja 1000 SX tour black and green colour scheme pick it up next Wednesday next week was lucky to get £7500 for the bmw trade in 👍🏍️

@@SOLOMOTOUK Look forward to seeing it on your channel Derek.

@@calderdale6795 thank you 👍🏍️

Thanks Phil , I’ll bear that in mind.

@@calderdale6795can i ask do you have a video on changing the spark plugs?.

@@philboyce1582No Phil. Plugs last a lot longer than they used to , and given the limited use the car gets I shouldn’t need to change them for years. However , if you refer to the BMW engine , M62 Tu for a plug change on KZbin you should get the gist of it.

@@calderdale6795 perfect, thank you so much for the prompt relpy👍

Thanks Alan just did my arnage after watching this I found it so easy thanks to your post . The biggest problem I have is the electrical side of the car after watching your post on fitting battery cut outs this saved me a lot of problems iv had s class Mercedes that have had much more electrical things on them and only had 1 battery but never had a problem . Yet if you don’t keep the Bentley on a trickle charger (if you don’t have a drive a problem) all the warning lights come on. I changed the rear window switch and and when finished a fuse blown I could not believe it had 6 fuses 4 in the boot and another 2 in the front footwell 1 one for the clock and window switch and 1 for the rear reverse light and window switch who the hell did they employ to do the electrics

Hi Derek. Yes the cost of bike servicing seems to have gone nuts considering the amount of work involved. As a youngster bikers were all fair mechanics…..or they wouldn’t get very far. Age is creeping up on me so will probably only use one bike this year , and only in good weather. As for brake fluid flush I’ve been using a hand vacuum pump for a while now on all the vehicles for flushing and bleeding and makes the job really easy.

@@calderdale6795 I’ll have a look into the hand vac for the brake fluid thank you 👍

Yes , Tim , when I park up people come up with similar memories. This happens more than any other bike I’ve owned . The trick with the gearbox is blipping the throttle just as you disengage the clutch with your heel. You get a clean change down , and yes , once mastered the gearbox clunking disappears. I expect you know that your father’s bike would now be quite sought after and expensive. Who would have thought !

I tried out a ST1100 and a GL1500 many years ago. I opted for the GL1500 because of the reverse gear. Now , at my age the 1300 would be too heavy , but they are great value for money.

The limiting factor on this car was the 5 speed auto XF gearbox torque handling ability. But for this , Cosworth could have easily increased the power output substantially. Bentley could also have fitted the normally aspirated V12 as fitted to the Seraph at the expense of a little power , and thus not as sporty as a Bentley was perceived to be in comparison to the Rolls Royce.? A straight six of 5 litre would have a longer block than the 5 litre V12 ( because of the bore diameter required for an over square reasonably powerful unit ). So I wonder if it would fit easily? I remember how long the block was on my 4.2 E Type .

Yes John , my trusty Lazer helmet. I’m too lazy to hold a camera and not too bothered about filming quality ! I don’t remember there being a 2 door version , but someone in the comments says there was .The 4 door was one reason we bought the car. So much easier for elderly passengers back then. The simplicity of the car stillappeals to me .No fancy electronics , no power steering , no catalytic converter , simple mechanics etc. In spite of that it is light and nippy and has always been reliable. The trick is finding one reasonably rust free.

Hello Dario . Let me have your e mail address. I’ll delete it once I’ve made contact.

Yes , good call. It was done when the cam shims were checked. I remember changing them on my VTR1000 as it was reckoned to be a real issue. The originals were perfect of course . Still miss that bike but the sports riding position was getting uncomfortable.

I preferred the Gen 1 Hayabusa to the Gen 2 for engine smoothness , but overall I prefer the Blackbird to both of them. Honda seemed to just get it right in most areas for my type of riding and preferences . Others will disagree of course.

The wide angle camera makes everything seem much bigger than it really is. It also seems to make hills look less steep and on smaller roads everything seems to be moving much faster .

Does it only work for old mechanics Tony ??

@@calderdale6795 Generally, yes. New mechanics only see pictures and diagrams on a tablet with full instructions on how to do things. Plus which, the car is on a lift with all the wheels off the floor. Drop it down on the floor and they wouldn't have a clue.

Mechanically it’s just another old car Alan. The only difference is the ridiculous price of parts. In your case you have a stock normally aspirated beemer engine which can use cheap beemer engine parts . Your specialist probably won’t tell you that ? Mine has a Cosworth modified unit so most parts aren’t standard sadly . A good example is the starter motor……modded one ( nearside fitting ) four times the cost of a standard beemer part.

@@calderdale6795 👍 Thanks, I would be very interested to see you make more videos of your Arnage in the future 🔮........

I will hopefully be doing another vlog after 13 years use soon , once I’ve serviced it ( still using it to collect leaves). I would look for rust under the deck and in the collectors box. The latter has now rusted through on mine , near the handle and will need some work. Also check the front wheel bearings for excessive play ( plastic bearings and an easy fix). The Kawasaki engine on mine is still perfect after annual oil changes. Recently cleaned the sparking plugs and air filter but they are still original and work perfectly.

Depends on your viewpoint , and of course the depth of your pockets ! For me , the Green Label is lighter , cheap to insure on a classic policy , and has cheap road tax in the UK. The Mulsanne had just about reached the zenith of development for the L series engine , but who needs twin turbos on a 6.75 litre engine ? The Arnage loses out on power and performance but , I find , it goes very well being tuned by Cosworth for mid range. It keeps up with my MGF 160 easily , while still giving reasonable economy and emissions. Plenty of people will disagree with me of course !