Subject: A new bird in the flock (long)
Author: Ian Adkins
Date: Jun 11, 2000, 6:43 AM
Post ID: 1700977057
Hi All,
I would like to announce the "re" birth of my 70 Ambo......named Aquila.
She was rescued from a shed in 96 (in Kansas) after enduring many years of
isolation. She was rusty and covered in dust and dirt. Her carbs were full
of rust and her tires flat.
I must admit that initially I had little thought of restoring her and I
would have likely made more money than what I paid for her by parting her
out. However, upon pulling the engine apart I was happy to see that after
21,000 miles and years of neglect there was little wear other than the usual
flaked cylinders. New jugs, pistons and rings solved that problem and new
con rod bearings were added. Heads were inspected by Eish. I had myself and
engine...and a project. Now I had no choice but to tackle the frame.
Frame was stripped and powdercoated. New shocks and tires. Wheel bearings re
packed and brakes inspected. Many...many hours of polishing the aluminum
with Mother's. A few other items were added and I finally had a rolling
chassis with an engine!
So that brings me to yesterday, Saturday June 10, 2000. With fuel in the
carbs, choke set to three quarters I hit the switch.......VROOOM! Not more
than 2 turns and she was running. I'm sure gald I spent some time turning
over the engine to get the oil circulated before putting fuel in. She
sounded great and not all that different than my other Ambo I was riding
earlier that day.
She now has about 10 minutes running time on her. One thing that was a bit
odd was that she had trouble holding an idle....even with adjusting the idle
screws. She would start fine with the choke on but when I would take the
choke off the engine would start to die. One thing that I did notice was
that if, as the engine started to die, I gave a little twist of the throttle
and turned on the choke a bit...the engine rpm's would increase and then
slowly start to die once again.
She seemed to come off of the idle ok and rev up well. Restarting was no
problem. I am wondering if I have an air leak....or maybe a little oil from
lubing the throttle cable got into the carb and is affecting the idle. Let's
say that the idle is inconsistent.
Any thoughts as to my trouble shooting this problem would be welcome.
I would also like to take this opportunity to offer my thanks to all of you
who helped out (and continue to do so) on this project. You not only helped
me with the technical aspects of the rebuild but also with motivation,
confidence and made the whole experience a lot more fun. For that I am
grateful.
Ian Adkins