Kick start foot rest

[Deleted User]

I’ve been studying my yet to be resurrected spring frame 39-41 Flying Squirrel. The right side foot rest is missing or at least I thought it was. I discovered the other day that the kick start lever rotates forward to rest on the frame member that would normally hold the foot peg. There is a stub on the frame member and it is all set so that the kick start rests on the stub. The foot bar of the kick start ends up in a perfect position for a booted foot to work the gear lever.

Has anyone seen anything like this before? If so is a factory thing or a mod that someone came up with? Should I be thinking of reinstating a separate foot peg or keeping it as it is and using the kick start as the foot peg?

Ray

[BRIAN MARSHALL]

Hi, I think that it is probably a DIY modification, as I have never seen anything like it. It is probably straining the kickstart return spring in some way when fully forwards, and in use as a footrest will put a lot of stress on the slotted boss that the pedal pivots on. These are not a strong item, as the pawl operating slot is far too long, and weakens the boss considerably. The ends of the slot should be carefully checked for cracks. I would definitely restore it back to a standard footrest. You will also need the kickstart return stop that normally limits the forward movement of the pedal.
Brian

[gammakeith]

+1 for what Brian says. I only noticed the crack in mine once it was all cleaned up. It went at least 1/3 of the way around the boss so was just waiting to surprise me! Anything that increases the loading on the boss has to be a bad thing. It sounds like it was a clever piece of lateral thinking though!

Keith

[Deleted User]

I agree about the ingenious lateral thinking. I have never liked the ugly cranked kickstart lever which gets in the way of my right heel, forcing a wider leg stance. Got used to it of course like so many other features. [ The left foot likewise is forced out somewhat by the bulky pancake dynamo ]

I’m not sure Brian that rotating the lever forwards as described would necessarily strain the spring, as some of the movement would just be releasing its pre-load. But I hav’nt had a close look yet – too cold!

[BRIAN MARSHALL]

The inner end of the kickstart return spring is badly located as standard, as it just hooks over a short peg in one of the flats of the hexagonal part of the K/S retaining screw/boss. If the spring gets forced into the opposite direction to its normal action I would have thought that there would be a tendency for it to become unhooked…..
Brian

[Deleted User]

Thanks for the comments – much appreciated. I’ll be doing some exploratory surgery soon and will let you know what I find.

Ray

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