Silk and where have I been!

[Arthur]

Hello to all. i really must complere my 1922 Squirrel standard. I’m so close, but lost momentum. You know how it can be. 10 years away from Scotts is enough however!

Main reason for posting is I have the HOTS for the 5 miles ONLY Silk being advertuised by a dealer at £6,500 (ouch?!).

My intention woulkd be to USE it as part of my stable of classic Brits – probably no more than 1,500 miles pa. I am a big fella and do tend to ride a bit hard.

Will the crank seals be useless after this time standing. Am I just plain silly? No I do not have money to burn!.

THANKS ARTHUR FARROW arthurwfarrow@hotmail.com

[paulw]

I love them.Much less mellow than my 1960 Brum.My Silk no 137 stood since 1980.I had no problem with seals but there was extensive sediment and corrosion in the cooling system-I have heard of the water jacket corroding through the block and water then draining into the crankcase.
What is the engine no of the one you are looking at?-last ones like mine suffer cooling problems if ridden hard-Roger Moss is sorting out a new needle for the carb for me.

[BRIAN MARSHALL]

Hi Arthur. Do have a very critical look at your tyres, because even if they look fine to a MOT tester, with no signs of cracks they will definitely be age-hardened, just like me, with very poor grip in wet conditions, and when the wick is well turned up. It would be false economy not to renew them. Cheers, Brian

[Rod Norris]

Hi Arthur,
Personally I’m warey of an engine that has stood a number of years and would automatically strip it down. On other bikes engine seals have regularly been know to fail on bikes that have done very little mileage and they can become brittle. The mixture of damp and a dry sump where roller bearings have rested for so long would make me warey.

I’m not trying to put you off the purchase but if you’re looking to just get on and ride with the minimum of fuss, a bike that has been run regularly with more miles can sometimes be a better option. If the bike has rested on the tyres for a long time they can leave a flat on the bottom that will be noticed at any speed. I believe it is very good advice to change the tyres. The modern rubber will be much more supple and offer better grip. The old rubber will have hardened.
If nothing else these points will provide good bargaining power when negotiating a deal.
There is a new “old bike magazine” called RealClassic from the long standing editor of the Classic Bike Guide before it was bought out. Issue 3 has a write up on a Silk by the Toaster. If you try out the site http://www.realclassic.co.uk you can go on the message board and leave a posting there as well as here. Toaster (Steve) is very helpful and his mate actually owns one and I’m sure he will give you some good advice. Just mention my name.

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