Author Topic: Valve springs - dual or not?  (Read 1582 times)

Offline brettsyoung

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Valve springs - dual or not?
« on: 25.06. 2016 01:59 »
Hi all.  This is probably a stupid question, but do all A10s have dual valve springs?  Pulled my engine down to find singles, but my manuals and other pictures I've seen all have duals.  I'm kind of assuming the duals are for RGS etc and not the standard bikes.  is this right?  cheers Brett

Offline TimK

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #1 on: 25.06. 2016 03:23 »
Brett,

my 59 Gold Flash has dual springs, but whether all A10s have dual springs I'll leave to wiser heads than mine.
cheers

Tim
Tim Kerridge
Australia

Offline duTch

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #2 on: 25.06. 2016 03:27 »

 I think singles are an anomaly,  and added by a PO.
 There's been discussion here not too long ago if you do a search
Started building in about 1977/8 a on average '52 A10 -built from bits 'n pieces never resto intended -maybe 'personalised'
Have a '74 850T Moto Guzzi since '92-best thing I ever bought doesn't need a kickstart 'cos it bump starts sooooooooo(mostly) easy
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Offline muskrat

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #3 on: 25.06. 2016 21:48 »
All A7/A10's both iron and alloy heads used duel springs.
I'm not 100% sure but I think there was a mob making single beehive springs a while back.
Cheers
'51 A7 plunger, '57 A7SS racer now a A10CR, '78 XT500, '83 CB1100F, 88 HD FXST, 2000 CBR929RR ex Honda Australia Superbike .
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Offline Klaus

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #4 on: 25.06. 2016 22:14 »
I had never seen a single spring at A10 heads.
But I have converted to one spring most of my bikes and they run without problems at road or racetrack.

cheers Klaus


If you think, everything is under control, you are not fast enought.

BSA DB34 Goldstar, BSA A10 Road Rocked, BSA A7 Shooting Star, BSA M33, BSA M24, Kawa W650

Online RichardL

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #5 on: 25.06. 2016 22:22 »
http://www.rdvalvespring.com/spring-kits.html
Quote from: muskrat link=topic=10809

msg80937#msg80937 date=1466887703
All A7/A10's both iron and alloy heads used duel springs.
I'm not 100% sure but I think there was a mob making single beehive springs a while back.
Cheers

...and I believe the above  must be the mob.


Offline Klaus

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #6 on: 26.06. 2016 13:51 »
Here a picture from my conversion.
These are Gene Berg Valve springs from the VW Beetle.

cheers Klaus


If you think, everything is under control, you are not fast enought.

BSA DB34 Goldstar, BSA A10 Road Rocked, BSA A7 Shooting Star, BSA M33, BSA M24, Kawa W650

Offline terryg

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #7 on: 26.06. 2016 14:52 »
Klaus - Beetle pushrods and now Beetle valve springs.  What other Beetle bits have you found A10 uses for?

Mods - accepted this may need another thread if Klaus has been particularly inventive.
Terry
'57 'SR', '59 SR, '63 RGS

Offline worntorn

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #8 on: 26.06. 2016 16:01 »
The RD stuff is as good as it gets. About 20 years ago the local club here had RD make up a batch of Valve springs for Vincents. This was after it was determined that the replacement springs sold by the UK vendors were going soft after a couple of thousand miles.
Those fitted with the RD springs got back the fabled Vincent top speed, which really had become a bit of a fable with the poor springs fitted.

I wonder if the RD springs might help an A10 in the same way?

Glen

Offline TT John

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #9 on: 28.06. 2016 10:41 »
Here a picture from my conversion.
These are Gene Berg Valve springs from the VW Beetle.

cheers Klaus
Klaus. I can see the point in using these springs, as they look stronger than the normal A10 springs, the idea of double springs was to eliminate valve bounce, just wondering whether these springs would help in the old WD M20s, which only have a single spring, worth trying I guess.
TTJ

Offline brettsyoung

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #10 on: 29.06. 2016 23:17 »
Thanks for the reples all. I've gone and purchased a new set of SRM double springs as a result. The bloke at RD said he had springs for the A10, if anyone is interested,  but at $265 a set they were a bit rich for me! Cheers Brett

Offline Rocket Racer

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #11 on: 30.06. 2016 02:13 »
old school classic mk1 850cc mini's ran/run single springs only pull to around 5500, while the sportier coopers ran dual springs. 
I'm no engineer but I recall the duals having differing tension reduce spring bounce at higher revs. I believe modern springs with variable tension can get around this.
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Offline jjbsa

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #12 on: 01.07. 2016 12:42 »
Hi, it's Jon here, but I'm replying with my Ebor Bikes hat on.

Single valve springs have their place, but there are 2 widely appreciated reasons for fitting dual springs
1 There is one spring left if a spring breaks.  This is important!
2 Dual springs that are designed to rub against each other essentially eliminates spring surge, which happens at specific rpms with a single spring and which is a cause of spring failure.

BSA knew this when they designed the dual coils for the DBD34 Gold Star engine.  These springs rubbed together and the outer spring was variable rate, which also acts against spring surge.  The Eddie Dow valve spring conversion for the alloy head A10 used DBD34 springs for that reason.  In comparison with the standard Super Rocket springs, this conversion has a lower valve seat force when the valve is shut and a higher force at full lift, in common with modern practice.  The Dow conversion also used alloy collars, which in combination with the smaller Goldie springs, reduced valve train inertia very substantially.

In the distant past, using this conversion with Terry's Goldie springs, I had an outer coil break but the bike ran as normal below 6,200 rpm, i.e. the inner coil alone kept the valve under control till then.

I have come across customers who have been running the Dow conversion ever since the 1960s.

The spring wire we use is one of the best modern specialist valve spring alloys and is to a considerably higher standard than was available years ago.

My preference is for double springs.

Offline Greybeard

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #13 on: 01.07. 2016 15:40 »
Now there's another great piece of information!
Greybeard (Neil)
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Offline duTch

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Re: Valve springs - dual or not?
« Reply #14 on: 01.07. 2016 17:00 »

 Yep I knew I'd read somewhere the logic behind double springs...
Started building in about 1977/8 a on average '52 A10 -built from bits 'n pieces never resto intended -maybe 'personalised'
Have a '74 850T Moto Guzzi since '92-best thing I ever bought doesn't need a kickstart 'cos it bump starts sooooooooo(mostly) easy
Australia