BSA conical hub disassembly

[dxhall]

Anyone ever disassembled the conical front hub on a ‘71 BSA?  This hub is the only ‘71 part on the bike, and I don’t want to buy a manual for one job.  I don’t see how to remove the axle, and I don’t want to use force unless I’m sure it’s necessary.

[oldbike54]

 There is a reverse thread locking ring holding the axle in, you should see 4 holes in the ring that are designed for a pin spanner . Usually a small drift swatted gently with a hammer will get it moving , then you need to tap the axle loose . Remember , it is reverse threaded .

 And how in heck did you end up with a BSA only having one '71 model component ?

 Dusty

[dxhall]

I acquired a ‘68 Benelli Mojave, which uses an Italian copy of a Rickman frame.  The stock motor (a 360cc single) was junk, and I read that the frame was designed for a 650cc twin.  I did the obvious thing and bought an abandoned project with a 650 BSA motor.  And, in fact, the 650 motor does fit in the Benelli frame.  Kind of.

The Benelli’s front brake is too small, so I acquired a BSA conical front.  I’ll modify the KYB forks from the abandoned project to fit the conical hub.

It’s a good thing I have two milling machines and a lathe.  Stay tuned.

[oldbike54]

I acquired a ‘68 Benelli Mojave, which uses an Italian copy of a Rickman frame.  The stock motor (a 360cc single) was junk, and I read that the frame was designed for a 650cc twin.  I did the obvious thing and bought an abandoned project with a 650 BSA motor.  And, in fact, the 650 motor does fit in the Benelli frame.  Kind of.

The Benelli’s front brake is too small, so I acquired a BSA conical front.  I’ll modify the KYB forks from the abandoned project to fit the conical hub.

It’s a good thing I have two milling machines and a lathe.  Stay tuned.

 Don't expect that Comical hub brake to do much , bad design to begin with .

 Dusty

[dxhall]

I’ve never ridden a bike with the conical front brake.  It’s claimed, though, that with proper setup, it will work pretty well.  We’ll see. The bike should weigh in at 350 pounds or so, so I shouldn’t need killer brakes.  I thought about one of the 4ls setups, but I couldn’t see paying that kind of money.  The conical was cheap and looks cool.

[Sheepdog]

They promise more than they deliver as stock, but those conical brakes respond well to good setup. Extended actuators give you a little more mechanical advantage:

https://thebonnevilleshop.com/triumph-bsa-conical-hub-extended-front-brake-lever-set-pn-37-3986-37-3987-l/

They do look pretty cool...

[frozengoose]

They promise more than they deliver as stock, but...They do look pretty cool...

Well I can verify that! The conical hub brake, at least the front one, is about as effective as the old sls brake on the early sixties Triumphs. I've owned a '61, '64, and '72 and they all had about the same mediocre braking. The dls brake fitted to the 68-70's wasn't bad and I never could understand why BSA/Triumph dropped it in favor of the conical hub type. I have a dls brake setup, it's supposed to drop right into the conical hub with minimal machining, but I never did try it out.

[oldbike54]

Well I can verify that! The conical hub brake, at least the front one, is about as effective as the old sls brake on the early sixties Triumphs. I've owned a '61, '64, and '72 and they all had about the same mediocre braking. The dls brake fitted to the 68-70's wasn't bad and I never could understand why BSA/Triumph dropped it in favor of the conical hub type. I have a dls brake setup, it's supposed to drop right into the conical hub with minimal machining, but I never did try it out.

 Not to be snarky , but the '68-'70 Triumphs and BSA's didn't have disc brakes , they shared an effective twin leading shoe design , improved in '69 with parallel actuating arms .

 Dusty

[frozengoose]

Not to be snarky , but the '68-'70 Triumphs and BSA's didn't have disc brakes , they shared an effective twin leading shoe design , improved in '69 with parallel actuating arms .

 Dusty

The dls brake fitted to the 68-70's ...
DLS = double leading shoe, not DISC. I have a '68 DLS in my garage, also a '73 DISC, so there's that.

[dxhall]

My goal here isn’t ultimate stopping power - if that’s what I wanted, I’d go with dual discs.  I’m after coolness. 

Legend has it that Benelli intended this frame for what became their 650 Tornado, but didn’t get the motor finished in time and needed some cash flow.  Thus the unloved Benelli Mojave, which mated the 650-designed frame to a 360cc single.

The tank on the Mojave was used on several Benelli and Montgomery Wards “Riverside” bikes, and is very popular with the cafe crowd for its clean lines.  It’s being remanufacured now in India.  The stock seat (which is also the fender) isn’t being remanufactured and is rarely seen.  Google “Benelli Mojave” for a look at the original bike.

The stock front brake is cute, in a strange way, but 7 inches of single leading shoe aren’t going to stop a 650cc bike.  The conical is a low budget solution.  If the bike turns out well, I’ll consider a flashy 4LS front.

[lrutt]

Don't expect that Comical hub brake to do much , bad design to begin with .

 Dusty

While I might have agreed with this statement when I first got my 71 Trophy, after downloading an article off the net on how to properly set one up it works very very well.

[oldbike54]

 So have you managed to get it apart yet ?

 Dusty

[Diploman]

I second the recommendation for extended actuators on the conical brake.  I owned a 71 TR6R for several years and was never happy with the high-effort, middling power of the conical brake.  It has an odd arrangement where the brake cable sheath is fixed on the rear actuator, while the cable attaches to the front actuator.  A squeeze on the handlebar lever pulls the two actuators toward each other, in contrast to most other DLS designs which link the actuator arms with a bar so they operate in the same direction.  The extended actuators offer greater mechanical advantage and certainly would improve the undistinguished effectiveness of the stock conical brake, as well as lowering the effort needed at the lever.