Hello, I'm just freshening up my Lucas MS1 Magneto. New winding, bearings, seals etc. Does anyone know the correct color of the ignition cable? Is the 1932 black red or black yellow? Someone an idea?
Thank you very much
Claudius
Looking through 'The Illustrated History of the Sunbeam' it's hard to tell..they all look like a single colour to me..No help I'm afraid..John
Thank you John for your assessment. Almost all cables on the motorcycle were marked in color. But Lucas could have delivered it to Sunbeam with a black cable, so far I've never seen any other proof. Best regards from Germany. Claudius
Do you mean the high-tension lead to the plug? If so, this would surely have been rubber-covered and therefore black?
Many thanks for your help and tips. I completely overhauled the MS. I stayed with the black cable. I kept the original paint. Comes back to my original paint machine. Greetings from Germany Claudius.
Hello Klaudius
I am also rebuilding a MS1. The mag is done but there is still a little left to do on the dynamo. I was lucky to find a unit to rebuild that had never been taken apart before. It still had the original Lucas seal on one of the points cover screws. Predictably though, the coil was useless.
What did you do with the condenser? I had to change my original mica unit - even though there was nothing wrong with it. The rewound coil was slightly larger and it clashed with the condenser when I rebuilt the armature - a shame. In the end I used an Easycap which fits in the Points assembly. It seems to work very well.
Did you stick with the 3 brush system on the dynamo? - It seems like a bad idea to me!
Best regards
Mark Odlum (Model 95L, 1936)
I rewired my 3 brush dynamo to run as a 2 brush and used a modern regulator.Works well..John
Hi. My unit was probably never apart either. I specially built a tool to open and close the Lucas sealing screw. Magnet has been rewound, new bearings. The Lima has been converted to 2 brushes with electronic controls. Lima bearings were only cleaned and new balls were added. Ale Coal Magnet Lima was renewed. Greetings Claudius
Magnet still without assembled Lima ...
Re cable colours pre war. all cables were rubber covered, and identified by either numbered or coloured sleeves at each end.
these were usually the first thing to degrade and drop off. These days i use coloured mini zip ties at each end, at least where they can't be seen.
So few wires in the circuits of these bikes its not really problem to work out anyway.
In 1932 Sunbeam seemed a bit more colorful. Unfortunately, I no longer know whether the rubberized earen or the cotton is sheathed.Claudius
that will refer to the colour of the sleeves, not the cable.
Hi. Please forgive me for my bad english. I don't understand the whole thing, I think. Am i correct in the assumption? Only cable ends have been color-coded? So practically the ends were never visible? The long rest was black? Before I could reconnect my old original paint girls in 1932, I would have liked to have done it originally. I'm not a friend of Cyrkus horses ... Because of my poor English, I often put in a photo. I hope this is bearable. Greetings Claudius
hi Klaudius,
Over the ends of the cable went a rubber sleeve, or small tube if you like, only a few millimetres long, these could be coloured, or have a number printed on them.
I have trouble putting photos on here, but will take some photos later to show you what I mean.
Don't apologise for your english its better than my German and I have German ancestors!
klaudius, I have sent a photo by email to you,
Good Morning. I want to thank. Now, thanks to Ken, I understand the whole thing - I was very relieved that the cables weren't colorful. Greetings from Germany. Claudius