[andyfrost]

Same as Angus , I’ve re-installed old ones many hundreds of times with no issues whatsoever.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Ploughs are not exactly plentiful , but they do turn up from time to time , so just bide your time. The larger ploughing wheels are harder to source , I’m assuming you’ve got these with it.
The 700 is in my opinion the best machine by miles that Howard produced , if you’ve ever really used a Gem , and then a 700 , you will soon realise.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Assuming you have your old one , it shouldn’t present a problem. Many on here speak highly of John Cruse , who will make one to pattern. The original should have a midway grease nipple fitted , if your overly worried about keeping it original , if not , it will be an easier option for whoever you have makes you one.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

VERY VERY nice , good to hear you are going to put it to work.

Top job Andy.

[andyfrost]

In that case it may be down to trial and error , I did this with my 56A , from memory I started off at 3/16 BTDC , and played around from there.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Chris , I’m sure when Charlie looks in he will have the answer.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Just measure , inner , outer and width and go to your local bearing stockist and with this info they should sort you out.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Yes , it most certainly will , the fuel tank mounting may differ , but that’s only a minor problem.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

It would have done , one piece of advice I always offer is “bide your time” , one will turn up somewhere or other.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

25C engines are not overly difficult to source , there are some at present on that well known auction site , all ignition components are readily available new , so you should not have too many problems.
Personally , I would say it is definately a worthwhile project.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

If you intend using it , then yes , a total stripdown is the only way , once stripped down , try honing the bore and see what what sort of result you get. As for the valves , proper guide cleaners are available , again see what happens , and then get back to us.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

VERY nice , many thanks for sharing with us.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Dave , the howard blade is mine , I lost three , one of which I managed to find. Hold on to it until next year please , I’m well stocked with those.

All the very best Andy.

[andyfrost]

Geoff , I certainly wouldn’t have any issues with it from the storage point of view. I try to make it a once a month job to fire all mine up during the winter , just running a carbful through , and never seem to have problems.

Andy.

[andyfrost]

Dave , they were never designed to run on sythetic type oils , many older twostrokes had bushes for crankcase bearings , and they relied on the film of oil(given by straight 30 grade) to form the crankshaft seal.
As Stew has correctly pointed out they simply will not run as they should , I suspect he is talking about a Bantam with a Villiers 25C , which although had ball bearing mains , still relied on a ph brass gland seal.
All my vintage gear (nearly all twostrokes) is used on a regular basis , and performs faultlessly on normal petrol , coupled with the correct grade of oil.
Hope this helps.

Andy.

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