Hey everyone, I recently got a 43 BSA, I had to clean out the magneto, points, carb, and gas tank to get it running. Once i finally did, I'm having oil come out of the vent in the chain case housing. What could be the cause of this? the bike sat for about 7 years since she was started. Could it be the wet sump? if so what do i do? I already drained the oil out of the case, and refilled do the level plug.

Thanks for your help.
Dan

email (option): cruisincat58@yahoo.com

Hi Dan,

As I understand it, oil leaks were installed at the factory by Nigel Fenwick the third. He is the grandson of Nigel Fenwick, Sr. They had quite the family business starting at the birth of the British Motor industry, and finally having a monopoly installing oil leaks at every maker of any British car or motorcycle. Only at the last gasp of all the makers did the family dynasty take a turn for the worse. They are now trying to regain their former place of prominence by selling "Classic British Leak Replenishment Kits". Only their kits are authorized by the foundation. Beware of cheap imitations made in India and other oriental countries. Those just don't fit correctly.

I know this is true as they are in my family tree, and I had a chat with Uncle Nigel the other day.

email (option): britool51@hotmail.com

Robb @ British Tool

Hi Dan,

As I understand it, oil leaks were installed at the factory by Nigel Fenwick the third. He is the grandson of Nigel Fenwick, Sr. They had quite the family business starting at the birth of the British Motor industry, and finally having a monopoly installing oil leaks at every maker of any British car or motorcycle. Only at the last gasp of all the makers did the family dynasty take a turn for the worse. They are now trying to regain their former place of prominence by selling "Classic British Leak Replenishment Kits". Only their kits are authorized by the foundation. Beware of cheap imitations made in India and other oriental countries. Those just don't fit correctly.

I know this is true as they are in my family tree, and I had a chat with Uncle Nigel the other day.

email (option): vinver@ns.sympatico.ca

Ha Ha you kids! Now go to your rooms!
Dan after seven years it's most likely that it has wet sumped. If you run the bike long enough it will clear and return the oil to the tank. But if you have replenished your oil tank? It will overflow and make a right mess. Better to remove the small plug in the bottom of sump and drain it out. Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

"recently got a 43 BSA" means your too new to owning a BSA M20!

Dan...You need to give it a good run and get to know the bike. More than likely you'll get to find other oil leaks and with time and plenty of clean rags you'll get to see and know just what the bike demands and where it needs plugging. Personally I like to see a bit of a leak it shows authenticity.

Dan, I assume you mean oil coming out of the engine breather? If so, that's a wet-sumping issue which, as Ron says, can be partly sorted by removing the drain plug from the bottom of the crankcase.

If you've had oil filling the primary chaincase, that will need draining too - which is very important because over-oiling can contaminate the clutch plates. They're dry on the military M20s and protected by a sealed cover/drum.

You might also need to re-seat the oil pressure release valve; a ball accessible through the timing cover (there are instructions somewhere on this site for that). I've just had the same problem with my M20 - which appears to be sorted now. I suspect a bit of grit or something stopped the ball seating. I just cleaned it out and re-seated it.

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine,com

Hi Vincent,

My great great Aunt, Nellie Bly, married Nigel Fenwick Jr. way back in the 1920s. Her claim to fame is she is an electrcal engineer (self taught) who actually postulated there is no such thing as electricity as you have correctly pointed out. This is also verified by the Lucas company. Those creeps never paid her for her discovery, so to this day, she gets her revenge on Lucas by ocassionally letting the smoke out of the wires. Unfortunately, her research got burned/bombed out during the Blitz in 1941 and even with todays technology, cannot be duplicated.

email (option): britool51@hotmail.com

the trouble is there is some heat generated when the smoke is expelled this causes a problem as the wire covering is not heat resitant

Thanks for the help. I really know nothing about this bike. I'm trying to learn as i go. I fixed the oil problem my next issue is the clutch. It wont allow me to shift. I believer this is because it was sitting for so long and now I have to take the clutch apart, clean and scuff the plates? is this correct or could there be another problem?

email (option): cruisincat58@yahoo.com

Hi Dan...I am assuming from your post the clutch is not releasing fully (dragging)..in other words when you try to engage gears it is just making a grating sound? It is possible the clutch has 'stuck' together after an extended period standing idle and the solution would be to strip it down, clean it out and reassemble it.
Take a look on the 'technical section' of the website...there is a fairly detailed article on clutch slip, drag, adjustments etc. which may be helpful....Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com