Sunday 31 July 2005

HELLO again my friends! I am glad to be back again from my summer holidays in France and having had a look at my website I have decided to re-arrange the pages hopefully to make them easier to navigate. Two new sections on books have been added as well as a Search engine which searches the whole website. I have also updated many sections with information I received over the last few months.

Jean-Claude from Compiegne, France has informed me that the France-Inter radio transmission on the VeloSoleX broadcast at 1500 hours on the 22 July 2005 can be heard in French by going to "Laissez-vous transporter" and clicking on "Ecoutez l'emission du 22 Juillet 2005".

Barry from the UK has asked me what the correct mixture is for use on a 1970 VeloSoleX S 3800 and I forwarded him the information contained in the Fuel section of the Engine page. Various combinations are regularly advised on Internet websites including the usual 2-Stroke Mineral Oil and Regular Unleaded Fuel 95 RON at 33 : 1 (3%) but personally I have used Semi-Synthetic and Premium Unleaded Fuel 98 RON at 50 : 1 (2%) for two years now with no problems. The rumour of the SPI Lip Seal behind the Crankshaft Roller Bearing deteriorating with the use of Premium or Super Unleaded Fuel is still debated on the VeloSoleX forums. I am looking into this at the moment and I shall put the conclusions I find on the website.

Craig from Ireland tells me he is restoring a VeloSoleX that he bought back in 1988 when he was at school which was previously owned by an actor in County Kildare. Unfortunately it appears that cellulose thinners has been used at some point to clean out the fuel system and despite replacing the Fuel Pump Diaphragm and cleaning the Fuel Pipes and Fuel Tank, the engine still refuses to start. Amongst other things, I advised him that he may be having the naughty troubles with the old Fuel Pump BALLS... Craig also wishes to find out where the best place is to obtain VeloSoleX parts. So if anyone over in Ireland can help Craig secure a local source for spares I am sure he will appreciate it (please forward me the details to pass on).

David from France is after information on the dark green Roland Garros VeloSoleX S 3800 V1 Hungarian model (produced in 1996), labeled Cyklon (the later V2 Hungarian model was labeled IMPEX). I believe about 140 to 150 were made but he would like to know exact figures if possible. So if anybody knows and also about the differences between the two, please drop me an email. The only information I have at present is that on the V2 model the Engine Lift Handle was green, it had new cycle pedals, the rear light was large with several compartments, there was a identification plate under the seat towards the front, it was numbered at the top of the forks and had the word IMPEX marked below the cylinder.

Alexandre from Portugal informs me that my site is now listed on his Portuguese and English website VeloSoleX :: A bicicleta que rola sozinha. Thanks for that Alexandre. Alexandre has the history and technical documentation of all models and several ZIP files for VeloSoleX S 3800 Parts, Disassembly Guide and 5000 Cycle Parts. His site is listed on my Links page. I had a problem checking the link this morning but he may be in the process of doing an update.

Jose, also from Portugal, has asked what 2-Stroke tuning literature is available. I will be adding a section to the website giving this information shortly. He also asks about the correct Spark Plug. In this regard, I have revised my VeloSoleX S 3800 Spark Plug Table to make it easier to use.

Michel from France has written asking for information on how to change the Carburettor Venturi Diameter. The French Altavista translation of my website is a bit horrendous and so I will be adding another picture at some point to the Carburettor section shortly to clarify what needs to be done.

Finally, Kevin from the UK has emailed to ask what routine servicing is required for a 1968-70 VeloSoleX S 3800. I have decided as a consequence to include an Adjustment, Maintenance, Dis-assembly and Fault-finding section to my website in the next few weeks. For now, here is a very rough English Translation of the guidebook using Google.

Well that's it for a few days. Until the next news, Happy Solexing!