Ariel Owners Motorcycle Club

A silly question but, on a '61 Arrow, which way should the ignition switch be turned for 'normal' operation? It is not marked ign/emg, as many models are, and the manual gives no info on this.

Ta Chaps!

Pretty certain is clockwise for ign and widershins for emg. To be sure check the owner's guide, which will also tell you how to change gear silently, actually I think that had gone by the time the 2 strokes arrived.

hi Clive ;
to the right for ignition on , you may see the ammeter needle go full over when you switch ign on if the points have stopped in a particular spot or may not see this .
one thing you dont do is to leave the ignition switched on without the engine running , otherwise you can end up with the contact breaker springs becoming glowing red hot and burning .

EMG position is only used if you have a flat battery to get the engine going and then you must switch over to normal running otherwise will burn out the alternator .

on ignition switch you should have clockwise for normal ON use and anti clockwise for EMG , but thats only if the wiring loom is of the type that has EMG wires in it , some restored bikes may have new looms that were not EMG type looms , it all depends what was bought when a new loom was sought as some can come without the EMG wiring in them .

cheers
ian

Roger Gwynn wrote: ↑Wed Jan 04, 2023 5:36 pm Pretty certain is clockwise for ign and widershins for emg. To be sure check the owner's guide, which will also tell you how to change gear silently, actually I think that had gone by the time the 2 strokes arrived.

I would be interested in knowing how to change gear silently. Mine needs a firm pull up to get into first gear and is not silent. It is fine when moving along. Maybe it's a feature - on my Triumph Tiger Cub the gearbox was silent and smooth and the gears were the right way round, 1 down and 3 up (cue argument from Ariel community)

Clive
I am going through similar starting problems that you appear to have found. Has it started yet?
Stu

The gear change problem is likely to be the clutch not disengaging properly or a degree of stiffness in rotation between the centre and the basket, there should only be a slight drag when the plates and chain are removed, hold the centre and try to spin the basket.

Stu.B wrote: ↑Thu Jan 05, 2023 1:33 pm Clive
I am going through similar starting problems that you appear to have found. Has it started yet?
Stu

Hi Stu. Sorry for the tardy response time! Yes, I have resolved the problems and the engine starts & runs well now. Do you need any info?

Clive