Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Camel, Sahara, Kanguro, Coguaro
fofs216
Posts: 22
Joined: 09 Oct 2018 07:57
Location: Colchester UK

Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by fofs216 »

Hi Folks,

I'm the new and very proud owner of a Mk1 Camel that I bought off Hombre (Hans) over in Amsterdam. She's a little rough around the edges (sorry Hans) but I'm trying to get her MOT ready to begin what appears to be a pretty arduous task of getting her UK registered.

She has later forks fitted and so runs a front disc and gold sliders and I'd really like to identify just which model of Marzocchis these are and also try and get my hands on some original Mk1 forks with drum setup too.

The wiring is..... unique (again apologies Hans!) and so I'm hoping some kind soul can send me an original wiring diagram, I have a PDF scan of the original Italian owners manual but the detail is too blurred for me to check wire colours etc. I know there's a link on the forum to Rupe's re-wire but I'm after how it wold have originally been.

Lastly I want to say a big thank you to Hans and his friend Tom (also on here) for helping me both with the bike purchase and Tom for helping with some additional parts.

Good to be here :)
Jamie
'It must be a .....'
Posts: 365
Joined: 12 Sep 2010 12:25

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by 'It must be a .....' »

Hi Jamie, good choice of Morini, yet not the best choice for sourcing original cycle parts. Good luck in the quest.
Meanwhile find attached a wiring diagram.
Have fun, Ian
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fofs216
Posts: 22
Joined: 09 Oct 2018 07:57
Location: Colchester UK

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by fofs216 »

HI Ian,

Thank you for diagrams and the welcome, really appreciated!

Jamie
Steve Brown
Posts: 1390
Joined: 12 Nov 2007 23:44
Location: Leicestershire

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by Steve Brown »

Hi Jamie, and welcome to the club and Camel ownership. I think you'll find a bit of a challenge trying to return the wiring to original. There are a lot of funny little connectors and junctions that don't make a lot of sense until you find out it was done that way for production easing. Just a number of modules of wiring assembled around the bike. Most of us end up making our own wiring harnesses and using switchgear that takes our fancy. Are you determined to make the bike 'as original'?


Great fun to ride though, so hope you enjoy it!
All donations to the rest home for old Camels, Leicestershire.
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MarkB
Posts: 673
Joined: 22 Jun 2009 13:14
Location: Stevenage

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by MarkB »

I had my Strada rewired by Rupert Paul. He did an excellent job of reducing the original multi-coloured spaghetti Bolognese to a simple and effective system. He kept the original fuse box etc, so that if anyone wants to return the bike to factory spec in the future (but why?) it could be done.
"I'll have a V please, Bob."
fofs216
Posts: 22
Joined: 09 Oct 2018 07:57
Location: Colchester UK

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by fofs216 »

Hi Steve and Mark,

Apologies I should have said tidy up the wiring as my bike's wiring is even more of a mess than it would have been standard with items literally hanging loose or moved from where they should be fitted i.e to try and keep them out of the worst of the mud etc!

Over this weekend I did my best to tidy up the wiring and managed to get the lights and indicators working, I even have a working brake light working from both the lever and the left hand brake pedal!

I do have another question though folks, I re-fitted the original plastic breather catch 'tank' once I worked out where it fitted.

The tank has a big fitting at the bottom which I've connected to the engine crankcase but it's the four upper vents I wanted to ask about. I've fitted two of the pipes to the two cylinder head breathers and then run pipes from the other two fittings to vent to atmosphere at the bottom of the frame. Is that right? and is there meant to be an order to the four connections as I couldn't tell if there's a difference?

Thanks again for the help,
Jamie
Last edited by fofs216 on 22 Oct 2018 16:07, edited 1 time in total.
MickeyMoto
Posts: 2415
Joined: 22 Nov 2008 17:41
Location: Even further oop North

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by MickeyMoto »

Hi Jamie,

I believe there is an order, as the internal box is baffled. I'll have a look at my breather box later. Mine vents to fresh air, but I believe some bikes had spigots on the top of the air filter boxes so the fumes, oil mist or whatever was burnt in the engine to reduce emissions.

Mike.
fofs216
Posts: 22
Joined: 09 Oct 2018 07:57
Location: Colchester UK

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by fofs216 »

Hi Mike,

that's brilliant, thank you! I Assumed there would be a difference but blowing into it didn't magically reveal the order!

Cheers,
jamie
MickeyMoto
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Joined: 22 Nov 2008 17:41
Location: Even further oop North

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by MickeyMoto »

IMG_20181022_144006__1540235010_86.171.144.85.jpg
IMG_20181022_144006__1540235010_86.171.144.85.jpg (20.38 KiB) Viewed 9074 times
Hopefully this is the box you are talking about...

MM31?

Top two from the rocker boxes, bottom two vent, in my case to the chain for a bit of lubrication (hopefully, or not?).
'It must be a .....'
Posts: 365
Joined: 12 Sep 2010 12:25

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by 'It must be a .....' »

Hi, looking at a Mk1 Camel breather box from the back of the bike: the 2 left pipes go to the rocker covers and the two right pipes go to atmosphere or in some cases to the airbox.
Like Mike I have the pipes leading to the chain (near the front sprocket).
Originally on the UK Mk1 the airbox pipes were simply attached to the top tube where they went to atmosphere and covered everything under the tank with a film of oil.

Enjoy
fofs216
Posts: 22
Joined: 09 Oct 2018 07:57
Location: Colchester UK

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by fofs216 »

HI Guys,

That's brilliant thank you!

Incidentally my breather box is mounted across the frame with the four small outlets pointing directly upwards and the large outlet at the bottom!

Cheers,
Jamie
fofs216
Posts: 22
Joined: 09 Oct 2018 07:57
Location: Colchester UK

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by fofs216 »

Another question folks.... suspension this time!

I'm reading that the MX580 shocks should be pressurised, if so what sort of pressures should I be aiming for and... do you folks pressure your front forks too?

I have Marzocchi M1Rs fitted to my Guzzi Le Mans but you don't pressurise them despite having presto air valves fitted?

Thanks again,
Jamie
MickeyMoto
Posts: 2415
Joined: 22 Nov 2008 17:41
Location: Even further oop North

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by MickeyMoto »

fofs216 wrote:HI Guys,

That's brilliant thank you!

Incidentally my breather box is mounted across the frame with the four small outlets pointing directly upwards and the large outlet at the bottom!

Cheers,
Jamie
Hi Jamie,

Mine is not a standard bike. It is an early Strada with a later engine, so I placed the box under the left cover. On the Excalibur it was also horizontal behind the engine.

Mike.
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Ming
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Joined: 01 Aug 2014 16:32
Location: France
Location: Central France

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by Ming »

None of the Morinis I have run have had breather boxes. All the pipes vent to atmosphere and I've never (touch wood) had any problem with oil fouling.
MickeyMoto
Posts: 2415
Joined: 22 Nov 2008 17:41
Location: Even further oop North

Re: Newbie Camel owner saying hi!

Post by MickeyMoto »

Hi Ming,

Without the box I would need the fat tube with baffles to keep crankcase pressure. This tube looks ugly hanging out the back. I had a bad experience on a 500 in hot weather. On a long journey on the A1 came to a roundabout and applied the brakes. Back did not work, disc was covered in oil from the breather. Just a fine mist, but friction was absent... Also lost the kick start, but that is another story!
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