At last, I have managed to snatch some time to start playing.

Unfortunately I do not have a starting handle and there does not appear to be any mechanism for one, and there is no provision for mounting an electric start so I can only assume that the generator (which unfortunately is missing from mine) also served as a starter motor.

In order to spin it over I wrapped a length of cord around the small diameter of the flywheel and gave it a hearty pull! I had taken the plug cap off and placed the lead near to one of the head bolts but there was not a glimmer of a spark.

So it was obvious even to me that my first problem was to sort out the magneto.

Having absolutely no experience of these things I wrote asking for help and advice to the list. I had a reply off list. His comment was that it appeared I had an SR magneto which in his words were "pretty bombproof" and and as the engine had been stored in very poor conditions it was highly probable it needed removing and drying out in a warm oven for several hours.

This did present a bit of a problem as the nut that holds the cog on is recessed into the body of the cog and it was difficult to get a socket set onto it. But in the end it was possible to pull the tapered shaft of the magneto out of the cog, hopefully the relationship between the teeth and the chain will not have been disturbed and the timing will be okay when I replace the magneto as there is a key way but it does not seem to have had a key fitted.

So, the magneto is in a warm oven and that is as far as it has got today. As I do not want to lose the position of the timing chain in relation to the cog I have pulled it back to keep it tight by twisting a piece of wire to the outside of the casing (after taking photo 1) . On the photo it does look as though there is a large amount of nut to put a socket on but in fact when it is tight on the magneto shaft there is less than 1/16 of an inch protruding.

The other question Mike answered was about the starting mechanism.on the smaller diameter of the flywheel there is the groove with a small indent in it just visible in Photo 4, apparently that is for the starting handle. So making a handle is going to be my job while I wait for the magneto to dry out.

Photo 1

Photo 2

Photo 3

Photo 4