Bring Back Castrol R

[steve roberts]

 

Was this the reason John Louis was disqualified from the British Nordic Final in 1973? I can remember JL being disqualified after getting enough points to qualify for the next round, but can't remember the exact reason now. Always thought 1973 could've been his best year in the World Championship.

Apparently John bought a supply of what he thought to be pure methanol but during the British Final it was found to contain an additive - propylene oxide. He was cleared but whilst warming up prior to the European Final the FIM over-turned the verdict and he was withdrawn from the meeting at the 11th hour!

 

After the 1971 World Final the Russian rider, Vladimir Gordeev, had his points deducted (he managed to score 11) because, by then, nitro had been banned at FIM meetings and his fuel was found to contain the additive. Riders still continued to use nitro (highly volatile mixture) at domestic level and I recall that Garry Middleton once accused Ivan Mauger of using nitro at the 1972 (?) Will Internationale after it had been eventually banned.

 

Referring back to Vladimir it became somewhat of a speedway mystery that when he was banned (12 months) his brother, Valeri, suddenly appeared on the international scene. Western observers became somewhat suspicious assuming that it was the same person as they never appeared in a meeting together at the same time...hence the suspicion. I think that it wasn't until 1974 when they eventually appeared together that observers realised that they were indeed not the same person!

Edited February 4, 2016 by steve roberts

[Nobblytriers]

My son has always used castrol R and still does , when his engines go for service theres very little sign of wear , and no sign whatsoever of clogging . the oil gets thinner as it gets hot . and when it is replaced after 5 races its almost as clean as when it went in . the reason why some riders are using synthetic is the cost , with Castrol R now £15 a litre its an expensive game . Jawas need 500 ml for max 7 races £1.15 a race . Gms have 800ml capacity but still need to be chucked after 7 races , so thats nearer £2 a race .part of the reason for the lack of smell even when an engine is running Castrol R , is that modern engines have much better piston rign to Bore clearance , so all the oil gets scraped back down the bore to recycle . old japs had poor tiolerance so quite a bit of oil remained in bore and got burned . even a fully restored jap or jawa will smoke like a kipper and that smoke is the sweet smell of burning castor

 

Interesting stuff. Thanks for clarifying that Speedibee, I could well have been misinformed or my memory is as foggy as a fully restored JAP!

[speedibee]

Apparently John bought a supply of what he thought to be pure methanol but during the British Final it was found to contain an additive - propylene oxide. He was cleared but whilst warming up prior to the European Final the FIM over-turned the verdict and he was withdrawn from the meeting at the 11th hour!

 

After the 1971 World Final the Russian rider, Vladimir Gordeev, had his points deducted (he managed to score 11) because, by then, nitro had been banned at FIM meetings and his fuel was found to contain the additive. Riders still continued to use nitro (highly volatile mixture) at domestic level and I recall that Garry Middleton once accused Ivan Mauger of using nitro at the 1972 (?) Will Internationale after it had been eventually banned.

 

Referring back to Vladimir it became somewhat of a speedway mystery that when he was banned his brother, Valeri, suddenly appeared on the international scene. Western observers became somewhat suspicious assuming that it was the same person as they never appeared in a meeting together at the same time...hence the suspicion. I think that it wasn't until 1974 when they eventually appeared together that observers realised that they were indeed not the same person!

Notro would not work these days . for it to be effective over methanol the exhaust volume needs to be larger . open pipes no bother . with silencer attached the engine would stifle on back pressure and burned gas

[ch958]

i'm opening myself up to ridicule by saying this but its true -all the things i loved about a night at the speedway are just about gone:deep tracks, wide bars, gleaming bikes with proper mudguards, noise, black leathers, hardly any guests, local riders. I'm sorry - criticise me all you want but thats how i feel. Its likely that several thousand absentees feel the same

[speedibee]

I am not keen on the smell of creosote, but do like the smell of castor, however, sometimes and according to my nostrils, in a concentrated form, i.e. lots of bikes chucking it out, it can smell like excrement!

 

Foot note:- Smith & Allan Racing Castor, £27.50 per 5 litres

I have seen people using Smith and allen .castor . in fact i think Cov Comp sell it on their spares van . no doubt it's every bit as good as castrol . but I'm not convinced enough to risk finding out , there are quite a few others make racing castor , Beeline, rock oil , Putoline , and redline to name just a few , all are similarly priced . something for half of that price arouses my suspicion I'm afraid

[Long Eye]

Notro would not work these days . for it to be effective over methanol the exhaust volume needs to be larger . open pipes no bother . with silencer attached the engine would stifle on back pressure and burned gas

Not sure about Notro, but Nitro still works well.........

[speedibee]

Not sure about Notro, but Nitro still works well.........

Notro Damus , signals the end of your engine years before it happens

Edited February 4, 2016 by speedibee

[Rich]

We use Castrol / Morris R in my son's Jawa and GM on Grasstrack, and in my Pre-75 Jap however it doesn't smell the same to me as back in the 70s. Maybe we build up a tolerance to the smell over the years ? Or as we get older does our sense of smell deteriorate like eyesight and hearing ?

[speedibee]

We use Castrol / Morris R in my son's Jawa and GM on Grasstrack, and in my Pre-75 Jap however it doesn't smell the same to me as back in the 70s. Maybe we build up a tolerance to the smell over the years ? Or as we get older does our sense of smell deteriorate like eyesight and hearing ?

certain times of year , early and late when the evenings are damp the smell seems to be more prevelant . but I think there maybe some truth in what you say . In an envirnment where you are subject to regular and large lungfulls ,a degree of immunity does occur

[Triple.H.]

Why is Castrol R so attractive to the human brain? Creosote is another one.

 

I don't think it's related to memories of speedway perse...the actual aroma itself is very appealing.

 

Never understood why....

Maybe you bumped into a fencer and it reminds you of her perfume

[nw42]

Maybe you bumped into a fencer and it reminds you of her perfume

 

 

Hope he treated her well.

[ancient mariner]

I have been using second hand castrol R in my mower for years , i use it my strimmer and hedge trimmer as well . my mrs said to me your'e a bit obsessive mowing the lawn . I said I dont think I am , she says yes you are ,mowing the lawn 5 times a day is obsessive in anyones book !!

 

I'll bet you go round the lawn 4 times anticlockwise too

Edited February 5, 2016 by ancient mariner

[A ORLOV]

 

I'll bet you go round the lawn 4 times anticlockwise too

When pi##ed he ties the mower to a stake in the centre of the lawn and by hanging on and going round in ever decreasing circles, anticlockwise, manages to cut the whole lawn, sometimes before falling over.

[speedibee]

When my son was about 4 and had his first Bike a little technomoto .I suggested to my wife remodelling the garden . I drew a plan with an oval raised border and a nice wide shale path round the outside . the plan was looking like getting approved by her indoors , until the boy saw the drawing and blurted out , Mum dad's building me a speedway track !!

[Ray Stadia]

When my son was about 4 and had his first Bike a little technomoto .I suggested to my wife remodelling the garden . I drew a plan with an oval raised border and a nice wide shale path round the outside . the plan was looking like getting approved by her indoors , until the boy saw the drawing and blurted out , Mum dad's building me a speedway track !!

Had you been successful, the story may have hit the silver screen! 'Field Of Dreams' comes to mind!

[gee jay]

We use Castrol / Morris R in my son's Jawa and GM on Grasstrack, and in my Pre-75 Jap however it doesn't smell the same to me as back in the 70s. Maybe we build up a tolerance to the smell over the years ? Or as we get older does our sense of smell deteriorate like eyesight and hearing ?

and bladder retention .

[customhouseregular]

Not sure what you mean. Up until their demise, Rayleigh riders were mainly using 2 valve Jawas, apart from dear old Terry Stone and all the riders used castor based oil. The non use of castor based oil is a relatively recent thing, possibly started by Gary Havelock who I think was sponsored by Mobile to use synthetic oil. I even think there is a synthetic oil which offers a castor oil smell. For me it is an important part of speedway enjoyment, but then I would be considered an old f4rt!

Nothing wrong with us old farts

and bladder retention .

I wish my sense of smell had gone when Apu downstairs cooks his god-awful curries

[gee jay]

Nothing wrong with us old farts

I wish my sense of smell had gone when Apu downstairs cooks his god-awful curries

i'm with you on curries mate. britains favourite dish or not . i refuse to eat anything that looks like it's already travelled through someone's digestive tract.

[no-brakes-uk]

My son has always used castrol R and still does , when his engines go for service theres very little sign of wear , and no sign whatsoever of clogging . the oil gets thinner as it gets hot . and when it is replaced after 5 races its almost as clean as when it went in . the reason why some riders are using synthetic is the cost , with Castrol R now £15 a litre its an expensive game . Jawas need 500 ml for max 7 races £1.15 a race . Gms have 800ml capacity but still need to be chucked after 7 races , so thats nearer £2 a race .part of the reason for the lack of smell even when an engine is running Castrol R , is that modern engines have much better piston rign to Bore clearance , so all the oil gets scraped back down the bore to recycle . old japs had poor tiolerance so quite a bit of oil remained in bore and got burned . even a fully restored jap or jawa will smoke like a kipper and that smoke is the sweet smell of burning castor

He won't be using it this season though 😉

[pugwash]

When my son was about 4 and had his first Bike a little technomoto .I suggested to my wife remodelling the garden . I drew a plan with an oval raised border and a nice wide shale path round the outside . the plan was looking like getting approved by her indoors , until the boy saw the drawing and blurted out , Mum dad's building me a speedway track !!

Could have held the WC there, Team GB doing a spot of bonding- round for a barbeque, Rosco living in your spare bedroom.