Slow progress, or maybe not!

All done? Well actually no, still a long way to go. This is my M120 and Panther chassis which I’ve had for probably 37 years but it’s something to aim for with the Wreck.

The major parts of the frame were rubbed down and any rusty areas treated with Kurust which allegedly converts and neutralises the rust. It was then hung up and given a couple of coats of primer followed by three coats of black cellulose, all sprayed on.



Spraybooth, the old greenhouse. (Note the sidecar.)
 

You cannot assemble the springer frame without having the gearbox to hand unless you want to take half of it apart again so I turned to that. In addition I was waiting for the plating to come back.
Externally the gearbox was white with alloy corrosion but dismantled easily. The internals were found to be in very good condition and just needed a quick clean. The corrosion on the cases came off easily using a rotating wire brush bolted to an old washing machine motor. This gave quite a nice shiny finish. As is common the threads for the chain adjusters on the bottom mounting were stripped so these were helicoiled to 5/16" BSF, a coarser thread than the original Cycle thread which is easily stripped.
The brush was also used on the rusty ends of the kickstart and gear change spindles. Reassembly was quite straightforward and it clicked cleanly into all gears when finished. I replaced the sprocket which was badly worn and fitted the short clutch pushrod which was missing. The gear lever is rotted through and went onto the scrap pile.



Gearbox parts



Kickstart case parts



Finished gearbox.

Finally the plating came back. Many of the parts, particularly the shrouds on the shock absorbers were quite deeply pitted and were unlikely to clean up sufficiently for chroming so everything was zinc plated and passivated. Some parts that were beyond saving were replaced from the boxes that litter my garage. It's very frustrating when you know you have something but can't find it anywhere.


Plated parts.

Anyway all parts are there for basic assembly of the frame.

The Engine

As I mentioned before, the engine has been open to the elements with the rocker cover off for many years. Even so it came apart without too much effort. Externally the cases are white with alloy corrosion and the cylinder and head are very rusty.

 

Externally the head has one broken fin and the exhaust threads are badly eroded. It was soaked in diesel and the inlet rocker removed. The exhaust rocker spindle is seized immovably in the rocker. The rocker is badly pitted and it would be unsafe to reuse it in its weakened state as even good ones are prone to break if the exhaust valve nips up. Another job for the angle grinder although you would need to be hard pressed to use a head in this condition.

 

 

 

The cylinder is rusty with some paint still adhering but  as it is cast iron the rust is not deep. The bore looks ok and came with a +40 slipper piston, the normal type of piston for a 1951 engine. The cylinder and piston could be reused.

 

The crankcase has clearly been full of water for a long time as there are tide marks on both halves and on the flywheels. The timing case was full of sludge and the half compression parts are rusted solid. The cam is a bit pitted although the timing gears look reusable. The pushrod tube appears to have a home-made lower half with the tappets running in a block pressed into the crankcase. Again this looks home-made.

Internals

The drive side crankcase is split across the front and down the side just above the row of bolts, presumably the result of water freezing in the crankcase. The flywheels and conrod are very rusty and the bigend is solid. The main bearings are a roller race on the timing side and two ball races on the drive side. This is the arrangement listed for a 1951 engine although in this case they are heavily rusted.

Timing case full of crud

Home-made tappet block

Drive side tide mark

Split drive side crankscase.

Rusty flywheels.

Bigend has seen better days.

            I do not plan to reuse this engine as there are too many parts such as the head and crankcase which are probably beyond repair. I have a 600 engine at the back of the shed which was running when it was replaced as it was using oil. I think this was because the conrod is slightly bent so I shall need to have a look at that.
            Out of interest I dismantled the big end, it took a two-leg puller to get it apart as it was solidly corroded.

Corroded conrod and big end.

 

 

 

 

 

 



Dismantling and Assessment.

Now it’s time to examine the pile of bits more closely.

The Frame

The frame appears to be sound with light rusting here and there. I decided to strip the paint by hand using chemical paint stripper and wished I hadn’t, it’s slow, laborious and filthy. Better to find a shot blaster but you need to blank off the headstock and swing arm bearings to avoid filling with shot sand. The swing arm bearings appear to be ok with no play.

The wheels.

The wheel rims and spokes are completely rusted out on all four wheels so I have cut all the spokes and taken out the hubs. These are ok internally, externally they and the trim discs and brake plates, indeed all the alloy parts, are white with alloy corrosion. The front brake was seized in the hub but five weeks soaking in diesel and judicious tapping got the thing apart. The alloy parts need to be bead blasted. The brake shoes and linings appear to be ok.

Scrap wheel rims

Stripped hubs

The Front Forks

The front forks are not Panther but a leading link design which may be home made. Again the angle grinder was needed to get them apart.  The pivot for the swing arm is totally rusted away leaving the swing arm attached only by the shocks. The shocks  are also quite rusty and further investigation is needed to see if they can be disassembled.

Dismantled forks

The Tinware.
Most of the tinware is badly corroded. The petrol tank is scrap with large holes where the knee grips were and with the bottom virtually gone. One petrol tap fell out with a piece of tank attached. The badges and taps may be salvageable.

Petrol tank, beyond repair?

The front mudguard was non-Panther and rusted out. It was also cut in half as we tried to get the bike into the van. The rear mudguard turned out to be a Panther front mudguard with a short length attached to make it long enough. I have an original steel rear mudguard somewhere so can make up a pair.

The tool boxes are both rotted away at their lower extremities. Since they are identical and one is mounted on the bike upside down relative to the other it may be possible to cut and shut and make one from the two. Whether my skills are adequate for that is debatable.

Shredded tool boxes

The rear chainguard has been fitting with a steel plate but looks ok. Headlight is ok complete with speedo, ammeter and panther’s head badge, as is the rear number plate. The tail light is missing.

The Primary Drive

The primary chaincase is complete but white with corrosion. The complete clutch was found in the sidecar boot and is fairly rusted. It has been derusted in a tank of water and washing soda by passing in an electric current. I’ve not used this process before but it appears to work quite well. Search Youtube for "electrolytic rust removal" for instructions.. New chains and an engine sprocket will be needed.

Sundry Fittings

Many of the fittings came out without too much trouble apart from the lower rear sidecar fitting which is locked immovably in the boss on the rear frame. It can stay there! Other loose studs, bolts and spacers etc have been cleaned with a rotary wire brush and will be zinc plated for reuse. Damaged fittings will be replaced.

The Gearbox.

So far I only have the kickstart case off but the internals look to be in good condition although again the alloy case is white with corrosion. The short clutch pushrod was noticeable by its absence. Further investigation is required.

The Engine.
That’s another story for another day!

So what is it?



The bike just separated from the sidecar

On collection of the machine the DVLA log book was not available but entering the registration number into the DVLA website showed the bike to be a Panther 600cc first registered February 1960 with tax due on 1st February 1994 and no MOT details. The registration letters on the rear number plate, LVS, are listed as Greenock, Renfrewshire, in Scotland; this is a replacement number for one presumably sold off. The bike came with a copy of the P&M Maintenance Manual and a Pitmans Book of the Heavyweight Panther. Inside the Pitmans I found three old tax discs for a Panther with the number 185 MTD,   a Lancashire number and presumably the original number of the bike. The DVLA website shows that this now resides on a 1994 Porsche.

Documents that came with it.

 

             I found the frame number 27379 on the left hand side of the frame round the sidecar mount boss under the saddle. I've only seen it there once before, it is usually on the right hand side of the same lug. Sending that number to the POC Registrar (pocregistrar@yahoo.co.uk) produced a very fast response saying that the frame was stamped with the number on 19th January 1960. (Thanks Ginger).

Frame number 27379

            John has now found the logbook and sent me a photo although the paper copy has never turned up. The log book shows that the bike was first registered on 5th February 1960 and has had four keepers since January 1978. The change to Eric Kirby took place on 12th December 1992, the change before on 5th December 1990. The engine number is given as MS133, M is Model 100, 600cc, S is rear suspension, 133rd engine built that year. Although the number should commence with the year, say 60 if this is the original engine, this is not quoted on the log book.

The old log book.

Engine number.

             The engine number on the bike now is 51M1760B, a 1951 engine, clearly not the original and not the one fitted in 1960.

             In order to restore/rebuild or just run a Panther you really need to join the Panther Owners Club, (www.pantherownersclub.com for information) for spares, manuals and like minded people. The subject of this blog, a Panther Heavyweight, is extensively covered in my two manuals, the Engine  and Gearbox Manual and the Cycle Parts Manual. These were written in response to the many queries received by the POC spares secretaries and the lack of detailed manuals from the factory. Both are available from myself, just drop an email to laurence.e.neal@virginmedia.com.

              My intention is to return this outfit to the road as a working Panther sidecar outfit using as many of the original parts as possible. Where parts are beyond repair I shall replace them from the depths of my shed or, failing that, look for second hand parts. Finally of course there is the POC spares scheme to fall back on. I shall not be seeking a prize-winning finish, no chrome, little or no stainless steel and no powder coat.

Let's see how we get on!

Back in Southampton

Unloading was a doddle with a couple of planks and the help of Mr.Gravity, bike first followed by the sidecar, finally sweeping out the debris. The pristine carpet in the van was no longer pristine. I could now assess what I have.

Unloaded.

The sidecar boot contained most of the clutch, the primary chaincase, the cast alloy air filter, a silencer and an empty battery case holding a pile of small clutch parts all rusted together in a brown watery soup. I emptied the boot, and removed the wheel and brake from the chassis before placing the chassis and body on a trolley made for scrap timber and  some old castors. This was wheeled into the greenhouse for later consideration.

Boot of treasures.

Attention turned to the bike itself. As I know these Heavyweights fairly well there was no need to make any notes or take photos. If the machine is strange to you, you need to do this, and buy my manuals as well of course!
With no primary drive or top mounting in place removal of the three engine bolts allowed the motor to be pulled clear. Most bolts gave in fairly easily when attacked with WD40, long spanners and sometimes heat. More brutal methods were used here and there; the foot brake lever bolt would not unscrew and eventually ripped off the stud. The steering damper was seized solid so the top stem nut was sawn through just below the damper knob. The petrol tank and seat were not attached at all.
Finally the machine was reduced to a pile of large pieces.

Engine open for 25 years

A pile of parts

Tank, front wheel and mudguard.

Introduction and First Steps.



This Panther outfit was first offered for sale on the Panther Facebook Site in 2014 by the owner John Kirby. It had belonged to his late father, Eric Kirby. Eric wasn't very active within the Panther Owners Club but was part of it and associated with it from time to time. He spoke highly of the POC for the help and advice they gave him. The photo was taken shortly before he passed away. 

Eric Kirby

         The Panther is a 600cc model in black\silver with a  non-transferable registration number. On the Facebook page John went on to say, “it was taken off the road, still running but needing an exhaust.  I'm unsure why he started to strip the engine. The brakes are starting to lock on although I can push/move it on my own. The spare wheel is still in useable condition including a never-used tyre that still holds air. The spokes on the wheels on the bike look 'dodgy' at best, the side car has a  stereo and an old-school heating system (from the exhaust). I would just like her to go to a loving home preferably to part of the POC (it was his pride and joy in the 1990's as it's the same type of bike he got married on. The last few times I’ve come to mothers I kept looking at the bike and at the moment she's breaking my heart - hence I would rather let her go before it's too late. The restoration is easy enough, it's the engine that scares me to start it. I would love to see her back on road (as would mother) but due to the engine being in bits it’s  not going to happen anytime soon hence my posting. If I can't do it then someone who can might as well make use instead of her rotting away.”

          

The outfit in 2014

           There were no takers and the outfit was slowly buried under a pile of old car and bike parts. In early 2019 John offered it again on Facebook. This time he was keen to clear the yard of his mother’s property and made the comment that if no-one wanted it he would scrap it. It was clearly too good to scrap so I made contact. We came to a deal and I promised to rebuild it and return it to the road so I made arrangements to collect it from Blackpool on 8th March 2019. 

Sidecar just visible

           This Panther M100 left the P& M factory in Cleckheaton, Yorkshire, on January 19th 1960. It was in use until the road tax ran out at the end of February 1994. The then owner, Eric Kirby, had used it for some years fitted with a single seat sidecar on a Panther chassis and leading link forks. When Eric sadly passed away, presumably around 1994, the outfit stood outside his home in Blackpool slowly disappearing in an accumulating pile of car parts, old motorcycles and general junk. At the time of his death Eric had been working on the bike; the engine was partially dismantled with the rocker cover off, and the clutch, Magdyno and exhausts had all been removed. There the machine stood until offered by Eric’s son John.

        I made my way to Sherb’s place in Lostock and we took his car and trailer over to Blackpool where John had excavated the outfit from the pile. It was in poor condition having stood outside for about twenty-five years. The front wheel had collapsed with rust but we were prepared having taken a wheel with us. The bike would still not roll as the rear chain was rusted solid; the angle grinder attended to that. Eventually we got it on the trailer and took it back to Lostock.

 

On the trailer with replacement wheel.

          Back at Sherb's and in the rain we took it off the trailer and started to separate the sidecar from the bike. Most of the fittings unscrewed, bolts that were immovable surrendered to the angle grinder. Using ramps and brute force we got the sidecar on its chassis into the van. Fitting in the bike was more difficult but using a couple of trolley jacks and grinding off obstructions we eventually closed the van doors before settling down for a well earned beer. Thanks to Sherb and Barbara for labour and B&B. The return to Southampton was simple by comparison.

Squeezed into the van.