Bridgestone Motorcycle Parts Discussion Board
General Category => Members: Introduce yourself => Topic started by: nettah on February 21, 2019, 04:58:18 AM
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Hi All,
My name is Nigel, I have been a member before but somehow my login wouldn't work and I had to join again.
Any how, I have 2 little Tora's, one is complete missing a few bits and rough and the other is a basket case.
I have decided to start the basket case first. I dismantled the engine to find it had suffered a bad seizure at some point in its life and the kickstart pinion missing 3 teeth ouch :-[. I did find the remnants of the teeth with had made there way into the sump. The gear shaft and kick shaft are quite gnarled up but I have hope and time.
The problem is with parts, or more to the point shipping costs. Being at the bottom of the planet has advantages but some disadvantages.
I will post a few pictures over the weekend.
I will finish my intro with a little story about these two little bikes heard from the son of the last owners.
Back in the day these little bikes badged TAS were made for the Asia Pacific market but exactly the same as the Rockford model I believe. In the early 70s the farm community stores would do specials on equipment around sheep dipping time. On offer were TAS chainsaws or TAS Tora's depending how much dip was purchased. The last owners must have purchased a lot of sheep dip as he acquired 2 which spent their life herding sheep on the Otago farms. Its nice to know they have done some useful work in their lives. Over the next 30 years one had become a spares bike I imagine to keep the other going. The farm was sold after the owner died and the son packed up and moved with these little bikes which then spent a further 10 years entertaining the kids on a paddock from where I retrieved them. I don't no of anyone else who has one except in a private museum in Marlborough.
Nigel