Vire Tillotson Choke options

2017 video i am uploading for customer needs some ideas. since then i realised you cannot just swap out the new shock control shaft for your old one because Tillotson now made it's ball-lock differently so it would not lock in the off position (vital safety feature) my reccomendations is: 1. dont fit a choke cable , you might need an extra pushbutton for starting near the engine though, opening the compartment to do this is useful because you can isolate/check the stopcock , prime fuel, and have a general check regularly. you will see any problems smaller and sooner, than if you lock up and forget the engine for months? a correctly tuned engine does not need choke for warm starting, and if it was used that day hours earlier, then it may just take a few seconds to catch without choke. needing the choke excessively every start indicated a problem with air leaking into your fuel hoses, allowing fuel to leave the carburettor or hoses downhill back to the tank. always use the correct diameter black 'rubbery' hoses with petrol clips not D-shaped jubilee clips and not clear hard or braided hoses. if you see a petrol drip, it means it is NOT airtight, and making unnecesary smell. N.B. operate the choke for a few seconds. i would say start cranking your cold engine, then increase the choke gradually as required, otherwise you may flood your engine with too much choke too soon 2. you could saw off the new lever and fit your old lever however this is not easy because tillotson also made the shaft end smaller and it wont clamp down properly 3. for the new lever, cable operation, fit a plate to the air filter elbow, that supports the cable, you might need a compression spring between the lever (connect stranded cable using brass parts inside a piece of 'terminal block') 4. it should be possible to tack-weld the old lever onto the new lever? in general the new carb is vital to reliability, because the old carb model is at least 30-75 years old now and inside there are parts that get dirty and spoli the mixture e.g. main jet check valves' plastic ball, that even a service kit cannot fix. the carbs were thought to last about 10 years in salt air, so the choke dilemma should not stop you moderninsing this essential 2-stroke part, just like your ignition points, critical for relaibility not to be left to corrode decades. 20 April 2026 Nick www.vireengines.com