Here’s the final sleeve drive assembly, complete with chain tensioner in situ. The distance between centres is as drawn, with the adjuster fully in to give the full travel as the chain wears. Shown in the orientation it will take in the engine on final assembly.
It looks right and with the 9 holes (3 sets of vernier adjustment) we can get to within a single degree of timing. Spot on!
The valve timing needs some thought still as the Hercules was supercharged, so the inlet opens late. Static timing can be set with the drive sprockets, however, the relative timing between inlet and exhaust can only be changed by re-shaping the holes in the sleeve. I only have one sleeve so that’s a one way operation.
How much is too much? You will only find that out after you’ve done it and there’s no going back. Hmmm..
sophiewhiptank 
Two questions; 1) It would appear that the adjuster may be a bit long. As the chain wears and the pad moves inward, the pad may push the chain into contact with the sprockets at either end.
2) What material is the adjuster pad made of? I made one with a wear piece made of hard nylon ( ie; cutting board) riveted to a steel backing plate for my Super Meteor, which could be replaced as wear occurred.
Merry Christmas,
Graeme Morrell
Hi Graeme,
Hope all is well down under? Happy Christmas you all too.
The tensioner has been shortened but in reality it will hardly move once set. The chain is full duplex and not carrying much load, there’s no cam so it’s a continuous load. Wear will be minimal, a single chain would probably have been ok.
The material is Aluminium. I did consider toughnol/tuffnol or similar, but Nortons had an ally tensioner on the primary drive chain and that took more load. Time will tell of course, but running in plenty of oil shouldn’t be a problem.
Keep the comments coming, always something I may have overlooked. Say hello to the RECOA boys next time you seen them. 😁
Hi Graeme,
Hope all is well down under? The adjuster has been shortened slightly since the photo was taken, but it doesn’t have to move far at all to give a tension adjustment.
The pad is made of aluminium. I did think about using tuffnol or similar, but Norton used ally on their primary drive chains so it will take the load and wear no problem. Over time it may develop a groove, but is easily replaced.
Happy New Year!
Mark.