Working on the Royal Enfield J2

Been spending time and bonding with the J2 a little of late. Everything seems to be set up right but cruising speed is lower than it should be, the bike has plenty of low down power but becomes harsh when revved. I've heard from other owners that the J2 is a low revving motor and vibey at higher revs. I'm wondering if mine is simply too low geared. I'm thinking it could be geared up by around 25%, that would take cruising speed up to a comfortable 55mph with plenty in hand and I'm pretty sure it would still have the power for hills without dropping a gear. It could just be that it is currently on sidecar gearing.

The charging system still needs sorting but the annoying front end wobble has been cured by fitting a new tyre. I went for a Mitas, a good cheap price, looks right for the bike and so far no complaints handling-wise.

The other major improvement to useability has been to fit a sidestand. The J2 is a very weighty bike and heaving it on to that rear stand is hard work. You can't always rely on a tree or wall being at hand when you want to park up and as I had an Esway prop stand on the shelf I decided to adapt that to fit. The Esway is a brilliant idea, a telescopic stand on a ratchet, you can adjust the angle of lean and it is easy to operate from the saddle.

This J2 is always going to be a bit scruffy (at least for as long as I own it!) but it is slowly developing in to being a really likable riders machine.