Old Bike Mart - May 2019 - Preview

May 2019 £2.20 ISSUE

407

OLD BIKE MART Available from the first Saturday of every month

’Normous Newark Autojumble

Sunday, June 2

newarkautojumble.co.uk With local off-road rider Billy Hutton doing the riding of the marshalplated Triumph Tiger T100A, Tommy Robb hitches a lift after retirement from the 1964 Ulster 125cc GP. That same year, Robb’s daughter, Corienne, won the Miss Pears competition – “an annual competition for young girls with a fresh complexion’’ – with a year’s modelling and a cash prize from the soap producers!

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2 NEWS

May 2019

Editorial

www.oldbikemart.co.uk email: info@oldbikemart.co.uk

Editor Dave Manning OBMEditor@mortons.co.uk Designer Charlotte Fairman Production editors Pauline Hawkins, Sarah Spencer Picture desk Paul Fincham and Jonathan Schofield Group advertising manager Sue Keily Divisional advertising manager Billy Manning Advertising Team Leader (Classic Division) Leon Currie lcurrie@mortons.co.uk Advertising Matt Allen mallen@mortons.co.uk

01507 524004 Marketing manager Charlotte Park Circulation manager Steve O’Hara Publisher Tim Hartley Publishing director Dan Savage Commercial director Nigel Hole General queries Customer Service number: 01507 529529 Telephone lines are open: Monday-Friday 8.30am-6pm, Saturday 8.30am-12.30pm and 24hr answerphone Archive enquiries Jane Skayman jskayman@mortons.co.uk 01507 529423 Founder Ken Hallworth OLD BIKE MART (ISSN:1756-9494) is published monthly by Mortons Media Group Ltd, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 6LZ UK. USA subscriptions are $48 per year from Motorsport Publications LLC, 7164 City Rd N #441, Bancroft WI 54921.

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fter a lacklustre start to the classic bike season, with the postponement of the Bristol Bike Show, it seems that 2019 has perked up nicely, bringing memories of the wonderful weather we had in 2018, with a scorching Easter weekend that saw temperature records broken across the UK. The weekend also saw some debatable demonstrations down in That London, and while they did have some very good reasons, were also being seen as something of a shot-in-the-foot move by some. Which brings me to the new legislation that has been brought into our capital city to combat some of the very things that these demonstrators have been shouting about. Legislation that is probably going to have a greater effect than supergluing yourself to street furniture or lying down in front of passing traffic. The protestors in question might be highly intelligent and very well paid, but they clearly haven’t got much common sense…

This legislation was brought in

by Transport for London after the London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, set forward some proposals to reduce the amount of pollution caused by traffic on the capital’s streets. From April 8 this year, the London Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) is here, and we all need to be aware of it. The Motorcycle Action Group and the online group We Ride London have been keeping riders up to date with procedures, and the changes that have taken place with regards to riding a motorcycle within Central London, although riders in the rest of Great Britain are somewhat in the dark as to what is happening in our capital city and what will extend to other cities as time goes by.

internet access of course). You We all want air quality to improve can also check with your vehicle’s (part and parcel of being a member manufacturer if you’re not sure, of an improving society is that things and TfL will accept evidence from get better for all of us), but there the manufacturer in the form of can be an element of throwing the a Certificate of Conformity, or baby out with the bathwater within homologation certificate, although political and governmental some manufacturers are charging policy changes.

The ULEZ covers the area of Central large amounts (BMW ask about £120), and most manufacturers London in which the congestion didn’t begin testing the nitrous charge applies (yes, two charges for oxide levels until 2001. There’s a the same area), and is due to expand third option, that of getting your out to the North and South Circular emissions checked by a verified roads in October 2021 (yes, the Ace third party, of which I’m only aware Cafe is on the North Circular). It’s of there being one – Riverbank £12.50 per day if the motorcycle Motorcycles in Bow, London, doesn’t comply to certain emission who ask for £175 for the check, standards – the same as for cars of equivalent to 14 days of ULEZ charge up to 1200kg in weight, despite the – although TfL has asked for other fact that a motorcycle adds very centres that can offer testing to the little to congestion and is capable of required standards to get in touch continued movement through heavy at ruculezenquiries@tfl.gov.uk but traffic, unlike a car. it hasn’t stated what those testing In addition, if you happen to ride standards are. It must also be noted in the ULEZ over a time span that that your bike only needs to be covers two calendar days (i.e., enter the ULEZ at two minutes to midnight, tested once…

But here’s the rub. For those of us and stay there for just 10 minutes) who are running what TfL refers to you’ll be charged twice. as ‘historic vehicles’ (i.e., those more To avoid the charge, vehicles than 40 years old), not only do we must meet a minimum emissions not have the compulsory MoT test standard. For bikes, this has been (which, in itself, is still something chosen to be the standards set by worthy of debate), but those vehicles Euro 3 legislation, being emissions also have a historic road tax class, of NOx (nitrous oxides) that are which (currently) is nothing and, joy less than 0.15g per kilometre, and of joys, they are also exempt from Euro 3 generally covers bikes that the ULEZ. But we need to be aware were registered with the DVLA after that this wasn’t an exemption made July 2007. However, this doesn’t by choice by TfL, it was made under mean that all bikes older than that duress after much lobbying from the will be charged, as many bikes likes of the Motorcycle Action Group, produced earlier actually pass the the Motorcycle Industry Association Euro 3 emissions limits. You can and the Federation of British Historic check online to see if your vehicle complies, providing that you know to Vehicle Clubs (of which the VMCC is a very active member). do so, or where to check (it’s tucked While many of Old Bike Mart’s away on the Transport for London readership rarely visit our capital city, website at tfl.gov.uk, if you have

or have any reason or desire to do so, the last thing anyone wants after a weekend away is a fine landing on the doorstep a few days later for £160 simply due to riding in the wrong place. The fact that Transport for London has lost its central government grant does go some of the way to explain why it has been so slovenly with regard to informing the nation about the changes, or the charges that apply to those who don’t know…

Time will tell if the new regulations make any difference to the air quality in London, or to traffic congestion, and it’ll also be rather interesting to see if the price of historic vehicles in and around The Smoke rises due to the charge, and whether the value of bikes that don’t meet Euro 3 emissions standards plummets like a pigeon with sudden cardiac arrest.

But, for now, the answer to me seems clear. If you really have to travel to London, then do it on a bike that is more than 40 years old! Riding classics isn’t just a fun thing to do, it can also make an environmental statement too!

Enjoy the issue,

May 2019

NEWS 3

Up the hill at Prescott The Prescott Bike Festival has held its place in the motorcycling calendar for a good few years now, with each year seeing the event get bigger and more inclusive.

And this year’s festival, held June 15-16, is no exception, as the Gloucestershire venue expands its attractions. Aside from a vast array of interesting and exciting machines taking to the historic hill – owned by the Bugatti Owners’ Club, who bought the venue in 1937 – there are also extensive displays of classic and custom motorcycles, dozens upon dozens of exhibitors selling all manner of bike-orientated products, and more, while all proceeds from the event support the work of the Nationwide

Association of Blood Bikes and Severn Freewheelers. The Blood Bike charities provide a vital free out-of-hours medical transportation service to the NHS. Since its inception, Prescott Bike Festival has raised more than £200,000 to date.

Bikes on display, and being ridden up the hill, will include no less than five of eccentric engineer Allen Millyard’s creations (his near five litre ‘Flying Millyard’ vee twin and his replica-racer RC174 among them); the famous 1927 Velocette prototype ‘Spring-heeled Jack’; a 500cc parallel twin Paton GP bike from 1969; a pair of ex-Barry Sheene TR500s; and loads of examples of AJS, BSA, Royal Enfield, Matchless, Cotton, Ariel, Norton, Moto Guzzi, Triumph and other models of road-going and race spec.

In addition, Prescott Bike Festival has teamed up with the National Motorcycle Museum and every visitor to the festival will get a 50% discount voucher for entry to the museum.

The gates open at noon on the Saturday and admission is £12 on Saturday, £20 on Sunday or £28 for the weekend (advance tickets are subject to a discount). The hill is just outside Gotherington, near Cheltenham, and the postcode is GL52 9RD. Just follow the bikes!

Hampshire’s Olde Tyme Run Taking place on Spring Bank Holiday Monday (May 27), the North Hants Motor Club’s annual Olde Tyme Run will be starting from Crookham Street Social Club, The Street, Crookham village, which is near Fleet in Hampshire, GU51 5SJ. Signing on is from 9.30am, while the run will start at 11am and tea and coffee will be available all day.

There will be a 40-mile run around the local Hampshire roads, returning to the start.

There are various classes in which you can run – for machines built up to 1950; from 1951 to 1960; and 1961 to 1975; together with classes for pre-1985 British and European classics; pre1990 Japanese classics, and any sidecars.

After returning to the start, the bar will be open from midday until approximately 3pm, and there will also be light refreshments available courtesy of the club ladies! Presentation of awards will be made as soon as the entrants have marked and returned the ballot papers, followed by the raffle from which all proceeds will be donated to the local cancer centre, The Phyillis Tuckwell Hospice, in Farnham.

More details are available from Gay and Iain Craddock on 01252 676144.

For further information and tickets visit: www.prescottbikefestival.co.uk

Moon Eyes – the John Cooper story Yet another fascinating read from the Mortons stable is this new bookazine, focussing on the road race legend, grand prix hero and motorcycling icon that is John ‘Moon Eyes’ Cooper. With an intro from International Race Teams Association’s CEO Mike Trimby, the bookazine’s contents revolve around an extensive question and answer session with Moon Eyes by renowned motorcycling journalist and author Chris Carter, who has been a lifelong friend of John, the pair having grown up together near Derby.

With initiation into motorcycle sport coming from trials and scrambles, John’s first experience of road racing was at Osmaston

Vintage sprinting in Brighton This year the VMCC Sprint Section will once again be organising the motorcycle side of things at the south coast’s most influential and popular speed event, the Bright Speed Trails.

Held on Saturday, September 7, the VMCC have been drafted in as organisers of the two-wheeled element of the day by the Brighton and Hove Motor Club (B&HMC), who organise all the other aspects of the event. We’ll be bringing you more information about the speed trial in a forthcoming issue of Old Bike Mart, including the criteria that you need to meet if you wish to enter the meeting.

This isn’t the only event of note for the VMCC Sprint Section, as they’re also scheduled to run a Sprint Demonstration at the Festival of 1000 Bikes at Mallory Park on Sunday, July 14.

More information on the VMCC’s Sprint Section can be found at www.vmccsprint.co.uk and www.facebook.com/vmccsprint

Manor in Ashbourne, where he initially helped out with setting up the viewing areas for the racing at the venue, before taking part there and at nearby Alton Towers. A trip to the TT sowed some aspirational seeds, although John’s call-up papers arrived to drag him away for national service for two years.

His return to civvy street saw no hesitation in building a race bike and taking up competition, initially in local meetings, but recognition from Geoff Duke saw him racing for the former GP rider under the Royal Enfield flag at the start of the Sixties, swiftly becoming established as one of the country’s top racers.

Outings at the Ulster Grand Prix and the Isle of Man TT followed, with continental races following on from his first outing at Assen in 1965. By then, he was mixing it with the likes of Giacomo Agostini, Mike Hailwood, Bill Ivy, Phil Read and the like, yet it seems that John never let any of it go to his head, remaining down-to-earth, honest and forthright.

Dedications are spread throughout the 132 pages from Neil Tuxworth, Stuart Hicken, Alex George, Colin Seeley, Peter Williams and more, showing just how much respect John has in the industry, and make this a fascinating and muchrecommended read.

Priced at £6.99, it’s available in newsagents and direct from Mortons at www.classicmagazines.co.uk

BMPS North Wales show

Set amongst some of the finest riding roads that Britain has to offer, on the A5 between Llangollen and Corwen, and right on the reconstructed Llangollen Railway that replaces the stretch of line closed by Beecham, Glyndyfrdwy Station is a superb place to celebrate transport of all kinds. In this case, it’s classic motorcycles, and the British Motorcycle Preservation Society North Wales will be holding their annual classic motorcycle show at that very venue,

from 10am to 4pm on July 6 and 7.

Glyndyfrdwy Station is near Corwen, North Wales, LL21 9HF. And for further details you can ring Len on 07592 370572, Mike on 07977 090991, or Pete on 07709 777912, or email leonardferney@gmail.com or mjes@btinternet.com or visit the website at bmpsnwales.org.uk And, if you have no idea whatsoever on how to pronounce ‘Glyndyfrdwy’, then it’s easy – just say ‘Glin-duff-ree.’

4 NEWS

May 2019

Riding on the Edge Now in its fourth year, Herefordshire on the Edge 2019 takes place on Sunday, June 23, and once again is proving hugely popular with classic motorcycle enthusiasts from all corners of the UK. This unique, non-competitive navigational event, organised by the Herefordshire section of the Vintage Motor Cycle Club, is open to motorcycles and three-wheelers which were at least 25 years old on January 1, 2019. Entrants may choose to start and finish at either The Travellers Rest, Ross-onWye HR9 7QJ, or the Lion Hotel, Leintwardine SY7 0JZ. Riders must plan and then follow a route to visit as many as possible of the 33 designated waypoints, spaced at intervals in and around the borders of Herefordshire.

Last year’s event attracted 76 entries on 20 different marques, spanning nine decades, and the rider of the oldest bike to finish was Terry Pickering, who took a gold medal on his fabulous and rare 1928 500cc OHC Humber.

Organisers are hoping to attract more than 100 entries this year.

For full event details and entry forms, email herefordvmcc@ outlook.com

The view from Red Darren.

Sunshine and medals – what more could they want?

Diane Davies – high up on the Black Mountains.

All welcome in Dorset The South Dorset Section of the VMCC is undergoing a recruitment drive to attract new members and, to that end, there will be an open meeting on Thursday, May 23 to be held at The Three Compasses Inn at Charminster, near Dorchester DT2 9QT, commencing at 8pm.

All motorcyclists will be welcome, and all makes and all ages of machines can be catered for. There is no need to actually own an old bike but merely to have an interest in them is sufficient to become a member. As many readers will already know, membership of the club has many benefits and could open up a whole new social scene for you – the phrase of ‘support those who support you’ is very apt…

The South Dorset Section will have interesting monthly meetings and many riding events. Come along and see what the club could provide for you, meet old friends and make new ones. For further details, ring Rod Hann on 01935 872528.

Clear your garage!

There probably isn’t a single one of us who won’t admit to the fact that we have far too much stuff in our garages, lock-ups, lean-tos, sheds, lofts and cellars. The excuse of: “It’ll come in handy one day”, probably really doesn’t wash – not even with ourselves, let alone our long-suffering families...

Of course, there is an option, one that is ably displayed by Worcester Auto Club’s celebration of their 85th year, in which they will be holding a shed clearance sale of motorcycles, parts and accessories at their HQ, The Tower, Perdiswell Park, Worcester WR3 7SN. It takes place on Sunday, May 26, between 10am and 2pm. Cost is £5 per motorcycle, car boot or table, while general admission is free!

For info or reservations contact Rob Smith at robsa10@btinternet.com

Terry Pickering’s 1928 500cc OHC Humber.

Cambridge Museum Classic Bike Show

The combination of museums and classic bikes isn’t an unusual one, and even if a museum isn’t focused towards transportation, the joint attractions can be of benefit to both interests.

As an example, the Cambridge Museum of Technology, in Cheddars Lane, Cambridge CB5 8LD is opening its doors to its classic bike show on June 30 this year, heralding a return of the event to the museum, after a year at the adjacent Sea Cadets HQ while the museum was closed for building work.

The show will be open from 10.30am till 5pm, and there should be a cafe open on site where hot meals and drinks can be had. As usual, entry for bike and rider is free and includes entry to the museum which has now had a revamp in line with a heritage lottery grant!

There’s no need to book in, just turn up, bikes, scooters and mopeds all welcome!

More information on the museum can be found at www.museumoftechnology.com/

Sunbeam MCC’s Rose of the Shires

This popular run, held on June 9, will again start at the Navigation pub, Bridge Road, Stoke Bruerne near Towcester, NN12 7SY, which is situated alongside the scenic and busy canal. The event caters for all makes of solos and three-wheelers up to 1939, and traditionally the run is seen as not only a pleasant 60-mile jaunt – with lunch on the way – through lovely countryside, but also as a good pre-test for machines entering the VMCC’s Banbury Run, with it being just a week before the big event!

Entry and regulations from Rob Bayman, 4 Bedford Cottages, Great Brington, Northampton, NN7 4JF robertbayman@btinternet.com or via the Sunbeam MCC website: www.sunbeam-mcc.co.uk

6 NEWS

Getting damp

It’s been said before, but it is a constant fascination of mine how modern technology is continually being applied to the classic machinery that we so love, and in the process making it even better than it was when it first left the factory. A case in point are these Andre steering dampers, as fitted to Norton Internationals and Manxes from the early Thirties right through to the Fifties.

Supplied by Kingpin Components, and made using the latest CAD/ CAM techniques, these dampers are very accurate, well-made reproductions of the originals, which have been virtually unobtainable for many years. To purchase one of these – and to see Kingpin Components’ increasing range of products – go to www. kingpincomponents.co.uk or call Andy on 07734 920457.

May 2019

Hat-trick trio at Woodford MX

Three riders scored hat tricks at the Northampton Classic Club’s all-action season opener scramble at Woodford, Northamptonshire, on Sunday, April 7. Some of the 21 races were run at a scorching pace, the classic machines benefiting from

modern oils and contemporary takes on suspension and tuning knowledge.

Triple winner Ashley Wilson (27) from Rothwell, Northamptonshire, with a brace of 1973 CZ two-stroke singles at his disposal was on his usual top form and was on course

Red-shirted Gene Womack (1964 580 Jawa Metisse) leads the pack and dominates the Pre-65 pre-unit unlimited capacity races.

Race over to rip-roaring Ripon Horsepower of a different kind takes over at Ripon racecourse on Sunday, June 9, for Mark Woodward’s 20th Ripon Classic Car and Bike Show will see an attendance of more than 500 classic vehicles.

We may be a little more disposed to bike-only events, but most of us can accept the appeals that classic cars, tractors, buses and bicycles can bring.

With arena displays and parades, accompanied by expert commentary, there’s opportunity to sit back and watch the world go by, although with numerous trade stands and a comprehensive autojumble, you'll have plenty of opportunities to pick up bargains, tools, parts and gifts too.

Located in the heart of picturesque Yorkshire, just north

for five wins but for machine problems.

Nantwich, Cheshire’s former British championship star of the 1970s, Pete Mathia (1972 Maico 400) was flying for a 66-year-old, scoring three wins in style.

And East Anglia’s Gene Womack (55) was the hero of the meeting, muscling his heavyweight 580cc 1964 Jawa Metisse to three pre-unit class victories.

Riders included 25-year-old Charlotte Bloor from Stoke-onTrent, campaigning a 1973 250cc Bultaco previously raced by her grandfather John and father Darren.

As well as solo riding, Charlotte also passengers her father on a mighty 840cc Yamaha XS sidecar outfit.

She plans a full season of classic MX racing this year, including an international in Germany.

Local riders included Carl Rokas (57) from Thrapston on a dramatic looking, all red 1979 CR250 Honda ‘Red Rocket’, imported from America last year. A teenage scrambler who gave up motorcycles in 1981, Carl returned to motocross in 2015, joining the buoyant classic scene.

of Harrogate and only five miles from the A1, the racecourse has free parking and full amenities. The show runs from 10am to 4pm, with admission priced at just £7 per adult and £2.50 for children. Dogs on leads are also welcome.

Those in the know about classic cars and bikes already have this great venue tagged as a major event on the classic car show calendar, so turn your bars towards Ripon for a fantastic full summer’s day out.

Solo and sidecar racer Charlotte Bloor with the 1973 250 Bultaco that is now serving its third-generation competition duties in the family.

“It was a good entry with riders from Brighton to Lancashire, and East Anglia to Wales,” said clerk of the course, Colin Hill, who is now working on plans for the club’s main event on July 7, which hosts a round of the Classic British Moto Cross Championship.

8 NEWS

Time to roar loudly for the Tiger Cub Bible Hot news from the Tiger Cub and Terrier Register – the reprint of Mike Estall’s excellent Tiger Cub Bible should be available later this year. The publishers, Veloce Publishing, intend to wait for demand to build up before making the new print, which means that anyone who wants a copy of the latest edition should contact Veloce through Tim Nevinson, by phone on 01305 260068 or email at tim.nevinson@veloce. co.uk. This will allow Veloce to know that there is a rising demand, and so encourage them to get on with it!

Those of you who are Cubphiles will already know that the register can supply copies of the illustrated factory parts lists at a tenner, workshop and owner’s manuals, dating certificates (£15), datasheets for each model (which are actually included in the bible), consolidated parts lists (£16, and showing the individual components that make up assemblies that are shown in the factory parts lists, so are invaluable for a Cub owner), wiring diagrams (£2) and much more. Further information can be had from Mike Estall on 01934 743646 and by emailing mikeestall@ hotmail.com

May 2019

T Arnott Moffat Memorial Road Run Here’s another road run for motorcycles, based in the beautiful highlands of Scotland and organised by the Inverness & District Motor Cycle Club Ltd in memory of T Arnott Moffat, who was general secretary/treasurer of the Scottish Auto Cycle Union for 32 years, and who died in 1997.

The inaugural event was held two years ago, and followed the route of the 1957 Highland Two-Day Trial. The initial idea was put to John Moffat, Arnott’s son, by Peter Remington, a former motocross and trials rider from Kendal who organises the annual ‘Bob

MacGregor’ run based at Killin each April, prior to the Scottish Six Days Trial week. The idea was developed and the original 1957 Highland Two Day Trial route made an ideal starting point for the 2017 road run in Moffat’s memory.

Known as ‘Arnott’, he was a keen promoter of all motorcycle sports including trials, scrambles, grass track and road racing. He competed twice in the Scottish Six Days Trial on his AJS 16MC – which was registered new in Edinburgh in 1951 as JSC 905 – and officiated at many motorcycle events in Scotland.

He attended eight International

Classic racers at Tattershall

The second invitationonly Classic Racing Motorcycle Show and Demonstration takes place at Tattershall Kart Centre, Lincolnshire, on Saturday, June 29, from 9.30am-4pm.

There is no admission charge to attend and ride the kart track, but there will be a collection for the Lincolnshire Air Ambulance. This racing gentleman’s day out replaces bureaucracy by trusting its attendees to practice good oldfashioned common sense!

Last year’s inaugural event attracted a wide variety of machinery, including ex-works Hondas fielded by collector Martin Jones. Riders included Roger Moss and his well-known racing Scott, plus Derek Chatterton (Yamaha) who was all but unbeatable in his years racing at Cadwell Park.

Dave Seidel Yamaha, former Cadwell king Derek Chatterton (Yamaha 1) and an ex-works 1985 Honda-3 line up for a kart track canter at Tattershall Kart Centre.

Race bikes invited so far this year include MV, AJS, Manx Norton, G50 Matchless, Drixton Aermacchi, Bultaco and Patton, to name a few. If you have an eligible machine contact organiser Martyn Bland on 01529 305672 for an entry form.

Six Days Trials, either as a team support member or as team manager. Moffat was instrumental in persuading Peter ‘Jock’ Wilson, formerly of Comerfords, to undertake team managerial duties of firstly the Scottish ACU team, and then the Great Britain Trophy team. Many years later, Jock Wilson restored Arnott’s ex-factory Matchless G3LC (OLH 722) and it has been used in the memorial run, as has his AJS. The entry fee is kept at a modest level, merely to cover the cost of route marking material and a snack lunch at a suitable tea room along

the way. Camerons Tearoom and Farm Shop at Foyers was chosen in 2017 as the official lunch stop and remains such thanks to its popularity with the participants.

This year’s run takes place on July 21, and the route makes use of country roads as much as possible, although it may be that trunk roads are used with the absence of B class roads. The route will be 95 miles, with lunch stop, and entry is a mere £12 for a solo rider, or £15 for rider and pillion passenger.

More information can be found at www.facebook.com/ TArnottMoffatRun/

The future is bright

enjoying the benefits of low power consumption and a long life.

Some early LED headlight bulbs had a poor beam pattern – okay on dip, but ‘up in the trees’ on main beam. Not so on the Daylighter, which has a good cut-off on dip and doesn’t dazzle on main beam.

On a 12v system the LED is only drawing 8 watts, giving the charging system an easier time, which is particularly helpful with 60-year-old dynamos, and makes even running a ‘total loss’ system practical.

The new Daylighters cost £23.95 each and will work on 6v or 12v systems and for either negative or positive earth, making buying the wrong one impossible!

More details are available on Paul’s website at www.norbsa02. freeuk.com or contact Paul Goff, 49 Chequers Lane, Prestwood, Buckinghamshire HP16 9DR, 01494 868218, or rmail norbsa02@aol.com

Improvements in technology have long been proven to make life easier for the classic motorcycle enthusiast.

Electronic ignition, improved battery design and, now, LED replacements for light bulbs! Paul Goff is pleased to announce a new, brighter version of his popular British Pre-Focus headlamp LED. Fitted to all British motorbikes from the late 1940s until almost the last Commandos and Bonnevilles, the standard British Pre-Focus headlamp was never brilliant and, faced with competition from modern cars, looked decidedly dim.

The Daylighter LED ‘bulb’ goes a long way to solving that.

A new sophisticated heatsink has allowed more powerful LEDs to be fitted, for both dip and main beams, thus giving a brighter light and a longer beam while still

10 NEWS

May 2019

Single owner Black Knight

Although the next H&H Classics auction at the National Motorcycle Museum isn’t until the end of July, one of the lots for the day – this Vincent Black Knight – will be on display at the museum from now until then.

The 1955 model, having had only one owner from new, has the original bill of sale, the original Vincent guarantee, the buff logbook and the factory workshop manual! And, with 58,000 miles on the clock, has a pre-auction estimate of between £40,000 and £45,000, a price which stands directly between the two Vincents sold by H&H Classics at the summer sale last year, one being a 1955 Black Knight Series D with sidecar that sold for £51,750, and a 1947 HRD Rapide Series B that sold for £40,250.

Originally bought from Turner Brothers in London for £381 and 18 shillings, Rex Bigg from Muswell Hill kept the Black Knight until he sadly passed away in 2017. During his lifetime he’d used it for his honeymoon and regular trips to Ireland and the Lake District, restoring it himself in the early 1980s.

More details on the Vincent, and the rest of the auction lots, can be found online at www.online.handh.co.uk

Festival of 1000 Bikes update In an attempt to keep you abreast of developments regarding this year’s Mallory Park extravaganza, we can report that, at this year’s Festival of 1000 Bikes on July 13 and 14, included in the Past Masters parade will be the Hawk Racing Buildbase Suzuki team with their British Superbike riders Brad Ray and Luke Stapleford, and National Superstock 1000 rider Richard Cooper, all of whom will be taking to Mallory’s original track layout.

Bands will be The Del Sharrons (on Saturday) who performed last year and

Sealey the dealy!

who are a rock and roll style band playing songs from the ’50s and hits from the ’60s, with the fantastically named The Dukes of Pork playing on Friday night. They are a classic and modern rock covers band, covering AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses and Aerosmith to Queens Of The Stone Age and Foo Fighters with a few big indie hits thrown in too.

If you’re quick, you may just grab some of the few remaining track spaces available on Saturday and Sunday, while club, trade and autojumble stands can still be squeezed in.

In celebration of bringing tools and consumables to the automotive industry for more than 40 years, Sealey tools has launched a new, greatly improved website.

You can find it at www.sealey.co.uk although it’s worth mentioning that the company’s new 1204-page catalogue is a rather more tactile read, containing more than 9800 products with an astounding 1000 new items for 2019.

It’s also worth remembering that your local Sealey stockist will have promotions throughout the year, so it’s worth your while to call in on a regular basis!

More details on the festival can be found at www.festivalof1000bikes.co.uk

Ken Johnstone RIP Owner of the well-known and loved Kickstart Motorcycles in South London, Ken Johnstone was a local personality, known not just in the motorcycle world but also by those with no knowledge of two-wheelers.

Starting out in the industry at Deeprose Bros in Catford in 1958, it was a further 24 years before he became the head honcho of Kickstart Motorcycles, forging a long-standing relationship, both in terms of business and friendship, with the MZ importer, Wilf Green, and it was no great surprise that Ken became renowned as an MZ specialist.

Our fullest condolences to his wife Christine, daughters Helen and Nikki and all the family.

Hundred End hits 20 The weekend of June 8-9 will see the Hundred End Transport Rally – held at Elim, Hundred End Lane in Hesketh Bank, just south of the Ribble Estuary in southern Lancashire – achieve its 20th anniversary, with all money raised going to the Lancs & Lakes Blood Bikes charity.

Rather than focusing solely on twowheelers, the Hundred End sees classic cars, bikes, tractors and commercial vehicles all parked together, with refreshments and market produce available, alongside a fairground organ and auto-parts stalls, with further entertainment provided by a ukelele band. In case you needed further persuasion, there’s also a pie and pea supper!

The rally will be signposted, although you can get fairly close by plugging the postcode PR4 6XL into your sat nav! Further details are available on 01772 811430.

12 NEWS

Sidecar Scrapbook While there are many books discussing the subject of sidecars that are available – and even though several of them are no longer printed, they’re easily available via the like of Amazon – very few go into the real technicalities of outfits in any depth.

Matt Little was very aware of this fact, and realised that there were folk out there who would be interested in the ins-and-outs of sidehack manufacture. It’s far more complicated than just bolting a chair and an extra wheel on to one side of a motorcycle!

Consequently Matt’s book discusses the basics of motorcycle selection, tyre choice and riding technique, and then goes into further detail on weight and positioning of the chair, the various ways of attaching the sidecar chassis to the bike’s main frame, the complex subject of geometry of the chair and bike, finishing off with troubleshooting and maintenance procedures.

While it is a low budget publication – there’s no glossy cover or colour photographs – the value and level of information contained is invaluable to anyone either interested in owning or building a sidecar, or who already rides such a beast or, for that matter, just anyone who has an interest in bikes and engineering in general.

The Sidecar Scrapbook is available either direct from Matt at matt-little1978@ yahoo.co.uk, or from the National Motorcycle Museum’s bookshop at www. nationalmotorcyclemuseum. co.uk/shop (or visit it in person), and is priced at £9.95.

May 2019

Triumph's back in the desert

With the current explosion in interest in pseudo-off road styled motorcycles such as the Scramblers built by both Triumph and Ducati, and the ‘soft-roaders’ produced by just about every manufacturer (including Harley-Davidson!), it was only a matter of time before one of them put their money where their mouth is, and actually started racing one.

We’re not talking about the Dakar racer machines built by factories such as KTM and Honda, but of the retro-styled bikes that owe their design, and heritage, to the bikes being built in the Sixties and Seventies – the sort of machines that everyone who has seen On Any Sunday yearns for in the hours after watching the film…

Triumph motorcycles are now producing a Scrambler 1200 XE – a

which is an event very similar in style and terrain (rocky desert) to the original Baja races that proved so popular in the Sixties with racers on Triumph twins. The race started on April 26, a day after this magazine went to press, and we’ll report on Ernie’s progress in a future issue.

had some involvement in rallies and parties too! He’s now set-up at Midland Vapour Blasting, dealing with parts and people on a one-toone basis, and is even capable of doing parts while you wait! Aside from vapour blasting, Tom can also sonically clean parts, a process ideal for components with tiny passageways that could be blocked by blasting media, such as carburettors.

Based in Stone in Staffordshire, Tom can be contacted on 07432 131505 or tom.veevers@hotmail.

com, while he will soon have a website up and running at www. midlandvapourblasting.com

Not so easy riding An intrepid group of UK-based NVT Easy Rider owners are proposing to take on the world at Bonneville Speed Week Challenge in the US during August 2020.

They will use two specially prepared NVT (Norton Villiers Triumph) Easy Rider 50cc mopeds launched in the 1970s. The NVTBSAEROC team will use a standard Easy Rider, and another fitted with a sidecar. Both machines will be tuned in order to make realistic attempts at a number of American Motorcycle Association speed records with the express target of returning to the UK with AMA speed records.

The Bonneville Challenge five-man team of Philip Bargh, Peter Bates, Peter Nicholson, Martin Rawson and John Young will undertake the preparation and riding but are keen to share this awesome challenge

Get Blasted in the Midlands

One of the most tedious jobs in the renovation or restoration of a project bike is ensuring that all the components to be checked and repaired need to be cleaned. And cleaned without causing them any damage. While it may be easy enough to take your frame and engine cases down to your local industrial shotblasters, you may not be left with much after they’ve done their job…

with supporters and sponsors.

A special Facebook page has been created so that supporters can follow the team’s preparation as they hone the machine for the unique challenge ahead. To keep up to date with each stage of the preparation, the ups the downs, the failures and successes, become a friend on the ‘Bonneville 2020 – The NVT Easy Rider Challenge’ Facebook page.

Potential sponsors can contact the team through their Facebook page to be part of this British endeavour to set world records. A warm welcome will be given to individual and corporate sponsors and the team will be happy to discuss your support. This challenge is likely to receive international coverage and will be an ideal platform to promote products and services. Interested parties can get in touch with Roy Maddox at redroy53@sky.com Which is why you need someone who not only uses suitable media with which to do the blasting, but also someone who knows the subject material, who knows how different motorcycle parts need to be treated and who has an affinity with building project bikes.

And here’s one such a person right now – Tom Veevers has not only built some rather wonderful bikes (including one powered by a cement mixer engine!), but has been around cars, bikes and trucks his entire life, and has also

The 2019 Ellis Journey

Modern classics getting practical With so many manufacturers now producing a modern alternative to what amounts to the ‘classic Brit twin’, it’s little surprise that the aftermarket industry is starting to catch on.

With many modern machines also relying on the manufacturer’s own range of bolt-on parts, there is, however, the issue that they’re perhaps not quite as practical as the original twins may have been, and a prime example is the Triumph Street Scrambler that recently had a

parallel twin that has more off-road potential than their road-going Street Scrambler, with longer travel suspension, a proper aluminium sump guard etc., and now they’re actually racing one!

Stunt rider Ernie Vigil is the pilot, riding a near-standard Scrambler XE in the Norra Mexican 1000 race,

stay at Old Bike Mart HQ. We’ll look at the bike itself in closer detail soon, but I’ll just mention the fact that it is near-impossible to carry any amount of luggage on the standard bike, which is where a recent product from Ventura comes into play.

The Ventura products actually consist of three elements – some discreet brackets that are tailor-made for each model and that attach on to the existing subframe, a rack that slides on to the Ventura brackets, and a pack that itself slides on to the rack!

The end result is neat, tidy and unobtrusive, yet also incredibly practical, making it not only possible to easily carry luggage (aside from the Ventura pack itself) but also brings an added bonus in giving some pillion support on the standard Street Scrambler, in the

form of something for the pillion to grab hold of and/or lean against!

There are three sizes of pack available (10, 22 and 40 litres in capacity), priced between £73.99 and £149.99, while the racks sell for £73.99 and the brackets price is dependent on the model of bike in question, although as a guide, a typical system with the brackets, rack and 22-litre pack would cost £338.98 for the Triumph Scrambler 1200. For further details, prices and a full list of pack options, visit www. ventura-bike.co.uk

While the closing date for entries to this pre-1905 vehicle run has now passed (it was May 1), interest in the 2019 Ellis Run is still continuing to rise. After last year’s event, which included motorcycles for the first time, the Transport Trust has erected a plaque at Micheldever Station which you will be able to see from the station car park, suggesting

South West ‘jumbling The Taunton Autojumble is relocating this year to a new venue, with a large, hard standing area, indoor stall space if required, and a clubhouse with tasty, affordable

that it now has a firm place in the vintage vehicle calendar.

This year’s event takes place over the weekend of June 29 and 30, and there are plans to make the run a bigger and better event this year, with increased activities and attractions to provide things to do at the finish as well as to create a special atmosphere.

To see more, visit the website at www.ellisjourney.co.uk, while more information is available from Lawrie, 07989 978335, and Nick, 07887 690405. food and excellent facilities. It will take place at the 37 Club, Puriton, Somerset, close to the M5, junction 23 (A39), on Saturday, August 24. Please contact Pete on 07977 642852 for any further details.

14 BIT ON THE SIDE

May 2019

Rubber side down While he’s not particularly weary, Mick Payne is getting tyred this month, as he takes a look at rubber options for sidecar combinations.

I

t’s been a long time since tyres had names like ‘All Non Skid’ and ‘Grasshopper’ but in the 1950s these were the names given to Firestone and Goodyear products.

Neither of those brands are discussed much when the subject of what tyre to fit to your outfit arises, as has been happening on several internet sites lately. Well, the sort I go on anyway! Much of this has been regarding the fitting of car tyres to motorcycle rims and has caused quite heated discussion.

Back when the sidecar was being used as family transport, the performance of the tyre was probably not a consideration.

‘How long will it last before the canvas shows?’ was probably a more relevant question. Back then,

Skinny vintage tyres are used on this Levis, piloted by Jim D’Arcy and passengered by Kate.

Panther offered a complete outfit with interchangeable 19-inch wheels, including a spare, and would probably have run the universal pattern, general purpose tyre of the time. Although they probably only matched when it was new...

Things are a little different now with tyres almost becoming fashion items, the bike’s version of the training shoe? The sidecar still has the same quirky handling characteristics and, in the case of the older models, much the same requirements. I’ve owned several outfits – and ridden many more – and they have been shod with all manner of rubber from three radial car tyres to a set of square section classic tyres. On my own chairs I’ve had trailer tyres, radial car tyres and even trail type knobblies, and the bike has similarly been fitted with a variety of tyre types.

When I asked the people who actually fit sidecars as a job, Ben of

Car tyres all round on this combination.

An Avon Sidecar Triple Duty tyre on the front.

Watsonian said: “99% of the time we leave tyres as standard, occasionally fitting Avon Triple Duty Sidecar tyres to the front, but sizes are limited and clearance on the front mudguard can be an issue.” David Angel of F2 Motorcycles said much the same thing. “Something long-lasting and fairly square in profile on the rear, such as Avon SM Mk2, while on the front something rounder in profile is good. It doesn’t need to be as hard-wearing but should grip well, but avoid ribbed tyres. As for the sidecar, if it’s not braked, anything that stops the rim rubbing on the ground is fine! If it is braked, match it to the rear if possible.”

My own experience fits in quite well with those remarks, as I ran my T140/Meteor on Avon Roadriders and it always had plenty of grip.

Modern trail tyres are used all round on this outfit.

Avon Roadriders on the bike, and a car radial on the chair.

Even with twin Norman Hyde discs and Lockheed Racing calipers on the front it was never going to lock the front in the dry while the rear wore square fairly rapidly. The Charnwood Meteor was fitted with a Citroen 2CV tyre on a 15-inch rim, but the important thing here was that the rim was rolled with a profile suitable for a car tyre.

I had a friend with a BSA A65 with a Michelin radial 2CV tyre on the back; this was however fitted to a wheel fabricated by Keith Wash at Unit Sidecars. They machined the centre from a Citroen steel wheel and either welded tubular steel spokes to a centre machined to suit the bike or dimpled the rim to take new wire spokes. This was a great solution for fitting long-wearing car tyres to an outfit. Perhaps the last word regarding the fitting of car tyres, should you be so inclined, should go to John Hind, chairman of the Federation of Sidecar Clubs. “From the classic point of view we are only talking about 15-inch tyres which the Germans have been using since the

’70s when someone laced a suitable car rim on to a BMW hub and fitted a tyre for a 2CV.” He also went on to say: “The only safe option is to fit car tyres to car rims and bike tyres to bike rims.”

Next month I will go into more detail on what tyres are available to purchase for your classic outfit; there are a few more new options available now!

May 2019

15

16 MADE IN JAPAN

May 2019

1969 Kawasaki H1 500/3 Creating a reputation for a factory with just one machine isn’t easy, yet Steve Cooper shows just how Kawasaki managed it.

W

hether you like two-strokes or loathe them, you need to give thanks to Kawasaki’s launching of their mad-as-cheese 500cc triple. This bike, above all others, marks a line in the sand whereby motorcycles cease to be simply methods of transportation and become overtly leisure devices, toys for adults, recreational artefacts and so on. This was THE MOTORCYCLE that changed how the trade, the public and the media at large perceived motorised two-wheelers.

In the early 1960s, Kawasaki was an industrial giant that found its aeronautical wing at a loose end. They’d previously acquired Meguro, which brought with it a heavily reworked 500cc BSA A7 clone that Kawasaki latterly hogged out to 650. The machine was supposed to be the company’s first serious foray into larger capacity motorcycles, yet the W series failed to make strong inroads into the all-important American market. The company had done reasonably well with its A1 Samurai and A7 Avenger two-stroke twins, yet these bikes alone weren’t sufficient to give Kawasaki the credibility it required. This hiatus catalysed a research programme that sought to deliver a fast, relatively lightweight, 500cc machine that, crucially, would score on performance.

While Europe measured a bike’s kudos and worth via top speeds, Kawasaki had noted that in America it was standing start quarter mile times that impressed both the press and the bike-buying public. Whatever machine the company were going to deliver, it had to be hot off the line and focused on that allimportant 440 yards of tarmac.

Two teams were jointly funded; one working on a larger version of the disc-valved A7 350, with the other looking at stroker triples. It was soon evident that a large capacity twin, while being super torquey, was never going to tear up tarmac over the quarter mile, so focus was shifted on to the triples. Two versions existed with one being an inline engine and the other a rather radical V configuration. Ultimately, although the V engine gave more power, Kawasaki’s marketing guys felt the layout was simply too radical and outrageous to gain customer acceptance. The prototype H1 motor got the green light and everyone then looked at the chassis... which is where it all went a little out of kilter. The company was already well into shaking down their prototype, transverse,

The H1 has something of a reputation for its handling – undeserved?

Looking immaculate in white, the H1 wasn’t perhaps as virginal as expected…

“Step up to precision power” – the tagline says it all!

SOHC, four stroke, four cylinder so the R&D budget was tight, very tight in fact. Looking for an easy win and a swift market launch, the H1 team opted for a revised version of the A7 350 twin. Obviously this was a bad decision, with the gift of hindsight, yet market forces had been conspiring against Kawasaki. By now it was a badly kept secret that Honda was about to rip the covers off their own 750/4, beating Kawasaki’s own take on the concept and thereby rendering several years of research and development worthless. The firm needed to recoup some money urgently, so the H1 was launched with a so-so frame made infinitely worse by the almost last-minute decision to use thinner gauge tubing! The rest, as the saying goes, is history.

When the H1 500 triple was released to the American market, the journalists and pundits went mental. Here was a machine that totally aced everything on two wheels.

The fact that the machine’s handling was less than adequate only added to the mystique of a machine that was also outrageously marketed as the Mach III. That it drank fuel like a tramp at a free bar, wheelied with little provocation, had blistering acceleration and immediately turned everything else out there into fossils simply increased the public’s desire to experience this feral rocket ship.

Within months, reports were coming back from the field that this was a machine that would repay bad riding by spitting the rider off at the merest opportunity. Some bright spark called the H1 ‘The Widow Maker’ and the moniker stuck. Today a company selling a bike with such a fearsome reputation would swiftly find itself in court tied up with product liability suits flying in from all angles, but not in 1969. Kawasaki had unleashed a monster and yet, in the words of Oscar Wilde... “there’s only one thing worse than being talked about and that’s not being talked about!” Few motorcycles have sold so well on the premise that they were so bad.

And of course, back in Japan, the people involved must have been popping bottles of sake like it was going out of fashion. Post party night, the employee with the smallest hangover probably suggested ... “well, if the 500 is so successful, why don’t we make a full 750?” From here it was only a matter of time before the marketing guys wanted a whole range of two-stroke triples to complete the set. The fact that the subsequent S1 250 triple was not as fast as the obsoleted A1 Samurai twin didn’t matter; neither did the fact that the S2 350 triple got through petrol faster than its bigger 500cc brother. The new range of unique, outrageous, charismatic and unquestionably good-looking triples were now, collectively, a byword for twowheeled insanity and Kawasaki’s media team lost no time in alluding to the berserk nature of the product. While competitors might have frowned on the whole idea of promoting a range of apparently antisocial and potentially dangerous machines, Kawasaki simply lapped up the spin that was the headlines and with good reason.

While the world and its wife were standing,

The spiel in the factory brochure suggested that the three cylinder engine would ‘last longer.’ Than what?

“An unbelievable 2hp per cubic inch” resulted in “the fastest 1/4 mile production motorcycle in the world, regardless of size”.

The triple with ripple.

staring slack-jawed at the triples, they were blissfully unaware that all of this was part of Kawasaki’s master plan. The sales of the earliest triples had helped balance the books from the aborted launch of their own 750/4.

With minor yearly revisions this allowed the company to focus on its new DOHC 900 four which was now well beyond prototype stage.

The H1 Mach III had given the company the breathing space it needed to come back with the seminal Z1. It also facilitated the expansion of a whole range of machines, from learner 250 through expert/hero/loony 750, putting Kawasaki in the limelight like little else could have done. Those triples weren’t necessarily the best machines in their class, they certainly weren’t the most economical or the best handling either. Yet despite this, and a whole lot more, they were, and remain, the headline act of the 1970s two-stroke scene. Which is some achievement for a machine rushed through to production with a compromised chassis!

Have you ever considered restoring or owning an unusual motorcycle? Something of an oddball, a left field choice, a machine that’s notionally outside the norm. Note that I’m not saying rare; rare equates to problems, delayed refurbishment, a marked absence of spares and, ultimately, massive financial outlay. Yet choosing something made in volume yet not sold in Blighty at all, or in minuscule numbers, can be both a seriously entertaining exercise and a genuine talking point.

Cards on the table time, we’re not talking about the likes of Marushos or even Bridgestones. The former are known to have issues from the off and the latter can, on occasion, take a serious amount of money to sort out. No, choose something from The Big Four and the chances are you’ll end up with a truly viable machine which will be both involving and rewarding to use. Still sceptical? Then read on.

Almost two decades ago I purchased, in a moment of weakness, a Yamaha MF2 step-through; Yamaha’s answer to Honda’s C50. A project’s a project so, wading in deep, I started the inevitable parts hunt and, to my utter amazement, found so much NOS stock it was frankly mad. Yes, I know that not everyone wants a 50cc commuter bike from 1964, but you get the idea. Against hope and expectation, everything required to rebuild the engine was available either in the UK or America, and nothing was expensive. In fact many dealers on both sides of the pond were only too glad to shift stock they’d had for decades. How does £10 a wheel for spoke kits still in their packets sound? Or a brand spanking downpipe and silencer for £40? As is sometimes the way, someone even more obsessed by old, small capacity, Japanese iron made me an offer I couldn’t refuse and I moved the bike on. He finished it and even won a Best Yamaha trophy with it at Stafford! Who says you have to have deep pockets to win a gong?

Sitting on the work bench in the shed is another oddball Yam; a CS3C American market street scrambler. Obtained from Canada for not too much dosh it was, crucially, all there, if heavily abused by teenage hooligans. Yes, the engine was dog rough and unquestionably the paint needed doing also, but just £40 refreshes all the nuts and bolts so it’d be madness not to replate. What about the engine, you say? Every bearing in both the motor and the gearbox was available off the shelf from Yambits and they also stocked rod kits that included both the big and little end bearings, a new crank pin and crank shims. eBay supplied oversized pistons and Yamaha themselves still stock the gudgeon pins and circlips. All things considered, that’s pretty damn impressive for a bike that was only made for the 1971 model year.

And it’s not just Yamaha strokers that play ball like this. Another acquaintance runs Honda CB450s and covers obscenely high mileages on them and without issue.

Service parts he buys within Europe and, for anything more substantial, he shops on eBay.com where there are more parts for sale than you can shake a stick at. His technique is as simple as it is clever. He avoids both the original four-speed Black Bomber and the first five-speed incarnation like the plague, instead focusing on the final disc-braked models.

These later CB450s have all the wrinkles ironed out of them and can happily run all day every day without issue. Better still, they look like the earlier CB750s yet without the mass or high purchase price.

Whether you’ll be able to find a K4 or K5 example for £1350 is up for serious debate but know this... classic Japanese ownership does not have to be punitively expensive if you do your homework and purchase with your head properly screwed on.