Old Bike Mart - March 2020 - Preview

March 2020 £2.20 ISSUE

417

OLD BIKE MART Kempton Park Autojumble

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A despondent despatch rider stands beside his four-cylinder FN, with the only positive feeling coming from the fact that the errant shrapnel that tore the bike asunder didn’t touch the rider!

• To find this and thousands more images visit: Mortons Archive www.mortonsarchive.com

2 NEWS

March 2020

Editorial

www.oldbikemart.co.uk email: info@oldbikemart.co.uk Editor Dave Manning OBMEditor@mortons.co.uk Designer Tracey Markham Production editors Pauline Hawkins, Sarah Spencer Group advertising manager Sue Keily Divisional advertising manager Billy Manning Trade Advertising Team Leader (Classic Division) Leon Currie lcurrie@mortons.co.uk | 01507 529465 Trade Advertising Ricky Nichols rnichols@mortons.co.uk | 01507 529467 For Private Enquiries please visit

www.oldbikemart.co.uk

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-5pm 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.

Periodical Postage is paid at Bancroft, WI and additional entries. Postmaster: Send address changes to OLD BIKE MART, c/o Motorsport Publications LLC, 7164 City Rd N #441, Bancroft WI 54921.

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I

n a somewhat contrary nature, it’s become clear to me of late that the world of classic motorcycles is a continually changing one, regardless of the fact that the bikes that we know and love are fixed in style and form, in the way in which they were originally conceived.

With that in mind, one might conceivably assume that things remain constant in the classic motorcycle scene, but there are many things that instigate and reflect change in our world - the continual rising in value of certain machinery; the fact that, with each passing year, more bikes earn themselves the ‘classic’ moniker; and the somewhat depressing fact that we all reach our fate and bikes move from the deceased’s estate to a new owner. Like death and taxes, change is inevitable.

Having said that, I’ll also make the statement that, in the world of classic, vintage and veteran motorcycles, change isn’t something that happens overnight. In fact, it’s almost glacial in terms of its rapidity.

So much so that we’ll not really notice it happening, but for the fact that the rising value of bikes heading through the auction houses is clear for all to see, as is the number of more recent machines (those built in the Eighties and Nineties) that are appearing at classic events, shows and autojumbles.

So, while Old Bike Mart isn’t going to change in each and every way from one issue to another, there are a few little tweaks and changes that can be made to reflect the way that the classic motorcycle scene is changing (or

not changing, as the case may be). With a new column added into the News pages in the last issue, we’ve expanded that a little further for this month’s edition, with another new column that is going to focus on a nightmare scenario that we all imagine will, hopefully, never happen to any of us, yet it is far too often a situation that a classic bike owner can find him, or herself, in. That is having their bike stolen. The new ‘Gone Missing’ column can be found on page 10.

With that bit of changing news out of the way, let’s look at the things that have stayed the same.

I’m still searching for a bargain basement running project – but isn’t that what we’re all doing pretty much all of the time? – and I still have projects that are, as yet, unfinished. I’ve still not managed to find any of the 10mm sockets that have disappeared from my tool drawers, and I’ve still not managed to eliminate all the leaks from my shed roof, which seems to be a job that is similar to painting the Forth Bridge – a never-ending task. Fortunately, one task that does manage to get completed each month is the filling of the pages of OBM with material, on which note I have to bring my rambling to an end, as our advertising chaps tell me that I’ve run out of sp…

March 2020

NEWS 3

Surtees remembered at the Classic The remarkable career of John Surtees CBE – one of the greatest names in motorsport, being the only person to win world championships on two wheels and four – will be celebrated at this year’s Classic TT, presented by Bennetts.

The 2020 event will mark the 60th anniversary of John’s final TT appearance, where he won his sixth and final TT race when he sat atop the podium for the Senior TT. In total, John Surtees won seven motorcycle world championships including consecutive 350 and 500cc doubles in 1958, 1959 and 1960. And, to celebrate these amazing achievements, there’ll be a celebration lap on Saturday, August 29 featuring some of the bikes that are inextricably linked with his name, ridden by well-known TT riders and guests connected to John’s motorcycle racing.

The 1960 MV Agusta that John rode to victory in the World Championship and Senior TT will take centre stage for the celebration lap, as well as featuring in a one-off display in the Classic TT paddock, along with a number of other iconic machines from the Surtees family collection.

Other bikes include the 1949 Vincent Grey Flash that John won his first race on – a machine which he considered the most important of his life – and a Vincent Black Lightning

Champion on two wheels and four, John Surtees in action on the four cylinder MV Agusta at the TT.

from the same year. John’s time riding Nortons is also reflected with three bikes from the family collection – a Norton 500cc Experimental Prototype, a 1959 Manx Norton and a 1953 Works Norton.

Riders confirmed to appear in the parade lap include 23-time

TT winner John McGuinness, Mick Grant, TV chef Paul Hollywood (who became a firm friend of John’s after filming the BBC Legends documentary), Steve Parrish, Steve Plater and Ian Skinner, John’s team mechanic for more than 35 years.

The event has been organised with the Surtees family to celebrate John’s life and career, and John’s wife Jane and daughter Edwina will be attending. The celebration will also highlight the work of the TT Riders Association of which John was a former president.

Wemoto has Jurby Festival charity fundraising off to a T As you’ll know if you read the editorial piece a couple of months ago, the Festival of Jurby will not be returning to the Classic TT/Manx GP calendar this year, although the organisers and sponsor, Wemoto, are still going to continue raising money for the MGPSC. Thanks to sales of event T-shirts, more than £80,000 has been raised for the Manx Grand Prix Supporters Club over the last five years, and

‘Pa’ Norton’s memorial service At some point in the not-too-distant past, the Norton Owners Club received correspondence from a couple of unconnected overseas members, who’d visited the UK and also made a pilgrimage to James ‘Pa’ Lansdowne Norton’s grave in Birmingham. Both commented on what a poor state the memorial was in.

As vice-chairman at the time, Barry Owen decided to take the matter in hand and contacted Birmingham Council, who informed him that they needed surviving family members’ permission if they were to improve the graveside, so Barry had the unenviable task of tracing the surviving family.

After a couple of Midlands radio interviews plus a BBC Midlands News appearance, as well as Maltese radio (yes, really, as he’d been told there was family in Malta) the breakthrough came via a piece in Old Bike Mart, in which one of our readers contacted Barry and suggested he try Ancestry. co.uk for help.

After playing about on the site Barry found a Norton family tree, emailed the member and got a positive reply from one of James’ granddaughters.

The grave was subsequently restored, and club members decided that they would have a memorial service – James was a Salvation Army officer and after one of Barry’s radio interviews the Salvation Army asked if they could attend. So, at the first memorial service, the Salvation Army brass band led the service, with several of Pa’s surviving family in attendance.

The event has now turned into an annual service, with a Salvation Army officer without the band, and this year the Norton Owners Club Shenstone Branch is holding the annual wreath laying at the memorial of James Lansdowne Norton on Saturday, April 4 at Lodge Hill Cemetery, Weoley Park Road, Birmingham B29 5AA. The short service will start at 11 o’clock and will conducted by Major Vic Kennedy of the Salvation Army, with James’s surviving family members also in attendance. As in the past, club members anticipate going for a pub lunch afterwards, and anybody wishing to join should please let Barry know in advance so that the club can reserve tables. Email Barry on barry. owen573@ntlworld.com

in order to continue the good work, Wemoto has designed a special 2020 shirt that will be available soon to buy online at www.wemoto.com.

Proceeds will help fund the MGPSC charity’s life-saving helicopter ambulance used during the Manx Grand Prix and support injured riders and their families.

More details can be found at the website, www.wemoto.com or by calling 01273 597072.

VMCC's Norman Broadbridge Run The Goodwood Section of the VMCC is 40 years old this year and, to celebrate the fact, a run has been organised on Sunday, April 5. The event is called the Norman Broadbridge Run, and will be starting at 10.30am from the Tangmere Aviation Museum near Chichester. While it is usually well supported by the section, its members would also like to encourage anyone to join in for a 50-mile run through the West Sussex and South Downs countryside, finishing at the Hampshire Bowman pub at Dundridge. Any further information can be furnished by the contact, Andy Relf, on 07770 590323.

Lynbrook to Vantage Noted for its innovative motor insurance products, Lynbrook Insurance has recently consolidated this position by transferring its underwriting activities to Vantage Insurance, and is thus stating that the company can guarantee reasonable rates, a stability of premiums and can open up the possibility of further product enhancements.

Current Lynbrook policyholders retain all of their policy cover, and at renewal they will receive the newly enhanced suite of Lynbrook benefits via Vantage.

See www.lynbrookins.co.uk for contact details.

www.oldbikemart.co.uk

4 NEWS

March 2020

Sunbeamers’ Welsh Week What could be better than a week’s scenic riding in unspoilt countryside aboard a pre-1940 classic motorcycle, sidecar or three-wheeler?

I’ll give you a clue, not a lot, and here’s an example that you may struggle to resist. Run by the Sunbeam Motor Cycle Club (best known for the Pioneer Run, of course), the Welsh Week runs from June 20 to June 27, is open to members and non-members alike, and is based around lodge accommodation (there’s also a campsite) with all meals provided.

This long-standing event, first run in 1984, attracts a wide variety of machines, and is famed for its wonderful riding roads, beautiful scenery and friendly and social atmosphere.

Each day will involve a new route, adding a variety of views and fantastic quiet roads, known in general for their good surfaces.

Arrival is on the Saturday afternoon, allowing entrants to unload, settle in and socialise, before an evening meal. The event starts with a briefing on Sunday morning after breakfast, ready for the first ride out, usually around midday.

For the rest of the week, the days start with a full breakfast and a short briefing of the day’s route with paper route cards and a packed lunch provided. The aim is to gather for the start of the day’s riding by around 10am (full day routes are 80-100 miles), and routes are chosen to include a mid-morning coffee break, moving on through the day to a lunch stop in an interesting setting. The afternoon is spent riding back towards base with an optional tea/pub stop, in

time for a little bike fettling (if required!), and a wash and brush up for the riders ready for the evening meal. After dinner, the licensed clubroom stays open for socialising and tall stories!

Wednesday is a ‘free’ day, where you can explore the area on your own or just have a rest. There is an optional guided run out on the Wednesday as well for those interested, as always containing fantastic scenery, and likely stopping at a pub for lunch. The last run takes place on Friday, and entrants leave on Saturday after breakfast.

The club is proposing to make one day suitable for veteran bikes, so you could take two bikes, a vintage and a veteran, if you’re lucky enough to own, or have access to, such machines. Recovery and extensive workshop facilities are available, with secure overnight parking for your bikes.

Accommodation is in shared, well-equipped comfortable lodges providing modern facilities, while there is also camping for tents, caravans and motorhomes available with showers, washrooms and toilets, as well as electrical hook-up.

A full breakfast, packed lunch and two-course evening meal are provided each day, with an entry fee of £26 for Sunbeam MCC members (£29 for non-members), with board and accommodation (including meals) from £260 per person, and camping/caravanning (including meals) for £230 per person.

For more details and entry form please contact Jack Kemp at office@radnorrevivals.com or 07876 597697.

A season’s worth of autojumbles

London to Brighton with Sammy Miller This year’s London to Brighton Pioneer Run, held on March 22 and organised as usual by the Sunbeam Motor Cycle Club, will see Sammy Miller riding the museum’s faithful 1914 Alldays Matchless bike, which the extrials and road race star has used many times before without any problems – although that is a statement that is perhaps tempting fate a tad too much!.

The 499cc, 3½hp side

valve single runs a two speed rear hub and, like many on the London to Brighton trip, has a belt drive, and actually has suspension built into the foot boards.

Leaving Tattenham Corner on Epsom Downs at 8am, the first of the riders will be arriving at Brighton City Airport – the new collecting point for the end of the run – from around10am.

More details can be found at www.sunbeammcc.co.uk

Throughout the year, thousands of people flock to the Kempton and Newark autojumbles – and now bargain-hunting ’jumblers can save money on entry and gain early access with a new season ticket.

The wonderful world of the autojumble is the place to be to grab a bargain, meet like-minded biking individuals and haggle over parts and spares, and saving 20% on the entry price is the best bargain to ever be had, leaving extra cash to spend on the stuff that matters – parts!

With a season ticket for either Newark or Kempton, card holders will gain early access to the show and get first dibs on the special wares on offer among the hundreds of inside and outside trade plots. Visitors come from all over the UK, and parts of Europe too, so you can be sure to find a missing piece of treasure for your latest project, or even a completely new project bike, for the perfect price.

A season ticket can be purchased for either Newark or Kempton and can only be used at the show on the card purchased. A card holder for ’Normous Newark will have access to nine shows this year for only £72, and can gain entry to the show at 8am, a full two hours before general admission. Alternatively, the card can be used for multiple people at one event.

A season ticket for The Kempton Park Motorcycle Autojumble gives access to seven shows for just £56, and the chance to beat the queues with early bird access at 7.45am, before the gates open to the public at 9.30am. Like at Newark, the card can be used for multiple people at one event – you might get a bacon sarnie from your mate in return to say thanks. Early bird access on the gate costs £10, saving card holders 20% per show.

For full details about the autojumbles, how to purchase a season ticket and for full Ts&Cs, visit: www.autojumble.info

6 NEWS

March 2020

40th Stafford Show gets a hint of ruby

A

pril 25-26 will mark the 40th anniversary of the world-famous Carole Nash International Classic MotorCycle Show, held at Stafford County Showground. It also marks 20 years of Stafford Show being directed with the reins of Mortons Media, with the first double decade being run by the gent who started it all, Alan Whitehead.

And d whilee thee laast 20 0 yearss haavee seen many changes to the show, Alan still attends in his

trademark all whites, with clipboard in hand.

Although the show’s instigator won’t be the only attraction in April, as the 40th celebrations have brought a 1940s theme, in a nod to the fact that just a few weeks later, many people will be celebrating the 75th anniversary of VE Day, and one of the Stafford complex’s halls will be set in the Forties, not only with dissplaay bikkes and d clu ubs, but also having a Spitfire and Hurricane in the hall itselff!

ABOVE: Released from the Miller Museum for the weekend, this ’48 EMC will be at Stafford.

LEFT: Sammy Miller in action aboard the ’64 Bianchi that will also be on display at Stafford.

The sh how’’s insttigattor, Alan Whiteh head d, in ‘acttion’’. (Image court rtesy off the Alan Whitehead collection.)

Not to be left out, the Classic Racer GP paddock will be bolstered by the addition of a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine and an Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah engine from not-for-profit group Historic Aero Engines, plus numerous classic race bikes and sidecars. Further rare race machines will be on display indoors, with the Sammy Miller museum taking along a 350cc EMC GP bike from 1948, and a ’64 Bianchi raced by Remo Venturi to the Italian Championship title, both of which will be located on the Hagon stand.

Of course, the show will still be sticking to its roots as a classic

Stafford This is the greatest show... and these superb specialists will be there and ready to help you find those elusive parts and spares, give advice and generally help prepare you for the summer riding season ahead.

APRIL 25 - 26 2020

bike show, with thousands of classic motorcycles to see, a huge indoor and outdoor autojumble and, astoundingly, more than 900 traders in attendance. The Bonhams auction will be as spectacular as ever, with the exciting news that a large part of the Morbidelli Museum collection (those build post-WW2) will be going under the hammer at Stafford, including such amazing and such ultra-rare machines as a four-cylinder, double overhead cam 1964 Ducati 125cc GP bike created

by Fabio Taglioni that had gone to ground for some years, before the engine was discovered in Russia,

and the chassis in Yugoslavia, the parts being reunited by Giancarlo Morbidelli himself, who sadly passed away in early February. The sale includes race bikes (mostly Italian brands such as Benelli, Ducati and Mondial) as well as memorabilia, restored road bikes and prototypes, and even a few projects that weren’t restored by the museum. The full list of bikes in the auction can be found at www. bonhams.com/auctions/25384/ Advance tickets for April’s Stafford Show are on sale now, with a 20% saving on the gate price, at www. classicmagazines.co.uk/stafford

8 NEWS

March 2020

Classic Vincents and classic trams in a classic scene at Crich Tramway's Motorcycle Day!

Classic fun at Crich For the fourth year on the trot, Crich Tramway Village in Derbyshire will be hosting its annual Classic Motorcycle Day, this year falling on Sunday, July 5.

Organised in conjunction with the Vincent HRD Owners’ Club, the event combines the passions of vintage trams and classic motorcycles, thus offering a great family day out.

Free entry is offered to owners of classic motorcycles (built prior to July 5, 1995) who wish to exhibit their motorcycles for a minimum

of three hours, thanks to local skip and grab hire firm, Derwent Waste Management, who have sponsored the event for the fourth year.

There will be prizes awarded for Best British Motorcycle, Best International Motorcycle, Best Japanese Motorcycle and Best Pre-war Motorcycle which will be decided by judges, while the public will have the chance to vote for Best in Show.

Old Bike Mart will once again provide the cup for Best Classic Motorcycle in Original Condition, while

new for 2020 is the Best Scooter award.

For motorcyclists on modern motorbikes, which can be parked in the car parks, there is a reduced entry price to the event of £11.50 for this day, which is usually £18. Please ask for a voucher on admission.

Registration for the event is via www.tramway.co.uk and there is an event Facebook page with regular updates.

You can also contact Crich Tramway Village on: 01773 854321 or email enquiry@ tramway.co.uk

Classic bike owners get free entry to the museum

One of last year's winners; there are now seven categories in total!

10 NEWS

March 2020

Gone missing As an introductory paragraph for this, a new column within Old Bike Mart’s news pages, what we intend to do here is bring readers’ attention to the nasty side of classic bike ownership, and to the selfish behaviour of those folk who believe that they can help themselves to others’ belongings without any kind of comeback.

Here we’ll publish details of classic bikes that have been stolen (or, for that matter, recovered) in a bid to not only aid the repatriation of nicked bikes but also to open up pathways for information regarding the stolen machinery and those light-fingered ne’er-do-wells in order to bring them to justice.

We’ll also be looking at how we can avoid or prevent our bikes being nicked, or at

the very least deter the scum who want them for their own nefarious requirements, and we’ll also be looking at various scams and shady practices that exist that try to con us out of money as well as our beloved classics.

Thanks to Dr Ken German, a specialist in motorcycle theft and security, a consultant and ex-Metropolitan police flying squad officer (and also an OBM reader!), we’ve got some information that could just help us in keeping hold of our bikes a little longer, or in returning them to our loving embrace should they happen to get pilfered.

Extraordinarily, Ken informs us that in many cases, the victims of motorcycle theft have not been reporting their machines or parts stolen to the police and it’s only via social media that the forces

of law and order actually know that the theft has taken place!

It may perhaps be because they are not insured, or they don’t think it’s worth it as they have not made a note of the frame/engine numbers, or they have not discovered them gone yet but clearly many more are missing than reported. So, even if your bikes (or projects, or parts) aren’t insured, it’s worthwhile heading into your garage/shed/lock-up/ lean-to and recording all of the relevant information.

Make a note of all frame and engine numbers, list the parts and take photographs, lots of photographs – after all, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Even if you may not be able to make an

Motogiro 2020

insurance claim (and it is worthwhile checking your home contents cover, as it may cover the contents of garages and sheds), then any theft should still be reported to the police, not just so that they can return your belongings if they are recovered (and if you take a look at police auctions you’ll see just how much is recovered for which they have no information), but so that their database of stolen items is truly correct.

Please forward any information about stolen classic motorcycles to OBMeditor@mortons.co.uk, and we’ll endeavour to help in whatever way we can.

Abingdon Charity Day

Supported by the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club and Abingdon Rugby Club, Sunday, July 5 sees the rugby club – in Lambrick Way, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 5TJ – playing host to a Charity Bike Day from 11am to 4.30pm, with all funds going to granting wishes for children fighting cancer.

Everybody is welcome, and there’ll be a licensed bar, refreshments, music and trade stands, and it’s free entry.

For more information, or if you are interested in having a trade or club stand on the day, please contact Alan Hutt 07834 506180 or alanhutt66@ hotmail.co.uk

Beautiful motorcycles among stunning Italian scenery

During this year’s Verona Motor Bike Expo, a statement was issued regarding the 29th running of the Historical Re-enactment of the Motogiro d’Italia which, for 2020, will cover largely the same route as the full-on competition events of the Fifties.

Running from May 17 to May 23, the Motogiro will start and finish in Verona – although the original races had Bologna as the base – the change being due to the fact that not only is Verona a stunning place to visit, but it logistically makes more sense, especially for those travelling from abroad (given the closeness of Verona, Bergamo and Venice airports), although the majority of Italian participants also come from the north of the country!

To date, there are already more than 100 entries – among which are some historical participants including Silvano Fabbri and Marco Tomassini, among the leading experts and winners in different categories of various re-enactments. The participation of three-time 125cc world champion Pier Paolo Bianchi and former 250cc world champion, the Venezuelan Carlos Lavado, has also been confirmed.

The Motogiro 2020 will operate in the form of a regularity event over 1700 kilometres, divided into six days and six stages, touching Trento to the north and Montecatini Terme to the south. In addition to Verona the other stage locations are: Treviso, Cortina D’Ampezzo and Salsomaggiore Terme.

Many bikes built in the mid-1950s are brought to the race by enthusiasts from all over the world – especially English, Dutch, German, American and Spanish – to recreate the deeds of this epic race that was conceived originally to motivate the country, contributing greatly to the reconstruction after the

tragedy of the Second World War. Among the vintage bikes present, the lion’s share is made by the historic Italian marques of the ’50s and ’60s with Ducati, Gilera, MV Agusta, Morini, Benelli, Guzzi and Rumi, although there are also many ‘modern’ bikes and classics of the ’70s and ’80s, as well as machines built in English, Spanish and American factories.

In the group of older bikes already registered are two 1935 Vincent 1000s ridden by a Dutch father and daughter, and a beautiful and very rare Indian 1000 four-cylinder from 1938, perfectly preserved by a well-known AngloIndian collector.

There are seven categories in the race: Heritage 1914-1949, Historical Re-enactment, Vintage, Classics, Cafe Racer, Motogiro and Tourist. Of course, the largest number of entrants is in Historical Re-enactment, which groups bikes with capacities up to 175cc and built between 1953 and 1958, i.e. those made during the period of the racing Motogiro, which took place from 1953 to 1957 until, in 1958, all races on roads open to traffic were abolished, after the tragedy in Guidizzolo during the Mille Miglia in ‘57, where the Marquis De Portago and 11 members of the public lost their lives, but then in the mid-1960s it was resumed with the formula of regularity for three more events and then finally discontinued.

At the end of the Eighties, the Moto Club Terni dusted off the event, in the form of a historical re-enactment that was immediately welcomed and enthusiastically supported by all and received great acclaim, so much so that initially, various competitors took part who had raced back in the 1950s.

All the info and details of the routes can be found on the www. motogiroitalia.it website.

Friends getting busy in 2020 Birmingham’s National Motorcycle Museum is once more running its Friends of the NMM scheme through 2020, with those folk who partake getting the chance to indulge in some unique activities that otherwise wouldn’t be available.

The first for this year is the ‘Try a classic bike’ day on March 28, whereby scheme members get to ride a number of laps on various motorcycles from the museum’s inventory in a closed roads environment within the museum grounds.

Machines will include a selection of veteran and vintage machines with lever throttle/hand change (training provided) as well as later machines from 1940s-1960s including Brough and Vincent! There will be a choice of either morning or afternoon sessions with a nominal fee of just £15 for Friends of the Museum, making this cost substantially less than other similar opportunities. There will be further dates for similar days later in the year.

The following month sees the first of the year’s classic bike tours, in which scheme members can ride machines from the museum on the public road, once some off-road training has been undertaken. They’ll be escorted by expert motorcycle instructors around the beautiful Warwickshire countryside, and the machinery on offer varies from a BSA B31 to a Brough Superior SS100, with each class of machine attracting a different ‘hire’ fee which includes insurance costs and lunch in the museum restaurant.

There will also be exclusive factory tours, two museum workshop days, visits to specialist collections that are not normally open to the public and much more.

More riding dates will be announced during the year, so be sure to check www.thenmm.co.uk for more details.

You can become a Friend of the National Motorcycle Museum with an annual subscription of £29.95 for adults, £27.45 for senior citizens (65 and older), £19.95 for junior up to 18 years old, or family membership of two adults and two children for £49.95. Call the National Motorcycle Museum on 01675 444123, visit the website at www.thenmm. co.uk or email shop@thenmm.co.uk

12 NEWS

March 2020

Bikers’ favourite cafe reopens This month, we talk to event organiser, Kyle Curtis, in order to take a quick look behind the scenes at the ’Normous Newark autojumbles, to see just how much work is done in advance of the gates opening to early bird punters at 8am!!

Basically, the work for each of the ’Normous Newark autojumbles starts as soon as the previous event is done, with the organisation of plots and the selling of space. Primarily my time is focused on Newark, Netley Marsh and Kempton as those are the shows I currently run or sell on but I deal with all calls into the office for any of the shows or autojumbles organised

by Mortons, publisher of OBM. Everyone in the events office has a specific show that they focus on, but can sell on any.

I arrive on the Saturday before the event with another member of staff, meeting two security there at 8am at the showground and then it’s just us all

day, marking up pitches and plots, until we leave at 8pm, and then night security take over until we’re back, early on the Sunday morning.

I’d say that Newark is very different to all of the other events – probably with the exception of the Stratford autojumble now – as the majority of trade turn up on the day rather than pre-booking, which is very different to the rest of our portfolio. That can be a little unnerving when we get bad weather, as we still need to try and hit budgets as the overheads are still there even when it’s raining, blowing a gale or even snowing... You can find anything and everything at Newark, and thanks to that it’s hard to

keep it purelly bike or car related, especially with all the trade turning up on the day, but people do seem to love the randomness of it all!

On average, we get around 120 people prebooking in, and then easily another 400-500 sellers arrive on the day itself. It goes with the seasons though, as winter months are quieter and, also, if other events are on, it can affect the numbers through the gate, both in terms of sellers and buyers!

A good portion of those taking out stalls are regulars, both inside and outside. I would say that between 80-90% of them are returning customers.

As far as the public goes, on average we get 4000 people through the door – at the January ’Normous Newark for instance, we got 3990. The all-time high was a few years ago, when more than 5000 came through – I heard parking was a nightmare as it was so busy.

But one figure that we can’t really keep tabs on is the amount of tea drunk by the staff who work the event – I’m such a nice person, I keep my staff hydrated throughout the day, doing tea runs for everyone. With the convenient side effect that it keeps your hands warm holding a cuppa!

The Cleobury Cafe in the Shropshire town of Cleobury Mortimer is a favourite breakfast and lunch stop for bikers heading west for the delights of the roads of Wales. At weekends it’s normal to see 20 or more bikes, classic and modern, parked along the High Street. But just before Christmas there was a big problem when one of the cafe’s roof beams collapsed, making the walls bulge and the county council’s inspectors declaring the structure dangerous. The place is now surrounded by scaffolding, access is closed

and the cafe had to move out in double-quick time.

However, after a short stay in a nearby vacant shop, the cafe has now relocated to a spacious and well-maintained shop on the other side of the High Street, about 50 metres west of its original home.

Local bikers already know about the move, but all riders following the A4117 from the West Midlands out towards Ludlow and the Welsh Marches can find the same staff, same good grub and same keen prices just across the road.

Bikers, as always, will find a welcome there.

The Peter Best Drive-It Day 2020 Peter Best Insurance, one of the UK’s leading classic car and specialist vehicle insurers, will be hosting a second annual Drive-It Day event on Sunday, April 26 at the sumptuous, welcoming and photogenic surroundings of Braxted Park Estate, Witham, Essex.

Following the huge success of last year’s event when 500 classic cars and many more motoring enthusiasts took part, this year Braxted Park will be opening its stately doors to up to 1000 vehicles.

While the day is usually focused on cars, all types of vehicle are welcome, and The Peter Best Drive-It Day is free, and there’s a guarantee of seeing some rare and interesting vehicles, and meeting some fellow motoring enthusiasts too.

On the catering front, there’ll be plenty to choose from too, including delicious vintage-themed food stalls or you can treat yourself to a VIP breakfast or afternoon tea experience (book online only).

If you don’t own a classic, modified or super car don’t worry, you’re still more than welcome to attend the event. You will just need to make sure that you register yourself, and your vehicle, as well as any passengers that may be coming with you.

To secure your place – you need to be aware that it is strictly limited to 1000 vehicles – please register online at www.pbis-drive-it-day-2020. eventbrite.co.uk

Two strokes are enough in April The first 2020 club run for the Lincolnshire branch of the British Two Stroke Club will take place on April 18, with the start venue being Sausthorpe Village Hall, Sausthorpe near Partney. The village hall is just off the A158, and signing-in will start from 9.45am.

All are welcome, including members and non-members, and while the club caters solely for two-strokes, riders on classic four-strokes are also welcome. As the club says – just come and be happy and enjoy yourselves!

There will be buffet refreshments after the run, despite the fact that on the last run of 2019, the promised fish and chips never materialised due to the failure of Western Power to supply power of any direction to the hall.

There was a catastrophic power surge, apparently, which not only wrecked the proposed grub, but also ruined some hall equipment. There were 18-plus riders, cold and wet, who were unbelievably good-natured and philosophical about the whole thing, huddling round the wood burner, swapping stories and surviving on tea from flasks supplied from the village!

Aside from the April run, the first club meeting of the year will take place at the same venue on March 31 from 7pm.

Any queries, or to check, contact Jay 07502 222754 or Andy 07940 447570.

Bomber pilot saves church While the headline may suggest some kind of daring aeronautical manoeuvre, it’s actually referring to the fact that a bike being sold at an H&H Auction will see proceeds go towards the

purchase of the old United Reformed Church in Stokesub-Hamdon, Somerset, built by a distant relation of the bike’s current owner, former RAF pilot Bill Southcombe.

The church was originally

The restored CS1 appears as race-ready as it ever was.

built as a Congregational venue, built for the community in 1866, and currently plays host to a number of communal activities but is set to be sold by the synod, probably ending up as development of some kind. Consequently, members of the local community have a vested interest and are raising funds to buy, and then renovate, the Grade II listed property.

A registered charity, Hamdon Community Arts Project (HCAP), has been founded to buy back the building for £100,000, half its market price, as a community sale. Currently the church

houses a playgroup founded in 1974, a local band founded in 1945 and a charity shop.

The church has an exquisite 900-pipe organ donated

by Julia Southcombe in 1875 which is still in perfect condition. HCAP organises plays, recitals, music competitions, and the performance of Handel’s Messiah, and it is estimated that refurbishment and repair of the building will cost a further £100,000.

Bill Southcombe, now aged 77, spent many years in the RAF, initially as a navigator in Vulcan bombers, then flying Phantoms from Coningsby in Lincolnshire, Akrotiri in

Built in 1930, registered for the road in '34, and restored in 2003.

s RAF career saw him posted throughout Bill Southcombe's Europe.

Cyprus, Germany and then Leuchars on Quick Action Alert, intercepting Russian bombers in UK air space! He also represented the RAF Motor Sports Association in the Manx Grand Prix and TTs from 1965-’68.

Bill’s 1930 Norton is one of the very first Arthur Carol designed CS1 Nortons to have been made, leaving the Norton works on December 20, 1930, sold to Mr H G Turner (possibly for racing) as it was not registered for road use until 1934.

With its three-brace frame, left-hand exhaust port, factory four-speed Sturmey Archer gearbox (with

Daytona ratios) it still retains its original high lift cams, and was purchased by Bill in 1972 from George Beale as a box of bits, and subsequently kept in boxes due to moving around the country for RAF duties. Restoration started in 2003 on his retirement, with the engine being restored by well-known Brooklands tuner Francis Beart’s mechanic Keith Manning.

All of the funds from the sale of the Norton, with a pre-sale estimate of between £25,000 and £27,000, will go towards the church project.

The H&H auction is at the National Motorcycle Museum on April 7.

14 MADE IN JAPAN

March 2020

Four-sttroke singles

Over the last few issues s of OBM, Steve Cooper has been exploring the almost myriad permutations off Suzuki trail bikes that all feature some ve ery well-considered two-stroke single cylinder engines. Here he looks at the four-stroke alternatives.

T

he lure and appeal of a twostroke design is as obvious as it is sublime; minimal moving parts, a potent power unit and almost insignificant assembly costs. In comparison, a four-stroke single requiress a lot more investment in its design, costs more to machine and requires a higher ski kill i set level to build on the production floor.. It’s arguable that if we’d never had an energy gy crisis in the 1970s, followed by a paranoid d environmentalist lobby blaming a small number of strokers for all of the planet’s ills, we might still be merrily burbling around d on modern versions of the same.

As anyone familiar with OBM’s remit will know, four-stroke singles were the very bedrock of nascent motorcycle production from the pioneer days and remained in vogue, if not in focus, for at least seven decades. That the glory days of the likes of BSA’s Gold Star, Velocette’s Venom or even Cleckheaton’s Panthers was over by the late 1960s is effectively a given. However, even as the embers of the British motorcycle industry were slowly self-extinguishing, the humble four-stroke single still held potential attractions. Google ‘Norton P92’ and tell me that’s not a missed opportunity. Even as a die-hard fan of Japanese machinery I remain blown away by what is realistically a prototype parts bin special of unbelievable beauty. Seriously, look it up and lament… this is a bike that would have potentially sold even in the face of Japanese-engineered analogues. A BSA B50 motor mounted at an angle to accommodate an electric start, high-end chassis borrowed from the abortive Triumph Bandit/BSA Fury disaster

The Super Cub spawned various offspring– of 50, 70 and 90cc – with the 10 million mark passing for this image, while an astounding 100 million units had been built by 2017!

Launched in 1954, the Suzuki Colleda fitted seamlessly into European styling.

all allied to Norton-derived Isolastic engine mounts à la Commando. I’ll go on record as saying if I could have purchased one in 1975 my motorcycling career might have been very different… but back to the plot.

Japan has had a mercurial relationship with four-stroke singles and it’s one that goes back a lot further than many realise.

Even in the early 1950s, Soichiro Honda was trying desperately hard to get away from the two-strokes he abhorred. In 1953 the Dream 6E 189cc four-stroke single was making sales headway, swiftly followed by 89cc Benly J Type a year later. Heavily influenced by German engineering and styling, Honda offered the 1955 250cc Dream SA with the then radical overhead camshaft set-up, something that was still vaunted as special on the GP circuits of the day! By 1956 the factory was offering a raft of well built, fourstroke singles, the like of which had never been seen before, culminating in the 350cc Dream MF. Even as Honda’s larger capacity machines morphed off into twins there was another, radical piece of high-tech ready in the wings.

The launch of what many still believe is the single most important motorcycle ever made took place in 1958. The C100 Super Cub is The Machine that brought powered travel to the masses, launched the SE Asian tiger economy and put more backsides on more bike saddles than any other machine.

Following their collective mantra of ‘four strokes only’, Soichiro and his right-hand man, Takeo Fujisawa, drove through a design concept that was so radical in its day that it’s hard to believe no one had done it before. Utilising a step-through frame which made access to the bike so easy, the motive power unit was an exquisite fourstroke single no one else had ever had the guts to build before. Unbelievably simple and basic, the bike’s greatest strengths were its simplicity allied to the precision engineering involved.

Many assume that all Honda 50s are overhead cam motors but the earliest were humble push rod engines that didn’t even

The 1958 C100 Super Cub’s high level of development was paid off by its massive global success.

have an oil pump! Almost unbelievably, the C100 relied on an oil flinger mounted on the big end of the connecting rod that hurled oil around the motor. The period sceptics argued that with minimal oil capacity and no real pump as such, the engine was bound to seize – nothing could be further from the truth. Every single component of the C100 Super Cub had been scrupulously researched, analysed, destruction tested and latterly improved upon. Honda invested hugely in stress analysis, metallurgy, thermal cycling and many other key performance factors. It wouldn’t be an understatement to suggest that the C100 engine and its later derivatives was probably the most significant four-stroke single engine ever produced!

Although many associate early Suzukis with two-stroke motors alone, the company actually used both formats for its 1950s lineup. Perhaps not too surprisingly the 90cc side-valve single Colleda CO 1954 (as seen in last month’s Suzuki museum feature) took its styling cues from Europe, which would be a recurrent theme with the various Colledas of 1955-1956, before parking poppet valves for 20 years, when they’d reappear on the GS400 and GS750.

Meguro Motorcycles were swallowed up by Kawasaki mid-’60s but, from as early as 1936, the firm had been knocking out machines that looked like they owed a lot to British firms such as JAP, AMC and BSA. Even as late as 1969, Kawasaki was selling the Meguro-derived 250 SG and, to prove there’s nothing new under the sun, the style and appearance of the SG was later replicated when the parent firm launched the Kawasaki Estrella range in the early 1990s.

Japan’s rich motorcycle history is liberally peppered with four-stroke singles, some small-capacity miracles, and others like the Cabton, that look for all the world like Oriental versions of Ariels or Enfields. As the number of domestic manufacturers dropped off in the late ’50s and dwindled away to just a handful in the ’60s, the four-stroke single would become the exclusive preserve of The Big Aitch… for a while at least.

Not Japanese, but the Norton P92 could have been the bike of the young Cooper’s dreams.

Most of us will need goods and services for our old bikes from time to time. Managing the situation, knowing what’s achievable and thinking things through logically can generally expedite the process.

Just how many times have you heard someone say… “you were ripped off for that, fella, my mate could have done that much cheaper!”

Yes, there are unequivocally numerous cost options for most jobs on classic motorcycles but in many instances you really do need your wits about you.

Understand the implication of the old saying – you get what you pay for.

If you are farming out work to others in the form of professional services then always get more than one quote. If you get a price back that looks too good to be true then the logical answer is that it may very well be the case. As a rough rule of thumb, marginalise the highest and lowest quotes then look at the middle rankers. And if that sub-set of suppliers are all pretty similar then you’ll know you’re unlikely to be ripped off.

Never assume anything about a job you are paying for and ask for a written quotation not an estimate if you have any qualms. If you have a set of requirements or criteria then hand these over in the form of a written letter highlighting your concerns and prerequisites. If the company respraying your panels suggests they will also line your petrol tank as a matter of course, ask why. If you don’t want a tank liner in your tank you don’t have to have one and, hell’s teeth, there are enough good reasons not to have one. Simply put, you should never feel pressurised into paying for stuff you don’t need.

In an ideal world you’ll be sending or handing over your parts to the firm that actually carries out the job; there’s generally no need to use an intermediary.

Some bike-related tasks are so specific that there’s often only a handful of options.

Think hard chroming of fork legs; there’s probably fewer than six companies in the UK that have the necessary facilities to carry out the task. Most offer mail order collection/delivery or operate a counter service where you can hand the parts over, so why use a middle man?

If you have a deadline for a given job then plan ahead. If it’s late April and you’re planning on going to the TT, then the chances are most wheel builders won’t be able to match your time frames and expectation. Your lack of time management skills aren’t the responsibility of your potential supplier and generally putting pressure on them to agree to an unrealistic turnaround time will do little to expedite your job.

While you have legal rights where goods and services are supplied, don’t forget we’re dealing with old bike parts here.

Before you go steaming in about a badly repaired whatever, just remember the condition you handed it over in. There’s only so much anyone can do with steel panels and if they’re a rusted or worn thing, you may very well be asking for the impossible. If something does go wrong keep a cool head, discuss the situation rationally, keep notes of conversations and people’s names. Most of the specialists, experts and artisans that support our hobby are decent folk, so treat them as you’d like to be treated. While there are undoubtedly bad pennies out there, they are generally few and far between. Suss the situation out before handing over parts or cash and walk away if you have any qualms. In our strange world, personal recommendation and word of mouth are so much more reliable than some anonymous star rating on a website.

March 2020

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