Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2023 i Classic Bike

IN 1894 THE (rich) public were given the chance to buy a production motorcycle for the first time when Hildebrand & Wolfmuller began making their ‘Motorrad’ in Munich. Between 800-2000 were made, some under licence in France – and 129 years later, one is being sold by auction in Paris. Coming from a time before the form of the motorcycle had become established, the H&W is a kind of intermediate step between steam power and viable petrol propulsion. Think of it as the Neanderthal of motorcycling. Two parallel 744cc (90 x 117mm) cylinders are mounted horizontally with long conrods running to the crankshaft, which is also effectively the machine’s back axle. So, as with a steam locomotive, the wheel is also the flywheel, and there is no clutch. To stop,…

SEND YOUR LETTERS TO classic.bike@bauermedia.co.uk I always enjoy reading your magazine from cover to cover, but I particularly enjoyed Jack Burnicle’s article in the December issue on Ronnie Tate and early 1960s scrambling. This article brought back many happy memories for me. I grew up in north Staffordshire and in the early ’60s and took in as many Cheshire centre scrambles as I could, using my bicycle as transport. I remember getting to meetings at Chatterley, Hatherton, Bowsey Wood and Mow Cop. I even got to Hawkstone Park on occasions. I remember being at Hawkstone when Dave Curtis on his Matchless won the 500cc British GP (I think he won both legs, beating all the Swedes and other top British men). I was also at Hawkstone Park in 1966 on…

BMW R80ST BMW has been developing and relentlessly growing the concept of the adventure bike for the past 40 years. Over that time, this giant trail-bike niche spawned several bastard offspring – one of which sprang directly from the same place as 1980’s original R80G/S. The R80 ST is a rare example of a sort of double-reverse engineering. It’s derived directly from the R80G/S, which famously originated as a backroom project based on the R65 street bike. The G/S (it stands for Gelande/Strasse translating as ‘off-road/street’) used an R65 cradle frame – lighter than that of the R80/7 and R100 – with the single-sided Monolever swingarm. The ST – that’s the slightly longer shorthand for ‘Strasse’ – got back the R65’s clocks and forks and added a 19in front wheel.…

Since the mid-1980s, Alessandro Altinier has covered countless miles travelling between Italy and the UK. He was first drawn to England at the age of 21, driven by a fascination with motorcycles that were little-known in his home country. Now, after decades of collecting and dealing, Alessandro is a mover and shaker in the world of rare and expensive machines. He is no stranger to six-figure prices, or strict client confidentiality, and his extensive range of reputable contacts, especially in Italy, puts him in the top tier of classic bike dealers. Not surprisingly, beside his passion for British motorcycles, he loves Italy’s rich motorcycling heritage. From Treviso in the Veneto region, Alessandro’s interest in two-wheelers was ignited in his teens by the Italian edition of the On Two Wheels collectible…

SOLD FOR £22,540 With 1500 registered bidders worldwide and a packed sale room, H&H’s sale at the NMM provided a grandstand seat for a number of fierce bidding battles – adding to the tension and drama for the audience in the room. It was no surprise that the wonderful 1973 MV Agusta 750S we previewed in the November issue proved to be the bike that went for the most money – but the manner of that achievement was astonishing. Estimated at £40,000-50,000, the bike sailed way above that, with some very spirited bidding propelling it to an eventual sale price of £98,900. With 234 motorcycles going past the block, there was something to tempt almost everyone at the sale. Quality vintage bikes fared well, with a 1925 Douglas OB –…

THANKS FOR THE great article on the Suzuki GT250s in the December issue – I was transported back to those heady days... ... 1976 – Kingy had the self-destructing Garelli 50, Crispy had the smart and sensible Honda SS50, Tucky maybe the purple FS1-E. I was that haired teenager in flares, biding his time while his instant-gratification mates sported an assortment of smart, shiny sports mopeds. My Suzuki was a green ’73 GT250M, snapped up in 1977 with a mere 24,000 (hard) previous miles in the hands of several less-than-careful owners. Seriously fast – just wind the throttle past 5k and the acceleration was explosive. First stop was to impress ‘Bank of Dad’. Flailing wildly on the pillion, leaning the wrong way and generally yelling: “Steady on, son!” He kept…

PAGE 63 Gez Kane In the early ’80s Gez worked as a salesman at Motorcycle City in Reading. “We shifted a lot of Yamaha XS650s,” he reckons, “but if a Kawasaki Z750 twin came in part-ex, you knew it’d be stuck on the showroom floor for weeks.” PAGE 38 Richard Fincher A former editor of Bike magazine, Richard owns a modern BMW twin and an old Norton Commando 750, but was looking for a bike that sat between them. Judging by his enthusiasm for the BMW R80ST, it looks like he’s found it. PAGE 50 John Surtees Classic Bike is blessed with an amazing archive of features that are too good not to be shown again. This story from August ‘86 by the ex-world champion about his own home-brewed Vincent…

Andre Malherbe, one of the giants of 1980s motocross, has died at the age of 66. Known for his smooth riding style, quiet confidence, incredible determination and hard competitive edge, he started racing aged 17, winning the Coupe d’Europe championship on a Zundapp in his first year – and successfully defending the title the following year. Moving up to 250 GPs on a KTM in 1976 and 500s for 1978, his talent caught the eye of Honda, and for 1979 he was a full factory rider. He claimed his first title in 1980 and went on to defend it in 1981 before claiming his third and final world crown in 1984. He retired at the end of 1986 and successfully turned his hand to touring car racing before agreeing to…

RICK’S PATCH Cold comfort in the shed Rick reflects on how much longer mending motorcycles seems to take when your teeth are chattering A ROASTING UK summer cost us a freezing December. Shivering in my shed this month got me thinking about just how long it really takes to restore an old bike. Few of us add up the time spent, but speaking professionally, restorations usually take over 200 hours, so even at a modest labour rate that’s going to cost a fortune. DIY is satisfying and saves you money – and buying specialist equipment, like a lathe or welder, extends the range of what you can do. But where do you stop? Self-sufficiency only saves money at the expense of time. Take my vintage BSA project – I spoke…

PLUS SUZUKI GT750 BUYING GUIDE. P98 T595DAYTONA 955iDAYTONA What’s the attraction? A fabulously growly 955cc three-cylinder engine and sure-footed handling makes the T595 Daytona a lovely road bike. The curvaceous bodywork, single-sided swingarm, large diameter frame tubes and detailing give them real garage presence too. This generation of Daytona was the first of the models with which Hinckley Triumph was trying to do something unique, rather than following the lead of another manufacturer, so it was a game-changer for the company – something that gives added kudos. Which is the obvious choice? The model was introduced in 1997 as the T595 Daytona. If you want a piece of history, this is the one to go for – but there may be some issues. Early bikes suffered from cracked frames, but…

This is me about to set off on my good mate Nick’s Suzuki RG250 Gamma with him sat backwards with his camera to take action shots of other mates jumping a hunchback bridge in St John’s in the Vale, in the Lake District. Seemed eminently sensible behaviour at the time. That’s my 350LC in the background. The other, more grainy shot is us in action. We had ridden up from Kent to Cumbria for a holiday and then rode down to Manchester to see Pink Floyd’s A Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour, so I think it was 1989. Oddly, Nick and I both migrated from lunatic two-strokes to Ducatis – and still have the latter now. I also have a MkI Mike Hailwood Replica I bought years ago, an ST2…

BE THERE February  Y ou can almost smell the passion for the sport the minute you walk into the Classic Dirt Bike Show at Telford’s International Centre. Now back to its traditional February date after a couple of years of Covid-induced turmoil, the show should be back to its best this month. Whether you’re a superstar ex-rider, clubman dabbler, specialist manufacturer, parts dealer, restorer or autojumbler, Telford is the place to be in Februaryif you love doing it in the dirt. If you’re looking hard for a particular part, project bike or ready-to-ride machine, you’ll need to get to the show early on Saturday. There’s an outside autojumble area (it opens at 9am) and that should be your first port of call – it never seems quite so busy…

1987 SKM Racing endurance spec GPX750R Before World Superbikes were a thing, endurance racing and TT-F1 were the prestige four-stroke racing classes. This 1987 GPX750R, built by SKM Racing in Wünnewil, Switzerland, was campaigned in numerous international endurance events during ’87 and ’88. Unfortunately, records of its success or otherwise disappeared when SKM folded as both a dealership and a racing team, but this GPX’s spec – complete with race-kitted engine (the first of its kind offered by Kawasaki for any model), Marvic wheels, period Brembo discs and calipers, twin filler tank, dual headlamps and one-off lightweight bodywork – still delights. Triples treat – three’s the magic number No Kawasaki collection would be worthy of the name without an impressive showing of two-stroke triples. The Härkingen museum doesn’t disappoint. Gleaming…

THE Vincent V-twin became very dear to me from the day I first saw Geoge Brown with Gunga Din , the 1000cc special he used inand sprints from 1947-51. I was an impre ssionable teenager then, and went on to partner my father Jack in his Vincent twin road racing outfit. But it was the sight of George and his thundering Gunga Din that I thought was the most exciting thing on the motorcycle scene at that time. against the works Nortons, AJSs and one of the earliest in 1949. The engine My ties with Vincent were strengthened Moto Guzzis, and Geoff Duke on the had blown up, but now I resurrected all when I started racing a 500cc Grey Flash, four-cylinder Gilera. But my 500 gave the pieces and…

I’m not the most organised of people; having my own equipment largely insulates me from having to plan ahead – I can just do the job when I need it. But there are times when work needs to be handed over – and that’s when you need to find someone reliable to take it on. Last month, Will and I went over the engine of his 1964 Triumph Thunderbird, looking to see what parts we needed to replace or repair. Considering how the bike looked when he got it, the motor was surprisingly good – probably because, having been a police bike, it was well maintained for most of its life. But it now needs a rebore and a crankshaft grind. OK, the tolerance window says we could probably get…