Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2025 i Classic Bike

November 1987, Macau Grand Prix A tropical typhoon led to the bike action at the 1987 Macau Grand Prix being reduced to a single-leg 10-lap race. That turned out to be fortuitous for Ron Haslam, riding the hub-steered Elf Honda GP bike. Open Class rules meant he was up against 750cc and 1000cc superbikes, 500cc two-strokes from Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki, and a few GSX-R1100s. On the Armco-lined 3.8-mile circuit, Ron (#4) led from the start, chased by Japanese factory Yamaha rider Norihiko Fujiwara (#28) on a YZR500 and German superbike racer Peter Rubatto (#3) on a Bimota YB4. Fujiwara, despite the cold and damp conditions, was pushing. “I saw his wheel a couple of times at the hairpin and reckoned he’d go down,” Ron told Motorcycle News. “Next lap…

£4956 1973 Honda CB125S The rise of the Japanese lightweights continues, as this confirms. It’s a beautifully restored bike that looks in totally original spec. It has been on the road for a brief test and will need further running in. manorparkclassics.com £7200 1984 Kawasaki GPz750 Turbo Restored several years ago using genuine NOS parts where possible and repainted. Has won a number of awards at classic shows, but dry stored in a private collection for some time, so will need checking over for road use. hjpugh.com £1650 1959 BSA C15 project A strong price for a C15 project. Largely complete, but missing parts include lighting switch/wiring and fuel tap. It is from the first year of production, lending it more desirability, but resto will be a labour of love.…

Pegasus takes flight This handsome curiosity – named Pegasus – started life as a 1928 Panther before its single-cylinder motor was replaced with a four-cylinder unit from an Austin Seven car. The result is up for sale with Iconic Auctioneers at the NEC show in November with an estimate of £24k-26k. More info: iconicauctioneers.com Prepare for 2026 Ace mechanic and classic dealer Andy Tiernan has just released a 2026 calendar, with all proceeds going to the East Anglian Air Ambulance. This year’s theme is Velocette, with six Velos painted in watercolour by Mike Harbar. It’s £12 per calendar from andybuysbikes@hotmail.com Mick Berrill RIP Classic Bike was saddened to hear that long-time motorcycle dealer Mick Berrill has died, aged 88. Mick had owned his shop in Northampton since 1967 and was…

Building a special from scratch for someone else is rarely easy or a smooth process,” explains Gasoline Ally Speedshop gaffer Andrew Burke as we quaff our umpteenth mug of morning tea, while admiring the fabulous Kenny Roberts rep Yamaha before us. “But I knew we’d got this one right when Adrian Ringrose, the owner, saw it for the first time. “I was showing him around it, explaining what we’d done. He was crouching down looking at the rear suspension when he suddenly stood up, arms in the air, fists clenched, wide grin on his face, and lets out this huge ‘YES!’ That was it. We’d hit the spot…” And what a spot. Adrian’s bike is not a paintjob with pipes. Behind its bright yellow hue, period-style bodywork and hundreds of…

Testi Champion 50 and Batavus 50 Mk4S In the early ’70s, the sight of a pair of exotic Euro mopeds like this on a British street would draw the interest of the local youth faster than someone offering free Curly Wurlys. That’s clearly the case here, with the white-shirted teen over the road enjoying a good gawp and fantasising about turning up at the gates of the local comprehensive on one of these. The Sachs-engined Batavus was capable of 45.59mph, while the Minarelli-powered Testi scraped past the mythical (for mopeds) 50mph barrier by 0.39mph. We know this because this shot is from a Bike magazine test of the ’peds in November 1974, during which they were speed tested. The Testi featured a double-sided Grimeca front drum brake, while the less powerful…

Matchless WD G3L “This is my bike that dad built for me when I started riding and was getting into this sort of stuff. He found it as a project, but it was so bad we chucked nearly everything away – about the only thing from the original bike is the rear brake lever. The rest was bought new or came from our stock.” AJS Typhoon “This is my ’59 Typhoon, which is super rare. It’s what my dad gave me when I passed my bike test. All my friends had modern bikes and I was riding that – my best mate had a Kawasaki Z750. It’s only recently, from doing what I do, that I’ve realised how rare the Typhoon is. ” Triumph Street Triple 675 “This was my…

It’s said that there’s more than one way to skin a cat. Maybe, but there are certainly a number of ways to build old engines. Some insist on a surgical approach, others seem to manage any old how, but one thing is certain – you need something more than new parts and a manual. Meriden Triumph’s methods – and in some cases its tooling and workforce – dated from the 1930s. At that time, standards were upheld by skilled ‘fitters’ who used experience and feel as much as measurement to match parts of varying tolerance together – just as it had always been done in a world where apprenticeship led to a job for life. But post-war, Japan had to rebuild its industry with new machinery – its greater accuracy…

To complete the Edinburgh Trial on an old motorcycle, I was under the impression you need it to be in the finest possible fettle. Nineteen trials sections combined with nearly 200 miles of nadgery road riding in the Peaks (not Edinburgh: long story) is not to be sniffed at, after all. So I compile a list of urgent jobs: replace brake pads; change fork oil; replace head bearings; check and maybe replace valve stem seals (it smokes on start-up); replace rear drum shoes; change chain and sprockets. Then life takes over and I complete none of them. Not a bean. With days to go, I call local mechanical sage Rupert Farnsworth and beg him to sort the head bearings. I reason that it’s a Suzuki, so the engine will probably…

L-plates to FZR Yellow Pages, M&P catalogues and dealing with cash-on-delivery parts services are what occupied the majority of my early motorcycling days. All so I could tweak and tune two-strokes from 50cc to 100 and 125cc – porting barrels, flowing reed blocks and upgrading exhausts to make my bike the fastest. Then trying desperately to break triple-figure top speeds… but never quite making it. This direction changed when I read an article in Performance Bikes magazine about how the government was changing the motorbike test. It was going to become less straightforward, with two-stage testing and talk of restricted bikes for the first few years of owning a licence. I needed to get a full licence quick, so booked a four-day crash course. With my test passed, it was…

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£3000-4000 1975 Honda CB500K This first class example of the middleweight four has undergone an extensive mechanical and cosmetic restoration by a former owner – using NOS parts wherever possible. Regularly (though sparingly) used since. handh.co.uk £2000-3000 1978 Honda CB175 Demand for quality Japanese lightweights continues and this one looks competitively estimated. A matching numbers machine in good running order and original condition, with recent full service and rewire. iconicauctioneers.com £8950 1977 Yamah XT500D Imported from Poland, where it was restored and a £1400 electric starter expertly grafted on, this XT500 is supplied with all original parts which were removed for the conversion. Runs and rides extremely well. earlclassics.com £4000-6000 1955 BSA CB34 Gold Star Such a low estimate would have been unthinkable a few years ago. Admittedly, it’s a…

’How much?’ Gez Kane on classic values Indian-built Enfield (or Royal Enfield) Bullets offer tremendous value. Most sold in recent months were under £2000, with some tidy-looking machines for not much more than £1000. Bullets have been built in India since 1956. The 1977-97 models that preceded 1998’s all-alloy ‘lean burn’ engine are virtual clones of the Redditch originals, so most parts are interchangeable. Spares are no problem, with specialist suppliers like Hitchcocks and Burton Bike Bits. I’ve got a feeling that good examples of early Indian-built bikes might even start to creep up in value. But at the moment, you could still pick up a late-’80s/early ’90s 350 or 500, perhaps needing a little cosmetic tidying, for little more than £1000. A cheap classic indeed. The Classic Bike auction diary…

Only 140 Norton F1 rotary sports bikes were built from 1989-91, so they’re inherently rare, but this 1990 machine takes things to a whole new level of exclusivity. It’s never been registered and has just 57 delivery miles on it. It’s for sale in Iconic Auctioneers sale at the NEC Show in November. The F1 was the road-going version of the British Superbike and TT-winning RCW588 race bike, featuring a detuned version of the racer’s twin-rotor motor. In road form, the F1 made a healthy 95bhp, but Norton’s engineering genius Brian Crighton squeezed a lot more than that from the race bikes – the first test mule cracked 170mph and when Steve Spray won British Superbikes it was thought to be making well over 150bhp, enough to make rival manufacturers…

I’ve been riding for four years and have tried quite a few different machines – but this 1968 Triumph Trophy is unlike anything I’ve ridden so far. For starters, it has to be kicked into life and the gearchange is on the right. It has something called ‘carburettors’, which apparently need ‘tickling’, and you need all your fingers to work the brakes. There’s also a lack of indicators and mirrors, some slightly twisted forks and 60 years of wear and tear to take on board. On first impressions, it’s a lot for someone raised on modern retros to get used to. Since passing my A2 test earlier this year, I’ve been riding Honda’s new classically-styled single-cylinder GB350S – which I love – and have recently swapped it for a Royal…

The pre-unit BSA 650 twin is one of the classic world’s gems, yet it’s often overlooked. Even in its basic Golden Flash incarnation, it has ample power, predictable handling, decent reliability and undeniable charm. It’s increasingly affordable too, making the A10 a bike you should consider when entering the world of Brit classics. The riding experience shouldn’t alienate those used to modern bikes, but transports you back to an age long before ABS, traction control and power modes – a time of engagement, involvement and rich riding rewards. The Golden Flash has a comfortable cruising speed of 60-65mph, and on a good day this iron-headed machine will hit the 95mph mark – more than plenty. If you want more, any of the Rocket variants will top the ton with relative…

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Snap-on ratchet screwdriver set Cost: £140 Where: snapon.co.uk “This is my favourite tool and I use it every day. As everyone knows, Snap-on tools are really high quality and I love using it.” If you want to go for a less expensive version, Teng Tools do a similarly comprehensive set for £55 (toolden.co.uk). Brass hammer Cost: Unknown Where: Inherited “I think these were intended for hitting things without causing a spark. I’ve got a copper one too, which is softer so you can hit things without damaging them.” Brass mallets are available for £30-40 (ewequipment.co.uk), with copper ones about the same price. Customised spanner Cost: Pennies Where: Self-made “This is a spanner I’ve ground the sides off to fit in a tight space. You have to make stuff to do…

Last month I slipped beer cans over the RD’s foam filters to try and work out what main jets would be best. This Stella experiment suggested 158s for the modified two-stroke twin, which has proved to be really close – I’m pleased that the bike finally ends up running rich. Coming down slightly to 152s, I take it down a straight A-road and rev it out, stopping in a layby after a while at full throttle in fourth gear and take a plug out – it’s a lovely mocha coffee brown. Perfect. Pleased that I’m finally out of seizure territory, I can start thinking about the RD’s chassis. The unnerving weave previously reported was traced to a rear tyre that was a) tubeless when it shouldn’t have been, and b)…

Rear suspension didn’t take off until the 1950s – the absence of fluid and sealing technology for proper damping had limited its benefit until then. It was treated with suspicion by riders, adding weight, weakness and wear-prone complexity to the sturdy frames braced for the harsh roads of the day. It also deleted the ideal rear locating point for a sidecar fitting. That’s why ‘plunger’ springing became the first widely adopted system. The rear axle lugs were separated from the frame and contained within various forms of spring box, giving a rigid-look frame with a small amount of undamped vertical movement. Usually decried as a budget solution to use up existing rigid frame stock, plunger frames were in fact complete redesigns. Only Triumph managed to spring their rigid frame, with…

Great to see all the fabulously random two-stroke specials in the September issue, especially the TDRG built by Pat Sefton and raced in hillclimbs. Such events were brought to our attention in the 1980s by Performance Bikes magazine – I particularly recall a feature about one event that described how you had to watch out for men with ‘bald back tyres and baggy black leathers’. We loved the eclectic machinery and the wild home-made bikes. There was one story about an amazing shed-brewed V-twin which, from memory, had been built from two Weslake speedway engines, ran on methanol and looked like it wanted to break most of your bones. When we eventually trudged to a few hillclimb meetings, we discovered that the bikes were just as unusual and interesting as…

We want it + Temptation + Winning bids + News + Events + Your classics This magnificent British beast resplendent in Peacock Blue is one of the most underrated, undervalued and under-appreciated large-displacement ’60s parallel twins – the Royal Enfield Interceptor. The mere fact that not very many people bought the big Enfields – either in the UK or US – when they stuck to showroom floors like spilt sugary coffee, will never detract from their status as serious outliers. When decent motorcycling roads are busy with groups of riders enjoying the charms of the very popular modern-retro Triumphs, Enfields and now BSA Gold Stars, wouldn’t it be nice to join them on a slice of original Redditch muscle doing what its makers intended? This is precisely the machine for…

By 1985 Suzuki’s RG500 was old news in racing circles. Hondas and Yamahas were winning GPs and Suzuki had ceased production of complete RGs. They still built engines, however – and in 1988 Yorkshire dealer Padgett’s kept the RG flame alive by building the bike you see here. It’s the machine that Darren Dixon raced to victory in the 1988 British F1 championship – the last time a two-stroke won a British superbike title. Technologically, this RG – which will be auctioned by H and H at the National Motorcycle Museum on October 29 – is a rare beast. It has the 11th of 12 special race motors supplied by Suzuki with magnesium cases, stepped cylinders and new power valves, and Padgett’s commissioned Harris Performance to build a steel frame…

Greeves Motorcycles sprang from founder Bert Greeves’ creation of the Invacar – one of the earliest mobility devices for the disabled (he built bikes to test Invacar components, before realising he could sell them too). And now Greeves is retreading that path, with the company splitting in two – one half will concentrate on keeping classic Greeves on the road, the other on an all-terrain mobility scooter. Gary Bamford of British Bikes 1970 and Greeves Motorsport is taking over the supply of spares for 1953-1976 Greeves models and classic Greeves merchandise. Bamford is a Greeves specialist who has restored over 70 of the marque’s machines. He is also the chairman of the Greeves Riders Association. Meanwhile, the original Greeves owner Richard Deal now concentrates on the modern Greeves trials bike…

RESCUED My blue heaven Hankering after an old British bike led me to buy this ‘doer-upper’ 1960 BSA A10. Advertised locally with a V5, I think it was the Nutley Blue colour that took my eye. Over the last three years, I’ve stripped it to a bare frame, then refurbished and rebuilt it from the ground up. I used as many original parts as possible, as well as adding an alloy head and some Taylor Dow period accessories. I completely rebuilt the engine, gearbox, brakes and wheels with new and NOS parts. Even the speedometer needed replacement gears. Having had sports bikes for years, I must admit I enjoy the comfortable riding position and sounds and smells I get from a trip out on the BSA. My dad owned an…

Workshops + Knowledge + British bike basics + Project bikes + Technique Fixing and selling wartime Brits “This is my main workshop – we have a unit for all the stock. That’s a customer’s Bonneville T120R I’m working on – it came in with a wiring issue and it needs a carburation tune, too. The Matchless in the foreground is interesting – it’s a 1938 Model X 1000cc V-twin that belongs to a good friend whose grandfather was one of the founding people at Matchless.” As well as spannering, Joe’s a salesman too. “I sold a G80CS earlier this week, plus a G3L WD wartime Matchless which is going to Holland, and a wartime WNG Ariel which someone in the UK bought and took over to Arnhem. Around 95% of…

Out of sight, out of mind? My CB750 has been hiding in a corner of my garage for 17 years. It sporadically emerges for flurries of pampering that mean it looks almost ready to ride. But it isn’t. The desire for a project led me to this gloriously kitsch-looking piece of 1970s excess in November 2008. Festooned with Paul Dunstall accessories and tuning parts, it’s had a big tankslapper at some point and possibly been crashed, and the German road tax sticker suggests it was last on the road in 1981. Yet it’s really very tidy. The bodywork is Dunstall Devastator (the standard K2 tank is underneath) and it came with a Dunstall Decibel 4-2-2 system, Dunstall rearsets and (fake) clip-ons, finned engine covers and a suggestion it’s fitted with…

Hard to believe today, but back in the 1970s one of the smartest ‘in’ colours for a new car was brown. At the time, my job was designing sales brochures for a dustcart and forklift truck manufacturer called Shelvoke & Drewry in Letchworth (while I modestly waited for a call from Enzo Ferrari inviting me to design new Ferraris, you understand). As a young graphic designer and technical illustrator, I considered myself pretty clued-up with the latest design trends in the automotive world and a special feature in the Daily Telegraph Magazine at the time confirmed it – brown was the new black. Aside from exotic cars and girls, motorcycles were a major talking point among my male friends and flatmates – especially the latest new models. Not wishing to…