Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2023 i Real Classic

Sir, I beg to differ. Your highly bigoted and distorted piece in RC227 on BSA / Triumph's delightful 250cc scooter offering disappoints. While the photos capture my better half's 'Wow! That's beautiful' sentiment and the technical and marketing content is most welcome, the riding experience is poorly represented. My own BSA Sunbeam was a joy to ride. Its quirky, whirring motor, light gearbox and more-than-adequate suspension were good enough to take me to BSA club camping weekends 100-plus miles from home. Ideal for Cornish roads I imagine. Well done for owning your intolerance. May I suggest you strap it to the sturdy rear rack, place any excess in a bag hung on the thoughtful 'handbag hook' (secure with aerolastic if need be), put on your pumps, and give it another…

Here is a way around using the adjustable and non-adjustable crow's feet spanners. Make sure they are attached to the torque wrench at 90° to the handle of the torque wrench. That way no calculations for the extra length need be done. It's a tip I learned from 'Pacific Mike' on You Tube, mostly on working on Harleys. Derek Reynolds, member 10,279 In the letters in RC227 a reader describes a physiological measure of 'two white knuckles' as an undesirable alternative to a torque wrench. I have what might well be a more accurate measure, learned from a friend who ran a two-man country garage. He worked on all types and makes of vehicles from Austin Sevens to double decker buses. I asked him if he had a torque wrench.…

Here I am once again, writing to chastise Frank on a point of order. In RC225 he discussed the Dowty seal and describes it as a hollow washer formed into a U-section into which is fitted a fuel-proof rubber insert. Alas, this is not a Dowty seal but is a petrol tap seal. A Dowty seal is a precision engineered metal washer with an accurate rubber seal bonded to it and is used for the sealing of high pressure hydraulic systems, etc. In my engineering life in nuclear submarines I must have used thousands of them over 37 years in the service! There is a wide range of both washer material as well as rubber grade and they can all be supplied in Imperial, German metric or French metric sizes…

Frank writes about the brakes on the A65 Firebird he tried in RC225, as fitted to many BSA and Triumph bikes in 7" and 8" sizes. While these brakes are very powerful they have a quirk - or possibly a design fault. The operating cams are snail cams which give huge stopping power but no feel. I rode a T100 with the 8" brake and several BSA Fleetstars (a detuned Starfire) as company bikes when I was a courier. I threw my T100 and a firm's bike up the road as the brakes were very difficult to use in the wet. I was complaining about this one evening in the Saltbox, a bikers' café in Biggin Hill. One of the guys who was production racing at the time said he…

In response to Rob Smith’s letter in RC227, I think many readers like me will identify with Rob. Although we’re old hands at ownership we will not be old hands at selling and we tend to hang on to our purchases. I’m now up to six bikes, all very different. I recently decided my 500lb Yamaha MT01 was now getting too heavy and explored the various routes of selling. Short of taking a very low cash offer from a dealer, all other options started to fill me with dread. A few words of wisdom from those old hands who will have done loads of selling would be of great help to us unwitting collectors. Colin Atkinson, member I’d definitely be interested in advice about selling bikes. Although I’ve had several…

RealClassic TRI-GREEVES SPECIAL If you're unlucky enough to actually know me, my fondness for specials will come as no surprise. I've always been attracted to the romantic notion that a factory machine might be improved by a bloke working in his garden shed with only Radio Four and a flask of sweet tea acting as his development assistants. The reality can be somewhat different, of course. Who could forget the questionable practicality and subjective beauty of gems such as the NorImp or Moto Shifty? Quite. On the other hand, some of the prettiest and most useful British cafe racers of the 1960s involved a marriage between a Norton bicycle and Triumph twin engine, the Triton. Another of these mutant creations gained traction with the resurgence in pre-65 trials - perhaps just…

JACQUELINE BICKERSTAFF RealClassic PUBtalk would usually review the odder or more interesting exhibits at the Bristol Show about now. However, the 300+ mile round trip in a day is now beyond her, and last minute hotel rooms all came up around £100. That would still mean either a very early morning, or late evening ride one way, and although the weather forecast was OK, it would be very cold at those times. She wimped out (sorry), but as it is a good show she must look into overnight accommodation earlier next year. However, even with no show to discuss, there has been an auction including interesting lots, notwithstanding that it took place in Paris. No, PUB did not go since the RC expenses (are there such things?) do not run to…

The USA can surely contain no more dedicated an Anglophile motorcyclist than my American mate Jeff Craig – a fellow bike freak whom I teamed up with to share a flat when he moved to London at the end of the Swinging 60s, Beatles era and all. Jeff toured Europe several times on a BMW R69S, German reliability and shaft final drive having won him over. He did validate that decision by getting a burnt valve on one cylinder replaced off their parts shelf by the Portuguese police motor workshop in downtown Lisbon, after being led there by a traffic cop aboard a similar bike, who was concerned by the amount of smoke pouring out of the British registered BMW’s right exhaust! A former dirt oval flat-tracker back home in…

To my great joy there was an article on the Norton Dominator Model 7 in RC226. More years ago than I care to remember, a friend allowed me to ride his Model 7. After my first two motorcycles - a 1939 Matchless-engined OK Supreme followed by a 1936 HRD Meteor (wish I still had it) - the Model 7 was a revelation. Some time ago a friend 'gifted' me a Model 7 for restoration. I have taken on some projects in my time but this one was a challenge. The engine came with a 10TT9 carb: makes you wonder. The motor was seized at the top end of the stroke which made for an interesting teardown. After many months of toil I think the final results were pleasing. I enjoyed…

Most of my experience with English bikes has been with models made in the late 1960s and early 70s. I recently acquired a 1959 BSA fitted with a magneto and dynamo. Many articles allude to the unreliability of these parts. Would RealClassic consider running an in-depth article addressing the myths, facts and upgrades to these older systems? I would sure benefit from guidance as I go through the bike and try to make it reliable. Mark McKeon I fear that you have asked an almost unanswerable question. My view is that most of the reputation for unreliability where magneto and dynamo electrics are concerned stems from their being poorly maintained and very old. A well-rebuilt magneto or dynamo should last for many years - probably the actual best advice is…

I try not to get hot under the collar, it doesn't do my stress levels any good, but I feel Frank Ackermann's letter in RC227 needs to be addressed. I agree with him that the new Commando is not my cup of tea, but then neither is a Fireblade or a Hayabusa. However there are died-in-the-wool Norton enthusiasts who I am sure love the look of the new bike and might even put their cash down despite the hefty price tag. The fact that FrankA considers this bike to be useless for 'touring, bimbling or general riding' surely misses the point. It is designed to give the potential owner fun by whatever means are possible. If I had one I would have no hesitation in blasting safely along major roads…

Tony Duffield’s encounter with a group of German BMW riders in RC226 reminded me of a trip that we made to Czechoslovakia soon after it regained its independence. A group of other riders glanced somewhat disparagingly at my very well-worn 500 Triumph at a petrol station. There was already quite a lot of wear on the bits in boxes from which it was assembled (originally as a 350) a few years previously. In the photo it’s receiving some attention in Paris: note the sophisticated luggage arrangements. One of the riders wandered over and I said, in my very limited German, ‘400,000 kilometres’ as I had clocked up over 200,000 miles on it in seven years despatch riding. The chap then explained the reason for the bike’s appearance to his friends,…

RealClassic VINCENT COMET HRD stands for Howard Raymond Davies. He was an accomplished Isle of Man TT racing legend who also manufactured his own bikes from 1924 until 1928, when he sold the HRD name to Philip Vincent. Philip Vincent produced his own machines, but also used proprietary engines from JAP and Rudge. The story goes that PV was so disgusted with the reliability of the Rudge engines he used for the 1934 TT that for 1935 he built his own engines. These engines all finished the race and were also produced for roadgoing machines like our 1936 HRD Comet. The TT bikes did have a few special parts, like a bronze cylinder head and larger petrol tank. I first became aware of this Series A Comet from Alan, a workmate…

RealClassic OLLIE HULME I’ve always been slightly in awe of people who can take two motorbikes and blend them together to make them into one, probably better, motorbike. There are a few ways of doing this. You can shove a Triumph (or BSA, or Vincent or Panther or Ducati) engine into a Norton featherbed, or do the same thing with a BSA frame, cover it with shiny bits and have yourself the original special. Sometimes, though, there is a level of subtlety involved which creates the motorcyclist double-take. The finished machine looks like it came out of the factory like that. It’s an art form. It doesn’t happen much with modern bikes these days, but there is a subculture devoted to shoving Suzuki oil-cooled fours into Kawasaki frames. Members of the…

We have for many years insured our mix of old clunkers and modern motorcycles with Lynbrook, so greeted the news that they'd merged with Kingfisher Insurance with a tiny bit of trepidation. Turns out we need not have worried. When the moment came to insure Frank’s ‘foreign’ Norton Commando, they came up with a competitive price within 12 hours of being contacted, and sent a cover note rapido so the process of getting the machine registered wasn’t slowed down at all. Thanks, folks! It’s also reassuring to know that they’re happy dealing with riders aged 21 to 79 – or older for existing clients. Worth bearing that in mind for the future… Rowena Hoseason, member 002 I am reaching the end of the restoration of a Velocette Viceroy and ordered…

I noticed in RC226 that there were a couple of mentions of the T180 Thunderbird Three, and if you take time to read Peter Henshaw's excellent book 'Triumph Trident and BSA Rocket 3'you will find the Thunderbird Three actually became the T160 Trident and the T180 was a later development. The Thunderbird Three was originally meant to be 830cc and the T180 870cc. I got to see a T180 last year at Beezumph. The TR3OC have put together an excellent representation using a genuine prototype engine. Confusingly it carries the stacked silencer of the aborted Thunderbird Three, as seen here. As you probably can tell I am obsessed with the Thunderbird Three, have been ever since seeing a picture of it in Bert Hopwood's book. It carries a lot more…

I just had to say how nice it was to see PUB's Flying Flea. It reminded me of my dad's one that sat at the back of the shed of our council house when I was a youngster. I well remember dad dragging it out from time to time and starting it up in the back yard, producing a decent smokescreen. He joined the army in 1943 and left in 1948 and the Flea dated from around then. I remember the hand-change on the tank and the canvas grips. I recall that it was grey but might have been green. Sometime in the 1970s mum sold it and a spare engine in a crate to the scrapman for a fiver! Michael Durrant, member…

RealClassic 1973 CONDOR A350 I was looking for a significantly lighter and smaller machine than some classics I have enjoyed, like the 1970s BMW flat twins or Harley-Davidson Sportsters. It needed to be engaging and perhaps a little quirky, easy to start, equipped with handy and user-friendly stands, to be affordable and hopefully be able to hold its value. I pondered a Morini 350 but my preferred Strada with wire wheels failed the 'affordable' test. An experience with a swinging arm BSA B31/33 ruled out these machines; the last one I owned was fitted with a centrestand designed by the devil. I was considering an Aermacchi SS350 as seen in RC219. The one at Venture Classics had a working electric start, the right weight and was quirky enough. I was almost…

BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY 10 APRIL The Ashford CLASSIC MOTORCYCLE SHOW and bikejumble returns to Ashford Livestock Market, Ashford, Kent TN24 0HB. Star guest Dave Hughes, winner of the Senior Manx GP on a Matchless G50; meet the man and see the machine. Plus bikejumble and bikemart (sell your bike for free, just pay the usual admission fee), refreshments, garage clear-out stalls for just £15. Opens 10am, adult admission £6. elkpromotions.co.uk / 01797 344277 SATURDAY 15 APRIL The GREAT NORTH JUMBLE starts 7am at North Yorks Events Centre, Scorton, DL10 6EJ. 07909 904705 SUNDAY 16 APRIL The Salisbury Club host their Five Valleys charity MOTORCYCLE RUN. Starts at the Penruddocke Arms, Dinton at 11am (sign on from 9.30), travels c90 miles along Wiltshire and Dorset country roads. Refreshments at the start,…

FRANK WESTWORTH FEATURE NAME So! Cast your mind back to the dark days of only last month. The mighty American Commando was sitting pretty on the bench. It has a huge new battery and a mostly dimensionally correct replica ignition / lighting switch which works! As do most of the rest of the LT (low tension, in case you were asleep during primary school fizzix) circuits, including wonder of wonders - the starter motor. I'm still utterly astounded that a 1975 Prestolite starter motor spins with enough energy to rotate itself, never mind a Commando engine, but it does. Honest. OK, so the spark plugs were out at the time, but the motor whizzes the engine over easily, revealing that both the oil pump and crankcase breathing system work. The latter…