Indholdsfortegnelse for January/February 2021 i Motorcycle Classics

Royal Enfield Bullet 500 Though not a contemporary of the SR and FT, the Bullet connects them to the big singles of the past — yet outlived both of them. The Bullet was groundbreaking in its day, pioneering swingarm frames and telescopic forks. Numerous successes at the International Six Days Trial attracted attention from the Indian army, which purchased them from the Redditch, U.K., company in the mid-1950s before acquiring a license to produce Bullets in Madras, India (now Chennai). The 350cc Bullet stayed in production in either India or the U.K. for 55 years, while the 500 was produced in the U.K. from 1952-62 when the company was sold. Production of a 500cc Bullet started in India around 1988. The 500 provides a steady and stately ride, but with…

In 1960’s Britain, riders of lesser machines regarded Velocette’s big singles with awe and their owners with envy. Though not quite in Vincent territory, they exuded tradition, build quality and longevity — and commanded a premium price to match. Eschewing the gaudy chrome and bright paintwork of the volume bikemakers, Velocette offered buyers a Henry Ford choice of color: echoing the quality brands of the Golden Age, Velocette’s singles were always finished in black with gold pinstriping. It suited their market positioning to a tee. Velocettes enjoyed a reputation for long-legged cruising capability from a broad powerband and tall gearing. Jokers said of their 500cc singles that at speed, the engine fired about every streetlight; and that their maximum speed and cruising speed were the same. (The latter comment was…

It was touch-and-go in the days leading up to the 2021 edition of Barber Vintage Festival. On the Wednesday before the event, thirteen inches of rain drenched Birmingham, Alabama. But by Friday, Mother Nature had relented, fans began swarming in and the three-day par-tay was underway. The fifteen-year run of annual Barber Vintage Festivals was interrupted in 2020, another casualty of the pandemic. The event bounced back full-strength in 2021 with more than sixty-thousand motorcyclists congregating for the 16th Annual (Except-For-Last-Year) Barber Vintage Festival held October 8-10, 2021. Yes, we were still fighting a pandemic and yes, it was a large gathering of people but, hey; we ride motorcycles and we’re OK with a bit of risk. Was it worth it? Hell, yeah! Two years is a long time to…

Competitors in the challenging International Six Days Trial events during the 1960s had some worthy motorcycle brands to choose from. But if they wanted a guaranteed shot at earning an ISDT Gold Medal, smart money was on riding a Bultaco Matador 250. The Matador 250 was one of the young Spanish motorcycle company’s first models — an enduro in this case — introduced in 1964. In the coming years Bultaco engineers continually refined the Matador as a production model that proved a perennial contender for motorcycling’s Olympics, the International Six Days Trial (renamed Six Days Enduro in 1981). To fully appreciate the Matador’s prominent place in our moto-history, though, we should probably also pay a quick visit to another “enduro” bike of that same era, Yamaha’s DT-1. Without question, the…

Located in southwestern South Dakota about a hundred miles east of Sturgis, I’d like to suggest Badlands National Park as a bucket list destination. Many motorcyclists come to this region for the Sturgis rally. There are far more interesting things to see in this part of the world and Badlands National Park is one of them. To call the Badlands terrain dramatic is an understatement; you need to stand before the erosion-formed pinnacles and colors to get the full effect. Dances with Wolves and Thunderheart were filmed here. The Badlands are magic, a view shared by Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt first visited the region in 1883 to hunt buffalo and then again to remake himself when dealt a double whammy a year later (his wife and mother died on the same…

Harley racer Editor’s note: Reader Steve Breese has recently purchased a Harley-Davidson XLCR that was raced in the late 1970s through the early 1980s. See his note and send him an email if you have any information on the bike you can share. Do any readers of Motorcycle Classics know anything about Rick Swiderski, who rode a racing XLCR in the late '70s and '80s? I recently purchased his old racing bike (see photos) in England. We are going to recommission the bike and either race it or parade it in the Classic Motorcycle Racing Club over here. What we do know is that it was built by Dave Sedlack in Syracuse, New York, in 1978 for Rick, who was a privateer racer. It’s a 1978 XLCR with Thunderheads, and…

Pick up a September 1963 issue of Cycle World magazine, flip to Page 18 and you’ll read these words by contributor Boyd Reynolds: “The 1963 Laconia Silver Anniversary Road Race will be recorded in history as one for the high-tension events of the calendar year. “It was a race started with a shock, spiced with surprise and topped off with a climactic punch bettering even an Alfred Hitchcock (cinema) creation.” Similar hyperbole about that race is found in Cycle and Motorcyclist magazines of that same year. The Laconia National’s two primary players were veteran racer George Roeder and second-year AMA Expert, 19-year-old Jody Nicholas. Roeder rode a Harley-Davidson KRTT, among the top road race bikes within the AMA ranks at the time; young Jody masterfully maneuvered a BSA Gold Star…

The 1970s bred a worldwide generation of “shadetree mechanics.” These were people with the self-taught skills of certified mechanics and engineers who undertook hobby projects in their basic backyard workshops. Some of their often crazy ideas worked: fitting a Volkswagen engine into a motorcycle frame; slotting a 427 Cobra Jet V8 engine into a 1955 Ford Ranch Wagon to make the ultimate “street sleeper” — and let’s not even talk about the craziness of Unlimited class hydroplane racers using aircraft engines. Many of these shade tree mechanics created their own little subculture. In Australia one tiny niche of the customizing scene saw at least five Vincatis built. This is the second of them. An unlikely marriage of a bevel-drive Ducati V-twin’s frame and a 1,000cc Vincent engine, the professionalism of…

Hey, somebody thought you might have a Whizzer project for sale.” My friend Ron Nichols mentioned that in 2019 at the Millarville Vintage Motorcycle Swap Meet, and he wasn’t far wrong. I had, over the years, accumulated parts and pieces to put together a machine, but with other motorcycles taking up my time, I had half-heartedly advertised it for sale. When no one seemed interested, the bones of the project were hung on the wall in my Calgary, Alberta, shop. Initially, when Ron asked if it was for sale, I said no — it looked good up there. Thinking more about it, however, I decided to let it go to someone who’d see it to the finish line. “I must be a child of the 1950s because I’m drawn to…

When I bought my 1988 Ducati Paso 15 months ago, I acquired a low-mileage, cosmetically cohesive but mechanically uncertain survivor that hadn’t turned a wheel since 2003. Fifteen months later, it’s now a fine running machine, and getting it there has been both fun and frustrating. Part of the fun has been taking a deeper dive into the evolution of the Paso, perhaps one of the most maligned models in Ducati’s illustrious history. I’ve shared plenty of thoughts on that subject previously, but the more I learn about the bike — especially now that mine’s a running, riding proposition — the less I understand why the Paso earned such a huge black eye. There’s no question but that the Paso’s Weber-induced drivability issues soured the bike’s mass appeal, especially given…

What: Badlands National Park, 25216 Ben Reifel Road, Interior, S.D. 57750. (605) 433-5361. Admission $30 per car; $25 per motorcycle. Campsites available. Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, 24545 Cottonwood Road, Philip, S.D. 57567. (605) 433-5552. $12 for adults, $8 for children. Reservations required. How to Get There: From points east or west, it’s Interstate 90 to South Dakota Highway 240 (also known as the Badlands Loop) south. Badlands National Park is about 100 miles east of Sturgis. Best Kept Secret: The Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. It’s right next to Badlands National Park. We’d never heard of it. Don’t Miss: Wall Drug where I-90 and 240 cross. It is an American original. Avoid: Stepping on a rattlesnake. We didn’t see any, but we probably walked right by a few. More Info:…

Most of today’s motorcycles insulate us from the sound of the 4-stroke cycle. A multitude of cylinders, liquid cooling and efficient muffling mean the characteristic tenor of Nicolaus Otto’s invention is often lost in the engine’s general thrum. But it wasn’t always thus. The best opportunity to hear Otto’s cycle at work is from an air-cooled, 4-stroke single, like a BSA Gold Star, Velocette Venom, Moto Guzzi single … or perhaps a Yamaha SR500. Riding a one-lunger of 500cc or more, especially one that pre-dates (or scorns) balance shafts, can leave the rider with numb hands and blurred vision. And without an electric leg, kickstarting can be chancy and even injurious if you ignore the proper procedure. So why would anyone want a big 4-stroke single? Words like character, simplicity,…

I“It’s astounding how well it works,” says Dan Thorsen, who was the owner of this Italian single until his recent sale of the bike to a friend, Danny Aarons. Thorsen was a well known local racer in the Eighties and Nineties and understands good handling. “It has a neutral track and the slightest input changes direction. It’s good on twisty little roads. Downhill from the Stelvio pass through the Alps would be perfect.” Mention Moto Guzzi in North America, and people think of big reliable touring bikes and fast sport tourers. But Moto Guzzi is an Italian company, and, like other Italian manufacturers in the Forties, Fifties and Sixties, Moto Guzzi concentrated on small reliable single-cylinder machines for the Italian home market, which demanded beautiful styling and excellent handling as…

It’s hugely ironic that Kawasaki, which ever since the 1969 creation of its H1 Mach III 2-stroke triple has almost permanently led all other Japanese manufacturers in the pursuit of performance for its street bike range, should have started out its life on two wheels by trying to build a better British bike. For that’s what the OHV parallel-twins it manufactured from 1965 to 1974 unquestionably resembled — and even after it trumped Honda’s groundbreaking CB750 four in both capacity and performance terms with the 1972 introduction of the world’s first 4-stroke hyperbike, the 903cc Z1, it still kept producing the ultimate version of its BSA A10 Super Rocket klone-with-a-K, the Kawasaki W3 650, right alongside it at its Akashi factory. For a couple of years grilled steak and beef…

BMW motorcycle nomenclature has always been about “numbers.” Since 1923, all models have been referred to numerically, such as R32, R69S, R90S, and R1200GS, with the “R” standing for rad or cycle in German. However, there is one moniker you won’t find in BMW history books, the R73. In 1944 as the Wehrmacht troops began retreating from Paris, they left behind a motorcycle repair depot with a cache of replacement engines and parts for BMW motorcycles. Amongst them were approximately 80 unused 750cc R75M engines. Recognizing an opportunity, the enterprising French soon set up a corporation and began manufacturing motorcycles under the name CMR, short for Centre de Montage de Reparation. Having little use for lugging a heavy sidecar, the French adapted the 750cc engine for use in the lighter, civilian…

Oil choices Q: Hi Keith, my pre-unit Triumph restoration is nearing completion, including a complete engine overhaul. Should I use a certain type of engine oil for the break in, and what weight and type after that? Thanks. Smitty in Ohio A: My personal opinion is that A: break-in oil is a thing of the past. My method is to buy a decent brand of non-synthetic oil in the manufacturers recommended viscosity and take it for a ride. Get it good and warm and drain it into a clean container. Inspect it carefully for any major debris. Minor whiskers of magnetic and non-magnetic metal are to be expected as new sliding and rotating surfaces get acquainted. If it passes inspection you can put the oil back in the tank and repeat…

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