The Classic MotorCycle April 2025

As we plod through – in the UK at least – the cold, dark, wet and frankly grim days of winter, about this time of year thoughts start to turn a bit more positive, with plans and excitement building for the season and what it holds. And none more so than for the Stafford show, where we’ve been working hard to put together something really special for the April event, insomuch as probably the biggest collection of SS100 Brough Superiors ever gathered together in a public place, which you can read about on our news pages. There will be more next month too, it’s shaping up to be something probably never to be repeated. Otherwise, I’ve been busying myself with all sorts of activities, including a club night talk in…

Published in the June 14, 1956 issue, this picture had the accompanying caption: “Impressive line-up; The Motor Cycle staff machines in the Island comprised a Dominator 99 Norton, a 197cc two-stoke DMW, a 98cc DMW Bambi, a 147cc James Cadet with the new, optional, grey finish and a 646cc BSA Road Rocket.” The Dominator was the machine being used by ex-racer and road tester Vic Willoughby, in the picture here wearing his crash helmet, which is revealed as it is referred to in a feature, where Willoughby rides machines that have just starred in the TT races. More specifically, in the story of when he tests the two-stroke Montesa, examples of which had just finished second, third and fourth behind Carlo Ubbiali’s four-stroke MV Agusta in the Lightweight 125cc race.…

A Superior centennial celebration At The International Classic MotorCycle Show, held at Staffordshire Showground, over the weekend of April 26/27, visitors will be afforded the opportunity to see what promises to be a once-in-a-lifetime gathering of SS100 Brough Superiors, brought together to celebrate the model’s introduction for the 1925 season. One of the most famous model names in motorcycling history, on launch the 1925 Brough Superior catalogue stated: “Every SS100 will be dispatched with a written guarantee, signed by the maker, that the machine has actually been timed over 100mph for a quarter of a mile.” It went on sale for £170; for comparison, the new overhead camshaft Velocette Model K was £65, an AJS V-twin and large sidecar £90. The SS100s held and broke numerous speed records, won countless…

1900 As well as locally built engines, and those manufactured in-house, propriety engines by MMC (Britain), Fafnir (Germany), Sarolea (Belgium), Zurcher and Luthi (Switzerland), plus De Dion Bouton, Clement, Buchet and Aster were now available in the UK or from mainland Europe for those ambitious enough to start building motor tricycles and motorcycles. 1925 Current inflation levels, low pay and job insecurity were jeopardising motorcycle sales. Many makers had gone to the wall, while others struggled on, hoping for better times. But bargain-priced buys, including the 494cc Triumph Model P (£42-17-6d) and 249cc BSA Model B (£36-15s) were still securing orders. While both these were new designs, Douglas had pared the price of its old stager, the 348cc TS, to £35, to appeal to this market. 1950 Brands Hatch bituminised.…

Ducati Singles All the secrets of a painstaking restoration Author: Giuliano Musi Published by: FBA Moto Italiane Contact: email info@motoitaliane.it Can be ordered online at www.motoitaliane.it Available in both English and Italian languages. Softback, 210 x 285mm (portrait); 160 pages with over 90 photographs and illustrations. ISBN 978-88-86774-25-3 £29 UK; $37 USD; $52 CAD; $57 AUD. The charm of classic motorcycles is undeniable, but the shine of paint and chrome can often conceal underlying issues. This is not the task for the uninformed; one risks spending inordinate sums of money, buying fakes or acquiring motorcycles with serious mechanical problems. Alternatively, one might start a restoration without the ability to complete it properly. Giuliano Musi, an experienced journalist with a strong affinity for classic motorcycles, particularly Ducatis, has compiled a wealth…

In ‘ideal’ weather conditions, in the early summer of 1921, 45 runners and riders faced the starter for a run from The Berkeley Hotel, Cranford Bridge, headed for Holyhead, with a report of proceedings published in The Motor Cycle of May 5, 1921. It was the second running of the event and the man raising the flag was none other than the organising club’s president Dr – before he became a self-appointed ‘professor’ – A M Low, whose name also came up recently (see page 16, January 2025 issue). Although undoubtedly a brilliant and pioneering inventor of all manner of things, Low was also known to love the limelight, so he’d have not minded a midnight assignment to Middlesex to do some flag waving, as it gained him a few…