Innehållsförteckning för June 2019 från Real Classic

You’re in for a treat inside this issue. I mean, it’s not every day that a magazine like ours includes a road test of a Megola. And not just any old, common or garden Megola – this one’s a Sport! Have you ever heard of a Megola? I had, but only in the same way that I’ve heard of a Böhmerland. In other words, I’ve read about them and I’ve stared at the pictures, but I’ve never seen one (I think) and I’ve certainly never ridden one. Nor, to be entirely honest, would I ever actually want to ride one. Call this cowardice, or stupidity, or anything else you like, but I have no wish at all to ride a motorcycle with the Megola’s unlovely combination of special features. Its…

You can rely upon Ace Tester Miles to have rattled around on most iconic motorcycles, and indeed it turns out that he too was tempted by the Rickman Brothers’ treatment of the mighty UJM. Paul’s CR was Kawasaki flavoured, a Z1000. ‘I worked at Dresda as a teenager and we occasionally had Rickmans in for work. They always seemed to be a more integrated design than the “bits stuck anywhere” Dresda approach. About 15 years ago, a Rickman-Z came up for sale. The handling was excellent with the Betor forks; not so great if you retained the original Kawasaki twiglets. Lockheed brakes were also phenomenal compared to the Jap stuff of the time. The petrol cap was missing on mine: it turned out it came from a Triumph TR7 car!…

1948: 500 twin runs at 7:1 compression, 29bhp @ 6800rpm, 4-speed Burman CP gearbox, 6V electrics, 7” brakes, 395lb, price £217.3.6, 90mph top speed 1949: First 500s arrive in UK shops as initial production run were all exported 1950: Five-spring clutch replaces original four-spring unit 1951: Jampot rear shocks replace early candlestick-style rear suspension units 1952: Burman B52 gearbox adopted; austerity measures affect bright- and paintwork 1953: Racing kit offered with twin Amals, modified cam, high comp piston, megaphone pipes, rev counter, etc 1954: Full-width light alloy front hub; repositioned oilways in big end journals 1955: Full-width QD alloy rear wheel, another new front hub 1956: All-new frame, oil tank, toolbox; AMC clutch and gearbox replace Burman set-up. 600 models introduced with 7.5:1 compression, 33bhp @ 6800rpm, price £252 1957:…

1891 The Imperial Cycle Company start making bicycles 1901 The first motorcycle appears, with its engine mounted above the driven front wheel. None of the six prototypes were sold at their £45 asking price; the company concentrates on its bicycle business instead 1911 The Imperial Cycle Co is wound down and replaced by the New Imperial Motor Co 1912 New Imp markets three motorcycles powered by JAP engines. The motors were built specifically for New Imp with bigger bearings to cope with their increased output 1913 Range increases to six models including a 293cc lightweight, several ‘TT’ models and a V-twin 1914 The ground-breaking Light Tourist 300 model introduced, combining low mass with strong performance. New Imp supply bikes to the British, Russian and American armies during the war 1921…

JUNE 5 TH ➤ RC readers on appropriate motorcycles are welcome to join the South Lincs and Peterborough section of the VMCC on their FISH & CHIP RUN. Starts 6.45pm at the Red Lion, PE6 9HP. £2 entry. vmcc-slandp.co.uk / 07866 480733 JUNE 8 TH ➤ It’s ITALIAN MOTORCYCLE DAY at the Red Lion, Cassington, OX29 4DN. Informal events, no fees, no need to book, just turn up and enjoy. 11am to 6pm. ➤ The National Motorcycle Museum hosts a CLASSIC BIKE TOUR based at the museum at Bickenhill, B92 0EJ. Members of the NMM Friends’ scheme can prebook a day aboard a bike from the museum’s collection, from a BSA A7 to a Brough Superior. ‘Hire’ fees between £300 and £750, on top of the annual £29.95…

Martyn Roberts tried a friend’s Rickman Honda 812 on the Isle of Man in 1981, as seen here, and was so impressed he had to track down one for himself… ‘It took me three or four years, and I settled on a black Rickman Z1000 – and never once regretted it. Compared to the stock Z1000 I ride today, the Rickman had better suspension, massively better brakes (AP Racing kit all round) and sounded fabulous with a 4-into-1 exhaust. Every ride home from work became a lap of the Isle of Man in my head. ‘The riding position and seat were not as comfy as stock, but that didn’t matter back then. The reliability was just as good as a standard Kawasaki, as was the fuel economy. It must have…

BRAKING POWER proved to be more than ample… although the tyres fitted to our G9 were not expressly meant for stopping on paved surfaces. In spite of this the Matchless brought man and machine to a screeching halt. Cycle, 1955 TOP MARKS must be given to the Matchless suspension. The rear suspension rate is softer then on most makes and it really does an excellent job of absorbing small road irregularities while the hydraulic damping gives the desired progressiveness on bad bumps. Cycle, 1955 THE GEARCHANGE action was beyond criticism. This box – Matchless’ own – is undoubtedly one of the best on the market. Motor Cycling, 1961 THE G12 DE-LUXE is a bulldog with all the get up and go of a greyhound, good for a potter around the…

Less is known about French importer Seudem, who promoted a win at the 1979 Bol d’Argent in adverts for its own 1000cc Le Mans. It appears very similar to the Agostini production bikes, but with plated exhausts and rear-sets sourced from Krajka. Seudem’s 1979 racer was a modified 850 Le Mans MkII, still wearing much of its factory bodywork. Other specials were dangled to gauge customer response by the import specialists, one of these being a prototype 850 Le Mans/SP. According to historian Mick Walker, Moto Guzzi only produced one before shelving the project.…

REAL CLASSIC READING Two things typically spring to mind when you think of road-racer John Cooper. First, that memorable moment in 1971 when he vanquished Giacomo Agostini at Mallory Park. Second, the ‘moon eyes’ motif which adorned his crash helmet during his competition career. In fact the latter is probably more famous than the former! But how did this nifty bit of helmet art, which led to a lifelong nickname, come about? All is revealed in a new bookazine, cunningly entitled ‘Moon Eyes’ (so you’ll be able to find it on the shelves at WH Smiths without too much trouble), which tells the remarkable story of this down-to-earth racing legend in his own words. The 132-page softback is packed with images that evoke the heady days of British road racing…

BIKES SUZUKI TS250, 1978. Running and riding great. Spare crankshaft, on- and off-road tyres. Spare front forks and headlight. New bike cover and original Haynes manual. Bike in Devon. £1900 or sensible offers.lesmond691@googlemail.com AJS 1939 OHV 250cc. Tidy and complete but still a project and no paperwork. More details and photos on request. £1995ono. 07584 824079 or 07960 447592. Oxon area. WANTS TRIUMPH pre-unit 8’’ air scoop type front brake drum or wheel wanted. I will purchase either a complete front wheel with, or without brake plate or just the drum and centre in any condition. 01865 762859. TRIUMPH T120 oil tank wanted, 1960-62. 01933 355796 BITS 52 G3LS bottom end, inc engine plates and mag and splashplate. Needs big end. £180. GB2 AMC gearbox (untested), £200. Patt rear light,…

These suppliers were used by Stu to bring the Aermacchi back to full working order… BREZZI SAMUEL, Italy: exhausts, seat covers MOTO STORICHE ITALIAN, Italy: great service BEB MECANICCA, Italy: wheel rims, great service CLASSIC BIKE SPARES: Girling shock absorber covers, Lucas switches, ammeters CENTRAL WHEEL COMPONENTS: stainless spokes/nipples WEST COUNTRY WINDINGS: dynamo rewinds YORVIK ENGINEERING SERVICES: powder coating and colour matching SIR HENRYS MOTORCYCLES: Aermacchi transfers LAMBRETTA LEEDS: – speedo glass / surround M&P SWANSEA: chains…

Engine 736cc air-cooled sohc transverse-mounted inline four Bore / stroke 61mm x 63mm Compression 9:1 Power 68bhp @ 8000rpm Carburetion 4x 28mm Keihin Transmission 5-speed, chain final drive Electrics 12V alternator, coil ignition Frame 531 Reynolds duplex cradle Front suspension 41mm Betor tele forks Rear suspension Swinging arm, Girling shocks Brakes Lockheed 254mm discs Front tyre 3.50 x 18 Rear tyre 4.25 x 18 Weight 440lb Seat height 31.5 inches Wheelbase 56.5 inches Top speed 109mph in 1974…

THE ROAD TO RECOVERY Thank to Rowena for her Members’ Enclosure article about MoTs and breakdown cover. I have just received my renewal quote from Carole Nash and, in the notes covering the breakdown cover, it stipulates that your bike will need a current MoT. I called them to ask if this applies to vehicles over forty years old which do not require either tax or MoT. Would my bike be collected if it broke down? The advisor had to go away and ask, but he did already know about older cars and bikes not needing an MoT or tax. He returned to confirm that if I did have a breakdown then the breakdown cover would come out and pick me up. They do know about the DVLA rules covering…

As well as the obvious red/blue colour schemes of Matchless and AJS, there were some significant differences between the marques during the early years of production – timing covers, silencers, saddles, fuel tanks and such – so you can’t mix-n-match all the spares. When buying, pay attention to the description and make sure that a machine which is sold as a ‘Competition Sports’ model isn’t just a standard bike with a flash tank. The CS models used an all-welded scrambles frame and 8.5:1 engine with lower gearing, siamesed exhausts, two-gallon petrol tank, tilted rear shocks, an extra inch of ground clearance, chunky tyres, high bars and wide tyres. Then AMC applied these performance tweaks to a roadbike and created with CSR range with lightweight alloy guards, a 4.5 gallon petrol…

WARCO, the machine tool specialist, have announced that they won’t be attending the Midlands model engineering exhibition this autumn. Instead, they’ll be hosting their own regular open days and organising some extra-special offers to coincide with the week of the show in October. See warco.co.uk MOPED MAYHEM! Five intrepid owners of NVT Easy Riders will attempt to secure land speed records with their tuned 50cc superbeasts at Bonneville next year, pushing one solo Easy Rider and an outfit (!) to their limits. Philip Bargh, Peter Bates, Peter Nicholson Martin Rawson and John Young will undertake the preparation and riding and are keen to share this awesome challenge with supporters and sponsors. Search Facebook for Bonneville 2020 - The NVT Easy Rider Challenge ADVENTURE RIDER Zoë Cano’s will be at the…

Progress does continue on the pre-war project, but has been pretty slow due to other distractions recently. From the reports in this column it might seem as though real progress has been made, and it must, surely, be starting to look like a bike? Unfortunately it is not so. Yes, progress has been made (frame straightened and painted, a gearbox built, although not yet a close ratio type for which a sliding dog clutch is still missing, and engine work now proceeding), but the truth is that it remains an assortment of parts scattered around a shed and bedroom. It might be a while happening yet. The little progress this month was another session on the lathe, turning another hefty lump of aluminium into another large bag of swarf. This…