Innehållsförteckning för March 2023 från Real Classic

Variety is, as we are endlessly reminded, the spice of life, and that is certainly true of life as a scribbler on a magazine devoted to elderly motorcycles. One day I can find myself experiencing the truly rare delight of riding a 4-cylinder Triumph that never was, and the very next I can be wobbling dangerously along on a scooter. I'm unsure which is the more scary, to be honest. Especially as in both cases, concerned custodians of the machines involved were standing close by and watching. It wasn't always entirely thus. Back in the last century when I first started writing a lot about bikes (as opposed to occasional pieces for a club magazine) I tended to write only about machines I knew decently well – well enough to…

PO 66 BUDE EX23 9ZX OLD BIKES BEAT ULEZ Readers may know that from August riders of most bikes from 1983-2008 that are not to Euro3 specification will have to pay a charge when ridden in London. My guess is other cities will watch, learn and then do likewise. Which bikes near that 1982 cut-off would readers suggest as workaday machines? Yes, we can go for late T140s and Commandos. Would a late Trident cut it? Look further: how about those cusp-of-the-80s Japanese fours and twins? Benellis and the airheads are in there too. Maybe a pushrod Guzzi? Are those Laverda clutches for city use? Readers must know. And we few that don't, we must be told… On another matter, I so liked Paul Henshaw's words about the AJS V-twin…

RealClassic ROYAL ENFIELD HIMALAYAN This is another article about a modern motorcycle which may, or may not, find favour with the more mature rider for whom bigger and more muscular bikes have become a chore. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Royal Enfield Himalayan. This machine is a little bit of a Marmite bike – earning many, many plaudits, and a few critical comments. A declaration of interest; I own the green machine pictured here abouts. I own it, and I think it's great. Not perfect, but really great. The other day I was out, pottering about, thinking of the hurtful things that a small minority of people say about the Himalayan and I was reminded of an old advert for the Citroën 2CV. This listed explained why the Tin…

TRIUMPH TIGRESS I was beginning to feel left out. Old fashioned. Out of time. Strange things were happening in the slightly odd two-wheeled world I have inhabited for so long. The times were, as we once sang, a-changin’. Where once my companions of the road would discuss serious stuff like valve overlap, racing histories and sheer raw horsepower, suddenly they were discussing whether a full-face helmet would fit beneath the seat and whether there was somewhere to hang the shopping bag inside the apron. I was plainly excluded, because they were talking about their scooters. Dark days indeed. Not that there's anything wrong with scooters and their aprons. Didn't motorcycles once have a fashion for skirts? Matters reached a head when I parked up at a roadside diner to meet…

RealClassic ARIEL HUNTMASTER One of the elderly gentlemen who helped me with the early restoration of my Ariel, many, many years ago, told me this story of how he ended up as a fitter in the army. When he went to sign up, ‘it was the shortest line’. He hastened to add that life tends to point you in the direction you should be headed, and all you need to do is follow the signs and enjoy the ride. Nothing is truer when it comes to me and my lifelong project; my Ariel Huntmaster. I found the bike when I was still in school, in a garage when we were guests at a barbeque. The bike was in bad shape and had spent the later part of its life on a…

TALES FROM FRANK WESTWORTH Do you suffer from a sort-of delicious terror when looking closely at a new (to you) bike properly for the first time? To be honest with you, gentle reader, this is the point at which I rediscover the hidden joys (as in I've not found any yet) of Buyer's Remorse. Maybe Regret, I'm not sure. Possibly both. So what have we got? There was an air of growing surprise condensing from The Shed's damp rafters. The more I looked, the more I liked what I was looking at. The rims are original and wear excellent chrome. The exhaust pipes are too, although the silencers are a mismatched pair of peashooters which I'll probably replace if and when the bike's heading for the (UK) highway. Chain and sprockets…

RealClassic RGC NORTON TWIN SPECIAL The parallel-twin OHV Norton Commando is widely regarded by everyone except Triumph T160 triple owners as the fastest and most desirable classic-era British streetbike. It made its 1967 debut at London's Earls Court Show in 745cc Fastback guise, and production began the following April. Between then and 1978 when the Norton brand went into cold storage for three decades until it was revived in 2008, when Stuart Garner purchased the rights to the Norton trademark from American investor Oliver Curme, just under 50,000 Commandos were manufactured in its ten years of production. Curme had underwritten the 2003 creation of the born-again Commando 961 by US Norton guru Kenny Dreer, and after Indian manufacturer TVS acquired the bankrupt Norton Motorcycles company in April 2020 after Garner's demise,…

I just finished reading about Philip Archer's Trident. The part about broken rear spokes reminded me of a long-forgotten episode with my brand new 1976 Bonnie and broken rear spokes. I put it down to the savage rear brake which had the same calliper as the front brake, the same diameter master cylinder and a bloody great long brake lever. I also had the wheel rebuilt with heavy duty spokes. I caféraced it for a while and made my own rearsets. This involved shortening the brake lever. The result was a tame, progressive rear brake. Unfortunately my expectations exceeded my ability and I dropped it, wiping out most of my hard work! So it was built back up standard savage brake and all. The Bonnie was sold shortly afterwards and…

In Riding Life in RC226, we're asked if we can identify the car shown in the background of the photo of Bill's first M21 outfit. It's a Hillman Imp from the 1970s. I have a 1967 Imp, which I've owned for 25 years (I'm the second owner), which has the same shut line for the bonnet but a different trim badge across the front. You can see here taken a few years ago outside the village of Old in Northamptonshire. Alan Freke, member 1197 I wrote the caption about the Imp mainly because I like old photos of streets as they were when I started riding. I had a couple of Imps in the 70s, and even a Sunbeam Stiletto, which was a hoot – apart from the head gaskets,…

RealClassic I totally agree with Tony Duffield in RC226 about his love of the Norton Commander. I just don't understand why they are not more appreciated. I bought my first rotary in 1993; very affordable in those days, not like today. It was a rather tatty, well used Classic fitted with an Interpol 2 tank. I wasn't sure if it was a genuine Classic but the price was right so I purchased it. Andover Norton were able to confirm its heritage. First impressions were rather disappointing when the surface discharge spark plugs kept fouling in slow moving traffic. Changing to the NGK plugs fitted to the Honda Fireblade of the time cured this. I really loved the bike and used it alongside my Atlas for many years. When a Commander…

RealClassic Congratulations on yet another great issue. What a surprise that you had the courage to show two Norton twins on consecutive issues: one almost the pinnacle of twin development (except for the, erm, ‘debatable’ rear enclosure), and the other an altogether more debatable model as a whole. Not everyone will agree with Alan Cathcart's conclusion that these Nortons are ‘retro done right’. I for one don't. Too odd the mix of retro, classic and modern, too aloof the management speak, too exorbitant the price – and too long the list of horrors described as ‘being solved’ from the Garner period. How many more problems, I ask myself, are still lurking within, waiting for the customer to find out to his own detriment, at THAT price? And what is this…

RealClassic SUNBEAM S8 & SIDECAR I seem to have acquired a garage full of post-war 500s. They all do a very similar thing in a very similar way. I don't really know how that happened. If you can afford more than one bike they are supposed to have different roles. Sporting, touring, offroading, etc. My favourite riding bike is my 1957 AJS Model 20. It handles well, brakes well, starts easily and if you get down to it then 90mph will come up on the speedo on a good day. It is a bike that is very difficult to fault. Another AMC bike also sits in the garage. An unrestored 1949 Matchless G80 with the short-lived candlestick rear suspension units. This, like the Model 20, also handles well, brakes well and…

RealClassic MATCHLESS SINGLE It started in spring 1973 when I, a poor student, was persuaded by a fellow motorcycle enthusiast in the university bike club to sell my CB77 Honda (I'd have another today if I had the garage space!) and replace it with a ‘cheap project bike’ that he and his brother had conjured-up. It would apparently be more suitable to my needs for my 200-mile motorway trips home and back. A fellow from London wanted my CB77, so it was packed off in the luggage van of the Liverpool to Euston train. I had briefly a handful of notes which soon disappeared to the brothers with the Matchless, which I had bought unseen. Their scheme had been to make a road / beach / mudplugger beast from a G3…

The Sammy Miller Museum in New Milton, Hampshire, UK is crammed full of interesting machines – including one of the biggest collections of exotic racing bikes in the world, and all are runners! These include the V8 Moto Guzzi, AJS Porcupine, Mondial 250 with dustbin fairing, Nortons, Ducatis, Suzukis, Hondas, Velocettes and many more! The Road Bike Hall includes a huge collection of factory prototypes and exotic designs from all over the world, and of course there are plenty of dirtbikes and trial icons, too – over 400 bikes in total. The Museum is open to visitors daily from 10am every day at New Milton, Hampshire B25 5SZ. 01425 620777 / www.sammymiller.co.uk…

RealClassic BSA STARFIRE What possessed me to buy a 1968 BSA Starfire I am not sure, but it turned out to be an interesting journey, with a few disasters along the way. The story starts way back in 1970 having returned from Singapore where I was serving in the army. I learned to ride on a 1959 Triumph T100A; no capacity restrictions out there. Back to the UK and the 250cc limit, so I bought a new Triumph TR25W. This is of course a BSA with Triumph badges and different styling. A nice bike as it happens, which was traded in for a 650 TR6C as soon as I passed my test. Fast forward to 2016. I decided it would be a good idea to add a 250 to my small…

RealClassic SUZUKI T500 TITAN I have always liked two-strokes. Back in the day, early 1970s, I decided I wanted a Suzuki 500. I entered the local motorcycle premises full of expectations. The owner / salesman tried his best to sell me a 350 Rebel instead and said it would ride rings around the 500. All he did was put me off and I walked out without buying either. Well, I was young and bolshie. Fast forward to 2017. I'd taken a hiatus after being dispatched by a learner car driver when my Triumph Speedmaster and I bit the dust. I saw this 1972 Suzuki Titan for sale and bought it on the spot. Someone before me had done a nice job of the paintwork, frame fittings, polishing and the like. The…

RealClassic BMW R100RT Range anxiety has recently become an issue for EV drivers. That worry that they might have to stop to recharge. Will there be a queue, will the charging point be out of action, or can they get to their destination against the headwind? I've no intention of buying an EV but I think I know that feeling. I have a 1956 BSA B31 that has always started easily hot or cold, never missed a beat or broken down. I have a good working understanding of things mechanical, plus I carry tools. Yet I rarely do I venture more than the ten miles from home than my RAC free recovery policy stipulates, and I know I'm not the only one who does this. There are many reasons I like…

RealClassic BSA FLAT-TRACKER PART THE FOURTH Last month we were getting on with jobs while waiting for spokes. And this month, we're getting on with jobs while waiting for spokes. To be fair to Central Wheels, they did quote at least two weeks of a waiting list, but what didn't help was the payment system. I don't have a smart phone and don't do all the internet banking malarkey, so I was paying by PayPal. Central Wheels accept such payments but don't seem to have any apparent mechanism to let despatch know you'd paid and they could send your order out. Hmmm. So I'd had an email saying they were going on 48 hour delivery, but no spokes arrived. After a week of waiting I got back in touch and it…