Mix and match

In the motorcycle world there are any number of reasons to create a special with components from various sources. These reasons range from ‘couldn’t afford a catalogued machine’ to ‘the standard offerings weren’t right’ and often include ‘had a load of bits’ and ‘sheer bloody-mindedness’, to give just four examples. Some such specials or ‘bitzas’ are more common in one sphere of the sporting world than others, for instance the combination of Triumph engine in a Norton frame is evocative of the café racer scene, while slipping a Triumph engine into a BSA frame is much more common in the scrambles world. The resulting TriBSA was and is arguably a better clubman machine than the BSA Gold Star that often donated the rolling chassis.

Now before the Gold Star Owners’ Club gangs up on me, I have to say the Goldie is a superb machine – but in order for it to produce the best it can do, a comprehensive maintenance schedule has to be followed, as it is pretty much a race engine. The problem was, not all club-level riders could afford the maintenance and parts that had to be replaced or rebuilt after a certain number of hours.