Issue 75

Old Bike Australasia

For motorcycle enthusiasts, young and old.

Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Editor’s Letter
(Author unknown, but possibly Edgar Jessop) Welcome to our seventy-fifth issue – an odyssey that began more than 12 years ago with what was initially intended to be a twice-yearly magazine. That idea lasted just two issues before we went quarterly, t
Old Bike Australasia11 min readAutomotive
Letters To The Editor
I have always had a passion for single cylinder motorcycles having been brought up in a biking family where given the chance my father would tell all about how good his BSA Empire Star was. So imagine my delight when Yamaha introduced the SR500 back
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A Most Significant Motorcycle
Draggin Jeans Best Letter The post-war Sunbeam Motorcycle (OBA 74) has an interesting history. During the conflict BSA were given various captured enemy motorcycles for test. They were very impressed with the BMW R75 and that is the machine that the
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Classic Cob
So often owners of various motorcycles have had creative ideas, but not the talent or time to implement those modifications or changes which would result in a practical machine that was operational and reliable. At the July Lowood Swap recently I saw
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Buzz Box OLD BIKE NEWS
THE TENDER to design a new permanent circuit at Bathurst has been awarded to UK company Apex Circuit Design. Bathurst Regional Council (BRC) conducted a tender process involving Apex, Australian company Integrated Event Delivery Management, and Itali
Old Bike Australasia5 min read
Under the Chequered Flag
Tasmanian born RONNIE MOORE passed away in a Christchurch hospice on August 18, aged 85. Twice World Speedway Champion, Moore was born into a motorcycling family where his father Les rode the ‘Wall of Death” at shows and circuses around Australia, an
Old Bike Australasia8 min read
From Racer To Rossi
Some even gain fame on their own account – naturally not of the giddy heights afforded to the star riders and drivers, but fame none the less. Jeremy Burgess, featured in OBA 70, is one such name, as are Kiwis Mike Sinclair and Paul Treacy. For many
Old Bike Australasia10 min read
From Myth To Metal
When AJS threw back the wraps on their star exhibit at the Earl’s Court Motor Cycle Show in November, 1935, the collective intake of breath almost sucked the carpets off the floor. Here, in solid metal, was perhaps the most mouth-watering, evocative
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A Single Ahead Of Its Time
In the dirt bike boom that began in the late ‘sixties, Honda got hammered, mainly because the company’s ethos was four stroke technology, and virtually all the opposition was two-stroke based, not least being the ground-breaking Yamaha DT1, the motor
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The Big Twin you’ve Never Heard Of
The question was especially poignant with the recent demise of the troubled TX750 Yamaha twin, although Yamaha did soldier on with its now-venerable XS650 twin. The British parallel twin pretenders had largely vanished; the Enfield Interceptor, BSA’s
Old Bike Australasia9 min read
Horses And Courses
The Levin Motor Racing circuit, located 95km north of Wellington near Lake Horowhenua, in the North Island, was the first permanent racing circuit to be established in New Zealand. Prior to that circuits were confined to non-permanent, makeshift venu
Old Bike Australasia4 min readAutomotive
A Single Purpose
With just sixty seven examples built between 1993 and 1995, the Ducati Supermono is super rare as well as being super expensive – most recent auction sales have seen prices nudge US$200,000. Each example is numbered with a plate affixed to the magnes
Old Bike Australasia2 min readAutomotive
Half A Twin
Englishman Andy Gourlay, a resident of New Zealand since 1986, has enjoyed a long love affair with quick singles, having raced Aermacchis and a Manx Norton in the Manx Grand Prix from 1976 to 1980. He recently re-acquired his Aermacchi Metisse that h
Old Bike Australasia3 min readAutomotive
Turning Left In Japan
I had a fantastic day out at the Kawaguchi Autorace track on the outskirts of Tokyo. We were up here visiting my son and his wife and meeting our new grand-daughter. The racing is really exciting and the Kawaguchi Autorace facility is incredible. The
Old Bike Australasia5 min readAutomotive
Mini masterpieces
MV itself had contested the class for some years with its own two stroke, which began life as a 98cc and was the brainchild of Domenico Agusta, son of the company founder Count Giovanni Agusta. The Agusta empire had begun in 1923 as an aircraft compa
Old Bike Australasia4 min readAutomotive
Out ‘n’ about
Geoffrey Ellis writes, “When my story of the YDS1 Yamaha Liberty Ranch Model was included in OBA 26 it was at the time believed that all sales records had been destroyed and numbers built were therefore unknown. The Ranch Model was Yamaha’s first off
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Showtime in Mackay
It never ceases to amaze the members of the club that the bikes still come out of the woodwork. This year the Bike of the Show was one of the best restorations of a 750 Kawasaki seen; it was better than new as was the Norton Fastback, the little 450
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
A Day For Jack And Nigel
Both sadly are no longer with us but Cynthia Boocock (Nigel’s wife) and Jon White (Jack’s son) were present. Darren Sonnenberg who had the original vision and speedway tragic Tony Webb were the main organisers. The display was huge and filled both si
Old Bike Australasia2 min readAutomotive
Cold Start, Cool Finish
OLD BIKES AT THE TRACK • 1-2 September 2018 – Wakefield Park, Goulburn NSW Wakefield Park’s 3rd annual All-Historic meeting has cemented its place as the country’s only such event exclusively celebrating racing for motorcycles and cars of the type th
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
A Family Affair At Collie
• 24 June, 2018 – Collie Motorplex, WA With conditions almost identical to Round 2, Saturday practice was almost continuously wet and Sunday got worse as the day wore on. In the end the weather bought an early closure to the meeting with just one rac
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Brilliant Bulli
OLD BIKES DOIN’ THE ROUNDS • 25-26 August, 2018 – Bulli Showgrounds, NSW Just north of Wollongong on the NSW South Coast, Bulli Showground was the venue for the second running of the AMCA Australia National Meet, a celebration of vintage and classic
Old Bike Australasia3 min read
Moto Giro Oz turns 10
• 21-26 August, 2018 – South-East Qld. It all began with a dream when Peter Morrow and Trevor Fryer were thinking of a way to get classic Italian bikes out of garages and onto the road. The concept of the original Motogiro d’Italia in the ‘50s was th
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Hawkesbury Happening
• 29-29 July, 2018 – Pitt Town, NSW The many months of preparation work for the 2018 Macquarie Towns Restoration and Preservation Club Rally held on July 28 and 29, provided the 134 entrants with a fabulous weekend of riding around the beautiful Hawk
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Colour at Cleveland
• 15 July, 2018 – Cleveland Showgrounds, Qld 2018 saw perfect weather for the 30th running of the Concours after the sun came out and lifted the brisk 5 degree morning chill. Maybe it was the cold start but display bikes were a little down in numbers
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
In Don’s memory
• 8 July, 2018 – Pine Rivers, Qld In any club there are people whose dedication and passion for their club enables us to enjoy what we do today. Sometimes unfortunately those people are no longer with us and it is necessary to remind ourselves of how
Old Bike Australasia3 min read
Celebrating The Big Six
• 16-17 June, 2018 – Meddo, Holland Late in 1978 the Kawasaki Z1300 made its way onto the European market. The first one saw the light of day in Australia early 1979. I first became aware of the Z1300 when in Bathurst for the motorcycle races in East
Old Bike Australasia3 min readAutomotive
Yamaha TMax SX 530 Super scoot
Around town, this thing is an absolute rocket – even Jorge Lorenzo wouldn’t beat it off the lights. So I guess the answer is that it’s a scooter because it has small(ish) 15 inch wheels, you step through to mount rather than swing a leg over, and the
Old Bike Australasia3 min readAutomotive
Royal Enfield Classic 500 Stealth Euro 4 Dark customer
I picked up the bike from Burwood (Sydney) and headed out into the incessant traffic of Parramatta Road, but this is a very easy bike to ride in traffic and a pleasant bike to ride around rural North West Sydney. I also took it for a spin up the Putt
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
Good Gear
Braided brake lines are an essential safety factor and for the older bikes can mean a big boost in braking performance. The Venhill Powerhose Plus system uses factory-finished lines which are identical at both ends, with 1/8th BSP swivel socket nuts
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
Eyes Right
Racing and Production Motorcycles from 1945 By Ian Falloon ISBN: 978-1-787110-85-4 Hardback 368 pages RRP (Australia) $83.50 Published by Veloce www.veloce.co.uk Available from Renniks Publications • (02) 96957055 www.renniks.com Prolific Melbourne a
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Edgar Jessop Last tango in Andorra
One such concerns Paulo “Chromedome” Gompetz and his attractive sidekick Fiona Flibbertigibbet, who made countless incursions, sweeping across the Continent and liberating wealth from the foolish and the gullible. This often led to spirited police ch

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