Issue 92

Old Bike Australasia

For motorcycle enthusiasts, young and old.

Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Old Bike Australasia
NUMBER 92 EDITOR Jim Scaysbrook OAM Email: scaysbrook34@bigpond.com Tel: (02) 9672 6899 (bh) Mbl: 0411 443444 PO Box 95, Kellyville NSW 2155 CONTRIBUTORS Alan Cathcart, Gaven Dall’Osto, Peter Laverty, Rennie Scaysbrook, Peter Smith, Nick Varta, Peter
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Old Hat editor’s Letter
In this issue you will find the news of the passing of one of the world’s greatest motocross riders, the Belgian legend Joel Robert, aged 77. As strong as an ox and with an appetite for his country’s national drink (beer) that knew no bounds, Joel wa
Old Bike Australasia8 min read
Blow Your Own letters To The Editor
I am doing some research on an old Ariel Square 4 that I owned in the 1960s and also incorporating some details of it in memoirs that I am writing for my family. I have a vague recollection of taking it to the Kangaroo motorcycle rally at Lake Burrum
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
RARITEE Best Letter
I read, with great interest, the article in ‘Out & About’ OBA 90, about the Tilbrook sidecars. My parents had a double Tilbrook sidecar, attached to a Mk1 Square four Ariel in the early 1950s. I have attached a not very good photo of it from the rear
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Blow Your Own!
If you’ve got something to say, why not write to Old Bike Australasia and get it out to those that might be interested. Send your letters to… Blow Your Own Old Bike Australasia PO Box 95, Kellyville NSW 2155 Ph: 02 9672 6899 E-mail: scaysbrook34@bigp
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
Classic Cob out In The Shed
Sometime ago Ken Goodman sent me photos of a pushbike fitted with a Villiers engine. He advised me that the engine was made in Australia. I was not aware that they had been made here. Those photos and a short story appeared in issue 90. The small Vil
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Buzz Box Old Bike News
Gary Ellem, President of the Road Racing Association of Townsville, reports that the new Townsville Circuit is progressing satisfactorily. “We have completed Stage one; this is the Driver Education portion with 6 Acres of bitumen down, with high spee
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Taylour Trip-ups
Several readers spotted some anomalies with the story on speedway star Fay Taylour in OBA 91. Firstly, a typo in the caption for the shot of Fay driving the V8/60 speedcar. The former driver was Frank ‘Satan’ Brewer, not Stan. Sorry about the missing
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
And, No Bikes At Sydney International Speedway…
More from Gary Reid indicates that contrary to the item in OBA 91 about the new Speedway complex at Sydney’s Eastern Creek, it seems that bikes will now not be catered for, at least initially. Part of the Submissions Report states, “The design of the
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Bulli Bounces Back
Antony Gullick reports, “The AMCA of Australia has hit the ground running this year and is getting ready for the biggest Bulli yet. 2020 saw us going online and doing a “virtual” Bulli but in 2021 we are live and in living colour. 2021 will feature a
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Wentworth Park For Demolition
Star Speedway snapper Gary Reid is a keen observer of all things to do with oval track racing, and was sadden by the recent announcement that Wentworth Park, in the inner Sydney suburb of Glebe, is to be demolished. The Development Application now wi
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Hamilton Hits Its Hundred (+1)
The Hamilton Motorcycle Club in NZ is finally on the cusp of its biggest event in years with the 100th anniversary celebrations ready to kick off from late March. The club will be 101 by then after two false starts leading to a 12 month delay due to
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Entries open for OBA Classic Challenge
The Post Classic Racing Association of NSW is all geared up for the 2021 OBA Classic Challenge, to be held at Sydney Motor Sport Park on 20th and 21st March. Event Organiser Ken Lindsay says that the meeting, originally scheduled over three days, wil
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Carnell Classic Is Go!
Historic motorcycle racing returns to Carnell Raceway in Stanthorpe for the Carnell Classic on April 17-18, 2021. Promoted by the Queensland Early Motorcycle Sports Club, the weekend will see a packed program of racing for solos and sidecars from Per
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Inferno In The Alps
More than 230 motorcycles have been totally destroyed in a fire at the famous Top Mountain Crosspoint Motorcycle Museum on the Italy/Austria border on January 18, 2021. The museum sits at the top of the Timmelsjoch Pass – a very popular motorcycling
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Under the Chequered Flag
One of the most familiar faces at race meetings for decades, BOB ROBERTSON passed away in his sleep aged 82 on 25th December in Calvary Retirement Village, Cessnock. Bob competed in just about every form of motorcycle sport, on a wide variety of mach
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Guzzi’s new V7
After more than 50 years in the Moto Guzzi line up, a brand new V7 joins the fleet for 2021. A new 850cc engine, closely related to that which powers the current V85 TT, with 65hp at 6,800 rpm, an increase of 25%. Torque is also up, to 73Nm at 5,000
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Meteor Strike!
As if by stealth, the very latest, all-new Royal Enfield appeared in Australian showrooms in late February. It’s new meteor – a familiar name in Royal Enfield terms after the parallel twin of 1952 – but that’s the only similarity. The new Meteor is a
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Roy Gavenlock
My grandfather ROY GAVENLOCK passed away on the 19th November, 2020, aged 84. Roy was a foundation member of the Newcastle Vintage Motorcycle Club and a lifelong BSA man, Roy raced at Bathurst in the 1960s and swung spanners for his brother ‘Chipps’
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Fred’s Fleet At Shannons
A trio of classic racing motorcycles belonging to the family of the late Fred O’Farrell will be part of Shannons Autumn Timed Online Auction, to be held on Tuesday April 6, 2021. Fred was in at the very birth of Historic Motorcycle Racing in New Sout
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Keith Blizzard
A long-time member of St George Motor Cycle Club in Sydney, KEITH BLIZZARD passed away on November 21st, 2020 after a long illness. Keith was born into a motorcycling family and was always destined to be addicted to all things “bike” from a very earl
Old Bike Australasia7 min read
The Man With Two Lives
Born in Adelaide on 31st December, 1940, Denis, now Denny, took on an apprenticeship as a carpenter, and kept supremely fit with a combination of a strict vegetarian diet and plenty of exercise. That included weight lifting and cycling, both of which
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Joel Robert
Six-times World 250 Motocross Champion JOEL ROBERT passed away on January 13, aged 77. Born on November 26, 1943 in Châtelet, Belgium, Joel was surrounded by motorcycles and motorcycling family from birth. His father raced in European Grass Track and
Old Bike Australasia8 min read
Doctor Knows Best
Moto Guzzi sportsbikes – for at least the last 30 years or so – have always been a bit of an oxymoron. Unquestionably elegant but also lagging in the technology race, the Lake Como company was one of the dominant forces in Grand Prix racing, especial
Old Bike Australasia7 min read
Parallel thoughts
First seen in 1919, a 770cc side-valve v-twin was listed in the catalogue, primarily aimed at the family man, with a BSA-built sidecar also listed. Although the twin, with its conventional rigid frame, girder front end and caliper brakes, performed e
Old Bike Australasia8 min read
Veni, Vidi, Vici. “I Came, I Saw, I Conquered.”
By the time the Allied bombing raids had ceased in late 1945, little remained of the once-proud NSU factory. For the previous six years, NSU had been forced to switch from its core business of producing motorcycles to production of aviation component
Old Bike Australasia6 min read
Half A World Away
These days, Ceccato S.p.a is a highly successful business located in Grisignano di Zocco, near Padua, west of Venice, with other branches in Germany and Brazil. Unlike the company that began operations in 1948 in nearby Montecchio Maggiore, Ceccato’s
Old Bike Australasia5 min read
THE MOTORCYCLE DESIGN > ART > DESIRE
Presenting such an exhibition seems unlikely as motorcyclists represent a minority in society with statistics showing that there are 2 million road and off-road motorcycles in Australia. Like the US and Europe, this amounts to one motorcycle in 10% o
Old Bike Australasia7 min read
A Bash In The Bush Mooliabeenie WA
At the end of WWII, Australia had 317 mainland and regional airfields, all controlled by the Royal Australian Air Force. ‘Moolie’, as it is commonly referred to, 56 miles (90 km) from Perth, was the site of a 1500 metre long airstrip that was used by
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
Operation Transmatilda
Having invested in a new factory at Benalla, Victoria, the makers of Renold motorcycle chain were keen to demonstrate the quality of the local product, marketed as Transmar. And so a plan was devised to fit two 500cc motorcycles with extra tanks and
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
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Back issues also available subscribe online anytime mymagazines.com.au Subscribe for 2 years to receive a FREE hat PLUS, save over 29%! Each issue of Old Bike Australasia contains feature articles on a wide range of stories including famous bikes, fo
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Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 What All The Fuss Is About
True, it was a little late coming, because after unveiling the new models in Milan in late 2017, RE went back to the drawing board to make detail changes to ensure the twins were totally up to scratch before an impatient public got its hands on them.
Old Bike Australasia6 min read
Sand Blaster
Domination on the race tracks with the fabulous supercharged Kompressor models was gratifying for BMW (and the Nazis) in the ‘thirties, but as the decade drew to a close, there were bigger and far more pressing issues than international sporting pres
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Old BIKE Out’n’about
The 6th December attracted around 100 members, past speedway riders, drivers, officials, guests and friends to the Vintage Speedcar Association of Qld’s annual Christmas party at the Wynnum Golf Club. Being in the later part of their lives, they may
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
The Ziodirog
From GRAEME ‘SPYDA’ STAPLES in New Zealand comes this intriguing creation. “A mate who lives a few minutes from me in Lower Hutt has told me that his bike that he has spent several years working on is almost finished. He is known as Uncle Rog to ever
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
A Day For Jack
4th December 2020, saw a celebration of Jack Taylor’s 95th birthday, with a great roll up at the ‘Pie in the Sky’ restaurant at Cowan, along the Old Pacific Highway north of Sydney. The venue is always a popular spot for weekend motorcyclists, and ma
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Jack Dixon
“Jack Dixon was my father, but his real name was the same as mine, Clive Silby,” explains Clive Junior. “He raced pre WW1 and put his age up to enlist in the war. He served overseas and came back as a Warrant Officer. He took up racing again and move
Old Bike Australasia3 min read
The Making Of A MAC
The only problem was that the bike was fitted with a set of AJS girder forks. I wanted the MAC to be original, so I set out trying to locate the correct Medium Weight Webb girders. This proved to be difficult as Webb girders are becoming scarce. I th
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Scooter Scrambling
WAYNE SHERIDAN, former advertising manager for the fondly-remembered Revs Motorcycle News, motocross promoter and industry figure, sent these shots of an unusual field of machines at the old Moorebank Scrambles circuit near Liverpool, which closed in
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
Wheelin’ And Dealin’ In The ‘Sixties
Growing up in South Pascoe Vale, Victoria in the ‘50s and ‘60s was idyllic. There were paddocks and swamps, building sites to explore, the Moonee Ponds Creek was nearby for swimming and yabbying and as we got bigger we roamed far and wide on our bike
Old Bike Australasia5 min read
Black Bultaco Meets Black Cat
I did, because even a four-stroke 500 single ‘Velocette Tragic’ like me found the diminutive Spanish 250 cc two-stroke Metralla road bike strangely alluring. It was something to do with the grace and simplicity of that heavily finned motor with its r
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
gary’s FLASH BACK
Gary Reid has been trawling the eBay ads in UK again, ever alert for images from the motorcycling past. His latest haul is from the 1964 Isle of Man TT. Number 11 is Aussie Jack Ahearn in the Senior TT, where he finished 14th on his Norton, one place
Old Bike Australasia4 min read
“A Resounding Success”
• 6-7 February, 2021 – Pukekohe Park Raceway, NZ In the immortal words of Fred Dagg (aka. John Clarke), ‘We Don’t Know How Lucky We Are!’ To have a weekend of such high quality and interest, freely accessible to mingle, listen to and make contact wit
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Racing Again, At Last
For full results visit www.orion-timing.com/results.htm • 1-3 January 2021 – McNamara Park, Mt Gambier, SA The tough decision had to be made by HMCRRSA to run or not run the SA Historic Road Race Titles with all the on-again off-again travel rules su
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
How To Cope With Covid And Still Have A Great Time
• 13-14 February, 2021 – Orange NSW In 2020, the always-popular Orange Rally was one of the last to be run before the pandemic hit, and twelve months later, one of the first to reemerge, albeit with strict conditions. And as if the Covid conditions w
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Large And Small
• 7 February, 2021–Maraylya, NSW A perfect sunny day greeted participants for the Vintage MCC ride in the Hawkesbury district, with the veteran bikes’ numbers bolstered by the invitation to owners of vintage Tiddlers. Organisers Lee Wright and Peter
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
A Norton Day Out
• 6 December, 2020 – Christchurch, NZ In Europe, on the eve of December 6th, small gifts are hidden in boots to make childrens’ hearts beat faster on St. Nicholas Day the following morning. Our Canterbury area representative Jim Stevens duly managed
Old Bike Australasia3 min read
Keep It Small
• 21 November, 2020 – Christchurch, NZ In Covid-free and lockdown-free Christchurch, New Zealand, one instantly knew something was up, when my car’s rear vision mirror spotted a gaggle of Honda C50s following suit on the way to the starting point of
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
A Laid-back Lap
• 12th December 2020 – Lake Macquarie, NSW Themed as a Covid-safe day out for Italian motorcycles and cars, this one-off event attracted a healthy field for a circuit of the scenic Lake Macquarie north of Sydney. The designated Check Point was Halton
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
Good Gear New Products For All Bikers
US company Nelson-Rigg have been producing rainwear, motorcycle covers and soft luggage since 1972. The latest addition to the range are the Road Trip Saddlebags, model NR-400. These are covered by a Lifetime Warranty, with UV Protection, and 100% Wa
Old Bike Australasia1 min read
Eyes Right Reading And Watching
Paperback; 160 pages, 202 pictures • ISBN: 978-1-787115-81-1 • Published by Veloce. • Price: £16.99 UK. Available in 2021 from Renniks, Sydney. (02) 9695 7055 www.renniks.com Bill Snelling says the inspiration for this book came as a result of “an en
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Next Issue Preview
Homage to Hailwood ISDT Jawas Before the Speed Twin Old Bike Australasia No.93 available on newsstands from 22 April, 2021 www.oldbikemag.com.au ■
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WHAT’S ON A FREE EVENT LISTING FOR CLUBS & ORGANISATIONS
19-21 March, 2021 – Sydney Motor Sport Park, Eastern Creek NSW Promoted by the Post Classic Racing Association of NSW. Full programme of race classes for solos and Sidecars. Details from Ken Lindsay email: highwaystarmce@gmail.com 20-21 March, 2021 –
Old Bike Australasia2 min read
You Don’t Need A Long Neck To Be A Goose
Edgar Jessop’s great speedway rival ‘Tiger’ Parker always ate a sumptuous meal of tripe before a meeting, believing it would make him slipperier and therefore with less wind resistance. The Finnish Ice Racing Champion Maka Igloo always carried a walr

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