September 2023

Classic Bike Guide

The only way to enjoy classics!

Classic Bike Guide2 min read
Old Bike-friendly Mechanics Directory – We Still Need Your Help!
GREETINGS, ALL! FIRSTLY, MAY WE thank those who have forwarded us information about old bike-friendly mechanics for our directory. Plenty have, but not enough to print yet, so please take a minute to send in the details of bike shops you know are hap
Classic Bike Guide2 min read
Testing Any Machine
Cadwell Park circuit nestles in the south of the Lincolnshire Wolds, climbing from a dip up the side of two of the many crests that create the surrounding rough, sea-like countryside – and is one of the UK’s best racing circuits. The tree-lined circu
Classic Bike Guide12 min read
Wartime Ariel NG
ALL OUR CLASSIC MOTORCYCLES HAVE history, no matter whether they are one owner from new, or if that little box on the V5c says ‘number of previous owners 17’. It’s often fascinating to research the bike’s origins... but it’s unlikely that many will f
Classic Bike Guide1 min read
Classic Bike Guide
EDITOR || Matt Hull editor@classicbikeguide.com PUBLISHER || Tim Hartley thartley@mortons.co.uk ART EDITOR || Kelvin Clements SENIOR DESIGNER || Michael Baumber DESIGNER || Charlotte Turnbull PRODUCTION EDITOR || Lucy Wood GROUP ADVERTISING MANAGER |
Classic Bike Guide5 min read
Come And See Henry At Stafford!
There are currently few bigger names in the world of classic motorcycle culture than the star guest at the Stafford Classic Motorcycle Show, Henry Cole. Henry’s efforts to bring classic biking to the small screen have seen his Motorcycle show gain tw
Classic Bike Guide1 min read
We've been to Sammy Miller Museum New Milton, Hampshire
MOST OLD BIKE ENTHUSIASTS HAVE HEARD OF Sammy Miller, whether it be for his off-road riding, his 11 British trials championships, his road racing or his museum. Tucked down near Bournemouth on the south coast, many have yet to visit the venue, includ
Classic Bike Guide2 min read
We've Been To Founders Day
THE TAVERNERS SECTION OF THE VMCC (VINTAGE Motorcycle Club) is based in the Leicestershire area and is one of the busiest sections. Trials and regular rides are joined by its big operation – Founders Day. One day a year, the club sets up at Stanford
Classic Bike Guide1 min read
We've Been To Wells Tortoise And Hare Run
THE WELLS CLASSIC MOTORCYCLE CLUB’S Tortoise and Hare Run attracted more than 120 classic motorcyclists to England’s smallest city. Riders brought along café racers and cruisers, Vincents and Velocettes, and Scotts and Suzukis along for the ride. Mac
Classic Bike Guide11 min read
Last Ditch Triumphs
YOU NEVER FORGET YOUR FIRST, THEY SAY. IT was the summer of 1983, a Sunday, about 1.30pm. I strolled into my favourite disreputable Exeter watering hole to find a friend looking the worse for wear, patting his pockets. His girlfriend beckoned me over
Classic Bike Guide10 min read
Frank Westworth Looks Back At: The Triumph TSS
IT’S A DEPRESSING NUMBER OF YEARS SINCE I LAST fell in love with a Triumph T140 Bonneville. That bike was one of the very last of the line – a Royal – and I revisited it in these pages a couple of issues back. It was impressive in many ways, very civ
Classic Bike Guide4 min read
Anything To Say?
Email || editor@classicbikeguide.com Write to || Classic Bike Guide, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincolnshire, LN9 6LZ The writer of this month’s Star Letter wins a pair of Weise Ridge jeans worth £139.99. AA rated for protection with an abrasion-resistan
Classic Bike Guide3 min read
Products
■ £25 ■ Veloce.co.uk Velocette was always known for its excellent engineering, and there are plenty of books delving into the history of the bikes. The four-strokes were mainly single-cylinder, but this book looks at a slightly odd trio: prototype
Classic Bike Guide3 min read
Fancy A Day Out?
26 Squires Café monthly autojumble at South Milford, Leeds, LS25 5LX. Pitches are £5 each for sellers. Visit www.squires-cafe.co.uk 26-28 Ogri MCC Summer Rally at Kemble Airfield, Gloucestershire GL7 6BA. Ticket availability is limited. Visit www.og
Classic Bike Guide7 min read
Kids In A Sweetshop
Traditional auctions are only one way to buy or sell these days, so Bonhams has rebranded its classic vehicle department as Bonhams|Cars, to show what else it can offer. As well as traditional auctions, the new Bonhams|Cars service is staying in touc
Classic Bike Guide3 min read
Oli’s T’pence
‘ST SWITHIN’S DAY, IF IT DOES RAIN, full forty days, it will remain. St Swithin’s Day, if it be fair, for forty days, t’will rain no more.’ I’m not saying there’s anything in ancient English folk sayings, but frankly, it’s been chucking it down since
Classic Bike Guide4 min read
Skills Sharing
THERE’S THREE LINES IN A LATER Rolling Stones song (Doom and Gloom) that go: “Sitting in the dirt, feeling kind of hurt, all I hear is doom and gloom.” Mick and the boys had a minor hit with it in 2012. Good song if you ask me, but it’s also possibly
Classic Bike Guide5 min read
BMW R18 Roctane
THE BMW R18 ROCTANE IS THE fifth variant of the 1802cc heavy cruiser to be seen since the model was unveiled in 2020. As German as schnitzel yet thoroughly American in outlook, it is low and long, with an 1802cc air-cooled motor packing 116lb.ft of g
Classic Bike Guide9 min read
Take Your Classic On Track!
BIKE TRACKDAYS ARE MUCH MORE COMMON than they used to be. You can pick from several around the country every day. But before the 1990s, riding on track was a rare experience unless you raced, which was much easier than it is now. You could literally
Classic Bike Guide1 min read
Workshop Quickies
I OFTEN THINK A LOT OF REPAIRS, particularly non-powertrain, are mostly strip, clean and reassemble. We have a much-ridden, mid-1990s 883 Harley-Davidson Sportster in the family. On one of its infrequent visits back home recently, I noticed that the
Classic Bike Guide3 min read
Back To Basics Steering Dampers
What are they? Steering dampers are a physical method of dampening the steering movement of the front wheel on a motorcycle. They do not limit movement, nor make it smoother – they dampen the movement in case of sudden jolts, rapid changes of directi
Classic Bike Guide4 min read
Shaft Surgery
LIKE MATT, I HAVE A REAL AFFECTION FOR BMW airhead twins, having owned a few and covered many miles on them. But although I’ve had lots in the workshop, I’ve not owned one for about 10 years. That recently changed when an R80ST, a bike I have known a
Classic Bike Guide5 min read
Aermacchi Electrics – Fixing The Charging Circuit
TIME TO FIND OUT WHY THE Aermacchi did not charge the six-volt battery. Despite my fears, it turns out the electrical system is very simple, being a negative earth set-up consisting of an Italian CEV generator (dynamo), a Bosch regulator, a battery,
Classic Bike Guide4 min read
Frank’s Famous Last Words
HAVE YOU EVER TAKEN AND POPULATED a stand at an autojumble? I’ve shared that remarkable delight many times, but almost never to actually offer autojunk for sale. Until recently. Over a half-century of being somewhat nutty about old bikes of all sorts
Classic Bike Guide4 min read
It’s A Beautiful Day…
If you’re into the beautiful motorcycles and lovely people – then the Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show is the only place to be this October 14-15. If I’m honest, it’s the highlight of my biking year… 26,000 fellow classic motorcycle enthusiasts mill

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