646
Identify these bikes! / Re: Rusted, hanging on the wall in a Melbourne cafe
« on: September 01, 2017, 06:25:32 AM »Fun, isn't it?
Leon
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Fun, isn't it?
Leon
647
Identify these bikes! / Re: Rusted, hanging on the wall in a Melbourne cafe
« on: September 01, 2017, 01:49:38 AM »I think you're getting very close John. The front diamond also has quite a few CL features, like the rear-exiting seat post, and the seat stays that attach a little way down the seat tube. As a teenager in the 1970s I devoured the Vintage Road Test Journals, and remember the sporting Blackburne-engined 1923 CL in Volume 2 very well. The book is still on the bookshelf, and the clear photos are useful here. The detail around the seat lug looks very much like the cafe bike, as does steering damper. No sidecar lugs on the frame, though. But 1923 was the first year of the 545cc side valve, using Chater Lea's own engine. That had sidecar lugs, and they're identical to the cafe bike. No dampers shown on the front forks in the Motor Cycle photo, but production bikes may have differed. A Sturmey Archer gear box was fitted, just like the cafe bike.
I wonder if we're looking at a 1923-4 545cc Chater Lea, with a JAP twin shoe-horned in at some stage, many years ago by the look of it.
Love the CL frames John, but hope you've got more parts lurking in the shed!
Cheers
Leon
648
Identify these bikes! / Re: Rusted, hanging on the wall in a Melbourne cafe
« on: August 31, 2017, 11:11:02 AM »Hi John,
I'm not sure if CE used CL forks and hubs - I had a quick look and in the 1920s they used (at least) forks of various styles from Brampton, Montgomery, Druid and Webb, but no sign of CL. Boy, did they make some different model bikes!
Is the cafe bike a bitsa? I don't know. I've made myself giddy looking at the photo and I can't really decide. Am I right in thinking the CL forks are late 1920s? If the bike is Coventry Eagle, it's likely 1922-1923 or so, maybe a 680 JAP twin, with CS Sturmey gearbox, and fitted with a later CL fork? The way the motor is sitting you may be right and there's something fishy going on. We'd have to either get it down, or climb a ladder to get a closer look. While we were there, we could nick the front fork for you.
A good talking point for a cafe.
Cheers
Leon
649
British Bikes / Re: 1927 BSA Gas Tank
« on: August 30, 2017, 12:53:36 AM »Hi Ken,
A tank for an S27 shouldn't be too hard to find - they were probably built in quite large numbers despite the Slopers coming on line at that time. It's a good honest vintage bike - hope you can get it up and going soon!
Cheers
Leon
650
Autojumble / Re: Almost motorcycle, definitely vintage!
« on: August 30, 2017, 12:48:13 AM »Someone could have some fun with that! They can be dated, and the pre-1915 will have some reasonable value as, attached to a suitable bicycle, they are eligible for the Pioneer Run to Brighton. Post 1914 models are less sought after.
Cheers
Leon
651
Identify these bikes! / Re: Rusted, hanging on the wall in a Melbourne cafe
« on: August 30, 2017, 12:36:07 AM »Not too rusty to restore! It's a c1925 Coventry Eagle. Some of these were very sporty indeed, but this one has the "cooking" single cam JAP engine. Still, a really nice and desirable bike. Wasted hanging in a cafe? If it was restored, it could still be in the cafe, but at least you could go out for a ride on the weekend.
In the late 1920s, the Victoria Police amassed a fleet of Coventry Eagles. The cafe bike is possibly one of them. http://earlymotor.com/forsale/coventry-eagle/index.htm
Leon
652
Classic Motorcycle Sport / Re: Bob Mac / Dunlop Gilera 100 mph lap.
« on: August 30, 2017, 12:29:29 AM »Quite something. They have a real Gilera 4 in a museum in Milan http://earlymotor.com/leon/misc/html/leonardo.htm
I'm lucky enough to own the 1932 Senior Works Rudge ridden by Wal Handley in the 1932 TT. He crashed on the 4th lap while in third place chasing the Nortons. Rudge in 1932 was the first factory team to go to the island with megaphones, and the noise attracted all sorts of comment. But when you compare the calico-ripping scream of the Italian fours with the put-put of the Manx Nortons in the late 1950s you realise how things changed in those 25 years!
Leon
653
Autojumble / Re: Almost motorcycle, definitely vintage!
« on: August 28, 2017, 11:49:37 PM »Hi Rhys,
Yep, that one sounds definitely vintage! The Wall (are you sure it is a Wall? - there were other similar beasts) spanned WW1, so some actually fall into the veteran era.
When you say that you are missing the frame, I assume that you mean the cradle that holds the engine and wheel, rather than the bicycle frame to fit it to. These are hard to find.
We have the National Veteran Motorcycle Rally out here in South Australia later in September. We have a run for feeble veterans, and one enthusiast has threatened to bring his pair of his-and-hers Wall Auto Wheels!
Photos please.
Cheers
Leon
654
Wanted Bikes / Re: Sunbeam around the 1930's model 6
« on: August 26, 2017, 11:39:01 PM »Unfortunately I too think it will be a long wait to find the exact model I'm looking for.
Isn't the bike I posted above a 1931 Model 6? 1930 were Druid (side spring) fork, and I think the interchangeable wheels (and the cranked front for needed to get the wheel in) came in for 1932. http://luxuryautomotosale.com/node/16784
So you could wait a couple of years to find a ratty one, spend a couple more years searching for the missing parts and restoring it, with a total cost of
? (Don't forget to count your mileage as you trot around the countryside trying to find bits or get parts restored.)I think 10,000GBP for a fully restored bike with a sidecar is not unreasonable, but you could possibly argue the price down, and be riding next weekend. Sell off the sidecar if you don't want it.
Cheers
Leon
655
Wanted Bikes / Re: Sunbeam around the 1930's model 6
« on: August 26, 2017, 07:08:37 AM »Try this one: http://luxuryautomotosale.com/node/16784
Re the pillion seat: in 1931 most were of the sprung type. Any idea when the photo was taken? Looks like some hard work has been done since new.
Leon
656
British Bikes / Re: Identifying help
« on: August 25, 2017, 06:49:40 AM »Early 1920s lightweight two speed?
www.vintagebike.co.uk/pictures/1921-radco-2-12-hp , or similar.
Leon
657
Wanted Bikes / Re: Sunbeam around the 1930's model 6
« on: August 25, 2017, 12:17:03 AM »Could you cheat a little and have a 350? You could do the time warp with this one! http://www.andybuysbikes.com/bikeshtml/6467sbm.html
I suppose your grandfather's bike is 1931 or so.
Leon
658
Identify these bikes! / Re: To be a GP frame or not to be
« on: August 23, 2017, 08:09:12 AM »
Hi Steve,
I guess you know that the GP frame has an "R" suffix on its frame number. However so faked are Triumph GPs that even if you have the R suffix you will need a real expert to authenticate the frame as genuine GP.
I suppose the Triumph Marque expert at the VMCC would be best?
Good luck.
Leon
I guess you know that the GP frame has an "R" suffix on its frame number. However so faked are Triumph GPs that even if you have the R suffix you will need a real expert to authenticate the frame as genuine GP.
I suppose the Triumph Marque expert at the VMCC would be best?
Good luck.
Leon
659
European and Other Bikes / Re: The Moto Guzzi V1000 Was The First Large Automatic Motorcycle
« on: August 19, 2017, 05:06:43 AM »Let's go with "the".
The Philipson pulley automatically lowered the gear ratio in response to the torque applied by the belt. The patent was 1911!
Cheers
Leon
660
Classic Motorcycle Sport / Re: Harley Davidson Racing History
« on: July 26, 2017, 09:38:08 AM »Without thinking too hard, I'd say that this bike is a recent fake, like 95% of the US "dirt track racers" that now "miraculously survive".
Faux patination has reached high art.
If anyone has proof that it's real, I'll think harder.
Leon