The Classic MotorCycle

Started in 1903, The Classic MotorCycle has more to offer the true vintage motorcycle enthusiast than any other publication, backed by Europe's largest motorcycle image archive.

Welcome

GET YOUR FIX • Struggling to get to the shops?

The Classic MOTORCYCLE

Clyno at speed • Thrilling Pioneer period action photograph showing an example of the now near-forgotten marque which was a surprisingly large concern.

CMM showtime at Stafford

Significant Norton sells well

Show success in Yorkshire

Spectacle of slide sale

The 82nd Pioneer Run for veteran motorcycles

THE WAY WE WERE IN October

Book Review

Additional track time • When the Melbourne Corner section was added to the Donington Park circuit in 1938, the first motorcycle meeting saw a flock of stars in attendance.

Off-road Triumph • As our man Tim Britton battles on with his Triumph project (see page 76), this accompanying picture shows one of the machines used as the project’s inspiration.

Readers’ Letters • YOUR VOICE & YOUR OPINIONS

The older I get – the faster I am! • The Lydd Speedway Veterans’ Championships on July 24, 2022, brought a whole host of ‘experienced’ riders and old machinery out to play.

Sunny day at Stanford Hall • Held this year on July 24, Founders’ Day welcomed its usual eclectic mix of motorcycles and characters to its sun-bathed stately home setting.

Mighty Atlas • Norton’s first 750cc twin, reluctantly designed for the power-hungry Americans, shook at speed, but, today, its many virtues make it a highly desirable classic.

French exchange • When a young watchmaker fancied a career change, he set off for France – and would’ve been crowned his adopted home’s trials champion, if it wasn’t for some dubious rulings…

Sweet Swiss stroker • Although largely unknown outside its home country, this neat little machine has ended up in the UK, via a famous Northern Irish 1960s Manx Norton tuner.

The unknown soldier • Little seen today, the 350cc ohv WD/CO represented over half of Royal Enfield’s service motorcycle output in the Second World War.

The last Gilera racer • This exquisite two-cylinder racer comes from the end of a long and famous line of Arcore-built raceware.

Life cycle of the autocycle • Scott apart – covered last month – British autocycles struggled to survive more than two decades, in effect killed off by the moped. And, again Scott apart, the majority were powered by Villiers engines, but there was alternative power options including the Excelsior Goblin/Spryt and HEC. Here’s the A-Z of British autocycles once available on the UK market.

The missing trophy • When Scottish motorcycle racing star Jimmie Guthrie crashed heavily in the 1937 German GP, he was awarded his final prize. But where is it now?

MV 350B

Metal bashing • Creating a machine from bits you’ve had lying around means making and adapting fitments.

Sketchbook Travels • MOTORCYCLES, SEEN THROUGH THE SKETCHBOOKS OF MARTIN SQUIRES

You were asking • Your queries resolved with Richard Rosenthal

Diary

Hot to trot… • As temperatures in the shed soared, it was time to take the tinkering outside with the recent red-hot weather used to prove a theory.

Vive la difference (or not) • Is being interested in a wide range of motorcycles a blessing… or a curse… Whatever, there’s room for all of us and our varied tastes, that’s for sure.

Key ingredient • A motorcycle’s big end is its most important bearing. Subject to continual rotational and thrust forces, it is necessarily robust, as all this happens at speed. Classic engines may rev at up to 6-8000rpm which, although fast, is slow by modern standards with twice or even three...