Features

Stripping our ES2 bottom end reveals problems not easy to answer Among the boxes of bits our 1956 Norton ES2 came in the form of, the bottom end basics seemed in one piece. I got knowledgeable friends, Neville and Hutch, to feel the con rod for big end play and mains bearing noises and they…

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In our final chapter of the G3L rebuild, we look at how to treat a freshly rebuilt engine without the risk of having to fix it all again! Words, hassle and impatience by Matt Wisdom and patience by Hutch Tea and wheel-building skills by Shelley Matchbox genie After much more time, effort and money than…

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Brave are those who take on the projects others shy away from! Words by Rob Davies photography by Rob and Pete Who can deny the usefulness of a fitting workshop manual in the restoration of a classic motorcycle? And yet – in the early days of the Japanese invasion, the manuals were somewhere between useless…

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By Hutch We talk about our old nails in terms of aesthetics and ergonomics, power and torque, character and looking like it’s doing 100mph standing still; but when it comes down to fixing and keeping the things running it’s more tolerances, limits and fits, bearings, nuts and bolts. The mechanics of a bolted joint are…

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Some things look like they were always meant to be. Shane Venn shows us around his remarkable special; a modified wideline Featherbed frame housing a Harley Sportster motor, built by Dave Degens. Words and photography By Adam Bolton Café racers, rock ’n’ roll and the resulting counter culture are all steeped in a long and…

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The names Magni and MV Agusta are well acquainted, but only now are the two united in one bike – the 750S Tributo Moto Magni celebrated its 40th birthday in 2017, but it’s only in the past six years that its small but well equipped factory, run by Giovanni Magni, 59, has started using the…

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In the final part of Mike Hailwood’s Machines, we look at one of the greatest TT races ever – Hailwood’s Comeback – and how it almost didn’t happen WORDS: RachAel Clegg Photography: Mortons archive/DON MORLEY IT’S SATURDAY, June 3, 1978 and a young man is dispatched to buy a tennis ball and a sponge. It’s…

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WORDS BY Oli Hulme ARIEL’S 650CC HUNTMASTER. It’s just a BSA Flash A10 in sensible shoes, right? That’s a common opinion… and it could not be more wrong. Certainly, the engine can use some of the parts from the A10 power plant under its Ariel cases, but the rest of the Huntmaster is all Ariel.…

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Words by Oli Photography by Jason Critchell THE BRITISH L-PLATED rider in the late 1960s was not particularly well-served by the world’s motorcycle manufacturers. If you were 17 you wanted a 250 but you were stuck with ageing designs from the Brits like the BSA Starfire or the Triumph 250 Trophy, obscure and complex Italian…

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It’s November 7, 1938 and a sea of hats is flocking to the opening day of the Earls Court Motorcycle and Cycle Show.

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