Features

A museum-worthy collection of ex-trials machines is to be auctioned by Bonhams at the April Stafford sale. Here’s the story behind this knobbly-tyred assembly and the remarkable man who put it all together. Words: Rachael Clegg Photographs: Gary Chapman Gail Bristow didn’t have a clue who Bud Ekins was when she first met him more…

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The tricycle was the first lightweight motorised vehicle developed for daily use.A new book covers its fascinating first seven years. Words and photographs: Michael Edwards When Georges Bouton introduced his half horsepower motorised tricycle to the crowds gathered at the Horseless Carriage Exhibition in Tunbridge Wells in October 1895, a great many of the forward…

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Velocette’s LE was never going to win any beauty contests. But once sorted, this unique, high specification lightweight had much to offer. Words: STEVE WILSON Photographs: GARY CHAPMAN Following his ‘Most Original’ award at Stafford for his RE Model G (see TCM, December 2017), Alex Taylor suggested that I have a go on his regular…

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An A65, BSA’s unit construction 650cc twin, proves an ideal choice for touring in the beautiful south-west of France. Well, it does after a few modifications… I’ve made many trips to France but had never been to the Dordogne before. The region lies in south-west France between the wild uplands of the Massif Central in…

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The first instalment of a two-part story detailing the life and times of Tom Arter – racer, enthusiast, sponsor and supporter. Words: ALAN TURNERPhotographs: ALAN TURNER/MORTONS ARCHIVE There are many motorcyclists with workshop skills. Some of them seem able to solve any problem that an errant combustion engine might possibly throw at them. But the…

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Ever heard of a Mi-Val? Not many have, but this rare example of the 200TV proves that many are missing out. Words: PHIL TURNER Photographs: GARY CHAPMAN You’d be forgiven for never having heard of Mi-Val, so rare a machine are they here in the UK; they are and were in fact fairly scarce anywhere…

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This beautiful 650cc Bonneville from what was arguably the pre-unit T120’s top year, does not disappoint. Words: STEVE WILSON Photographs: GARY CHAPMAN What goes around, as they say, comes around. Back in the day (the early 1960s) Barry Winter, while already a committed Gold Star owner (see TCM Aug 2018), had succumbed to the allure…

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A true sportsman and gentleman, who will forever be associated with the Royal Enfield marque. Words: TIM BRITTON Photograph: MORTONS ARCHIVE To document the life of a rider such as Johnny Brittain, who passed away on March 7, 2019, aged 87, is not an easy task. One could simply list the sporting successes achieved by…

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  The Oxford Dictionary is uncompromising. You and I might think of a ‘scamp’ as a lovable rogue, a mischievous little tyke, but the OED defines the word as “rascal, good-for-nothing,” and if it’s a verb, as “to do work negligently.” So as an unfortunate choice of name for a new two-wheeler, it’s right up…

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  Edward Turner was probably the best-known personality in the British motorcycle industry, but that didn’t mean he had an unblemished record. He made his name with the Ariel Square Four, but the model which endured until the late-1950s owed little to his original concept except its cylinder arrangement. And while ET’s prewar Speed Twin…

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