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Steve McQueen 1923 Indian Big Chief Steve McQueen, legendary not just for being the most famous and highest paid actor of his time but also for his love of racing cars and motorcycles, had a special affection for the Indian brand and Bonhams has been entrusted to represent two Indians formerly owned by McQueen, one…

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Make a date… Operating over three different routes which all converge back on Gaydon, the Banbury Run caters for those who wish to enter a timed event or those who just enjoy the thrill of riding with so many other vintage, veteran and pioneer bikes. Discounted entry fees will be available for veteran machines (manufactured…

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New TCM’s out! • Editor's intro • Archive photograph    • News    • Diary     • Matchless G9/AJS Model 20 super profile    • NEC Classic show    • Letters    • Ariel SG31    • Triumph Tiger    • Straight from the plate – • Southern Scott Scramble, 1925   • Reader’s restoration – BMW R50S   • Triumph Brooklands racer    •…

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Held in the ground floor of one of the racecourse grandstands, the show had a wide variety of machinery, ranging from a rare Wassell 175cc trials bike to the Landspeed racing 600cc Indian Scout of Chris Ireland and the increasing interest in American flat-track racing was evident by a stand packed with colourful examples of…

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Rotax engine Matchless G80 January 1989 Angry British motorcycle maker Les Harris refuted claims his Newton Abbot factory, which makes the Rotax-powered Matchless single cylinder machine, is about to close and end production of the famous marque, which began 90 years ago at Plumstead, south east London. Matchless was initially the brand of cycle maker…

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1971 BMW F750 Butler & Smith factory racer First, is the ex-1973 Daytona 200 1972 Butler & Smith BMW F750, is one of only two factory-supplied, purpose-built machines modified by tuner Udo Geitl of Butler & Smith – the BMW importers for America. The surprisingly fast and powerful R75/5s that Geitl uprated for Team Butler…

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Jack Thompson runner-up Colin Mote eases his 500 Ariel down one of the many banks on the Sidcup club’s ground at Canada Heights, Swanley A score of one made Paul Randall/Richard Webb (Triumph) the best of the sidecar entry. Among the older machines, Arthur Frearson (350 AJS) topped the girder fork/rigid class while Stan Metcalf,…

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• The Classic MotorCycle Featuring 12 period archive images, this spiral bound calendar is available for £8.49 (including UK postage) by calling 01507 529529 or by visiting www.classicmagazines.co.uk Each image is captioned and the pictures span the timescale covered by the magazine, so from the ‘Pioneer’ days to the 1960s, with one even depicting the…

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Now firmly established as one of the premier events in the world of the older models, the show takes place on the weekend of February 8-9. Visitors can expect to feast their eyes upon an array of stunning classic machinery as well as a fantastic mix of trade stalls, dealers and autojumble plots that provide…

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The machine, a 1923 model, left the factory on October 7, 1922, sold to a Mr B S Allen of Croydon. The machine was left to the VMCC in 2011 by a long standing VMCC member, the late David Blanchard from Bexhill on Sea. David had owned the machine since the early 1960s when he…

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