Features

Ian Stallard regales the story of Richard Norman Wade, a Southport gentleman who had a positive effect on anyone he met, motorcyclists in particular Norman, as he was known, was born in Jarrow in the early Twenties and moved to Southport when he was 11. He cycled more than five miles to school, just to…

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Could we make one ourselves?

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Pete Kelly delves into the Mortons Archive once again to recapture the spirit of the road and racing machines that were produced by one of the most famous names in Italian motorcycling history. Italian motorcycling pioneer Eduardo Bianchi, born in 1865 and brought up in an orphanage, was in business by the age of 20…

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Creating a reputation for a factory with just one machine isn’t easy, yet Steve Cooper shows just how Kawasaki managed it. Whether you like two-strokes or loathe them, you need to give thanks to Kawasaki’s launching of their mad-as-cheese 500cc triple. This bike, above all others, marks a line in the sand whereby motorcycles cease…

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While he’s not particularly weary, Mick Payne is getting tyred this month, as he takes a look at rubber options for sidecar combinations. It’s been a long time since tyres had names like ‘All Non Skid’ and ‘Grasshopper’ but in the 1950s these were the names given to Firestone and Goodyear products. Neither of those…

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Having helped set up the ‘Bellshill Beehive’ collective of motorcycle racers and tuners in Glasgow in the late Forties, Charlie Bruce’s talents were proving vital for the success of other Scottish racers. Ben Waters explains how this relationship became a two-way street… Aside from being the effective team manager for the riders racing with Joe…

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Michael Edwards takes a look at the fascinating early history of motorised tricycles as detailed in The Tricycle Book, 1895-1902 Part One. When Georges Bouton introduced his half horsepower motorised tricycle to the crowds at the Horseless Carriage Exhibition in Tunbridge Wells in 1895, many of the forward thinking and enthusiastic ‘automobilists’ present anticipated rapid…

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If there’s one thing that those of us with a fanatical passion for classic motorcycles are not short of, it’s things to do. Aside from the maintenance, restoration and improvement of our bikes, of course. I’m a firm believer in riding your classic bike, anywhere and everywhere, and not just ‘saving’ it for Sunday best,…

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While many of us want to ride a classically styled machine that is unencumbered by components that may hinder the good looks of our pride and joy, Dave Manning takes a look at ways in which we can make our classic machines more practical and purposeful while retaining some timeless style. As most of us…

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Often forgotten among the Ariel four-strokes that were consigned to history, to make way for the Leader and Arrow two-stroke twins in 1958, was the long-lived 597cc VB. Pete Kelly raids the Mortons Archive to find out more about this well-loved side-valve single, and its stablemates. Ariel’s long production of side-valve motorcycles began more than…

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