And it beats me how any one used to ride those old indians with the hand gear change.
elect70,
Jan 3, 8:26pm
^^ i inheritedarmy indianfrom eldest bro, what a mongrelgot rid of it smartly & bought a bath tub speed twinthen a honda dream which was really a nightmare . That was enough for menever hadbike since.
geedubu,
Jan 3, 8:27pm
If I could have only 2 bikes (forgetting about Black Lightning fantasies), I'd have an LE Velocette for vintage fun & a Bultaco Metralla.No, make that 3, I'd have one of those Ariels with the faired in body too (Ariel Arrow!)Unfortunately I am not allowed any as Mrs & I spent our early courtship her visiting me in hospital after I was wiped out head on by a drunk while on my old Matchless. so fair swap for getting married = no more bikes.
sr2,
Jan 3, 9:05pm
My 1st road bike was a 58 T100 Speed Twin I bought in 1971, from memory I sold it for a similar ($250!) price. I'd give my eye teeth to have the old girl back despite being warned that old motorbikes are like old girlfriends; better to cherish the memory rather than attempt to ride them one more time around the block!
sr2,
Jan 3, 9:10pm
My Father rode a Square Four Ariel for quite a number of years until he sold it in the mid 50??
hairydog2,
Jan 3, 9:17pm
My 1st bike was a G3L Matchy 350, 1950 model. Gears were 1up and 3 down. 2nd bike was a 1951 Speed Twin sprung hub. Gears were 1down and 3up. Just after I got it, I was giving it a bit of a stoke and went to change from 3rd to top.Oops, forgot and went back into 2nd. Didn't throw me, but it was blardy close.
friendly_prawn,
Jan 3, 9:56pm
what didnt you like about the speedtwin. Awesome bikes. Surely you would have enjoyed riding that wouldnt you!
friendly_prawn,
Jan 3, 9:58pm
sounds like the old speedtwins used to be popular. where have they all gone!
trogedon,
Jan 3, 10:20pm
Haha.
horrid1,
Jan 6, 2:37pm
I bought a new 1953 Triumph Tiger 100c from Len Perry motorcycles on Great South Road. Cost me 312pounds ten shillings. Used it as a road bike, and also raced it on the beach and grass track. Raced at Raglan beach, Muriwai beach ,Orewa beach and Ohope beach. On the grass at Massey, Thames, Te Aroha, Tuhikaramea. Thought I was pretty good, until Hugh Anderson turned up on a 250cc Greaves and just rode round the outside of everybody, and cleaned up bigtime. I still have a project 1949 Speedtwin in the shed! Crashed the Tiger on the way home after a Muriwai race meet, nearly made me dead! We had megaphone mufflers with a removeable baffle so that we could ride the thing to and from the odd beach races. They were great days!
desmodave,
Jan 6, 2:42pm
Hang on to it, hard to go past a good bevel.Paid 6g for my Darmah over 25 years ago
socram,
Jan 6, 3:04pm
My first, second and third bikes were Mk 2 LE Velocettes. Travelled all over the place.Six weeks after passing my tests (car and bike, June 18th 1964) took my 13 year old brother on the pillion from Nottingham to Bournemouth (about 186 miles), taking six hours.In those days, any car or bike journey of that distance was a mini adventure!No motorway travelling then either.
Someone gave me (yes, gave) a 650cc BSA (Silver flash!) that hadn't run for a while and I passed it on to someone else, as I was living in an officers mess and had no garage, back in 1968.Wish I'd kept that one!
friendly_prawn,
Jan 6, 3:06pm
I thnk every one I know that owns or has owned a bike, has had a good crash up at some stage. My worst was some young idiot in a car pulled out in front of me. I was pretty sore for a while. Another goody I had was riding drunk in the rain with out a helmet. I deserved that one. lol Another I was racing a car down a steep windy road, came around the corner and there was a mob of pigs on the road. The car I was racing must have thought it was halarious coming around the corner only to see me and the bike lying in the middle of the road. I love my bikes, but yep, they arent the safest modes of transportation. :-)
friendly_prawn,
Jan 6, 3:09pm
never heard of a silver flash before! Gold flash, or BSA Golden Flash probably. I used to have a Golden Flash. I hammered it and killed it after only 4 days of owning it. Young and stupid. :-(
chicos3,
Jan 6, 3:26pm
Going back the odd year or 2, my Uncle and DadThat is Pat and Jim Doling had the Aranui speedway in ch ch in the late fifties, The likes of Briggs and co,, riders back then, and the Moores and Maugers.Rumor has it I used to sit on Ivans knee! when no PC rules! for a slow lap.Uncle TonyRogal had the burger shop there!,sadly they are all in speedway heaven nowbutreckon they still swapping tales.
Dr Dave.
flat_white_ltd,
Jan 6, 3:27pm
Our Mum married the old man mostly, she says, because he turned up on 1st date on an Ariel square 4, in a shirt & tie, and played some old Chet Baker (jazz)number on his trumpet out in the street. .2 yeasr later, he traded the bike on a car because I was on the way.:) .( . not sure he ever forgave me )
sr2,
Jan 6, 3:38pm
The old man added a sidecar when the 1st baby arrived, when no 3 appeared he finally relented and replaced it with an ex US army straight 8 Packard Hearse, but that??
socram,
Jan 6, 3:47pm
I think it must have been a Star Twin then as it was definitely NOT a Gold Star and I think it was a 650cc.No photo unfortunately.Who knows.Memories of something so transient are suspect.
geedubu,
Jan 6, 3:56pm
Brings back memories.our house was near the Tahuna Park speedway, used to go there after school & watch Ronnie Moore, Ron Johnston and the other big names practicing and sorting their bikes before a meeting.They were very easygoing blokes and I'd get to sit on the bikes.I think Ronnie Moore was world champion then (late 1950's).I bought an old wreck of a speedway bike ex most of its engine for 5 pounds off someone there one afternoon & pushed it home.Heaven knows what I thought I was going to do with it, I was 12 or 13 yrs old.Met my father at the gate as he arrived home from work, he made me turn round & push it back, and I got my fiver back.
Funny how a lot of the big names back then came from Aranui sppedway.When uncle Pat closed it down, and Dad got job in Local body the area turned into Aranui subdivision. It of course didn,t fair so well in quakes!. Still remeber Les Moore, an unckle Derick Brunt the day he got his new 3.8 blue jag. Me in back seat doing the ton! down Pages rd.Dad had a hotted mk3 back then with Bedford pistons and a saw blade clutch plate!. Neighbour had a vauxhaull velox ( but he was dutch).vincent bike layed under bench for years, but went to scap when dad sold house!. along with heaps ol speed way bike stuff. Pat dads brother had wrecking yard for years in Papanui just down from the firestone building.
saki,
Jan 6, 9:03pm
The late Brian Thomas of Feilding had a Manx which recently sold for for $110000.
( Updated, because I wass curious.) Well, well.the Bonnie DID sell for $30K, .& the Vincent got serious bids at over $50K . .Cool. ( & good to see there's still a $ or two floating around for classics.)
.
akaniva,
Jan 17, 3:23am
Horrid that's a great story! I used to hang around Len's shop a bit in the mid-70's, by that time he had the little shop opposite the main shop. He kept his old parts there. I remember getting a few Vincent factory service bulletins off him for peanuts, still got them too. He told me all about growing up in the area when Gt Sth Rd was dirt and wagons used to pass by.
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