Gumption Traps
“Gumption is psychic gasoline. If you haven’t got it there’s no way the motorcycle can possibly be fixed. But if you have got it there’s absolutely no way in the whole world that motorcycle can keep from getting fixed. Therefore, the thing that must be monitored at...
Rocket 3 Rebuild, Part IV. She’s done!
Rocket 3 Rebuild, Part IV. She’s done! By Dan Talbot The legacy of the BSA Rocket 3 lives on among motorcycle enthusiasts, as it was one of the early examples of a high-performance British motorcycle with a distinctive design and powerful engine configuration. Today,...
Lust in the Dust. The Pindan Special part II
Over the past thirty years or so of involvement in classic motorcycles I have witnessed the evolution of the spare parts industry as it has gone through various stages to the point where we are now at, with everything we may need merely a click away. I suspect we’ve...
Ariel 500 Pindan Special
In continuing the Perkolilli, Red Dust Revival series (Green T), we are now changing from four wheels to two. Green T has been moved on and Perkolilli will now be a two-wheels only affair. Lake Perkolilli is roughly 40 kilometres North East of Kalgoorlie in, what...
Green T, Perkolilli Special, Part IV
Things in Graeme’s shed have been developing rapidly since last we spoke: we have life. Sure, it was only a momentary wail in response to a Bendix slap on the buttocks, but just like a parent hearing the first cry of their child, it gladdened the heart of all those...
Green T, Perkolilli Special, Part III
Out little race special is rapidly taking shape at the hand of master body-builder and engineer, Graeme Lockhart. In fact, it has actually taken shape – past tense. There will be no more cutting, welding, persuading or moulding of the body because it now has a lush...
Green T, Perkolilli Special, Part II
It’s over six months since we introduced Green T to the world. Standing in front of the car this week I couldn’t help but marvel at how Graeme has made the body wide enough for two grown humans whilst, at the same time, expressing an aerodynamic flow that was only...
Taking the Square Route
For most of my childhood and my teen years we had an old stockman living on our farm. Bronc, as he was known, was the unofficial sentinel of the sheds and farm equipment, always there to spring me if I tried to sneak the agg-bike out for a bit of one-on-one...
Our Mustang Hits the Road
Every time I put my foot down hard at under 40 mph in this muscled Mustang, it sounded like ten vestal virgins being raped simultaneously. Actually it was only the tyres (Bryan Hanrahan, Modern Motor, 1966). The things you could say in 1966! We'll get back to Bryan...
Buz Norton, Part V, the final instalment
This piece has been a long time coming. It is 20 months since I wrote the part IV and well over two years since I first introduced the project. I could come up with a host of reasons why it’s taken me so long to write this but I feel it’s because I don’t want the...