Classic Bike Hub UK

Ken Phelp is so keen on this unusual breed of vintage motorcycle that he wrote a book about them. So how did his fascination develop? The Ner-a-Car is a truly unusual motorcycle, built in the 1920s. It was an American design dating from 1918 or so which was produced under licence in England. The model…

Continue reading »

Phil Speakman takes an unusual first ride on his latest classic bike. From the middle of nowhere to the other side of the country on one of the coldest days of the year — aka hypothermia for beginners… ‘How do you spell it?’ ‘S-L-E-A-F’ ‘Ah yes, I’ve got it now. Never heard of that station…

Continue reading »

After main bearing failure and repair, Phil Speakman finally arrives at his destination in Finland. Now all he needs is an ice-lolly… I didn’t know whether to keep on laughing or start crying with relief, as 48 hours of sickening worry had evaporated to the sound of a healthy 2-stroke tickover. My swollen right knee…

Continue reading »

Phil Speakman landed in Finland with his MZ’s main bearings knocking louder than his knees. Phil doesn’t speak any Finnish and he was about 150 miles away from the MZ rally he was aiming for. Help? In desperation I’d sent out a request for a mate to put up an emergency call for Finnish help…

Continue reading »

Phil Speakman starts to clock up some miles on his recently rebuilt 250 Trophy… and promptly runs into trouble. No problems, there’s another MZ in the shed. It’ll be fine to ride to Finland. Won’t it? When you have rebuilt an old, unloved by most motorcyclists and yet interesting bike, you have two choices really.…

Continue reading »

It’s in one piece and ready to ride. Phil Speakman does the unthinkable, and actually concludes a rebuild saga. Steady on, Phil… Beep beep, beep beep beep beep… I felt like throwing my phone through the window at 7am on Saturday morning, but I’d only myself to blame for feeling like I did. I could…

Continue reading »

Phil Speakman considers relativity, a brief history of time, and the benefits of an opposable thumb… It’s funny stuff, time. It never seems to go how you expect it should. Sometimes it races along and other times draws onward interminably. I often wonder what happens during those ‘Oh noooooooooo I’m about to crash’ moments when…

Continue reading »

Lots of bits have come back, ready for assembly on Phil Speakman’s MZ rebuild. So he ventures into the Devil’s Kitchen and proves that you should never leave a man alone with a tube of strong adhesive… The first parts to return to me were the lovely gloss black powder coated frame components and to…

Continue reading »

Phil Speakman has stripped down his MZ, ready to start restoring it to glory — which involves lots of decisions. To shot blast, sand blast or vapour blast? What sort of finish to opt for? And does copper really have the devil in it…? Once the strip down of my 1972 MZ ES250/2 Trophy was…

Continue reading »

Phil Speakman started what should have been a straightforward crank rebuild on his stroker, then suffered a strange interlude with aromatic hair care products. Then the whole job went up in the world… The last time I took my MZ ES250/2 Trophy out for a spin, half of Cheshire disappeared under an acrid black cloud.…

Continue reading »