Classic Bike Hub UK

By popular demand (well, OK, one person) we reveal the pros and cons of buying an ex-Army trailie-bike. Rowena Hoseason actually spent her own money on some old military surplus scrap… Army surplus. What does that make you think of? Sweaty socks, fresh from squaddies’ feet? Dodgy Land Rovers which have been carelessly lobbed out…

Continue reading »

Celia Walton has been riding and passengering sidecars for many a year, so she seemed the natural person to review this new book about riding with three wheels… While Rowena and I were discussing something completely different one day, she asked me if I’d review a book about sidecars. Sure, I replied. Oh yes, she…

Continue reading »

In 1933, two students were the first people to ride a motorcycle overland from Europe to India. Their epic adventure aboard a 250cc two-stroke has finally been published in English… Max Reisch and his companion Herbert Tichy were determined to travel overland to India through the Middle East in the early 1930s, despite an array…

Continue reading »

Bill Wood took a real risk with his first Italian classic bike. A basketcase rebuild – and a really unusual model, at that. Is he please with the results? About two years ago I purchased this Moto Morini, my first Italian motor cycle. The 1967 Moto Morini 250 GTI Settebello was in a poor condition…

Continue reading »

When we put together a feature for the magazine about the Seeley Honda 750 of the late 1970s, there were some photos which we didn’t have space for. And then, even more info arrived… The January 2006 issue of RealClassic magazine features two (count ’em!) examples of the Seeley breed – and one of them…

Continue reading »

Yamaha’s 750-4 from the early Eighties was never top of the best-seller list, but then Jim Peace has never been one to run with the herd. He reckons you could go a lot further and do a lot worse… I have to confess that I’d never heard of a Yamaha XJ750 Seca, until the day…

Continue reading »

Opinion has been widely divided about the merits of the modern Bonnie Scrambler. BikerBabe has to make her mind up. She loves it. She loves it not… When I first saw the Triumph Scrambler in Shirlaws’ showroom in Aberdeen, it was love at first sight. Decked out in Tornado Red and White with lashings of…

Continue reading »

One oft-overlooked aspect of the First World War was the role played by the despatch rider. Dave Minton recommends an extensive book on this very subject… My evenings have been spent recently engrossed, and I use the word intentionally, in a study of dispatch riding through the Great War of 1914-18. Before going further let…

Continue reading »

The ultimate, multi-part manual for BSA unit-construction single-cylinder classics is nearing completion. This instalment covers absolutely everything apart from the engine… Many moons ago, ‘Rupert Ratio’ of the BSA Owners’ Club produced an invaluable manual, an extremely detailed hands-on guide to maintaining, rebuilding and trouble-shooting the Unit Single engine. That extensive and informative book became…

Continue reading »

For RealClassic readers who enjoy motorcycle traveller’s tales, Paul Grace recommends this memoir of a remarkable ride through Africa… At the age of 21, Jonny Bealby had never read a book. Truth to tell, he was rather proud of the fact. ‘ Reading’s boring,’ he confidently told his new girlfriend, Melanie, who seemed to devour…

Continue reading »