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Back in the 1970s, Mocheck of Clapham fielded an array of racers. John Ryan shares a selection of his photographic memories of the time, from the track and back at the shop… The original Mocheck workshop in Kings Avenue, Brixton, with the staff bikes parked outside Race mechanic John Ryan at work in the Mocheck…

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If you want to ride your classic bike roughshod, then you simply can’t beat the real thing! Frank Westworth’s been playing in the dirt… Before I say anything else, may I share with you my complete amazement when the AJS & Matchless OC, a very fine club (official) presented me with an award last year!…

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There came a point when both Panther and Ariel stopped building their traditional four-stroke motorcycles and switched over to two-stroke production. David Bullivant has a theory which explains why… In recent issues of the magazine, we enjoyed looking at a nice Villiers-powered Panther (in RC36) but it was not said why Panther went over to…

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“IF you can torque your head when all about you, Are warping theirs and blaming it on you…” So wrote Dockyard Kipling, with a bit of help from Dave off of the RC Message Board… IF you can torque your head when all about you Are warping theirs and blaming it on you, If you…

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Steve Cooper of the VJMC gets controversial with his feelings about show-going trophy-hunters whose classic bikes don’t… actually… work… There’s a very worrying trend within the classic bike world that, until a few years ago, I’d have struggled to give any credence to. To be frank (no, not FrankW, that would be stretching credulity well…

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Richard McCann discovers that recession doesn’t only affect valve seats… The headlines have been relentless. ‘Dow plunges another 600 points.’ ‘Consumer confidence slips again.’ ‘Banks in every country facing liquidation.’ So despite watching a recent BBC TV interview with a group of young ladies in Birmingham who claimed not to have heard about the credit…

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Why do so many of us apparently need to categorise everything? Frank Westworth is bemused by the notion of an emerging classic… When you become a student of the biological sciences, as I once was, one of the very first thing your lecturers beat into your dense student heads is the importance of classification. If…

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By 1976, Mocheck were enjoying enough success on the circuits that the company produced and sold a proddie race replica. John Ryan rode less and spent more time spannering, and shares a selection of his classic photographic memories of the era… Race mechanic John Ryan and the four-cylinder Honda 900 at the Zandvoort endurance race…

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This year – this week, in fact – there have been two competing motorcycle shows in London. Martin Gelder tries to pick a winner while making “vroom vroom” noises and bouncing on seats… The Ally Pally show sponsors MCN announced last year that the long established event at Alexandra Palace in North London would be…

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How do we define ourselves? By our jobs, the way we dress, or the music we like? By the bikes we ride or lust after? Episode two from Trevor Oz Brooks… In my younger days (sigh) I had a clear picture of who I was. I was Big Twin man, not Step-Thru boy, despite cutting…

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