classic bike

  • Brough Superior 11-50

    Brough Superior 11-50

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    How often do you see a Brough Superior that hasn’t been restored? At the least they’re mildly titivated, but ‘better than original’ seems to be the order of the day. There’s nothing wrong with this if that’s your thing, but sometimes, says Richard Jones, I long to see one that looks like it has actually…

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  • Rudge Ulster GP Special

    Rudge Ulster GP Special

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    The Scottish Classic Motorcycle Show takes place in Ayr at the end of June, and the indoor halls are usually packed full of eye-catching classic bikes. Last year, this 1932 Rudge was one among them, showing off its famous bronze-head and four-valve top end arrangement… In the late 1920s and early 30s Rudge were one…

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  • April issue out now!

    April issue out now!

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    This month’s magazine celebrates big British twins from BSA, Norton and Royal Enfield alongside three 750 triples; two Triumphs and a radical kettle. And if that’s not odd enough, how about BMW’s streamlined bahnstormer, the K1? All that, and the world’s fastest Velocette, the new MoT regulations for classic bikes, and an 80mph vintage single…

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  • Plugs & Leads

    Plugs & Leads

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    Five Triumph Tigers are up for auction; there’s a rapid replacement for old Lucas Rita ignition systems; the Beamish Trophy Trial date has changed, and here’s a quick kit to fix a snapped speedo cable… RITA REVIVED! It’s been years since the Lucas Rita electronic ignition system has been available, which means that owners have…

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  • Hammered! Auction report

    Hammered! Auction report

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    The most difficult part of writing this report is describing the sheer volume of machines present at this year’s Las Vegas vintage bike auctions. It’s almost overwhelming, with nearly 2000 classic motorcycles offered for sale across two separate events in January. The first of these annual events is staged by the British auction house Bonhams,…

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  • December issue out now

    December issue out now

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    Winter drawers on! We’ve been waiting all year to make that joke. We have also decked the halls with boughs of holly for the fabulous festiveness that is RC164. The December issue of the monthly RealClassic magazine is indeed a veritable cornucopia of classic motorcycling. And some dodgy old bikes. And even a shock-horror-hold-the-front-page new…

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  • Ariel Square Four

    Ariel Square Four

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    In the December issue of RealClassic, Roger Slater rebuilds a four-cylinder Ariel engine. Here’s the historical context to this remarkable motorcycle… The Square Four started as a twinkle in Edward Turner’s eye back in the 1920s when he worked at BSA. After moving to Ariel and enlisting the aid of engineer Bert Hopwood, Turner’s idea…

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  • National Motorcycle Museum LIVE!

    National Motorcycle Museum LIVE!

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    This annual open day is well named – the Birmingham bike museum absolutely came alive with chattering, happy crowds on a very wet and windy November day. The normally peaceful environment which envelopes the world’s largest collection of British bikes was set aside for ten hours of non-stop activity. The conference suites were transformed into…

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  • November issue out now!

    November issue out now!

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    Apparently, it’s too soon to make the ‘winter draws on’ joke just yet, so instead we’d better tell you that RC163 is stuffed full of cracking classic bikes and interesting old motorcycles. We’ve a BMW airhead, a Moto Guzzi V-twin and an auto-dramatic Honda, as well as three late interpretations of traditional British bikes: a…

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  • Brough Superior

    Brough Superior

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    Built between 1919 and 1940, George Brough’s ‘Superior’ motorcycles are instantly recognisable, admired by the masses as perhaps the ultimate pre-war classic bike. But why, asks Richard Jones, have these speed machines accumulated such kudos? What is it about them which inspires such admiration… and commensurately high prices? Here’s a question for you – are…

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