Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2022 i Classic Motorcycle Mechanics

Tested Riding kit worn, tools twirled & tyres turned RICHA JEANS Armoured riding jeans have come a long way since the early days; we no longer need to look and feel like 1970s dockers in stiff, coarse denim. Richa’s Original Jeans are a denim, cordura, cotton and polyester blend which means they’re softer and more comfortable. With D30 protectors at the knee and hip plus safety stitching to all seams they’re designed from first principles to protect the rider. There’s poly-cotton soft lining and mechanical stretch for optimal comfort, meaning you won’t be fidgeting around with annoying bulky lumps of clothing at inconvenient places or irritating seams rubbing your legs. They also look smart enough to wear outside of bike events so you can even get into a restaurant without…

News Cooking up a Goose! A Goose is not just for Christmas, according to CMM friend Dave Marsden, he the legend from Z-Power, the specialist Kawasaki parts emporium. Dave has been commissioned by an overseas customer to build another one of his Mad Max Jim Goose replica bikes and he will be doing it in the pages of CMM… If you remember, this was the MFP (Main Force Patrol) police bike ridden by Jim ‘Goose’ in an attempt to capture the Toecutter gang in the first and best Mad Max movie from 1979. Dave had previously built a few replica bikes but the body kits, supplied by Japanese firm Whitehouse, ceased to be available, but now most of the parts are available again from various companies around the world, giving…

News Clive White: an appreciation Everyone at CMM was shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of Clive White, of Rapier Paintwork, in October. Both Rapier and Clive were, and still are, the benchmark for not just classic motorcycle paint work, but race paint and specials work. Clive himself launched Rapier in 1988 when he quit his job as a graphic artist and illustrator to link his talents with his passion for motorcycles, and over the years he gained Rapier an enviable reputation for excellence. His skills weren’t just in wielding the spray gun or coming up with a decent design. Rapier could also repair, restore and refurbish wheels and bodywork to a high standard. Rapier Paintwork lives on and Rob Tarr carries on Clive’s very high standards at…

Show us yours We want to see YOUR pride and joy in our pages, so you can share what you ride and restore with fellow readers. Email your hi-res shots to bsimmonds@mortons.co.uk or mail in some photos to the address at the front of the mag. Let us know what you’ve done and how you’ve done it and send before and after shots if you can. Do get in touch. Bertie. We’ve teamed up with BRUHL, who manufacture a range of specialist motorcycle drylers. Send in pictures of your bikes and you could win a Bruhl MD1400 Single Turbine Dryer worth £119. Featuring a1600W turbine, filtered air intake and 3.5 metre hose, it will blast water out of nooks and crannies on your bike, leaving it dry and spot-free. Find…

CLASSIC RIDE LEAN, GREEN MACHINE! Marketed as a ‘Blade Beater’ when it arrived, the second-generation ZX-9R Ninja was lighter and faster than ever before, but it was by then up against the Yamaha YZF-R1… WORDS: BERTIE SIMMONDS PICS: GARY D CHAPMAN, MORTONS ARCHIVE I’ve always batted for the biking underdog, I can’t help it: if something was the best, biggest and baddest, I’d be going for the also-ran. So, in 1999 I had a Kawasaki ZX-9R for a year and did the best part of 25,000 miles on it, therefore this test is like meeting an old friend once more… Of course, back in 1994, the first model ZX-9R Ninja was billed as a ‘Blade Beater’ but was anything but: fast and comfy, the B-model was half-ZZ-R1100 meets ZXR750, so…

MAIN TEST Terrific twin! Yamaha’s RD200A is a seminal tiddler twin that punches well above its weight, according to our very own Scoop! WORDS: STEVE COOPER PICS: GARY D CHAPMAN If you were after a totally unbiased review of this month’s subject matter then apologies because that’s most emphatically not going to be happening! Why? Because a 1973 Yamaha RD200 was the first real motorcycle I ever owned and our test bike is the closest I’ve been to SAR 47M for more than four decades! Yamaha’s 195cc twin also provides me with a very direct and poignant link to my dad who had ridden bikes since the early 1930s. The old fella was amazed at the RD’s performance and relative level of sophistication to such a degree that he frequently…

WORK SHOP Project Kawasaki Z900A4 part 5 Let Flavour Flood In Ah, the black art of carb strip and set up. Ralph makes a start on sorting the Z900 air/fuel ingestors! WORDS AND PICS:RALPH FERRAND As with every development of the famous inline four, the Z900A4 saw some marked changes from its predecessor the Z1B. All the bodywork changed; in came a locking fuel cap, but the tank lost the curved-in bottom for a visible seam, the side-panels were flatter and taller, and even the iconic duck bill tailpiece was changed to fit around the ultra-modern squared-off rear light, replacing the previous tail that hugged the oval-section luminary. For one year only the battery was replaced with a smaller-capacity accumulator which slid in from behind the side-panel. This was clearly…

V65: THE NEXT STEP… The Moto Guzzi V50 effectively threw the company a lifeline. Even if the bigger V-twins were strong sellers they weren’t necessarily making a lot of cash. The half-litre twin and its smaller brother had clearly demonstrated that there was both market and scope for variations on the transverse V-twin theme. 1984 saw the V65 break cover, neatly pitching it above the V50, yet below the Le Mans and 850T series. The V65 was created by increasing bore and stroke; in this instance adding six millimetres to the diameter and seven to the crank throws with a gentle reduction in the compression ratio. A pair of 30mm carbs ousted the 24s; both gearbox and final-drive bevel-box got updates to handle the extra 'urge'; wheelbase grew by 50mm.…

WORK SHOP Project Honda CG125 part 1 Simple pleasures Honda’s little CG125 provides classic fun on a tight budget, but can be improved, says John Nutting. WORDS AND PICS: OHN NUTTING This story kicked off in 2019 when I was at Rex’s Speed Shop in Sussex, where I was catching up with what the growing business was offering in the way of new and updated ignition and charging systems for classic machines from Japan. Glancing around the workshop I noticed some sheets of blank printed circuit boards, each of which would have been about the size of large postage stamp. I asked boss Marcus Rex what they were for. “I’m working on some ideas for electronic flywheel magnetos,” was the gist of what Marcus said. That rang a bell with…

Pip Higham Tuner, engineer, rider Sleeping Beauty Genuine acts of altruism come along rather infrequently, but read on, and you may experience spirits lifted, just a little bit. Long-time friend Alan Tinnion, serial sprinter and holder of many records (40-odd and still counting) recounts to me a heartwarming tale as I stopped off to have a yarn with him at the Stafford show. Many years ago a good friend of his, Ken Foster, needed to relocate from Cumbria to Somerset where the infant M5 needed grafters. Ken was all that, and more. He moved family and bare essentials on his own whilst still working a 65-hour week; it was a stressful time. Over the next 25 years he settled in the West Country, raised his family and all was well.…

Archive PAUL SMART 1943 – 2021 WORDS: BRUCE COX PICS: MORTONS ARCHIVE If there should ever be a listing of the nicest people in motorcycle racing, then it is a surefire certainty that the name of Paul Smart would be one of those at the very top of the table. Tragically and ironically, after a career covering thousands of racing miles, Paul died in a collision with another vehicle while riding his motorcycle on the A21 near Hastings in Sussex on October 27. The subsequent and immediate reaction on social media to the news of Paul’s death was a massive outpouring of sympathy for Maggie, his wife of 50 years, and their children, Scott and Paula. It was proof indeed of just how much ‘Smartie’ meant to his friends and…

Phillip McCallen to headline Winter Classic! TT legend Phillip McCallen is our guest of honour at the Classic Bike Guide Winter Classic Show. This promises to be a real New Year treat for motorcycle fans. The popular road-racer will be joining the crowds at Newark Showground on January 8-9 and be interviewed over the weekend by fellow former racing star-turned-presenter and TT winner, Steve Plater. Phillip McCallen is one of the most gifted road racers of the modern age; 11 times a winner at the Isle of Man TT, multiple-winner at the North West 200 and the Ulster GP, winner of the Macau Grand Prix and British Supersport. At the peak of his powers ‘Supermac’ collected winners’ trophies at almost all the road race meetings he took part in. In…

Festival of 1000 Bikes is back for 2022 The Vintage Motor Cycle Club and Mallory Park will once more hold the Festival of 1000 Bikes in 2022. This prestigious event combines track sessions open to both members and non-members, club stands, autojumble and much, much more. The date is set for July 16/17, 2022 at Mallory Park in Leicestershire, and after a two-year hiatus the intention is to provide an event that will be as welcoming to the average classic bike owner as it will be to those with more specialised machinery. With road bikes on the Saturday and race machines on the Sunday – sounds great for CMM readers – there will also be evening entertainment on the Friday and Saturday. The event will cater for the earliest veteran…

The way we were … Send us your nostalgic snaps of you back in the day with your steed! Either send to me at bsimmonds@mortons.co.uk or via our vibrant Facebook page. C’mon! We've teamed up with The Hobby Company (www.hobbyco.net) which distributes Tamiya plastic motorcycle kits in the UK to give our favourite restoration one of its amazing motorcycles in miniature. So, send in your pictures of your bikes and you could win the chance to indulge in a miniature motorcycle restoration of your own. Remember to send your name and add resson each submission so we know where to post the kit. Sandra Greatrex says: “My husband has been a biker since 1962 and has had a great many bikes. His name is Malcolm Greatrex and he will be…

My ZX-9R C-2 Ninja Ah… S528 JJH, my blue ZX-9R Ninja C-2 – we did so much together. For us bigger lads it was a lot more comfy than an R1 even if it didn’t offer the same cool looks and kick-in-the-pants performance. That said, it wasn’t far off and was plenty fast enough for anyone without a death wish or an urge to go to prison for speeding. Long-term bikes are given to a lucky few and I speak from experience that many journalists think they are a God-given right, I never did and always tried to gel with any bike I was lucky enough to be handed. I would do my 60-mile daily commute on her; I would do various UK and European tours; take in a couple…

WORK SHOP Q&A Our very own wizened sages, Messrs Mark Haycock and Steve Cooper, are here to answer all of your woes, be they mechanical or spiritual. Every month we will be giving advice, as well as some general tips. Don’t forget to send in your own tips, too. Sponsored by Q:I’ve been on the internet looking for the best/cheapest solution for an amateur mechanic (me) to get the slight rust blooms out of the inside of my bike’s petrol tank. It’s from a motorcycle which I have just bought, has been stood a while and is in need of a sympathetic renovation other than a full-blown restoration. I’ve seen all the various methods while scouring the internet, including nuts, bolts, screws, stones, gravel, molasses, white vinegar and cider vinegar,…

WORK SHOP Project BMW R1150 RT part 2 New boots! This project bike was going to be a simple one: keep it going, and use it… but the boots weren’t made for walking! WORDS AND PICS:BERTIE SIMMONDS Something only a lucky few of us experience is the feeling of ‘different’ motorcycles. Now, by this I mean that if you have two Jap inline fours in your garage, you won’t ‘get’ what a V-twin feels like, or a parallel one – or a single (I hate them, unless a two-stroke), or what about a Boxer twin? With me not having had a Boxer for a while, my exploratory rides on my latest acquisition weren’t massively confidence inspiring. She’s a big beast (255 kilos) but I can say hand on heart that…

WORK SHOP Project Honda CB750FA part 2 Stripped bare! Welcome back David Punshon, a Brit ‘Down Under’ who is stripping his Honda CB750FA… WORDS AND PICS: DAVID PUNSHON I left you last time halfway through removing the wiring harnesses and a bit of a puzzle with an added wire going to the tail light from the ignition switch. Well, a few minutes later, I came across the ignition switch that had VF1000 $75 written on it (Photo 1). I will have to wait until the harness, etc., is fully examined to see what else has been done before I fix it all up. The handlebar switches are removed next and they are very dirty inside and very stiff. There is also a crack in one of the plastic covers; these…

What to buy and how much to pay The single biggest issue with any 350/500 is the electrics – de Tomaso went penny pinching in the sparks department! Avoid any project examples that are flagged up as having… a minor electrical issue! The trade (and most previous owners) don’t hold the four-valve 350s in high esteem. One dealer has even gone on record stating they are pure poison so don’t say you’ve not been warned! Any of the two-valve versions will be fine and they’re seriously unlikely to break the bank even if they need a little TLC by way of recommissioning. Arguably, the 350 is a little underpowered but they’re often cheaper so if you’re on a tight budget then the V35 Mk. III we recently spotted could be…

WORK SHOP Project YamaGamma RG350 part 1 Gammy Gamma! Ahhh hybrid specials – we love them – especially legendary two-stroke ones like Kar Lee’s YamaGamma. WORDS AND PICS: KAR LEE I’ll say it: The RG250 Gamma’s a great, but flawed bike. Sweet handling, plenty of stopping power and perfectly-proportioned looks. The flaw is, and always has been, the weak engine nestling in that box-section alloy frame. Highly-strung, the claimed 45bhp was a far cry from the 32bhp it would actually muster on a real-world dyno at the back wheel. It didn’t stop me buying one in the early 1990s, or even stupidly using it as a London despatch hack while I was in-between jobs. No, what stopped me riding it was when I blew it to smithereens on a flat-out…

WORK SHOP Project Honda CB450K5 part 2 Starting out! This month, Mark sets out his stall as to what he wants to achieve, gets to work on the carbs and has a butchers at the pistons. WORDS AND PICS: MARK HAYCOCK Before I start this series, I think that this is a good time to lay out my philosophy on what I am hoping to achieve with this and other bike projects. What I am NOT trying to do is to make an exact replica of a bike as it left the factory, or will win first prize in a show. I do realise that is an absorbing occupation for many, but for me this is just messing around with the remains of old motorbikes to make something that is…

cmm Stuff The latest riding kit, top tools, tyres, retro clothing and more! EDZ UNDER LAYERS In the wilds of Cumbria, EDZ has been producing top-quality under layers for hikers, runners, cyclists, sailors and bikers. These Merino wool base layers are backed up by our very own editor who swears by them. His EDZ under layers were used continuously from 2016 even as pyjamas in the winter, so he didn’t spend so much on heating. Yes, he’s that tight… Pictured here is the zip neck top priced at £59.99 and the leggings priced at £49.99 www.edz.co.uk LHJC I70 REDEN HELMET This is a competitively priced sports-touring helmet, with features such as a ‘Supercool’ removable interior, which features ‘glasses grooves’ for glass/sunglass wearers. It has an anti-fog, Pinlock-ready visor, integrated sun…

SCOOPERMAN! The sunny side of the classic world, with the VJMC’s Steve Cooper Let no one be in any doubt about this – our so-called ‘modern classics’ can, and do, go wrong. Ultimately most of the issues are down to misuse and abuse by POs – Previous Owners. The resurrected Yamaha street scrambler that has sometimes blighted these hallowed pages occasionally is a perfect example. Sub 7000 miles on the dials but ridden (and ridden hard) often on the back wheel I suspect and almost into the ground. Amazingly a lot of what was needed, Yamaha still sold, so seals, bearings, rods, a speedo cable and much more came via Webbs of Lincoln – damn fine chaps they are, too. Pistons and rings came via a VJMC mate stateside; used,…

PRE-ORDER YOUR CMM! Want the next issue of CMM? Of course you do! Then it’s simple. Subscribing is best but, failing that, why not pre-order? Simply can the fuzzy circular thing with your smartphone (c’mon, we’ve all got one) and off you pop! Alternatively, if you like what you see coming up in the next issue (see page 105 for more) then go to: www.classicmagazines.co.uk/issue/preorder where you can pre-order all of Mortons’ wonderful magazines. Even ones about trains, cars or towpaths… Scan me with your camera phone!…

BRIDGESTONE SEMI-STAR LETTER Sad then HAPPY! Hope you’re all well, CMM! I was thumbing through October’s issue and read the doom-laden letter ‘Fuel’s Gold’ in Feedback. It left me thoroughly depressed and for a moment I felt I may as well sell off my small collection of bikes (Ducati 748, Kawasaki ZXR400, Aprilia RS125 two-stroke, Triumph Street Triple, Triumph Tiger Cub) before they’re worth no more than scrap – until that is I read your ‘Main Test’ article entitled ‘Changes’. What a superb piece, illustrated with fantastic pics; a perfect remedy for that earlier missive. What was I thinking? Sell my beloved collection of bikes? Not a chance! Thanks for a great issue, even if it was a rollercoaster of ‘E’motions! Mark Loebell Bertie says: “Sorry to have caused you…

CLASSIC FOCUS LIFE BEGINS… …at 40 for the glorious Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club. Who would have thought that this small club could blossom to almost 6000 members? All celebrating bikes 15 years or older, from the Land of the Rising Sun… WORDS: STEVE COOPER PICS: MORTONS ARCHIVE, VJMC The Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club (VJMC) celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2022 – so let’s celebrate! When founded back in 1982 by Mike Ridley the nascent club was almost a spin-off of the American VJMC found some five years previously. Membership was initially in the tens, then moved into the hundreds before finally passing the 1000 mark a few years later. Today, VJMC UK has in excess of 5700 members and continues to grow as lads and lasses of the 60s, 70s…

THE ZX-9R FAMILY TREE KAWASAKI ZX-9R B-1-B-3 (1994-1996) COLOURS Purple/silver, green, black PRICE NEW: £8095 Think of something half ZZ-R1100 and half ZXR750. Rumours of poor/badly designed rear suspension/linkages didn’t help sales, but nor did excess weight over the FireBlade. Thing was, it wasn’t really a Blade beater. Instead it was a superb sporty sports-tourer. Still a good choice today as a sports tourer and can be found for as little as a bag of sand… KAWASAKI ZX-9R B-4 (1997) PRICE NEW: £9545 As B-1/B-3 but with some refinements including six-pot brakes KAWASAKI ZX-9R C-1-C-2 (1998-1999) COLOURS: Black, blue, red, green PRICE NEW: £9545 Here was the first ZX-9R to take on and beat the ‘Blade. Lighter, faster and more focused than the previous behemoth B-series of nine-ninja, it was…

Buying and running an RD200 The round-tanked RD200 ran from 1973-1975 beginning with the RD200 (397 model code), then the 200A as featured here, followed by the 200B. To add to the confusion there’s also an RD200DX (535) and an RD200B-DX (model code 556) both with a disc front brake. Depending upon who you listen to the first coffin model is either a C or D model; different markets received different specifications. All of the round-tanked 200s are essentially the same beast with just very minor changes, most of which are aesthetic. As always buying one in boxes is, potentially, a recipe for disaster and especially so if the seller has creatively mixed in some coffin-tanked parts from either the later 1E8 or 2R7 models. Some parts fit, don’t. scabby round some Even a…

VENHILL Control cables and hydraulic lines form vital links between rider and machine, directly transmitting instructions to brakes and engine at all speeds and in all conditions. Despite this, most people rarely give them a moment’s thought. At Venhill, we’ve spent the past 50 years thinking about cables and hoses, developing and manufacturing them to the highest quality standards in our factory, close to Box Hill in Surrey. Wemake pattern cables and hydraulic lines for modern and classic motorcycles, DIY kits, and even offer a madeto-measure service. Our goal is to combat common cable problems like catching, wear and stretching, as well as issues found with hydraulic hoses, such as bowing, stretching, and leaking. We aim to ensure all our products perform better, for longer. Why replace when you could…

Tool of the month with BIKER’S TOOLBOX Blast Off! Ralph Ferrand works with tools all day long – he sells them too at bikerstoolbox.co.uk so he knows what works. I had started the job of cutting and welding up my Z900 special frame in an effort to make it stiffer than the notoriously flimsy original. At the start of the year my addiction to buying bikes and tools meant I had to build a new workshop, and to fund it I had to restore a friend’s Z1000A1, meaning my custom Z900 had to be left in a leaky lock-up… Bare steel rusts almost instantly at the best of times and the frame hadn’t been blasted following its swim in the chemical strip bath so it was already rusty. Now, I…

WORK SHOP Project Suzuki TR750 part 15 One thing leads to another! On any special, it’s often a case of making do, mending and bending things and parts to your will to get the end result you want! Something I haven’t written about much is the small, almost constant revisions required along the way. The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed some of the things I’ve had to do as the photos aren’t always quite in build/development sequence. I think if I detailed everything I’d be writing for the next 10 years! Basically, once a part is built or fitted the next part can be sorted, but with the best will in the world not everything fits as planned as the next part is developed. Having got the front fairing…

Next month IN YOUR MILDLY RESTORED CMM! SUZUKI AC100: Steve Cooper on this classic 1971 machine. YAMAHA FZR600: Andy Bolas rides the last of the 3HE versions of this hooligan four-stroke! STORM WARNING: Roland Brown rides a classic Kawasaki Zephyr 1100 special – the Cyclone! WORKSHOP HOW TO: Two-stroke tutorial! When carbs go wrong! And much more – if we can fit it all in! BRIDGESTONE/CMM BIKE OF THE YEAR: Another one of YOUR restos/specials in the spotlight! Next month IN YOUR MILDLY RESTORED CMM! PROJECT BIKES: We will be showcasing some of the following (space allowing): Mark Haycock’s Honda CB450, Steve Cooper’s Yamaha C3SC and Suzuki Apache or Rickuki, Jeff Ware’s Suzuki RM80X, Ralph Ferrand with his Project Zed and maybe his Yamaha YZF-R6, Malc Shaw with his Suzuki…