Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 106 i Old Bike Australasia

A statement from the Manager of the Sammy Miller Museum said, “It is a great tribute to our Museum Complex and further cements our place on the world map as the world’s leading motorcycle museum. This prestigious award recognises the phenomenal collection on display at our magnificent museum in New Milton, and is a credit to Sammy’s decades of dedication to motorsport, both on and off the track.” The museum houses around 500 bikes, almost all of which are in running order and are meticulously maintained by a team of volunteers. See www.sammymiller.co.uk for full details.…

It is believed only three or possibly four of the R66 version came to Australia prior to WW2, through the dealer network of the time that consisted of J.N. Taylor (Adelaide), Finlay Bros (Victoria), Mortlock Bros (West Australia), Bennett & Wood (NSW and Queensland), and Sim King (Tasmania). The overhead valve 595cc R66 broke cover in February 1938 at the Berlin Motor Show; one of four new models that included the OHV R51, and the side-valve R61 and R71. With an impressive 30 hp on tap, the R66 was touted as BMW’s first 600cc ‘sports’ model – a designation sometimes mistakenly ascribed to the 1952 R68. The R66 came into being as an amalgamation of the top end from the 494cc R5 and R51 OHV singles, grafted onto the bottom…

During the war Harold served in the RAAF, stationed at Warwick, and on discharge attended university. He then worked for his father, who had a motor garage in Ipswich Road, Woolloongabba, Brisbane, with a Rolls Royce Merlin engine displayed in the front window. In the late ‘forties, post-war privations often meant that if you wanted something, then make it yourself from whatever was available. There was also a lot of war-surplus stuff to be had (and adapted to many different purposes), and at some stage Harold had picked up the remnants of an Australian-built Wirraway training aircraft, which sat slowly decaying in his back yard. In fact he eventually bought three Wirraway fuselages, which were cut up to recover the chrome-moly tubing, which was mostly 1/32” or 1/16” thick, and…

From 1976, the premier racing class in the USA became the AMA Superbike Championship, for modified road bikes up to 1,000cc capacity. After Reg Pridmore won the initial series for BMW, it quickly became the arena where the Japanese ‘Big Four’ battled for supremacy. Pridmore jumped camps to Kawasaki, winning again in 1977and 1978 before Wes Cooley took the next two championships for Suzuki. When former 250cc rider Eddie Lawson trounced the best riders and factory teams to win the AMA Superbike Championship in 1981, it shocked a few people, to say the least. After all, his mount was a tricked up Z1000J, tuned by Rob Muzzy, with an almost standard frame, a GPz1100 fuel tank, flat handlebars, a deeply scalloped seat (which, despite appearances, was only 10mm lower than…

70-odd bikes gathered at our Strathpine clubhouse for a 130km ride. A few members dressed up their bikes with some tinsel they stole off the Christmas tree without the wife knowing, including myself, because an olive drab 42WLA HD needs all the prettying up it can get. We set off in a westerly direction avoiding all traffic lights and scooted around the edge of North Pine Dam. Then around the back of Lake Kurwongbah and up behind Narangba to our first regroup at a beautiful spot we call The Farm. This allows the slower bikes to catch up and see if anyone is in the back up trailer. So far all bikes were behaving themselves. From here it was all uphill, via the newly sealed Jacksons Road, to the picturesque Mt…

Vintage Motorcycle Club of Vic. Chiltern Rally • 28-31 November, 2022 – Chiltern, Victoria The east coast had experienced flooding however, with some trepidation the decision was made that the popular rally would be on. The Friday evening shake down run to Barnawartha proved uneventful, however the ride back was in heavy rain with one bike hitting a giant pothole causing a bent frame and fracture of the engine casing. Thankfully, from then on the weather was fine. Saturday’s run for the forty five bikes entered was via Yackandandah, Kiewa and Tangambalanga to a picnic reserve on the lakeside of the Hume Weir and return to Chiltern via the Indigo Valley. Sunday’s run was through Howlong, Corowa and Mulwala to Yarrawonga for lunch. The return ride was through Rutherglen, with…

Cootamundra 100 rally • 19-20 November, 2022 – Cootamundra, NSW After the Pandemic-delayed “99 Not Out Run”, which finally happened in March 2022, the eagerly-awaited 100 Not Out, or “The Ton Run” took place in Cootamundra. This was a celebration of 100 years of motorcycling to honour the original motorcycle club that staged a reliability trial over a distance of 166 miles in 8 hours, and was open to sidecars and motorcycles under 350cc and over 350cc. First prize was a cup and 10 guineas, 2nd prize 5 guineas, and 2 guineas for 3rd. The said club has had many name changes and eventually folded in the 1980s. Fortunately, the Cootamundra Antique Motorcycle Club welcomed a fresh lot of new members that have motorcycles that qualified for classic club registration. This…

Many years before “social media” was coined as a phrase, it existed nonetheless, as did “influencers”. Edgar Jessop, bon vivant, epicure, raconteur, champion of the arts, and master of the race track, was clearly an influencer before the term became popular. Edgar’s preference for Boodle’s Gin, for example, led to such a demand for the product that it was virtually unprocurable at times. Whenever Edgar triumphed on the track, which was frequently, he would invariably be seen imbibing in a post-race Boodle’s or two, taken with a dash of Seagram’s tonic water – a concoction that not only enhanced the flavour of the spirit, but was known to stave off malaria. This was especially beneficial to Edgar when he was racing in countries where spectators were affected with the disease.…

A member of the Velocette OC of Australia with a 1953 MAC Velocette (pictured at Fagan Park), he has a long association with motorcycling and motoring, working as a road proving engineer in the experimental department of BMC at their then Zetland plant in Sydney, finally retiring in 1994. Now 93 years old, his career has spanned over 63 years in the Veteran Car Club, including as president and has been involved for over 28 years with the Fagan Park property near Dural, NSW where for over 21 years the Velocette OC NSW section has held its annual show day in August each year. Funds from this event assist with the maintenance of the historic 55-acre park which was once home to the Fagan family and is now owned by…

John started and owned Stoney Creek Motorcycles at Bexley with Trevor Hunter, then Campsie Suzuki and finally John Macklin Motorcycles at Belmore. Mackin Motorcycles at Miranda was owned and run by John’s brother Harry. Both John and Harry helped and sponsored a number of young and up and coming riders over the years. They both put a lot back into the sport. John was a long time member of Central MCC and a top solo rider on short circuit and scrambles. He also road raced sidecars for many years and again was right up there with the best. John’s first passenger, Lindsay Brooker (also a Central member) attended John’s funeral. Lindsay’s brother Selby took over the chair for a while, then came Jim Smith and John Lloyd who also worked…

A man of the land by inclination and a versatile mechanic by vocation, Martin Kotvojs, a twenty-three-year-old immigrant from Austria, was becoming a little toey. He just knew there was more to his adopted country than living in the big-smoke, building three cylinder shearing plant engines for Moffat Virtue. He’d much prefer the wide expanse of sheep country so, come December 1952, his employers allowed Martin a two-month break. With the addition of a pair of canvas army surplus satchels, each carrying a one-gallon tin, Martin’s daily commute – a 1951 CZ 125 – became an adventure bike. He headed south from Sydney on what was designated as the Hume Highway, a thoroughfare so potholed that when Martin’s overloaded machine suffered a puncture, it went unnoticed due to the stiffness…

John C. (Cyril) Anderson was born in 1904 in Toowoomba, Queensland, the sixth of nine children. His brother Mervyn John Reginald Anderson (always known as Curly) arrived five years later. Cyril worked in the family’s grocery store before completing an apprenticeship in the bicycle and motorcycle field, then opening his own motorcycle repair shop in the early 1920s. His interest in motorcycling grew quickly, and he established quite a name for himself on tracks around Toowoomba and further afield riding a Rudge. In 1926 he scored his biggest-yet success, the Queensland 25 Mile title at Clifton Racecourse, followed by the Five Mile Track Championship at Warwick. It was a time when horse tracks and ovals were being pressed into service for motorcycle racing. These were easier to administrate and maintain,…

Grant Jordan, vice-president of the Queensland Early Motor Sports Club, says the 2023 calendar is filling up nicely. “We are running the Carnell Classic at Carnell Raceway in Stanthorpe on 15th and 16th April, and the Big Chill on 8th and 9th of July. We had to move it forward one week due to the Morgan Park ASBK round being placed on our original date. I still plan to run the OBA King of Carnell feature race for the fastest 20 machines like last year. The event will be the usual collection of P2 – Pre modern solos, P3 – Modern Sidecars, Buckets and Motards. “Carnell has some new management now as the existing drag racing club has disbanded. The Short Circuit Motorsport Assoc. have taken the reins and have…

For many years the Production class was shunned by the promoters, the Auto Cycle Union of NSW, but by 1972 there was no ignoring the spectator appeal, nor the diversity of the ranks. A split-second after the flag drops, the H2 Kawasakis have it under control, with winner Tom Gibson (11), Garry Thomas (68) and third place Gordon Doble (18) well way. Ken Blake (20) on the new Ducati GT750 is also in the hunt, as is Clive Knight’s CB750 Honda (30), who inherited second place when Thomas crashed on the final lap, ending his furious battle with Gibson. There’s chaos behind however as Graham Gates (17) struggles to boot his Ducati into life, causing a major traffic jam. Young Gregg Hansford is somewhere in the picture, starting from his…

South Australian Historic Championships • 30 December, 2022 – McNamara Park, Mt Gambier, SA As happens on the weekend following Christmas, Mac Park comes alive with the music of Historic Bikes ridden by passionate people who just love their sport. The excitement built up from Wednesday, with riders, teams and families arriving, setting up their pits, setting up their camps. The social aspect is a big part of the sport, so catching up with friends, acquaintances and fellow competitors starts as soon as individuals start rolling into the wonderful complex Mac Park is. The Historic Motor Cycle Racing Register of SA has been running this event for over 40 years and the last 20 years has seen it run at Mount Gambier. The complex is a credit to the Mount…

Indian Motocycle Club of Australia Krusty Rally • 28-31 October, 2022 – Wodonga, Vic Held biennially, the 2022 Krusty Rally was a chance to showcase and get the older Indian Motocycles out on the road. We arrived on Friday well in time for the “All Indian Swap Meet” at the motel where all club members were staying. Vikki and myself being new members at our first rally were inundated with a lot of new faces and were welcomed by everyone over a few drinks. Unfortunately, the heavens opened up on the swap meet and the barbecue, but the guys were well prepared with shades and a nice big fire in a drum. We had 42 people and 22 Indians attend the rally which included 3 outfits. By Saturday the rain…

Goulburn Tiddlers Rally • 12-13 November, 2022 – Goulburn, NSW The Classic Riders Club of Goulburn held its Inaugural Tiddlers Rally for Motorcycles 30 years and older and under 250cc with 76 entries and 68 riders participating. Machines included interesting makes such as Motobi, Bultaco, Ducati, Hodaka, Penton, KTM, Jawa, Matchless, Bridgestone and BSA as well as the four Japanese manufacturers. Julie Croker and Mischelle Lees provided a delicious evening meal for the early bird arrivals on Friday evening at Rally Central, the Goulburn South Caravan Park. Next morning the weather was perfect for the smaller bikes with little or no wind and sunshine. Riders and Marshalls assembled at 0930hrs for directions and a briefing from Ray Croker. The ride of 80km was to Crookwell Showground for lunch via Gurrunah…

Barossa Valley Classic Motorcycle Club Rally • 16th October, 2022 – Nurioopta, SA Conditions were ideal for the Barossa Valley Classic Motor Cycle Club’s 36th Annual Rally, sponsored by Tool Kit Depot. Organiser, Peter Rosser, and his hardworking team welcomed 55 enthusiastic participants, after a 2-year hiatus due to the Covid pandemic. Motorcycles ranged in age from 1919 to current year models, the majority benefiting from new historic provisional registration now up to 1997 year of manufacture. Departing from the Nuriootpa Sports Centre, riders took to the road tackling the demands of Mengler’s Hill en route to the morning tea stop provided at Eudunda sports complex. Ride Captain Brian Randell led riders through rolling hills, verdant cropping and pasture country, via Kapunda and meandering through the Valley, terminating at Nuriootpa…

Of tiddlers and tractors I was interested to read your comments in the OBA105 relating to in the increased interest in small machines. For many of us the small machine was our introduction to what would later become a life long obsession. The feel of all that “power” from a 50cc Trojan Mini motor two stroke engine strapped on the frame of a pedal bike with a friction roller creating clouds of blue smoke was marvellous. In the early 1960s my mum said. “would you like a real motorcycle”; I couldn’t believe it and I was soon sending off for brochures with a new 175cc BSA Bantam being on top of the list. One day when I came home from school she said I have bought you one but to…

Matthew Iasiello, researcher and PHD candidate employed by “Be Well Co”, is one of SAHMRI’s current research grant recipients. Matthew is part of the Be Well Innovation Lab, a SAHMRI and Flinders University research partnership. One of Matthew’s project goals is to define what mental health is, in scientifically objective terms. Current definitions of mental health tend not to be based on objective data as the complexities of the human mind make objective measurement of mental processes extremely challenging. Matthew is working with other researchers from various countries to develop a series of studies aiming to create clear definitions of ‘mental health’ and measurement tools to assist in treatment. These could then be applied to develop even more effective well-being programs for people in Australia. Good mental health is a…

But Bernie was first and foremost a racer, from the time he acquired a Kawasaki H1 in 1970. “I was never really interested in bikes at school, and I started hanging around just down the road from where I lived in Burnie (northern Tasmania), and doing up cars,” says Bernie, now 71 and a long-time Queensland resident. I bought a Morris Minor which we put an Austin Healey Sprite motor in, not that it made much difference – just two carbs that were harder to tune. Then I started to work at Hobart at the Zinc works – Electrolytic Zinc Company or EZ Co – as a trainee instrument technician. It was a great job but I got into partying more than studying the tech work, so I dropped out…

In itself, the popularity of the VF400 today is quite surprising, given that Honda’s new generation of V4s, which began in 1982 with the shaft-drive VF750S soft-cruiser model, was mired in controversy from the day (well, a few months) after it hit the showrooms. Most, but not all of the problems that beset the V4 had to do with lubrication, or lack of it, to the top end. An insufficiently lubricated camshaft whirring away on the top of the motor spells disaster, as indeed was often the case. True, Honda sprang into action with some fixes, but bad news has a habit of travelling faster than good news, and irreparable damage was done to the company’s reputation in a short space of time. It didn’t do a great deal for…

First released in 1969 as the CT1 it became the DT175 in 1974 and was still being sold in Australia in 2005. During its life the 175cc engine was fitted into a Trail bike (DT175), an Enduro (IT175), a Trials bike (TY175), a Moto-crosser (MX175) and a Farm bike (AG175), all powered by a simple 171cc two-stroke engine which was an absolute gem. In 1975, Englishman Chris Spence rode a standard DT175A to a second outright position in Europe’s most gruelling road trial, the Circuit du Pyrenees, beating more powerful and sophisticated machines. When Yamaha decided to enter the off-road motorcycle market in 1969 they released the HT1 (100cc), AT1 (125cc), CT1 (175cc), DT1 (250cc) and the RT1 (360cc) with these models losing their unique prefixes in 1974 to become…

I guess it would have touched everyone who lived in the ‘70s. You must have relived a bit of your past as I saw you even included Ian Kiernan. I ended up doing an airbrush course back then and got offered a job if I wanted but turned it down. I did a few works for a few mates and also on my Panel Van (which I still have and use), albeit now airbrush-free. The tailgate was my own design with a squid in space and the RH Positive Type A my blood group (having been a donor from the early ‘70s) but mainly because the red paint looked very much like blood when we stirred it in the can. I still have my airbrush as well. I was banned…

It all started when my old mate Pilks was writing up a bit of his family history and came across a blurred photograph of a man seated astride a motorcycle with a hand-written note attached – “Rex Pilkington Big River January 1936”. Knowing that his mates Simon and I were interested in motorcycles, Pilks asked us to confirm if the bike in the photo was an Indian and if so what model it was, as it was known that a) Rex was the name of his grandfather on his father’s side; and b) It was part of the family folklore that grandfather Rex owned and rode an Indian brand motorcycle up in the bush around where the tributary branch of the Big River at Lake Eildon now is. So in…

Recently Terry Gallaway OAM unearthed some photos he had taken at the 1974 Castrol Six Hour Race at Amaroo Park. This depicts a crucial pit stop for the leading Adams & Sons H2 Kawasaki ridden by Warren Willing and Gregg Hansford. Later in the race, the H2 was controversially disqualified (and the keys confiscated by officials) when the rear Dunlop K81 was deemed too worn to continue. Still later, the bike was found to have “gearbox irregularities” and both Willing and Hansford lost their competition licences for a period. On close inspection, the photographs are especially interesting for the people in the background – many involved with the organisation of the race itself.…

Girder Fork Rally • 21-23 November, 2022 – Hadspen, Tasmania The 2022 VMCCT “Girder Fork Rally” is a 3 day event based in Northern Tasmania being a great place to have rides North, South, East and West from the ride base. The rally targets bikes from pre 1946 – and although called the Girder rally, includes all bikes pre that date (such as a 1937 BMW with telescopic forks). Des Molloy from NZ was also invited to join us as he completed his Australian touring on his Panther. Local riders were also invited to ride with the rally entrants for portions of the rally with their assistance as ride marshalls and their company was welcomed. A variety of pre 1946 bikes included Brough Superior, BSA, AJS, BMW etc., the earliest…

Arrowtown Run • 12-13 November, 2022 – Arrowtown, New Zealand Lumsden Railway Station was a hive of activity for the start of the 56th Arrowtown Run. The 22 motorcycles lined up for the timed start were an impressive array, the oldest being Nevelle Ridd’s 1922 Henderson Model K DeLuxe, closely followed by Wayne Nicoll’s 1926 Triumph model P, ridden by his grandson Lucas. Rounding off the 1920s machines was a pair of very rare Rex Acme machines owned by father and son Robert and Greg Eunson; a flat tank 1928 TT8 and a saddle tank 1929 Speed King, both with Blackburne engines. Ferg McDowell’s 1939 BSA B26 was the only entry from the 1930s and there was two entries from the 1940s. The 1950s and 1970s were both represented by…

Vincent National Rally • 10-14 October, 2022 – McLaren Vale, SA It took three years to actually happen, with planning starting in early 2019 for the much-anticipated 2020 National Vincent Rally with 85 Vincents and 146 people originally registered. However, Covid-19 certainly changed that and sadly our attendance numbers dropped to 92 over the two years of waiting, and even sadder four of our registered attendees passed away during that time. The rally was deferred and rescheduled twice, and social distancing and marshalling rules created an absolute headache for the rescheduling of the rally in 2021. So it was a good thing that it had to be moved to 2022, except that all the bookings for venues and so on started yet again, but thankfully with fewer restrictions. The McLaren…