Motorbikes - Do you remember your first one?

[hillsbro]

my husband andi used to go all over on his bsa starfire ...

 

I guess it would have looked like mine - http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u219/twigmore/Family/Starfire.jpg

 

Superb machine - unlike BSA's larger single (the 441cc Shooting Star) you had to give it plenty of revs. to get much power, but the race-bred engine could certainly produce the torque when needed. I bought mine (FWJ 18J) on 1 August 1970 - the first day of the 'J' registration - I was waiting outside Leather & Simpsons for the shop to open!

[harmston]

hI FIRST BIKE BOUGHT IN 1952 AT DAWSONS IN NOTTINGHAM A NORTON 16 H SIDE VALVE EX M.O.D. £39- 10 SHILLINGS BRAND NEW BUILT IN 1942 IN ARMY PAINT WORK NEVER BEEN USED 2 MILE ON CLOCK I RODE THIS TILL 1957 SOLO AND WITH SIDECAR DID 42000 ON IT NEVER LET BE DOWN THIS INCLUDED 3 YEARS IN FORCES NEVER LATE BACK IN CAMP I WAS HOME AT XMAS 55 AND BEEN OUT ON BOXING DAY FOUND A ARIAL SQUARE FOUR COMBINATIN WITH YOUNG FAMILY AT FIRTH PARK IN FREESING CONDITIONS COULD NOT GET UP SICEY AVE DUE TO ICE I BUT THE WIFE AND TWO CHILDREN IN MY SIDECAR AND TOOK THEM HOME ON SHIREGREEN COLLECTED A ROPE AND WENT BACK AND TOWED THE ARIAL UP THE HILL THE OLD 500 NORTON WOULD KEEP GOING AND CLIME ANY THING THIS IS WHY IT WAS A FIRM FAVORITE WITH THE ARMY DISPATCH RIDERS

I THEN B OUGHT A NORTON E S 2 FROM GRAYS IN BRIDE ST AN HE ALLOWED ME £40 00 ON THE 16 H SO I MADE 10 SHILLINGS PROFIT ON THE SALE BEAT THAT FOR A DEAL

THREE YEARS LATER I P/EX THIS FOR A B.S.A. GOLD STAR SMASHING MACHINE BUT HAD TO GO IN THE END DUE TO FAMILY ARRIVING AND WENT ON TO FOUR WEELS

BUT I WILL NEVER FORGET MY 16 H WISH I STILL HAD IT

[tis me]

I had a yamaha FS1E (fizzy) in the late seventies. 60 mph on a 50 cc moped with pedals attached. Pure madness.

 

yeh right it did...

[flyer]

what was the Ariel big 4 i had I mean why big 4 it had a single 600 and pulled my sidecar like an old tank still better than than my gutless s8 sunbeam that just looked good

[carosio]

It was an Ariel Arrow 250cc 2 stroke twin in 1964, handled so well you could take an S bend (theoretically!) with hands off the bars. Its sister, the "Leader" with the screen and legshields was used by the police.

[biker]

what was the Ariel big 4 i had I mean why big 4 it had a single 600 and pulled my sidecar like an old tank still better than than my gutless s8 sunbeam that just looked good

 

There was a Norton Big 4 that was a 600 cc side valve that pulled my sidecar.It was slow but it would go through town in the 1960,s in top gear.It was called a Big 4 to relate to how power was referred to in the early days (1920,s ?)

[flyer]

thanks Biker now I remember Norton Big 4

[flyer]

P.S did a lot of touring with the Norton, my wife would change the baby;s nappy from the back seat while on the move, we land up with 3 kids in that side car plus all the camping gear for two weeks, pots & pans tied all over if you didn't see us you sure heard us,but what a lot of fun

[bullerboY]

my first bike was a 1953 fanny-barnett bought from Grays in Bridge St.Bought in pounds sold in guinneas.I then built a Triumph a cross between a trophy and a bonneville aptley called a trobon.Shiniest bike in sheffield in the sixties,we used to hang around at the disc jockey on London Rd opposite the Lacarno anyone out there who remembers them both?still riding bikes and knocking on deaths door but he cant face me yet!

[Tradescanthia]

Yes indeed, the first one was a 1953 track Bantam, three speed, plunger frame. First road bike 250 Villiers in a Panther frame, expansion boxes, alloy tank, sounded great, but not the sort of thing to take a test on, so 1967 saw me take out £100.00 HP for a 1966 Bantam D7 from Charlie Freemans at Eckington, got £10.00 trade in for the Panther. Passed my test on it, as did my brother and three of my mates before I traded that in for a 1962 Norton 99SS (905 UPK, is it still around?) that was standard, but was treated to respray in metallic blue, 12v electrics, clip-ons, swept back pipes, rear sets and goldie silencers. Sold it in 1970 when I decided to get married. Rode a few jap bikes, GSX 750R, Ducati 749, BSA Gold Star, Rocket Gold Star, Norton Commando, and a few more probably that belonged to mates. Only bikes I ride now are Matchless G50, AJS 7R standard, and Seely framed derivatives with G50 & 7R motors on fun days and track days, that belong to a good friend of mine. Happy Days!!

 

You dont half choose your rides these days dont you, most of us can only dream about G50 Matchless and AJS 7R's and Seeley's. My mate and me are 'gettin on a bit' and love the classic scene. The new MotoGP does nothing for me. I went to NEC last year to the classic show and had a conversation with Ferry Brewer, engineer and spannerman for Phil Read, Rod Gould and the works Yamaha teams. Chas Mortimers name came up as well,

along with Jarno Saarinen. We both agreed the oldies had a certain class about them. Mr Brewer predicted a great future for classic racing as there are thousands of us old'uns who remember the smell of Castrol 'R'

Classic or vintage, me and my mate prefer it to the new stuff and would love to see the kind of tackle you and your mate are fortunate enough to ride.