Norton P11 Motorcycle 1967, 1968, 1969

Norton P11 1960s

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Norton's P11 "Desert Sled" was something of a parts bin special, a mix and match combination of parts from Norton and parent company AMC. Designed to suit the American market and originally for export only, the result was so good that the few that found their way onto British roads, along with many more recent re-imports, rapidly achieved cult status.

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Norton Atlas Motorcycle 1962

Norton Atlas 1962

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Produced from 1962, although only available from February 1964 for the home market, the Norton Atlas was the starting point for the range of 750cc Norton twins that remained in production until 1975. Cycle parts remained as always with the famous featherbed frame and forks rolling on alloy hubs with single leading brake shoes.

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Norton 650SS Dominator Motorcycle 1962

Norton 650SS Dominator

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Generally considered to be the best of the Featherbed Dominators, the handsome 650SS was launched in 1962. Adding serious horsepower to the "unapproachable" chassis, it featured an uprated 49bhp motor of 646cc and almost out of the crate, the newcomer was capable of winning races. Priced when new £351.00.

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Norton Navigator Motorcycle 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965

Norton Navigator 1960s

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

The year 1958 saw Norton celebrating its Diamond Jubilee, and to mark the occasion, the company launched its first lightweight twin, The Jubilee. It was followed in 1960 by a 350cc version, the Navigator.

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Norton Manx Motorcycle 1946-53 (long stroke) 1953-62 (short stroke)

Norton Manx

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Perhaps the most familiar of all racing motor bikes on the tracks of the 1950s, the Manx Norton put up a galiant rearguard action against the advance of the continental multi-cylinders. Single-overhead-camshaft with shaft-and-bevel drive up to the cambox, the 1930's design changed little over the years. In 1950 the new Featherbed frame was introduced on the Manx works racers. Hugely successful, it was a design that was to accommodate Norton and many other makes in the years that followed.

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Norton ES2 Motorcycle 1927 - 1964

Norton ES2

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

A deluxe version of the Model 18, the ES2 was part of Norton's post-war programme for 17 years. In 1949 the 370lb ES2 was good for around 80mph and would return around 75mpg at a steady 45mph. Years later, despite numerous changes that included substituting aluminium for cast iron as cylinder-head material and raising the compression ratio, the top speed had not improved noticeably.

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Honda CB450 Black Bomber Motorcycle 1965

CB450 Black Bomber 1965

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Engine: Aircooled 4-valve DOHC parallel twin

Bore x Stroke: 70 x 57.8mm

Capacity: 445cc

Comp ratio: 8.5:1

Power Output: 43bhp @ 8,500rpm

Carburation: 2 x 36mm Keihin

Gearbox: 4-speed

Suspension: Front Telescopic

Rear Twin shocks with adjustable preload

Brakes: Front 200mm (8in) tls drum

Rear 180mm (7.2IN) sls drum

Tyres: Front 3.25 x 18in

Rear 3.25 x 18in

Wheelbase: 1,346mm (53in)

Weight: 187kg (411lb)

Top Speed: (approx) 105mph (169kph)

standing 1/4 15 secs / 85mph (137kph)

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Honda C77 Dream Motorcycle 1961

C77 Dream 1961

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Engine: OHC verticle twin

Bore x Stroke: 60 x 54mm

Capacity: 305cc

Comp ratio: 8.2:1

Power Output: 23bhp @ 7,500rpm

Carburation: 1 x 32mm Keihin

Gearbox: 4-speed

Suspension: Front Leading-link

Rear Twin shock absorbers

Brakes: Front Drum

Rear Drum

Tyres: Front 3.25 x 16in

Rear 3.25 x 16in

Wheelbase: 1,310mm (52in)

Weight: 169kg (373lb)

Top Speed: (approx) 80mph (129kph)

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BSA A65 Lightning Clubmans Motorbike 1964-1965

BSA A65 Lightning Clubmans

What is your favourite motorbike of all time?

The BSA Lightning Clubmans motor bike was introduced in 1964 as a special sporting version of the A65 twin. Capable of around 110mph (177kph) it was a fine machine, comparable to the equivalent Triumph or Norton models although it never achieved the same acclaim.

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BSA A50 Star Motorbike 1962

BSA A50 Star 1962

What is your favourite motorbike of all time?

As a replacement for the highly successful A7/A10 BSA models, the unit construction A50/A65 series arrived in 1962, representing a neat and tidy design with many improvements over the earlier twins.

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BSA DBD34 Gold Star Motorbike 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963

DBD34 Gold Star

What is your favourite motorbike of all time?

The best known of all BSA motorbikes, the Gold Star was the chosen mount for any aspiring competition rider during the 1950s and early 1960s. The top of the range Clubmans models normally featured clip-on handlebars, swept-back exhaust, an Amal 1.5-in (38mm) Grand Prix carburettor and an RRT2 close ratio gearbox.

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BSA C15 Star Motorbike 1958

BSA C15 Star

What is your favourite motorbike of all time?

The C15 motorbike, first introduced in September 1958 was, for many motorcyclists, their first taste of a "real bike". At only 280lb (127kg), the "Ceefer" offered an amazing power to weight ration; its punchy 249cc OHV engine produced 15bhp, revved freely up to its maximum 7,000rpm and yet behaved calmly at low speeds with an easy tick over. Top speed was 72mph.

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Harley-Davidson WLD Motorcycle 1940s

Harley-Davidson WLD

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

The WLD motor bike was a high compression version of the WL series, which first appeared in 1937. Harley introduced its first 45cu.in. side-valve V-twins, the D series, in 1929, to compete with Indian and Excelsior. The "Forty-fives" were smaller and lighter than Harley's big twins, although equally rugged, proven by their later success as military motorcycles.

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Indian Chief Roadmaster Motorcycle 1940s

Indian Chief Roadmaster

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

After World War 2, the only Indian motorbike that returned to production was the big V-twin Chief. Still powered by the old side-valve engine, it exchanged its leaf-spring front suspension for a girder type design, that had already been used on a small number of military Indians built during the war.

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Indian Scout Motorcycle 1920

Indian Scout

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

The first of Indian's famous Scout models were introduced in 1920. The work of irish-born designer Charles B. Franklin, the Scout used Indian's familiar 42-degree, V-twin configuration and side-valves. The engine was mounted in a twin-loop cradle frame that was fitted with Indian's traditional leaf-sprung fork. The design of the Scout engine was so successful that it was scaled up in 1922 to create the Chief.

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Henderson Model KJ Motorcycle 1929

Henderson Model KJ

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

In 1929 Henderson introduced the KJ, a new machine designed by Arthur Constantine. It retained the 79cu. in. (1301cc) capacity of earlier K series models but the crankshaft now had five main bearings and alloy pistons were used. New frames allowed lower seats and a streamlined fuel tank, which included an instrument panel. Sadly the KJ was short-lived as Schwinn pulled out of the motorcycle business. The last Hendersons were made in 1931.

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Excelsior Super X Motorcycle 1925

Excelsior Super X

What is your favourite motor cycle of all time?

The Excelsior Super X was introduced in 1925 and was the first of a new class of American 45cu. in motorcycles. Followed swiftly into the marketplace by Indian and Harley-Davidson forty-fives, the Excelsior featured a neat unit-construction engine/gearbox. The engine was mounted in a duplex cradle frame with leading-link forks. Performance was exceptional at 65mph (105km/h), which gained the Super X an enviable reputation.

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AJS Model 8 Motorcycle 1960

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

In 1960 the AJS Model 8 appeared as a 350cc single. It featured a scaled up engine with a 20mm longer stroke, not simply a bored-out 250, having the same dimensions as the discontinued "heavyweight" 350 Model 16CS scrambler  of the previous year. The Model 8's engine differed from the 250 in having a compression of 6:9:1, an exhaust-valve lifter on the exhaust rocker, and ingenious flat-faced cast-iron flywheels. This scaled-up 250 was similar to BSA's enlarged C15 250, the B40 350, and was an attempt to deal with the criticism of the "heavyweight" Model 16 as a plodding, over laden, scaled down 500.

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AJS Model 16C Motorcycle 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964

AJS Model 16C

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

Produced from 1959 to 1964, the AJS Model 16C was one of the most successful "mudpluggers" of its day. Similar to its predecessor the 16MC, the 16C employed a redesigned engine with a new long-stroke configuration of 74x81mm rather than the earlier 69x93mm. Valve diameters were increased and power output went up from 19 to 23bhp @ 6200rpm.

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AJS Model 18CS Motorcycle 1950-1964

AJS Model 18CS

What is your favourite motorcycle of all time?

The basis of the AJS Model 18 500cc was a long-stroke single ohv engine from 1953, one of whose manifestations had been the Matchless G3L used by the British Army in WW2. The 18CS was produced between 1950 and 1964. Comprising of an all-alloy engine in a sprung frame, it was aimed more at scrambles use than trails. A feature when introduced were the "fat" rear suspension units that immediately became known as "jampots". They were an improvement over the slimmer versions as the internal pressure was lower but was still prone to variable damping as the temperature changed.

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