The New And Improved Unofficial R65 Forum V2
Technical Discussion => Discussion about "Lesser" makes, er, Non-BMW ;-) => Topic started by: thrang on April 16, 2016, 12:53:00 PM
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I've just added a new friend to my shed, a 1956 BSA Shooting Star, a bike I have been after for many years because when I was 'knee high to a grasshopper' my dad had one and it was the first bike I ever sat on/was taken for a ride on. (Sat on the tank holding he handle bars in front of my dad doing probably 20 or 30 mph riding round the block, ah the joys of a world before health safety and child endangerment laws!)
Cosmetically the Beeza is immaculate but as its been sat in a central heated house and not run for six years the engine needs refreshing and the mag is deader than David Cameron's reputation as an honest man....
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Beautiful bike !!!!
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I like BSAs It is a nice looking bike and the good thing is there are plenty of spares for them.
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Very nice. Would not mind one off those myself.
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Even the wife is not as annoyed about me getting another bike as I expected, result! I do have to shift her old GS 450 from its place to fit the Beeza in, but as that is going to a new owner tomorrow it's all worked out rather well... Now I just have to get the pretty lady working, so I've ordered a gasket set and seals, along with a set of points, plugs and carb kit from TMS in Nottingham, so hopefully it won't be long before I hear the music of her peashooters.
http://www.tms-motorcycles.co.uk/
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I don't like the full width hubs and crossover rear brake on that model, otherwise gorgeous!
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Crikey what a lovely bike.
O have too many BSA’s and only one BMW.
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That's a beautiful looking bike. Old enough that they won't have over tuned it at the expense of vibration and reliability.
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I don't think I've seen a Beezer on the road for 30-40 years, or so. In the mid 70s I used to ride around with a group where one of the members had one.
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I don't think I've seen a Beezer on the road for 30-40 years, or so. In the mid 70s I used to ride around with a group where one of the members had one.
I rode an M20 BSA home from our last restorer's club meeting for the owner who was feeling a little poorly. Gee but modern motorcycles (even from the 70s and 80s) are wonderful. I've come to the conclusion I was a lot tougher 44 off years ago when I started riding motorcycles, I could not get off the thing fast enough.
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Sorry to hijack the thread Tony Shaw but since the title is appropriate for me too....
New in my shed - a mate's Pantah 500SL that I got going for him and tuned, then bought it off him and recommissioned to road worthiness. She's just on the road. Have to say that my rebuilt twin F05's are pretty shite compared to a single F08. I've got new pads to put in, will have to try them and I guess braided lines would probably make a difference. She's an ex track bike, the exhaust note can probably be heard 1km away, she sounds pretty meaty! Great to ride around the hills in my area.
They are supposed to have a fairing on the front with a rather large windshield but I prefer the look of it without the fairing. So far what I've noticed riding it (I've only had a couple of decent goes) is that it's not as flick-able as the R65. But I'm only just starting to try some 'spirited' riding, compared to being well used to what the R65 can do (which I quite often leave some of my mates behind on the tight and twisties)
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I have a friend who recently got rid of one after a lot of work. Had trouble getting it sorted and it eventually drove him to distraction. He is safely back on his GSA now.
Is the black on the tank original? I do like them with the fairing and always looked at the red and green model as a mini MHR.
Many years ago whilst at the IOM TT, I passed up the opportunity to purchase a painting of the late Mike Hailwood by a local artist whilst having a pint in a pub. You've only just reminded me of that!
On that same trip, I did get to visit the Wynne Racing garage near Cheshire(?) and test rode their 900SS (red and white one) demo bike but had to travel to Padgett's at Preston to do so.
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I fear my sister has gone completely over to the dark side.
In the 80s she had an 860GT, then a Pantah, followed by a Monster. More recently she has a Multistrada for day to day riding and a 916 for playing.
And now this of all things!
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Sweet Jesus that's shiny! Wow there we go, a proper MHR. Wonder what it rides like? Can you keep up on the GSA Tony?
Is the black on the tank original? I do like them with the fairing and always looked at the red and green model as a mini MHR.
Hi Burt, the tank and bodywork's off a 350 Pantah, I've got the 350 fairing which I might try out, after I've got the suspension and charging sorted ;D
I've also got the 500 tank and fairing. Not sure if I'll keep it, see how it goes.
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Sweet Jesus that's shiny! Wow there we go, a proper MHR. Wonder what it rides like? Can you keep up on the GSA Tony?
I doubt it. She lives 2,000km away and she spends a lot of time on the 916 at the race track. Her racing leathers have "You got passed by a girl - get over it! on the back.
The last time we rode together was a couple of years back on hired RE Continental GTs - to be honest I couldn't keep up with her and much as I'd like to claim unfamilarity with the roads I reckon she had me covered.
More recently I can repport that the the GSA and I could not keep up with the Multistrada going up the Gillies.
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Hey that's awesome on two accounts Tony - first is your family is obviously motorcycle mad and secondly that you're totally cool with the racing sister situation, respect!
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Hey that's awesome on two accounts Tony - first is your family is obviously motorcycle mad and secondly that you're totally cool with the racing sister situation, respect!
My father had a 500cc Guzzi in the 50s and his best mate and later brother in law had a BMW R68. Father sold the Guzzi shortly after I was born, but clearly regretted doing so. In the 80s he very nearly bought a Guzzi Le Mans but two things quelled that. Firstly my mother's protest and secondly he took my then "main" bike - a Kawasaki GPZ1100 for a ride. He was gone about two hours and came back as white as a sheet, he had clearly got a fright but has refused to say what happened - ever. To my knowledge he has never ridden a motorcycle again.
To roll forward to 2018, my sister as already discussed has a fleet of Ducatis, my younger brother has a KTM 1290 and some 1500cc Kawasaki thing which he tells me is the cat's pajamas.
Actually younger brother is the truly mad one, he is somethere in the middle 30s ranking in the Australian far-riders clique and does crazy things like leave Cairns at 3 am and make Bamaga (tip of Cape York) in time for dinner that day. His idea of an "easy" day on bitumen is around 1500~ 1800km (I do 1,000km in a day and spend the next year congratulating myself). If you frequent the Bike Me pages and read the rot that Boris writes, he mentions younger brother frequently, referrign to him as "the sin bosun" in recognition of his profession as a navy chaplin.
A quick and funny aside. some years ago, again in the 80s, our father was a State MP at the time and joined a committee whose aim was to ban all motorcycles bigger than 750cc from Queensland. They had their reasons, but like most politicians they missed the point - the bikes were not dangerous, but letting 18 years old ride them was - at least now we have a more sensible licencing system.
But I digress, the three of us ganged up on him and siad that we would book a photo op with a journalist known to be antagonistic to his political party unless he resigned from the committee. At the time I had the GPZ1100 and the R100RS, my sister had a CB1100R and younger brother had the ex-sister Ducati 860. it would not have been a good look for him.
As far as my sister racing goes she says she actually envies me, I went racing in my 20s and had a "last hurrah" in my 30s. She one the other hand didn't start racing until she was in her 40s and now in her late 50s she is acutely aware of where the "line" is that sensible older people do not cross. i can attest from personal experience that she is still pretty quick whereas I concentrate these days on trying to be as smooth as silk, funnily enough I am not too much slower than the fast young people - they have enough time to stop and light a smoke before I arrive over the approximately 18km of the Gillies range.
Strangely I find that riding at about 7/10ths of what I think I could still do if I were silly enough is more than satisfying enough for me.
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Nice Beeser.
My first bike was a 61 Matchless G12 650 back in in old Blighty.
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Hey that's awesome on two accounts Tony - first is your family is obviously motorcycle mad and secondly that you're totally cool with the racing sister situation, respect!
My father had a 500cc Guzzi in the 50s and his best mate and later brother in law had a BMW R68. Father sold the Guzzi shortly after I was born, but clearly regretted doing so. In the 80s he very nearly bought a Guzzi Le Mans but two things quelled that. Firstly my mother's protest and secondly he took my then "main" bike - a Kawasaki GPZ1100 for a ride. He was gone about two hours and came back as white as a sheet, he had clearly got a fright but has refused to say what happened - ever. To my knowledge he has never ridden a motorcycle again.
To roll forward to 2018, my sister as already discussed has a fleet of Ducatis, my younger brother has a KTM 1290 and some 1500cc Kawasaki thing which he tells me is the cat's pajamas.
Actually younger brother is the truly mad one, he is somethere in the middle 30s ranking in the Australian far-riders clique and does crazy things like leave Cairns at 3 am and make Bamaga (tip of Cape York) in time for dinner that day. His idea of an "easy" day on bitumen is around 1500~ 1800km (I do 1,000km in a day and spend the next year congratulating myself). If you frequent the Bike Me pages and read the rot that Boris writes, he mentions younger brother frequently, referrign to him as "the sin bosun" in recognition of his profession as a navy chaplin.
A quick and funny aside. some years ago, again in the 80s, our father was a State MP at the time and joined a committee whose aim was to ban all motorcycles bigger than 750cc from Queensland. They had their reasons, but like most politicians they missed the point - the bikes were not dangerous, but letting 18 years old ride them was - at least now we have a more sensible licencing system.
But I digress, the three of us ganged up on him and siad that we would book a photo op with a journalist known to be antagonistic to his political party unless he resigned from the committee. At the time I had the GPZ1100 and the R100RS, my sister had a CB1100R and younger brother had the ex-sister Ducati 860. it would not have been a good look for him.
As far as my sister racing goes she says she actually envies me, I went racing in my 20s and had a "last hurrah" in my 30s. She one the other hand didn't start racing until she was in her 40s and now in her late 50s she is acutely aware of where the "line" is that sensible older people do not cross. i can attest from personal experience that she is still pretty quick whereas I concentrate these days on trying to be as smooth as silk, funnily enough I am not too much slower than the fast young people - they have enough time to stop and light a smoke before I arrive over the approximately 18km of the Gillies range.
Strangely I find that riding at about 7/10ths of what I think I could still do if I were silly enough is more than satisfying enough for me.
I did rather enjoy reading your missive Tony! I think I would like your entire family!!