The BSA M20 was just part of BSA’s massive wartime contribution to Britain’s war effort. But it was a very...
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Suzuki Motorcycles IN THE BEGINNING Suzuki Motorcycles was founded by Michio Suzuki, who opened a small loom business (weaving fabric)...
SUNBEAM MOTORCYCLE BOOKS Sunbeam built unique motorcycles, like nothing on the market at the time. Check out all the great books we have about Sunbeams. We have a wide selection of books about Sunbeam history, photo exposes, shop manuals, restoration guides and much more. If you’ve been looking for that...
1948 Norton Manx 1948 NORTON MANX BACKGROUND The Norton Manx was developed in 1937, in both SOHC and DOHC form,...
ABOVE: This 1952 BSA A7 featured plunger rear suspension, the transition between earlier rigid frames & the swing arm frames...
1962 Norton Manx 1962 NORTON MANX BACKGROUND The Norton Manx was developed in 1937, in both SOHC and DOHC form, to compete in and win the Isle of Man TT. Before fully developed, World War II intervened, and production of the Manx was delayed until 1946. The Manx quickly gained...
Solvang Vintage Motorcycle Museum SOLVANG VINTAGE MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM Solvang is a beautiful little town in Southern California, in the hills...
MILITARY ROOTS Long before the first Triumph Trophy came out in 1948, Triumph Motorcycles were cutting their teeth in the...
1959 Norton Manx 1959 NORTON MANX BACKGROUND The Norton Manx was developed in 1937, in both SOHC and DOHC form, to compete in and win the Isle of Man TT. Before fully developed, World War II intervened, and production of the Manx was delayed until 1946. The Manx quickly gained...
THE NORTON COMMANDO SS WAS A STREET SCRAMBLER Today, the differences between types of bikes within a given brand can...
1953 Norton Manx 1953 NORTON MANX BACKGROUND The Norton Manx was developed in 1937, in both SOHC and DOHC form,...
1949 Norton Manx 1949 NORTON MANX BACKGROUND The Norton Manx was developed in 1937, in both SOHC and DOHC form, to compete in and win the Isle of Man TT. Before fully developed, World War II intervened, and production of the Manx was delayed until 1946. The Manx quickly gained...
1952 Norton Manx 1952 NORTON MANX BACKGROUND The Norton Manx was developed in 1937, in both SOHC and DOHC form,...
THE HORSEPOWER RACE IS ON The BSA A10 was the inevitable result of the relentless drive for more & more...
1939 Triumph Tiger 100, first year for this hot new model. Note Rigid frame & girder front suspension. A TIGER IS BORN The Triumph Tiger was the natural evolution of the constant & relentless quest for more & more power. The <a href=”https://www.classic-british-motorcycles.com/triumph-speed-twin.html”>Triumph Speed Twin</a> had literally changed the motorcycle...
ROYAL ENFIELD MOTORCYCLE BOOKS Royal Enfield built fast, sturdy motorcycles like the single-cylinder 350 & 500 Bullet, and the Interceptor...
ABOVE: The Rio Vista-Delta Ride 2018 started in the parking lot of the Municipal Pier in Rio Vista CA. People...
1953 Matchless G9 500 Twin 1953 MATCHLESS G9 BACKGROUND Like everyone else in the British motorcycle industry at the time, when Triumph rocked the world with their 1938 Speed Twin, the world’s first modern 500cc vertical twin, AMC (Associated Motor Cycles), parent company of Matchless, and AJS, developed a new...
1955 Matchless G9B 1955 MATCHLESS G9B BACK STORY The 1955 Matchless G9B has an interesting history, that is also very...
1956 Matchless G9 500 Twin 1956 MATCHLESS G9 BACKGROUND Matchless Motorcycles cut their teeth on the depressed British home market,...
1958 Ariel Huntmaster 1958 ARIEL HUNTMASTER BACKGROUND Ariel was owned by the Sangster family, failed a few times, then ended up in the hands of young Jack Sangster. Ariel was his entry into the British motorcycle industry, something that would have profound effects on it. He did so well selling...
1961 Triumph Speed Twin 1961 TRIUMPH SPEED TWIN HAS A “BATHTUB” The British home market had been hungry for cheap...
1949 Triumph T100 Tiger 1949 TRIUMPH T100 TIGER LEADS THE PACK At the end of World War II, civilian production...
1949 Vincent Rapide 1949 VINCENT RAPIDE BACKGROUND Vincent built its reputation on it’s robust 499cc Comet single. Prior to the war, they figured out that if they doubled it, they could create a 998cc V-twin and the series A Vincent Rapide was born. Few were built prior to World War...
1956 Triumph Blackbird ABOVE: The 1956 Triumph Blackbird was essentially a 6T Thunderbird painted black. This earned it the name...
1968 Triumph Daytona 500 1968 TRIUMPH DAYTONA – WHAT’S IN A NAME? Triumph derived the name of this bike from...
1947 Norton 350T 1947 NORTON 350T BACKGROUND Right after the War, all the British motorcycle manufacturers were gearing back up for civilian production and many were competing in various forms of racing. Road racing, various forms of off-road racing, and trials. Norton revived its last trials bike, used in the...
1963 Royal Enfield Interceptor 1963 ROYAL ENFIELD INTERCEPTOR BACKGROUND Royal Enfield hopped up its 692cc Constellation and created a new...
1962 BSA A65 1962 BSA A65 – NEW UNIT TWIN After 15 years of great success with their pre-unit twins,...
1938 Velocette KSS 1938 VELOCETTE KSS AT THE CUTTING EDGE The Velocette KSS debuted in 1925 as an OHC (overhead cam) 350cc air-cooled single. Being OHC placed it at the cutting edge of engine technology at a time when most machines still used side-valve designs or pushrods. The name KSS...
1964 Triumph Thunderbird 1964 TRIUMPH THUNDERBIRD AS A COMMUTER? When the 6T Thunderbird launched in 1950, it was the first...
1938 Velocette MAC 1938 VELOCETTE MAC BACKGROUND Velocette, while a relatively small motorcycle company, was always known for it innovative...
1958 BSA A10 Pre-Unit 650 Twin 1958 BSA A10 BACKGROUND BSA’s A10 was the 650 version in it’s twin cylinder heavyweight line. The 500cc version was called the A7. Following Triumph‘s success with its seminal 500 Speed Twin, after the war, BSA and most of the rest of the British...
1956 Triumph Thunderbird ABOVE: This 1956 Triumph Thunderbird wearing black livery was nicknamed “Blackbird” by the public and it stuck....
1966 Norton Atlas 1966 NORTON ATLAS HISTORY The story starts not with a Norton at all, but with the 1938...
1959 Triumph Tiger Cub 1959 TRIUMPH TIGER CUB BACKGROUND The 200cc T20 Tiger Cub was produced from 1956 through 1968 and sold quite well for Triumph. The original Cub was introduced in 1953 at the Earls Court Motorcycle Show in London England as a 150cc commuter, at a time when...
1975 Rickman 250MX 1975 RICKMAN 250MX – LAST OF THE BREED After a brilliant career that started in 1959 with...
1970 Royal Enfield Interceptor 1970 ROYAL ENFIELD INTERCEPTOR BACKGROUND Royal Enfield hopped up its 692cc Constellation and created a new...
1939 BSA Silver Star 1939 BSA SILVER STAR BACKGROUND The brilliant engineer Val Page designed BSA’s new 500 single in 1937, while at the same time bringing some rationale to BSA’s complex product lineup. It was now made up of 250 and 350 singles in what was called the “B-class”,...
1957 Triumph Thunderbird 1957 TRIUMPH THUNDERBIRD IS THE COOKING VERSION The 1957 Triumph Thunderbird was fast becoming the ‘ugly sister’...