Northern Soul Girl Dancing in the Street

Our friend Fran put this on his Facebook page a few weeks ago and just thought I'd post it on here as it's such a pleasant / happy little video and coincidentally the Staple Hill area is just a 5 minute walk from here.

Many years ago we were in a Tapas Bar here in Bristol on a quiet Sunday night when a Spanish tourist suddenly got up and started to Flamenco dance to the background music being played and after 5 minutes her boyfriend joined her. It just put a smile ( before anybody says anything,yes even mine ! ) on everybody's face.

SPOOKY !!

 Tony's girlfriend Kay showed me this picture a few weeks ago of a hotel that her parents have recently bought in Tombstone, Arizona. A relatively innocent looking photo of the downstairs area that looks like a saloon bar from a old Western. Take a close look at the chair behind the table and make of it what you will.

Italianmotormagazine Lodola For Sale

Adam at Italianmotormagazine sent me a couple of photo's of his Barn Find Lodola that he has decided to sell. It's in a very nice unrestored condition see it here at http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C457
  I just hope this link address works this time !

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Guzzi Cafe Special - Square Barrels round.....ish

The cylinder head fins are repaired and the square fins rounded off a little. I had the barrels fine grit blasted at a powder coaters and my friend Martin very kindly took my heads and rocker covers into work and grit / bead blasted those. Last week I gave them all a good clean out with a air line,a cleaning solution and then the airline again. I have also started to clean up the piston crowns and combustion chamber / valves

I first rounded the edges of some square barrels 12 - 13 years ago and that engine
is in my touring bike (languishing in the garage and not been anywhere for too many years)

I am not trying to make it look like a early round barrel Guzzi but just something that looks
a little different

Finally it's out of the Living room
(Madelyn's Happy.......at least until I get my other frame back !)

Before I got them blasted, Martin (my Saviour) drilled and tapped these in the heads for a breather.
 No idea why Guzzi stopped putting this in on the 1100 Sport
It certainly won't do any harm

I also have these in my collection acquired a number of years ago.
Standard 950cc Square barrels properly machined down unlike my filed down ones

Bloody Painful !

My friend Mark in Hollister (Marlon Brando-The Wild One etc) had a accident on his Cali  4 - 5 months back. Riding home on the backroads in the San Luis Obispo area (Pacific Coast Highway) he came around a corner to find a Off Road style bike coming the opposite way, but slightly too far over on his side of the road. Mark took avoiding action only to find himself sprawled out on the road.
 He still doesn't really know how he ended up off the bike as he said that his action to avoid the other rider wasn't that dramatic.
  I know a lot of those back roads are very twisty,bumpy and gravel strewn but I also know Mark is a very good rider and handles that Cali very well (Tony and I have ridden down a stretch of Highway 1 and some of those very similar back roads with him)
 Anyway,the result was a very serious double break to the Collar bone and a few months off work.Although the bike wasn't too badly damaged he took the full payout as it was such a good offer.

Ouch !!

Nourish T140 Triumph - Finding Nemo

Martin decided to have a go at painting his Triumph tank himself using his recently acquired old HUGE compressor, that no only did he get up and running properly again with new parts but also externally restored the outside to as new condition.
  As you can see from the pics he's done a great job,using two pack paint, especially for his first attempt at proper spraying. (ie non aerosol cans) 

Do you get my reference to 'Finding Nemo' ? 

Something else he made month's ago - a engine breather from copper and brass
that he had nickel plated.
Any excess oil is used to lubricate the chain

Moto Guzzi Cylinder Head Fins repaired

I am finally going to get on with my Guzzi project that has sat against the dining / living room wall for the past 18 months.
 Most of the actual frame mods etc have been finished for quite a while and I finally started cleaning up the 1100Sport engine that I will using and also filing round the square finning of the barrels and heads. Also had to get a few fins repaired one of which was particularly badly broken. I shall be getting them vapour blasted too for the final touch.

Mojave Desert

My friend Tim,from Las Vegas,took a spin out on his Cali Jackal last Sunday to Nipton California which is a short round trip of 150miles. Not sure if he bought any Lottery tickets while he was there as that is the place he goes if he wants any,as,bizarrely, you can't buy any in Sin City or in the State of Nevada.

No trains a comin'

Arrow straight !

Some Joshua trees over on the left.

I know straight roads like this don't appeal to everybody but I think it would be great to have,on your doorstep, the option of a pleasant 75 degree winter ride when you haven't really got to worry too much about traffic and people pulling out of side roads etc

Italianmotor magazine Stornello Street Scrambler 160

Adam  sent me a pic of his very nice Stornello Street Scrambler 160 a few days ago which he has recently finished and which is now ready to sell. so contact him below

http://www.italianmotormagazine.com/

Josh Ritter - St Georges Bristol

I am meeting up with my friend Fran this evening to go and see Josh Ritter at St Georges (originally built as a church in the late 1800's) which is in the centre of Bristol.

I have four of his albums,including his latest, but my favourite is still The Animal Years

Moto Guzzi V7 Sport project and other stuff

When I took Pete's S3 back to him today I was able to catch up with what else he has been up to.
Originally he was going to build a V7 Sport replica and then 18 months or so ago he acquired a genuine V7 Sport frame,engine,gearbox and swing arm and then a mild obsession started.
   He's managed to purchase a pair of drum brake wheels,drivebox amongst other parts from the USA and Italy (the postage and customs fees from America were fairly crippling)  HE IS ON THE LOOKOUT FOR SOME DRUM BRAKE FORKS OR AT THE VERY LEAST THE BOTTOM SLIDERS.
As you will see from the pics below Pete has some clever solutions and a few good contacts.

Struggling to find original tool boxes he bought some
850T ones and removed the lids.

Contacts at work - a friend made a former and this was pressed out.

Once painted and fitted would anybody spot the difference?

 Pete needs some welding done on the underneath of his
Austin Healey Sprite

In the past few months Pete has had a few ideas to turn his Mille into a more practical 'go to work ' bike.
One idea was putting on a Spada fairing ,tank etc,the other a Leman III (He has the parts for both)
Now he's been sidelined with the original parts that he'd had painted years ago for a V7 Sport type /replica
that he was planning before getting his hands on the genuine frame etc.
The flip up rear mudguard is made from a T3 item

He bought the leman I tank (with aircraft filler cap) from me years ago.
John Williams replica V7 Sport side panels with V2 logo
Race silencers which I sold him ages ago that he has just had baffles put in.
I'll be interested to hear those as they were incredibly loud originally.

Moto Guzzi S3

I had my friend Pete's Guzzi S3 here for a couple of days to service it - check valve clearances,timing and all oil's and filter and to take it for a Mot. Not sure why really as he is more than capable himself, but I think it was just a time factor.
He actually bought it off of me 13 - 14 years ago as a very low mileage (12,000mls +) but rusting hunk of metal looking like it had been pulled out of stream. 
Over the years he has piled on the miles as he uses it for commuting from Chepstow to Bristol all year round.
The clock might read 25,000+ miles (this is the original) but has had another fitted for a time which has another 25 -30,000 on it plus he has over the years had plenty of other bikes pass through his hands.

Not quite standard but who cares !

Ultimate Bike Paint of Keynsham paintwork has stood up well
as has the 36 -37 year old paint on the top yoke.

 

Worst Scooter Driver Ever !

My friend Martin sent me this link.http://biertijd.com/mediaplayer/?itemid=41302****

More photo's from the Bike Shed Event

The Bike Shed Eevent

I went to the Bike Shed Event in Shoreditch, London yesterday. Dutch,the organiser of the event,had originally offered me space to display one or two of my bikes but I couldn't commit to the weekend.
Anyway,if you like 'Specials' of all shapes, sizes,makes and models then it's really worth a visit.
Relatively easy to find on a bike - I went more or less straight to it - Euston,St Pancras and Kings Cross stations are not too far away too.