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Triumph Collector Stumbles Across Ultimate Collectible, the 1901 Prototype

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from https://www.autoevolution.com/ by Daniel Patrascu At the turn of the last century, a time when horse-drawn carriages turned into automobiles and bicycles into motorcycles, most of the companies active back then wanted a piece of the new action, and turned their businesses around to include the production of the new mechanical wonders. So did a British enterprise that went by the name Triumph Engineering, which used to make bicycles. Which, if you come to think of it, are just like motorcycles, only without engines, hence easy to re-make. And that’s exactly what Triumph did with one of its bikes, fitting it with a Minerva engine and opening the doors to a history that has spanned so far for 120 years. That production motorized two-wheeler came to be in 1902, but as you can imagine, a prototype had to be made before that. A prototype that, like many others of its kind, was considered lost for a long time, despite rumors surrounding its existence floating around. Extremely conveniently-timed, the first 1901 Triumph motorcycle prototype just resurfaced, having been uncovered by a collector named Dick Shepherd, and put back into the spotlight by the company itself. According to the available details, attesting to the motorcycle’s authenticity are the engine number, “consistent with references in Minerva’s engine records of a 1901 first Triumph engagement,” and a “letter from Triumph, dated in 1937, that outlined the bike’s unique origins and provided key details.” As far as we understand, the bike was uncovered some time ago, as the collector had time to restore it. “As a lifelong passionate fan of the history and achievements of this incredible British brand, to have discovered this amazing survivor and restored it to the glorious condition it would have been in when it first went on display in 1901, […]

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Film Critic and Essayist Hans Schifferle Put Together a Tasteful Rare Motorcycle Stable

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by Todd Halterman from https://www.autoevolution.com Hans Schifferle, the film critic and essayist, died at the age of 63 in April of this year, and during the 1980’s he cut an imposing figure. Schifferle walked the streets clad in leather and often arrived on one of his motorcycles. Hans Schifferle moved through the world in an unpretentious way and loved films and actors like Audrey Hepburn in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Schifferle spent his days writing, talking smack in the foyer of the Munich Film Museum, or tipping a drink on the stairs of the workshop cinema. Schifferle, born in 1957 in Munich, spent a good stretch of his career writing the Süddeutsche Zeitung and for fan and trade magazines like Steadycam. He also penned innumerable articles for books and catalogs and, like so many cinéphiles of his generation, he found inspiration from the writings of Frieda Grafe. As a ticket-taker at the Munich Film Museum, Schifferle tore off the stubs before he attended screenings himself. And if you had the pleasure of drinking a dark beer with him and listening as he raved about films, you began to understand cinema as a school of life. He was a child of privilege and lived in an apartment which also served as a salon of sorts. His means also allowed him to collect some of the most interesting and fantastic motorcycles in history. And his obsession with motorcycles allowed him to put together a superb collection. One of those bikes was a Ducati 750SS, a version of the bike Paul Smart rode to his famous victory at Imola in 1972. That machine put the esthetically beautiful and speedy Ducati v-twin on the map. During that race, Smart defeated a long list of the hottest machines of the day, from the Triumph Tridents to

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What is Hub-center Steering Motorcycle & Why it is Better

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by Todd Halterman from https://www.autoevolution.com Hub-center steering is one of several different types of front-end suspension and steering mechanisms used in motorcycles and cargo bicycles. It is essentially a mechanism that uses steering pivot points inside the wheel hub rather than a geometry that places the wheel in a headstock like the traditional motorcycle layout. Perhaps the most venerable example of the idea came in the form of the 1930 Majestic. This Georges Roy design used a novel pressed-steel monocoque chassis, and it incorporated an automotive-type chassis with hub-center steering. Other bikes had already used the configuration in such machines as the Ner-A-Car and the Zenith Auto-Bi, but the Majestic made it lovely to behold. Another bike, the Vyrus 984 C3 2V Razzetto, was one such motorcycle that used hub-center geometry. Vyrus is a small Italian motorcycle manufacturer based in Coriano, Italy, and their bikes such as the “Tesi” – Thesis in Italian – had their designs originate from a university engineering project linked to the motorcycle legend Massimo Tamburini. The Tesi, and the Vyrus 984, were instantly identifiable by their use of their hub-center steering front suspension and steering arrangement. Those fabulously expensive bespoke motorcycles have been called “functional works of art,” and they look a bit like something you might see in a video game. In hub-centered bikes, the front wheel is attached to a swingarm with a shock and an internal pivot point. Steering is achieved using those linkages to turn the wheel on a pivot point. Hub-center steering has been employed on motorcycles for more than a century, but the design, despite what some engineers say offers a distinct advantage, never took hold. But the founder of Vyrus, Ascanio Rodorigo, once worked for Bimota as a race mechanic and engineer during the 1970s and his tenure

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Richard Schultz collection of Vintage Motorcycles on display

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by Earl Horlyk from https://siouxcityjournal.com The Betty Strong Encounter Center will rev up its engines as collector Richard Schultz brings his “Marvelous Motorcycles” to the center’s atrium Aug. 3-29. Among the vintage motorcycles will be a 1938 Indian 4-Cylinder and a 1941 Harley Davidson Military Prototype. A longtime rider from Le Mars, Iowa, Schultz began restoring vintage antique motorcycles and cars beginning in the late 1960s. Schultz has been active in the Antique Motorcycle Club of America for more than 48 years and was its former national director. In addition, he has published two books for enthusiasts, including one about Henderson Motorcycles, that featured a forward by Jay Leno. Admission to the Betty Strong Encounter Center and the adjoining Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center is free. For information on the center’s programs, call 712-224-5242.

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Final-Year 1947 Harley-Davidson FL Knucklehead on auction

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com How do you prefer you vintage Harley motorcycle? Do you like them restored to their former shine, or would you rather go for some modifications to make them unique, but somehow spoil them in the process? Well, if you’re a collector, there’s only one possible answer to that. At the end of April, auction house Mecum will be holding its massive, annual motorcycle auction in Las Vegas. This year, a prominent presence on the auction block is that of an impressive Harley-Davidson collection belonging to a single, Tacoma, Washington resident museum owner by the name of J.C. Burgin. The incredibly well preserved 1947 Harley-Davidson FL Knucklehead we have here is part of the collection. It entered Burgin’s possession all the way in 1983, and then underwent a careful restoration process that left the two-wheeler looking like it does now. Wrapped in blue on the body parts that support paint, the two-wheeler retains the chrome shine the bike maker envisioned it for the Knucklehead engine. Most of the FL’s original hardware was preserved, from the front fender lamp to the horn cover. There’s even a red ball tank emblem in there for effect. The motorcycle is powered by the same powertrain back when it was made, meaning a 74ci unit running a four-speed transmission. The fact that this bike comes from 1947 might boost its price a bit in the upcoming auction. That was the last year of production for the Knucklehead, as starting 1948, the era of the Panhead began. For reference, back in its day, a motorcycle such as this sold new for around $600 – that would be roughly $7,000 adjusted for inflation. Now, of course, they sell for a hell of a lot more on the collector’s market. For this particular 1947

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Classic motorcycle ridden by George Lazenby has emerged for sale for £30,000

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by Faith Ridler from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/ On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: Classic motorcycle ridden by George Lazenby to the set of his only James Bond film goes on sale for £30,000 George Lazenby bought BSA Rocket III in 1969 and rode it on 17-mile commute He lived in Bayswater, London while filming On Her Majesty’s Secret Service Mr Lazenby, now 80, sold his motorcycle after the release of the sixth Bond film A classic motorcycle which George Lazenby used to ride to the set of his only James Bond film has emerged for sale for £30,000. The actor bought the BSA Rocket III in 1969 and rode it on his 17-mile commute from Bayswater, London to Pinewood Studios near Slough, Berkshire during filming for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Mr Lazenby, now 80, went on to sell the motorcycle after the release of the sixth James Bond film later that year. The Australian actor was the second to play the British secret service agent after Sean Connery in You Only Live Twice, who took on the role again in the 1971 film Diamonds Are Forever. Little is known about what happened to the bike after it was sold by Mr Lazenby until it was bought by its current owner, a collector based in Kent, in 2007. The unnamed vendor only discovered the machine was previously owned by the actor when he approached the BSA Owners Club, who revealed Mr Lazenby bought the motorcycle new in the 1960s. The collector has now fully restored the bike, with an engine and gearbox rebuild, new chrome and a repaint. During the restoration, a sidecar which had been installed after Mr Lazenby sold the bike was also removed. It will now be sold by Charterhouse Auctions in Sherborne, Dorset – who say they are expecting

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Exclusive in the Cantina

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Hall of Fame Collector Cards Honoring Those Who Support Motorcycling By Rogue I was using the 2019 Official Sturgis Publication put out by the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum to make sure I had information correct in the article I was doing on the Hall Of Fame Induction Breakfast. If you went to Sturgis, I hope you picked up a copy, if not you may want to contact the museum and see if they have any left. www.sturgismuseum.com CLICK HERE TO READ THE REPORT – ONLY IN THE CANTINA New Chassis, Engine & Design: Harley-Davidson introduces Next Custom Revolution with Eight New Iconic Softail Motorcycles What are the benefits of the new Softail Frame over the old Dyna Configuration? By Bandit and Harley-Davidson To celebrate Harley-Davidson’s 115th Anniversary year, the Motor Company is launching a custom revolution: Eight all-new Softail® models that merge the hard-riding performance of the Dyna® line with the unparalleled custom look of the Softail line. CLICK HERE TO READ THE REPORT – ONLY IN THE CANTINA SUBSCRIBE to the Cantina Today – Click Here to pay securely online https://www.bikernet.com/pages/custom/subscription.aspx All the best motorcycline features, only at Bandit’s Cantina

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