600 – 1000cc
1976 Triumph TR7
1976 Triumph TR7 1976 TRIUMPH TR7 IS A FIRST The 1976 model year was the first full model year under the newly-formed, worked-owned Meriden Co-op. It was also the first year that the big twins (Bonneville and TR7 went to left-foot-shift, as mandated by US law. It was a big change to have to make …
1959 Triumph TR6
1959 Triumph TR6 1959 TRIUMPH TR6 NOMENCLATURE 1959 was the last year that the TR6 did not carry a letter designation after it. Starting with model-year 1960, the TR6 model line split in two, with the TR6/A being the low-piped street version and the TR6/B the high-piped dirt bike. But for 1959, it was still …
1971 Triumph TR6
1971 Triumph TR6 The 1971 Triumph TR6 saw the introduction of the new oil-bearing frame & all new cycle gear. This photo is of a ’71 TR6 Tiger. The TR6 had a single carburetor while the Bonneville had two. ABOVE: Everything was all-new on the ’71 TR6 and Bonneville, except the engine. The new oil-bearing …
1963 Triumph TR6
1963 Triumph TR6 1963 TRIUMPH TR6 BY THE NUMBERS The only model for 1963 was the Triumph TR6 S/S (Street Scrambler). Engine numbers ran from DU102 to DU5790 with build dates running from Sept. 29, 1962 to August 14, 1963. UNIT CONSTRUCTION FINALLY HITS THE 650s Unit Construction, all the rage in the late 1950s …
1963 BSA A65
1963 BSA A65 NEW MODELS The 1963 BSA A65 was, of course, the second model year of the new unit construction BSA twins, the 500cc A50, and the 650cc A65, which had replaced the very successful pre-unit A7 (500) & A10 (650) in 1962. BSA was very conservative in the new machine’s configuration, as was …
1970 Triumph TR6
1970 Triumph TR6 1970 TRIUMPH TR6 BY THE NUMBERS For 1970, the Triumph TR6 was again known as “Tiger”, as the single carb twin would continue to be known, even beyond the switch from 650 to 750. But for the 1970 model year, there were 4 models in the TR6 lineup: The standard TR6, Roadster …
1958 Ariel Square Four
1958 Ariel Square Four 1958 ARIEL SQUARE FOUR – GETTING LONG IN THE TOOTH Alas, the world was changing, and with it the motorcycle market. The Ariel Square 4 designed decades before, was keyed to another age, one where acceleration and all-out top speed weren’t as important as smoothness and reliability. Hence the Square Four …
1948 Vincent Rapide
1948 Vincent Rapide Series B 1948 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 2, which curtailed …
1954 BSA A10
1954 BSA A10 Pre-Unit 650 Twin 1954 BSA A10 Golden Flash 1954 BSA A10 BACKGROUND Like every other British motorcycle manufacturer at the time, BSA was following Triumph’s lead in the parallel twin race. Triumph introduced the first parallel twin, the 500 Speed Twin in 1938, but World War II intervened, curtailing all civilian production. …
1965 BSA A65
1965 BSA A65 1965 BSA A65 LIGHTNING The Lightning was the high-performance roadster in the 1965 BSA A65 lineup, with twin Amal Monobloc carburetors and downswept pipes. In 1965, it was still running 6 volt electrics, its last year before converting over to 12 volts in ’66. The new-for-1962 unit-construction engine had started out rocky, …
1973 Triumph TR7
1973 Triumph TR7 1973 TRIUMPH TR7 BY THE NUMBERS 1973 was the first year for the new 750 twins, in both the single-carb Triumph TR6 and Bonneville lines. When punched out to a 750 (724cc or 744cc), the 650 TR6 Tiger became the Triumph TR7; and the 650 (649cc) T120 Bonneville became the T140 Bonneville …
1939 Vincent Rapide
1939 Vincent Rapide Series A 1939 VINCENT RAPIDE BACKGROUND Vincent head engineer Phil Irving was working on some tracings of the firm’s 499cc single cylinder engine in 1936. As things got moved around, two of the tracings lined up roughly in the shape of a V-twin. With a little cajoling, he quickly lined it up …
1967 Triumph TR6
1967 Triumph TR6 1967 Triumph TR6C Trophy 1967 TRUMPH TR6C TROPHY Triumph built two basic versions of the 650 TR6, the TR6C “Trophy” and the TR6R “Tiger”. The Trophy had high side pipes running along the left side and was set up for off-road use. The Tiger was the roadster version with down pipes, one …
1971 Triumph Trident
1971 Triumph Trident T150 THE 1971 TRIUMPH TRIDENT EVOLVES After 2 model years since it’s introduction in 1969, the novel Trident triple continued to evolve slowly, both mechanically and stylistically. On the styling front, the restyled 1971 Triumph Trident benefited from all the new cycle gear introduced on the also new and it’s stablemate, the …
1958 Triumph TR6
ABOVE: This 1958 Triumph TR6 Trophy features the optional twin high pipes, very popular in the US Market, which could replace the 2-into-1 side exhaust. 1958 TRIUMPH TR6 BY THE NUMBERS 1958 Engine/Frame Numbers: 011861 to 019244 Production Dates: October 10, 1957 to June 25, 1958 ENGINE CHANGES Early Delta Heads were prone to cracking …
1956 Triumph TR6
ABOVE: 1956 Triumph TR6 Trophy w/2-into-1 “siamesed” high exhaust running along the left side. TR6 BY THE NUMBERS 1956 Engine/Frame numbers: 70199 to 82797 Production Dates: August 8, 1955 to July 27, 1956 1956 TRIUMPH TR6 – THE NEW KID IN TOWN Triumph Motorcycles were on a roll in the 1950’s, with one hit after …
1965 Triumph TR6
The 1965 Triumph TR6 is a beautiful, graceful machine. This, however is a 1964 TR6SS, very similar to the ’65, as no photo was available of a ’65. HELP!! Got a ’65 TR6? Send us pictures of your bike! 1965 TRIUMPH TR6 BY THE NUMBERS There were four basic models of Triumph TR6 for 1965, …
1961 Triumph TR6
1961 TRIUMPH TR6 BY THE NUMBERS Gone was the previous “A” & “B” designations introduced in 1960. The new nomenclature was TR6R for ‘Roadster’ with low pipes & TR6C for ‘Competition’, the enduro version with high pipes. All went by the model name “Triumph Trophy”. 1961 Triumph TR6 engine & frame numbers run from D8432 …
Egli-Vincent
FRITZ EGLI & THE EGLI-VINCENT Fritz Egli was born in Switzerland in 1937, spent his early years motorcycle racing and building motorcycles, including frames of his own design. He opened his own shop in 1965 and began building modern cafe racers with 998cc Vincent Black Shadow V-twin engines and Egli-designed-and-built frames, dubbed the Egli-Vincent. Three …
Matchless G12
MATCHLESS G12 BACKGROUND Just prior to World War II, Triumph rocked the world with their seminal 500 Speed Twin, but the world had to wait for the war to end before the rest of the industry would have a chance to catch up. At war’s end, BSA was first to respond with their own 500cc …
Norton Commando
ABOVE: 1974 Norton Commando 850 Roadster. BIRTH OF THE COMMANDO While the Commando was a direct descendant of the the Norton Atlas & the Dominator line before that, the Commando was definitely not evolutionary. It was revolutionary, a true game-changer. Not because of some amazing new engine, not because it was all that faster than …
Triumph Trident
TRIUMPH TRIDENT: AHEAD OF THE CURVE? The story of the Triumph Trident and her sister-bike, the BSA Rocket 3, is one of the most interesting, and at the same time most exasperating, tales in all the annals of Classic British Motorcycles. Interesting because the Triumph Trident might actually have been one of the few instances …
Triumph Bonneville
ABOVE: This 1965 Triumph Bonneville represented Triumph and the Bonneville at its peak, and was one of the fastest bikes on the road in 1965. The Japanese hadn’t started building fast bikes yet, but they were coming. BONNEVILLE BACK-STORY While the first Bonneville hit the streets in 1959, the story hardly begins there. Triumph motorcycles …
1952 Ariel Square Four
1952 Ariel Square Four 1952 ARIEL SQUARE FOUR BACKGROUND The original Ariel Square Four was created by legendary engine designer, Edward Turner in 1930. In its original form, it displaced 500cc and had four cylinders arranged in a ‘square’. It was unusual in that it had two crankshafts, one behind the other, each with two …
1964 Norton Atlas
1964 Norton Atlas 1964 NORTON ATLAS BACKSTORY The story starts not with a Norton at all, but with the 1938 Triumph 500 Speed Twin, the world’s first “modern” vertical twin. The rest of the British motorcycle industry went nuts and rushed to field their own 500 twins. But WWII got in the way, putting things …
1953 Vincent Rapide
1953 Vincent Rapide Series C 1953 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 2, which curtailed …
1926 Brough Superior SS80
1926 BROUGH SUPERIOR SS80 WAS AN EARLY BIKE Brough Superior was established by George Brough in Nottingham, England in 1924. He bucked convention and rather than mass-producing huge volumes of identical machines, he designed every bike to meet the exact specifications of the customers. The bikes were literally ‘fit’ to the riders’ size, weight, needs …
2021 Aprilia Tuono 660 [Model Overview]
The Tuono Unleashed: The 2021 Aprilia Tuono 660 Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links Celebrated Italian motorcycle manufacturer Aprilia has seriously outdone itself lately. It recently announced that the new Tuono 660 would be available as part of the 2021 Aprilia line-up in North America. It’s a mid-sized sportbike that takes its DNA …
2021 Kawasaki Z900RS Cafe [Model Overview]
The 2021 Kawasaki Z900RS Cafe: Retro cafe vibes, modern cafe technology Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links Kawasaki’s 2021 Z900RS Cafe is a throwback to the lightweight, four-cylinder road rockets that raced between cafe stops in the 1960s and 1970s. A lowered seat height, raked back clip ons, and the aerodynamic headlight cowling …
2021 Suzuki GSX-S750Z / GSX-750Z ABS [Model Overview]
Sports Performance In A Street Package: The 2021 GSX-S750Z / ABS Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links The GSX-S750Z joins the 2021 Suzuki line-up with a few nice upgrades over the last model. It’s a powerful and muscular naked sportsbike that borrows a lot of its DNA from other Suzuki motorcycles, such as …
2021 Suzuki GSX-R1000 [Model Overview]
The King of Sportsbikes: The 2021 Suzuki GSX-R1000 Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links The Suzuki GSX-R1000 is one of the most famous Suzuki motorcycles ever made, and one of the most famous motorcycles of all time! It’s a powerful and recognizable sportsbike with a long and illustrious history. The 2021 Suzuki line-up …
2021 Aprilia RS 660 [Model Overview]
The 2021 Aprilia RS 660: High technology and Stunning Looks at a Middleweight Price Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links Aprilia Motorcycles says “If you want to go unnoticed, this is not the bike for you,” and as far as the 600cc sport bike segment goes, they could well be right. With its …
2022 Kawasaki KLR 650 Adventure [Model Overview]
Middleweight Adventurer: The 2022 Kawasaki KLR 650 Adventure Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links The KLR 650 Adventure is the top-spec KLR model in the 2021 Kawasaki line-up. It’s an impressive motorcycle that takes everything that we already love about the newly revived KLR 650 but fuses it with a shopping list of …
2022 Kawasaki KLR 650 Traveler [Model Overview]
The 2022 Kawasaki KLR 650 Traveler: A US Exclusive Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links The KLR 650 Traveler variant is exclusive to the US 2021 Kawasaki line-up. It’s not available in Canada, sadly. This model is almost identical to the base model KLR 650, though it features a number of accessories that …
2022 Kawasaki KLR 650 [Model Overview]
The Dual-Sport King Returns: The 2022 Kawasaki KLR 650 Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links Despite being a part of the 2021 Kawasaki line-up, the famously green Japanese manufacturer has decided to badge up the new KLR 650 as a 2022 model. Don’t worry though, it’s very much available in 2021! The arrival …
2021 Suzuki DR650S [Model Overview]
Updated For 2021: The Suzuki DR650S Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links The DR650S is a formidable dual-sport motorcycle that many riders will agree is one of the best dual-sport machines on the market. It joins the 2021 Suzuki line-up with a handful of new updates, though nothing terribly drastic. But for real …
2021 Suzuki Boulevard C50 / C50T [Model Overview]
The Classic Suzuki Metric Cruiser: The Boulevard C50 and C50T Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links “Classic rumble, modern comfort” – that’s the tagline that goes with the latest Boulevard model from the 2021 Suzuki line-up. For fans of metric cruisers, the Boulevard line is one of the most respected. For years, these …
2021 Suzuki SV650 ABS [Model Overview]
Anything But Standard: The 2021 Suzuki SV650 ABS Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links Commonly labelled as a “standard motorcycle” the Suzuki SV650 is more like a naked sportbike in reality. It’s a Japanese motorcycle with a potent V-twin engine, minimalist styling, and utilitarian nature that hides a sporty wild-side. The SV650 returns …
2021 Honda CB1000R [Model Overview]
The Dark CB: The New 2021 Honda CB1000R Black Edition Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links The CB1000R Black Edition is a neo-sports café model from Japanese motorcycle manufacturer, Honda. It’s one of the most exciting naked models in the 2021 Honda line-up, offering sleek styling and modern performance, in a sharp, blacked-out …
2021 Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled Fasthouse [Model Overview]
Introducing The Limited Edition 2021 Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled Fasthouse Contents Model Overview Specifications Features Photos Videos Links As a nice addition to the Scrambler fleet, there’s a new model in the 2021 Ducati line-up: the 2021 Ducati Desert Sled Fasthouse. This is a limited edition model that’s based on Ducati and Fasthouse’s Mint 400 …
