Buy RC121, May 2014 

In this month’s RealClassic magazine, owners share their experiences about running, riding and rebuilding all kinds of classic bikes, from Laverda triples to British lightweight two-strokes, military Harleys to Velocette singles. Here’s how to buy a copy… 

ARIEL LEADER 

Back in the day, Ariel promised magnificent steering, road-holding and performance from 

its ‘turbine-smooth’ 250 twin. David Brindley’s recollections suggest that was pretty much what 

he got when he bought one in 1960… 

BSA B44 VICTOR SCRAMBLER 

Most genuine scrambles bikes saw a lot of off-road competition action and were endlessly modified in pursuit of performance. Dave Blanchard reports on a surprisingly standard Victor Scrambler 

EXCELSIOR CONSORT LIGHTWEIGHT 

Back in the 1950s, Excelsior weren’t shy about proclaiming the merits of their motorcycles, claiming to produce the ‘world’s leading lightweight’. Roger Kirkman chose a Consort to return to British biking 

HARLEY-DAVIDSON WLA 

Harley’s military sidevalve 750, with its foot clutch, hand change, three-speed gearbox and Thompson sub-machine gun can take a bit of getting used to. Owner Roger Newark has just about got the hang of his after a quarter-century in the saddle 

LAVERDA 3CL, LAVERDA JOTA & LAVERDA RGS 

Steven Troupe always regretted getting rid of his old Laverda 3C. Three decades later, he finally 

found a replacement in the shape of a 3CL. But it was obviously lonely because, in no time at all, 

along came two more triples to keep it company… 

MOTO GUZZI LODOLA 

The Moto Guzzi rebuild project has been running for several months and now this 1960s Moto Guzzi single isn’t far off being started for the first time. That might prove tricky without a kickstart, however, and several other vital components including the drive sprocket have gone AWoL… 

PUCH 250 SGS 

When is a twin a single? Or a single a twin? When it’s both. Which is what a split-single tries to be; a two-stroke engine with the best of both worlds. Frank Westworth explains this unusual Austrian engineering idea, sold by Sears as the ‘Twingle’ in the USA, and rides the results 

VELOCETTE MAC & THRUXTON 

Rowena Hoseason investigates the beginning and end of Velocette’s post-war motorcycle production, encapsulated in two very different four-stroke singles. Veloce started by building a bike for everyman, and finished with a bit of a beast which few were man enough to handle… 

TECHNICAL TIPS: ELECTRONIC IGNITIONS
Dave Whiting takes an economical approach to his classic motorcycling. So when an expensive 

electrical component on his BMW Boxer went on the fritz, he came up with an inexpensive 

solution 

PLUS! Recreating a Great Escape, in which a group of British bike riders revisit the scene of the 1939 ISDT which came to an abrupt halt when hostilities broke out; Jacqueline Bickerstaff goes to the Prescott hillclimb; Dave Minton remembers a schoolboy adventure by Bantam to Italy; readers write about petrol rationing, baby Boxers, fitting engines into frames, bead-breaking without a sweat; and there’s news, events, small ads and all sorts (apart from Triumph twins, because apparently it’s possible to have too much of a good thing…) 

Buy a copy of RealClassic 121/May2014 

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