August 2016
August 2016   


Real Classic - August 2016

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Buy RealClassic 148 / August 2016

The 148th issue of RealClassic is on sale now and features an old Ajay ISDT machine, a beaten-up Beemer, a revitalised Royal Enfield, Norton and Triumph twins, and two entirely different types of Sunbeam. Find out more about what in this issue…


AJS MODEL 16MC
We’ve featured AMC ISDT machines before, like Hugh Viney’s ‘AJS 5’ 500 twin which appeared back in RC135. Now we reveal a 350 single which retains much of its original trials equipment

BMW R45
Almost every motorcycle manufacturer includes an entry level model in their
range. Mostly, they’re built down to a price. But not BMW’s airhead flat-twin, which one owner brings back to life after it survives some serious neglect…

ENFIELD BULLET BUILD, Part Two
Last month, Stephen Herbert began a ‘modular’ rebuild of a much maltreated, 25
year-old Indian Enfield 350. This time, the perils of buying online from overseas and
the wonderful world of wiring…

NORTON COMMANDO STARTER
Norton’s 750 twins don’t have electric starters – but there’s space for one. Richard Negus explains why and how it didn’t happen

NORTON DOMINATOR 99
Odgie goes looking for a particular memory, but finds instead a somewhat
particular bike; a 1957 600 twin in the famous wideline featherbed frame, in near-as-dammit standard specification…

SUNBEAM S8
Enthusiast Mike has owned more than 170 machines while seeking his ultimate
motorcycle. It turns out that he has something of a soft spot for Sunbeam’s
distinctive S7 and S8, the idiosyncratic ohc shaft-drive twins

SUNBEAM MODEL 10
When Ian bought a girder-forked, hand-change, pre-war single, he inadvertently chose one of Sunbeam’s more unusual models. After a whole lotta
TLC it was close to being ready to ride

TRIUMPH THUNDERBIRD
Not all Triumph twins are speed machines. This bikini-clad pre-unit 1963 6T was chosen for its ability to amble, and its owner explains it attractions as a classic ride

TRIUMPH 6T PROJECT, Part Two
Over the last half century, Gordon had built up quite a stock of spare parts. Perhaps, he mused, it might be possible to assemble them into an actual motorcycle. This time, he builds up the engine and clutch, and suggests how to make each function better than the originals did…

PLUS in Buyer’s Eye our ongoing investigation into the old bike market continues, and this time we’re looking at what five grand gets you. What kind of classic motorcycle can you find for £5000? And how do current costs compare with prices from five or more years ago? On top of that, Frank Westworth’s resto of a BSA B25 moves on to wiring and electrics; we’ve highlights from the Compass Challenge; Jacqueline Bickerstaff has further encounters with intriguing three-wheelers; we give away a Flowliner anti-ethanol coating kit, and RC readers talk grease, big singles, student life with a BSA Bantam, and sidestand secrets…

• RealClassic isn’t on sale in UK newsagents – but if you’d like to read these articles then you can order a mail order copy here
• The best way to read the magazine regularly is by subscription – each magazine typically costs around half the price of a single mail-order issue
• RealClassic is also available in various digital formats

And – say! – has anyone else noticed how close we are to 150 issues? That’s some sort of landmark. We should have a party…





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