Exeter Mods and Rockers

[Stuffy]

Did anyone ride a BSA Bantam or a BSA Bantam Major? Surely somebody must have ridden one briefly.

I never rode anything smaller than a 500cc. One make of bike that was popular and was very easy on the eye was the James. A mate of mine called Derek Ladbrooke owned the 250cc Commodore, while there was a James 197cc Captain perennially parked in the road outside Queen's Terrace.

 

[Grecian2K]

The best I could afford at the time was a Triumph Tiger Cub. Only 200cc but used to go like **** off a stick. My mate had a BSA 250 C15 .He always had to go one better.

Funny that. My first bike was a C15 but my mate had a Cub which I envied because although 50cc smaller, in terms of performance (and reliability?) knocked spots of the larger Beezer.

Needless to say, once I had passed my test I wasted no time in upgrading to a T90 - would have preferred to have tone to a T110, or even a "full-fat Bonnie" but even back in those days, the cost of the insurance was too prohibitive.

Sadly, once I had to do a daily commute to an office job, a bike was not really a suitable means of travel so I traded 2 wheels for 3 (for the licence reasons mentioned by Pete) - in the form of the Bond Bug. Now THAT was some machine!!! When it finally died several years later I regret not having it repaired and keeping it.

 

[southy]

My tale of woe is that I had my Dommie while in the army at RAF Seletar in Singapore. I paid $25 Singapore dollars for it off a bloke about to get posted back to the UK. Now the dollar in those days was worth 2/6 meaning it cost me little over £3. When I returned to the UK all I had to do was ride it down to to HMS Terror dockyard and they'd ship it back home providing I would take a chance of it being ditched over the side in case of trouble. I just couldn't be arsed, consequently I still regret it to this day. ;(;(

Hi Stuffy , small world . I went to school at RAF Seletar from 1962-66. Also I worked on your avatar when it came to Westcountry aircraft services for a major around 1989 ish

 

[Stuffy]

Hi Stuffy , small world . I went to school at RAF Seletar from 1962-66. Also I worked on your avatar when it came to Westcountry aircraft services for a major around 1989 ish

Hello Southy, I was at Seletar from 1965-67 although I did detachments during that time to Raf Labuan, Changi,and Kuching. I also had six very exciting months at RAAF Butterworth. Certainly some of the best days of my service life.

I believe the B.O.B. Lancaster had a back to the bare metal paint job. You do know that the black paint used on the fuselage wasn't the right stuff?

 

[southy]

Hello Southy, I was at Seletar from 1965-67 although I did detachments during that time to Raf Labuan, Changi,and Kuching. I also had six very exciting months at RAAF Butterworth. Certainly some of the best days of my service life.

I believe the B.O.B. Lancaster had a back to the bare metal paint job. You do know that the black paint used on the fuselage wasn't the right stuff?

My father was in the safety eqipment bay near the yacht club . He was also sent on detachment to somewhere in Borneo . There's an excellent RAF Seletar association website . My dad was Ron Southwood

 

[Antony Moxey]

Talking of Vincent 1000's, there was a tall chap with dark wavey hair that used to come in The Clock fairly regular who had one with a sidecar attached. His girlfriend was Mary Baker, from Heavitree. He only had one eye, which I thought was a bit chancy with no perception of depth on a bike of that magnitude. Sadly around 1964 he was killed riding the thing, but Mary in the sidecar was uninjured.

There were one or two others who were killed or badly injured that were associated with the Clock between 61 and 63:

Teresa Rozier; who was only about 16 was killed riding pillion. Colin Drake, who was a top guitarist on the local music scene was killed when he drove directly into a tree while fiddling with his car sterio.

Dave Taylor lost a leg below the knee when his motorbike was in a colision in Mary Arches Street. Dave Conway lost his entire leg in motorcycle accident.

A young lad with blond hair who was generally known to us as 'Barney' was killed on the Exmouth road while riding pillion on the back of Ray Clay's bike. Ray escaped uninjured.

Talking of Vincent 1000s, I believe there is a Black Shadow, possibly from the fifties, in a display case at Bridge Motorcycles in Marsh Barton. Doesn't really interest me but it would me dad who rode a fish tail exhaust Velocette 350 until it met an untimely demise (not so me dad, he's still going strong) courtesy of the railings in Willey's Avenue.

 

[geoffwp]

I was never a bike person in those days, they weren't pretty enough for me, plus my uncle still carries the metal plate in the back of his head after coming off his Ariel square four. A Lambretta with a LOT of added chrome seemed to be so much more cool. It wasn't until I saw Easy Rider for the first time, with the California style Harley choppers, that I became aware of a well chromed bike. Hence the Yamaha Virago I have at the moment. Poor man's Harley though I know it to be, it's fun to ride. Maybe one day a Harley.

 

[Alistair20000]

It wasn't until I saw Easy Rider for the first time, with the California style Harley choppers, that I became aware of a well chromed bike. Hence the Yamaha Virago I have at the moment. Poor man's Harley though I know it to be, it's fun to ride. Maybe one day a Harley.

Oh for a Harley; of the two legged variety of course and not concentrating overly on his chopper(s). I would have thought that would be a rather crude woodworking tool for a man into the design side of the subject Geoff.

 

[PeteUSA]

Oh for a Harley; of the two legged variety of course and not concentrating overly on his chopper(s). I would have thought that would be a rather crude woodworking tool for a man into the design side of the subject Geoff.

Ignor Alistairs vulgarity Geoff: I'm your man if you want a Harley. Just tell me how much you want to pay and I'll put the feelers out. I should warn you though that crating the thing up and paying the various carriers to get it to the UK might make the price prohibitive.

 

[Stuffy]

I should warn you though that crating the thing up and paying the various carriers to get it to the UK might make the price prohibitive.

Don't forget the import taxes. Mike Brewer of Wheeler dealers always includes them when listing his outlays after doing up some old banger he's imported from the U.S.