Latest Buying Guide

1949 Norton 'Garden Gate'

Cammy Norton singles

Few motorcycles look better than an overhead camshaft Norton single; it’s the truth. Whether a vintage CS1 or a late Manx, each and every one is a stunner. And of course they have the performance to back up the pizazz...
1929 Super Onslow Special classic motorcycle

Super Onslow Special

SOS machines of any age are few and far between, as they were bui...
Rudge Special 1939 classic motorcycle

Rudge Special

One man’s lifelong love affair with his Rudge has resulted in a...
1956 Panther Model 100

Panther Model 100

There’s much can be said about Yorkshire folk, but one thing in...
1965 BSA A65 Lightning Clubman, classic British motorcycle

BSA A65 Lightning Clubman

The BSA A65 Lightning Clubman was the top of the range unit const...

Latest General Feature

Isle of Man TT 2013 guide

Here’s where you can find out everything you need to know about the TT event schedule. Both on track and off...
Motorcycle gaskets come in all shapes and sizes

Gasket teach in

Engines, gearboxes, carburettors and some electrical components a...
Iconic Yamaha frame

Legless springing

Yamaha took suspension to new levels when it devised what was the...
Early Golden Flashes being used by the Police

I had one of those: BSA A10

Given a handful of more powerful, more modern models in the garag...
Triumph T160 Trident

Top bikes of the Seventies: 2

Getting closer to John Nutting's final choice. Motorcycle league ...

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Latest Archive Feature

Mick Andrews: two in a row

Ossa ace Mick Andrews scored his second win in the prestigious Scottish Six Days Trial in 1971...
Bikers arrive at the ball

Caff de Dorchester

It’s early May, 1963 and a bunch of bikers are arriving at the ...

Straight from the plate: Thruxton 500, June 1963

The former Second World War airfield in Hampshire became a buzzin...

Classic Camera: New Zealand TT, 1950

Kiwi style ‘TT racing’ in 1950 was like a cross between TT ra...
Disputes dogged the show

Straight from the plate: The Earls Court Show, 1956

Probably the biggest and most important event in the motorcycling...

Latest Reference

This Pilgrim oil pump is an example of a delivery only pump

Oil pumps explained

Oil pumps are usually hidden in the depths of an engine. Unfortunately the age-old saying ‘out of sight, out of mind’ often applies. As they are the heart of our motorcycle engines, lubricating vital bearings and other moving surfaces, they deserve regular health checks...
Now when was it that historical motorcycle booklet

When was it that? Book 2

Welcome to the second online serialisation of the book Now when w...
AJS and Matchless twin - iconic engines

AJS and Matchless twin: iconic engines

When AMC introduced its parallel twin engine to an eager public i...
1949 AB Jackson lightweight 99cc classic motorcycle

A to Z classic reference: A - Adler

Encyclopaedia of Classic Motorcycles: the definitive classic moto...
World's fastest Triumph

Fastest machine on earth

In a projectile measuring 17ft from nose to tail you would imagin...

Latest Road Test

Triumph Trident T160

Triumph Trident T160

Triumph’s three cylinder Trident provided the signature sound for racers in the early Seventies and led to the best of the bunch, the T160, made for just a year from 1975. John Nutting explains...
1950 Royal Enfield J2, classic British motorcycle

Royal Enfield J2

Royal Enfield’s Redditch factory built a reputation for solid, ...
Iconic Yamaha FS1-E, 50cc

Yamaha FS1-E test

The Yamaha FS1-E has become the iconic symbol of 70s teenage rebe...
Matchless G3 Mercury and Norton ES2

Norton ES2 and Matchless G3

By the mid-1960s the once-great independent Matchless and Norton ...
1938 Rudge Ulster

Rudge Ulster

Retired teacher design and technology teacher John Crispin gives ...

Latest Workshop

Harley-Davidson Sportster service

Harley-Davidson Sportster service

The 1200cc vee-twin had delivered three years’ unblemished service to owner Kev but now was the time to visit ‘Dr’ Rod Gibson’s surgery for a medical...
Measuring camshaft clearances

Camshaft teach in

Rod Gibson gets to grips with the science of camshaft design, and...
Seats can be rejuventated with a new cover

Seat re-covering

When it comes to restoring motorcycles, you can almost bet your h...
Suzuki GT750 workshop rebuild

Suzuki GT750: part one

Rod Gibson had already dismantled the Suzuki GT750 down in his wo...
Motorcycle wheel building

Wheel building

Egged on by editorial pressure, editor Rod Gibson explores the ar...

Encyclopaedia of Classic Motorcycles on CBC

The Classic Bikers Club online reference guide is compiled from articles from the book Encyclopaedia of Classic Motorcycles. Further information about the book, author Richard Rosenthal and purchase details are available from Mortons Books.

Quicklinks for Encyclopaedia
ABC - AWO
BAC - Busy Bee
Cairns Mo-Cyc - CZ
Dalesman - Durkopp
Eagle - Eysink
Fafnir - Fusi
Gadabout - Gys
Hagglund - Husqvarna
IFA - IZH
Jackson-Rotrax - Jupiter
K125 - KTM
L300 - Lutz
Mabeco - MZ (MUZ)
Nassetti - NVT
OCMA - Overseas
PA - PV
Quadrant - Quasar
Rabeneick - RW Scout
Sadrian - Syphax
Talbot - Typhoon
Ultima - Utilia
Vaga - Vulcan
Wabo - Wurttembergia
XL - Xtra
Yale - Yvel
Zanella - ZZR

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