Features

World champs Nikki Lauda and Sheene in discussion The British motorcycling scene was riding high in 1977, with Barry Sheene going for his second world road racing title, and the glory reflected in rising bike sales which were approaching 300,000 a year. This was despite the final collapse of the established British factories. The Norton…

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Yamaha TZR250 The 125cc motorcycle licence laws killed the 250cc category stone dead in the UK as far as learners were concerned. But elsewhere on the planet quarter-litre missiles remained very much in vogue. Hugely popular in Japan, because of licensing reasons, 250cc two-strokes sold like hot cakes. These machines were a huge step on…

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Yamaha FZ750 1985 was Year One for modern motorcycling. OK, so Kawasaki’s GPz900R had sort of got things started the year before, but we’d had water cooling since the Scott Flying Squirrel. And 16 valves since the Honda CBX1000. But Yamaha’s FZ750 was something very special. Yamaha were late to the four-stroke party and even…

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Triumph Trident T160 As with most engines from BSA and Triumph, the triples were evolutionary rather than revolutionary, largely because of conservative management. Development started in 1963 as a Doug Hele design that was in essence a 500cc Tiger 100 twin with an extra cylinder, even down to the 67 x 70mm bore and stroke.…

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Ducati 350 Desmo single Ducati 350 Desmo Ducati is rightly famed for its big vee-twins but they owe their success to the smaller range of 'bevel-drive' overhead-camshaft singles ranging in capacity from 125cc to 450cc. Designed by the legendary engineer Dr Ing Fabio Taglioni, these embod­ied all the best of Italian flare, providing simplicity and…

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James Tennant-Eyles is used to fussy customers. It is one of the occupational hazards of a professional restorer of motor cycles, and if you can't live with it then you get out and find a less stressful job. A fussy customer, however, does not necessarily mean one who finds fault with what you've done, it…

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MV Agusta 750 30 MV Agusta 750S/Monza, 1974 Legendary Italian factory MV Agusta may have garnered more than three dozen world road racing titles over three decades but its big road bikes offered none of agility of the racers. Based on a 600cc shaft-drive tourer first offered in 1965, the bigger 750S and Monza suffered…

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Frankie Chili is our VIP guest! If you want all that’s best in the world of modern classic motorcycling then you cannot afford to miss the 21st Carole Nash Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show. Held over the weekend of October 18-19, the show promises to be the best ever! There’s a top guest of honour, all…

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There’s a school of thought that reckons two-stroke motors work best when their individual cylinders are below 125cc capacity. This month’s offering goes a long way to supporting that premise; Yamaha’s 180/200 twins just have to be one of the classic scene’s best kept secrets. Get one of these little chaps in the zone and…

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First, British double champ Carl Fogarty knew that he had to win there to have any hope of the title. Going into the Dutch round he was in third place 19 points behind series leader Troy Corser. With Assen being Foggy’s favourite track, surely he could make up some ground? For Italian Pierfrancesco Chili, it…

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