Articles that Ben has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more. Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
Ben Branch -
Icon 1000 – The Women’s Collection
Our female counterparts in the world of motorcycling are often forgotten about by manufacturers, the limited amount of protective gear they have to choose from often leaves them buying and wearing stuff they’d never have chosen otherwise.
Motorcycle-Mounted Machine Gun
When I saw this remarkable WWI era photograph showing a chap from the 39th Tomsk Infantry Regiment with his motorcycle-mounted machine gun I immediately decided that I wanted one. Preferably without the million or so angry Germans on the other end of it.
1970 Porsche 908/3
The Gulf colour scheme on this 1970 Porsche 908/3 makes it an instant favourite around this part of the internet, interestingly this is just the…
Barnett RC150 Crossbow
This is the Barnett RC150 Crossbow – it reminds me of the crossbow used by Norman Reedus in The Walking Dead and because of this, I want one badly.
Honda CB750 Custom by MotoHangar
The Honda CB750 is a motorcycle that’s been tweaked, customised and rebuilt in more ways than will ever be documented. The venerable Honda model was built between 1969 and 2007 in a wide variety of configurations, when it was first released into the US market in ’69 it became known as the “first superbike” and went on to influence modern high-performance motorcycles perhaps more than any other single bike.
The Projects: 1972 Chevrolet Camaro
The 1972 Chevrolet Camaro was almost the last one ever made due to severe strikes at the GM factory leading to 174 days of silence on the factory floor resulting in over 1,100 incomplete Camaros being sent to the knackers yard.
1954 Pegaso Z-102 Series II Cabriolet by Saoutchik
This is the only Saoutchik Cabriolet Pegaso Z-102 Series II ever made, the coachwork on the car is jaw-dropping from every angle and the fact that it’s fitted with a 165hp, 2,814 cc quad-overhead camshaft V-8 with a 2-barrel Weber carburettor implies that it has the legs to make it a hell of a fun drive.
Leatherman MUT
I’m a big fan of the Leatherman, I’m convinced that if it was possible to calculate how many lives, knuckles and cusses they’ve saved over the years the numbers for all three would be startlingly high.
Renard GT
Renard Motorcycles was founded in 1938 in Estonia, the company was successful throughout much of WWII until an airstrike destroyed the company factory in 1944.
Four Day Jacket by Deus
The waxed cotton motorcycle jacket is an essential wardrobe item for any motorcyclist who regularly makes decent road trips, the technology is old but the benefits of having breathable cotton are enormous, especially when faced with wet or excessively humid weather.
The Secret History of Project Orion
This BBC documentary, titled “To Mars By A-Bomb – The Secret History of Project Orion”, is one of the most fascinating 60 minute films I’ve seen so far this year.
The Goventosa Monowheel
Monowheels are one of those interesting historical curiosities that (sadly) just didn’t catch on.