Articles that Ben Branch 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 -
Omega Spacemaster Z-33
The Omega Spacemaster Z-33 is a new watch designed to evoke the iconic “Pilot Line” Omega watches that were first introduced in the 1960s. The case is 100% titanium and the movement is a reliable calibre 5666 quartz, the watch is designed specifically for pilots and can be used as a wrist-top flight log.
Bentley Petersen 3½-Litre Torpedo Roadster
The Bentley 3½ Litre was originally released to the public in September 1933, very shortly after the death of Henry Royce. The Bentley company had been sold to Rolls Royce in 1931 and the Bentley 3½ Litre was the first of the new Bentleys to roll out of the Derby-based factory – a fact that would lead to them being known as “Derby Bentleys”.
Porsche Carrera 3.2 Engine Teardown
This time-lapse Porsche Carrera 3.2 engine teardown is a strangely mesmerising look into the process involved in pulling apart a 6 cylinder boxer from the mid to late ’80s.
Harley Sportster by Deus Ex Machina
The Harley-Davidson Sportster is a bike that’s been torn down and rebuilt into just about every conceivable genre of the custom motorcycle spectrum that I can think of, some of them are designed to look good, some are designed to go faster and some are designed to do both of these things. Like this one.
Trucker’s Friend Survival Tool
The Trucker’s Friend Survival Tool is one of those items that all of us should probably carry in the trunk – it’s exactly the sort of thing you want in your hand when the going gets rough. Or the zombies take over.
1966 Shelby GT350H Race Car
The 1966 Shelby GT350H is one of the most historically interesting of the early Shelby Mustangs, it came about as a result of the Shelby company approaching the Hertz rental car company with the idea of producing between 50 and 100 specially built cars that would be rented out to enthusiasts for $17 a day.
Raleigh Spitfire Hardcases
If you’ve been looking for a new briefcase that’ll look at home in the passenger seat of a DB4 GT Zagato and on the flight deck of a DC-6, this luggage set might be just what the doctor ordered.
Norton Commando 750
Originally released in 1967 the Norton Commando would very quickly become one of the most iconic British motorcycles of all time, the 58hp parallel twin 750cc engine pulled it up to a top speed in excess of 115mph and it won the Motor Cycle News “Machine of the Year” award for 5 successive years from 1968 to 1972.
Ford RS200 Coupé
The Ford RS200 is one of the most famous of the non-USA developed Fords ever made. In fact I can’t think of another that even comes close, with the possible exception of the Ford GT40 – but my American friends get angry with me when I remind them that the GT40 was designed and built in England.
German Bar Sphere
This former light bulb-testing machine has been repurposed into one of the most appealing home-bars you’ll ever clap your eyes on.
Japan’s War in Colour
“Japan’s War in Colour” is a fascinating look at World War II from the Japanese perspective, the film picks up just before the war begins and shows the build up to war, the invasion of China, followed by Pearl Harbour and the escalation of violence between Japan, Australia, New Zealand and the USA.
Classic Car Bottle Openers
These muscle car bottle openers are amongst the best beer-opening solutions we’ve come across, the company behind them is called “Racetrack Style” and they do a series of racetrack keyrings, car keyrings and muscle car bottle openers.