The BMG Mini May guitar was developed by Brian May of Queen and the team at BMG Guitars, a company dedicated to building modern versions of the legendary guitar “Red Special” that was built by May and his father in the early 1960s using part of a fireplace mantel. May played the Red Special almost…
It isn’t widely known that BSA/Triumph were experimenting with overhead cam engines back in the early 1970s as a way of trying to compete with the surge of high-performance, reliable, and non-leaking Japanese motorcycles pouring into the country. We do know that at least two OHC BSA/Triumph triple cylinder engines were built, they used the…
This 1985 Norton Rotary racer is a fascinating project bike, fitted with one of the most unusual engines ever fitted to a motorcycle. Wankel rotary engines have a troubled history in the world of motorcycles – a number of manufacturers tried developing them, including Hercules, Suzuki, Norton, and Yamaha, but they were never much of…
The Davida Koura is a full face motorcycle helmet designed by engineers with experience developing helmets for both MotoGP and Formula 1. Although the shell design of the Koura is retro, the the engineering that went into it is entirely modern. The Koura has been safety certified by the ECE R22-05 (EU), DOT FMVS 281…
Incredibly, all three of these motorcycles are coming up for sale with Bonhams on the 19th of October with an estimated hammer price of £12,000 to £16,000 – a temptingly affordable entry point into the world of vintage motorcycle sprint racing. The Yellow Peril, Scarlet Peril, and Blue Peril were developed by self-taught engineer and…
This is one of just 6 or 7 factory-built Triumph Strongbow flat trackers made in the late 1970s to compete in a series sponsored by Bulmers to promote their Strongbow cider brand. The competition was inspired by the Trans-Atlantic Match Race road racing series and featured six British riders – Chippy Moore, Malcolm Carradine, Barry…
The story of the Africar is worthy of a Hollywood film, it involves millions of dollars, a Cambridge-educated engineering genius, a film crew, a global adventure, a wildly unusual automobile, and ultimately, a controversial prison sentence. Tony Howarth, and A Dream of a Car for Africa The Africar was the vision of Englishman Tony…
The Goldtop Predator motorcycle gloves are a new release from the storied British motorcycle gear maker, featuring 1.0mm premium drum-dyed Aniline cowhide leather construction, and floating Knox Microlock knuckle armor for additional safety. Each pair of Goldtop Predators has a 100% silk lined upper section for comfort, with a natural, unlined leather palm. The gloves…
The Triumph TS8-1 Prototype was released as a last-gasp effort by the struggling British motorcycle marque in 1981 as a touring motorcycle to compete with the likes of the BMW R100RT. Triumph has built some of the most famous motorcycles in the world over the course of their history, and most Triumph models will be…
The Rolls-Royce V12 Meteor tank engine was a direct derivative of the legendary Rolls-Royce Merlin V12 – an engine used in aircraft like the Spitfire and Hurricane fighters, the Lancaster bomber, and in Packard-built form in the American P-51D Mustang fighter. Rolls-Royce Meteor is a liquid-cooled V12 with a swept capacity of 27 litres or…
This is an original Rickman Metisse-Suzuki 500 Titan, one of the earlier Japanese-engined road racing Rickmans. The combination of reliable, high-output Japanese motorcycle engines with beautifully engineered British frames and suspension led to some of the best handling bikes of the era. The Rickman Brothers Derek and Don Rickman were already world class motocross racers…
This Egli-Vincent Black Shadow is a project motorcycle that’ll take a fair amount of work and parts to get back into road-going form. That said, with an estimated hammer price of between $15,000 and $20,000 USD this Vincent is potentially the least expensive entry point into Vincent V-twin ownership in the world. The Mighty Egli-Vincents…
