In the mid-1980s, my mum worked at a solicitors, and they had a client whose name was, I think, Mr Stack. An older rather eccentric gentlemen, he was a frequent visitor to the office about various situations (including complaining that his feet were on fire) and during one such visit he mentioned he had an old motorbike he wished to dispose of. A BSA. Did he know what model, mother enquired. “A Gold Star. I’ve had it for years. Some lads are coming round to look at it for a field bike.”
That evening, mum told dad about it and next night, dad, my brother and I, little boys obsessed with motorbikes, went to see this Gold Star, fully intending to save it from the fate it seemed destined for. Dad knocked on Mr Stack’s door, and he opened it. There, sheeted in his hallway, was the Gold Star. Sticking out from under the sheet was the rear tyre. Even seven-year-old me knew the narrow rear tyre wasn’t that of a Gold Star.
Anyway, Mr Stack unveiled his motorcycle, showing us his BSA single. He’d owned it from new, so I think though can’t prove, and it’d only done a few miles (less than 2000), was completely original, and it was time for it to go. The aforementioned lads were coming round to have it; dad couldn’t let it meet that end, so a price was agreed, and it wasn’t much, and we took it away. I can’t actually remember how it was transported, though I’m fairly sure it wasn’t ridden home.
Denne historien er fra November 2020-utgaven av The Classic MotorCycle.
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Denne historien er fra November 2020-utgaven av The Classic MotorCycle.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Runs should be fun
The club run is an integral part of the old motorcycle scene. During 2020, a variation on the usual theme emerged, enabling people to ride in the company of like-minded souls.
Hybrid chicken
BSA Bantams come in many forms, and the ability to interchange parts between different models permits an almost endless number of variants.
Green WITH ENVY
Life aboard a 1950s 350cc British single is perhaps as good and as uncomplicated as it can get.
Worth the wait
Captivated by sight of one as a small boy, finally our man has the chance to try an NSU Max.And a ‘Spezial’ one at that…
The Motorcycle: DESIGN, ART AND DESIRE
The concluding part of a two-part feature, in which the history of motorcycle evolution is examined and a new book’s author interviewed.
Cream rises
There were several ‘star performers’ at Bonhams’ winter sale, as the choice machines achieved huge sums.
The Giant of Provence
With so few events to report from, it’s time to look back over a spectacular French event and look forward to its hopeful resumption.
Store cupboard special
A big box of presents? Must be Christmas! More deliveries keep the project on track.
By 1929, CJP Dodson was a bona fide top level road racer, pretty much unbeatable on the sand, too.
The diminutive Charlie Dodson was the last man to win a TT, the 1928 Senior, on a ‘flat-tank’ machine, then the next year became the first (and only) winner of a TT on a saddle tank Sunbeam, as well as recording the last ever success in the Island for the Marston maker.
Cassandra the Canadian Commando
After landing a new job and with time on his hands, a young man in Vancouver decided to restore a British motorcycle considerably older than him.
