Hertfordshire’s most famous sons are now involved in developing new Royal Enfields, yet they’re still right in the thick of old school tubework and their stainless steel paddock stands are still the industry standard.
When Lester Harris and his brother Steve decided to make bike parts to fund their own racing back in the early 1970s, they had no idea that Harris Performance would become one of the most celebrated names in motorcycling.
The brothers were both trained engineers, Steve working on F1 car space-frame chassis and Lester on karts. “Bikes were the first love of both of us. Within six months our racing aspirations as riders were over as customer jobs took precedence over our own bikes,” says Lester. “Back then the market was exploding and it was still possible for the little guys to make massive improvements to what the major manufacturers were doing.
“This was the era of Bimota, Egli, Moto Martin and the like. It’s not so easy today; you couldn’t really imagine a guy in a shed using hand tools to build a better Ducati Panigale. We were ambitious and that meant lots of possibilities.”
Esta historia es de la edición January 2018 de Practical Sportsbikes.
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Esta historia es de la edición January 2018 de Practical Sportsbikes.
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Gold Rush
A stock 2014 CB11 is, let’s face it, a fairly dull device. But chuck some engine tweaks and a cosmetic makeover at it and all that changes.
Tony Scott - A Life In Engines
One of the greatest engine tuners of any generation, Tony Scott’s work is synonymous with Honda’s RC30. But Tony won TTs with every manufacturer, in a career spanning some of the greatest names and greatest bikes of the modern era.
Origin Of The Species
In the 17 years between Suzuki’s GS1000S in 1979, via Yamaha’s 1989 FZR1000R EXUP, to Honda’s 1996 CBR900RR-T ’Blade, the face of big-bore sportsbikes changed beyond recognition. PS celebrates this huge evolution.
Fettled Kettle
Tony Edwards, it’s fair to say, is obsessed with Harris Magnums. He’d never seen a Kettle engined Magnum 2, so he set about building one. Two years (and thirty four grand later) here it is.
Lester Harris
Hertfordshire’s most famous sons are now involved in developing new Royal Enfields, yet they’re still right in the thick of old school tubework and their stainless steel paddock stands are still the industry standard.
Shafted By The Weather Gods
The H1F’s crank was a sorry rusted mess. Now it is a thing of great beauty and strength.
Special Build Of the Year
Enter your stunning home-built special in to our Venhill Special Build of the Year competition and you could win our £1000 cash prize.
Dukes And Hazards
The Isle Of Man is an unforgiving place for any machinery, not least big twins from Bologna. Despite meticulous prep, a small stone did forJames Hillier’s Classic TT.
Greek Tragedy (With A Happy Ending)
It arrived from Athens, a hound with a bag of nails in its jaws. After untold amounts of pain, suffering and expense, Tony Barrow’s RG finally emerged, as the pristine square four he always craved.
Droop Snoot Beaut
It ‘only’ took Mike Newman four years to get his Bandit/’busa/ZX-9/10 hybrid into exactly the shape he wanted. Now it’s precisely the machine he had in his head all that time ago.
