Restored Royal Enfield Interceptor might have one flaw

Is it just the lighting, or is that a dent on the muffler?

A sharp looking 1969 Royal Enfield Interceptor for sale on CraigsList in Colorado is advertised as the "Perfect Resto!"

In fact, the seller says, it's "Guggenheim" material.

As such, its photo was bound to get a thorough examination from the Interceptor owners and restorers on the RE Interceptor Yahoo group.

"Maybe it's the lighting, but it looks like there's a dent in the muffler, just ahead of the pillion peg," one member noted.

"No it's a dent," another member replied. And he went on:

"You can always tell when a bike has been put together by a custom car shop that doesn't really know bikes. They always forget to check the kickstarter clearance. First kick goes bang on the pipe... Nothing against car guys by the way. It's just a trend I've noticed lately."

If true, it's one of those fascinating little observations that go down as "Murphy's Law."

Royal Enfield motorcycle trained riders for World War II

John Thom trained British soldiers in 1940.

This handsome soldier astride a Royal Enfield motorcycle is John Thom, father of Derek Thom of the UK. Derek recently shared the photograph and this brief story:

"My late father was in the Lincolnshire Regiment in 1940 initially as a driving instructor. He survived the war but I often wonder what happened to his particular Royal Enfield.

"I'm sure my dad... would have been very happy to think others would see (the photo). He passed away aged 90 in 2009.

"I think the Royal Enfield was just one of many 'vehicles' he utilised in the early part of the war. I know he mainly taught soldiers to drive Bren gun carriers and even M-10 tank destroyers before he was moved to 17-pounder anti-tank gun training in another regiment in the post-1944 period.

"He didn't carry on biking that long but he must have had access to someone's machine just after World War II... a BSA. He often told me that he paced his brother Bob on long training runs. At that time Bob was a racing cyclist for the English Viking Cycle Team.

"I live in the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands as did both my father John and his brother Bob."

The motorcycle in the photo is a 350cc side-valve Royal Enfield WD/C. This model hadn't initially impressed the War Department but it was ordered in quantity after the British Army lost much of its motor transport at Dunkirk. An overhead valve CO model was also produced, to offer a little better performance.

There were plenty of both. Graham Scarth, chairman of the Royal Enfield Owners Club, told me that "The ledgers we have record nearly 12,000 Model C 350cc side-valve machines (and) over 25,000 Model CO 350cc overhead-valve machines... There will have been more of the Model C also, as there was an earlier ledger that the REOC does not have."

According to Jan Vandevelde, an expert on War Department motorcycles, the "C4362748" painted on the tank of this motorcycle is a census number from military contract C/8136 — for 3,000 WD/C motorcycles, with deliveries from June until October, 1941.

Is there any chance it survives? Not much.

After the war many ex-War Department motorcycles were sold to the public. Royal Enfield itself rebuilt ex-WD machines for sale to civilians, including many former soldiers, some of them perhaps trained by Derek's father.

And what then?

"In time new models did reach the home buyer and the crude military machines were driven into the ground, although that was never easy with anything capable of withstanding service use," author Roy Bacon writes in his book "Royal Enfield, The Postwar Models."

"Or they were just left to rot away until genuine ex-WD machines became rare and then valuable..."

Royal Enfield Interceptor rescued on way to the dump

This Royal Enfield Interceptor was rescued from the scrap heap.

Wouldn't you like to be the man who rescued a 1968 Royal Enfield Interceptor on its way to the scrap heap? For $150!

Charles Giordano owns two motorcycle exhaust companies, Von Braun Exhaust  and Tailgunner Moto Exhaust in West Tisbury, Mass. He knows a lot about motorcycles but still wasn't sure what he had after pulling this Royal Enfield motorcycle off the back of a truck on its way to the scrap yard.

Here's his story:

"So, I'm at the gas station reading a Barnett's Bike Craft magazine and the kid pumping gas looks through my window and sees a photo of an old Triumph.

"We start talking old bikes and he tells me his friend has a Royal Enfield in the back of his truck that he's selling for scrap metal tomorrow. I ask him if it's an old one or a new one. He's says old.

"So I give him my card and ask him to tell his buddy to call me. The kid calls, and I go to has house and sure enough: (it's) in the back of the truck with a lot of scrap on top of it and below it. I dig a bit and stand it up.

The rescued Royal Enfield.

"And there she is. Rough as a cob but there for the most part. No seat or fenders. A really beautiful engine.

"Anyway, $150 bucks later and she's in my barn and the Sherlock Holmes adventure begins. This is my favorite part of the whole motorbike thing."

The motor.

Charles wrote me with this question: "I'm trying to determine the model, year and displacement. I think Interceptor."

He thought right.

The motorcycle is a matching numbers Mk.1A, confirmed Royal Enfield Owners Club (UK) Chairman Graham Scarth. It was dispatched to Shores of Michigan on April 26, 1968. Originally it had a chrome tank with red stripe along the top.

Looks like it has some stories to tell.

Interceptor enthusiast Chris Overton added that "There were about 1,800 of the Series 1, about 1,000 Series 1A and 1,200 Series II built before the last English factory closed in 1970."

So Interceptors are rare. The one Charles rescued had a close call, indeed. It may be that the motorcycle will fit into his plans. He wrote:

"Once a year I like to build a bike myself that is interesting, different, cool. Something we can take to shows and talk to real motorcycle enthusiasts about. Something different than the same ol' Harley 'biker' stuff. (Photo of last year's bike build attached. Note the homage with mufflers to Triumph Hurricane.)

Last year's bike build: The John Henry.

"This year I was thinking of doing a Brit bike as I've always loved them but never had the chance to own or work with one. Also, I've promised my wife a bike for a long time and she has always liked the old Brit bikes too."

Riding his Royal Enfield is a pain in the ... balls?

"Sandeep," the owner of a new Royal Enfield motorcycle, courageously posted a delicate matter on Royal Enfield India's community forum.

His balls hurt.

"Guys," he wrote, "Got My Classic 500 in December 2012 and did my first major trip (Bangalore to Goa, 650 kilometers one way) to the India bike week in February.

"Balls started to hurt after doing about 450 kilometers. Hasn't happened before on my Yahama RX-135 five-speed and have done five longish trips (between 400 and 500 kilometers one way each time) on it.

"Wondering if it has something to do with the seat/seating position/handle bar position etc. of the Classic 500? Any input  on solutions (replacing seats/modifying handlebar etc.) from guys that have faced this before is highly appreciated.

"Cheers."

I admire Sandeep's self-assurance in raising the question but don't have any suggestions for him. This is one aspect of Royal Enfield riding I've never personally experienced.

Accessory balls from BullsBalls.com

However, his question provides me with a cheap opportunity to raise the issue of Biker Nutz, typically the kind of accessory one would see on a Harley-Davidson.

If you are considering these for your Royal Enfield, first read this cautionary note from John D. on the website of BullsBalls.com a leading supplier of these tacky accessories:

"OK, here is the deal! As a long time biker myself, I have to tell you, installing our Big Boy Nuts or our Biker Nutz on your ride might not be an easy thing to do. Please insure that hanging these nuts on your bike can be done efficiently and will look nice when done.

"First of all, most motorcycle rear fenders do not have a hole where it would be appropriate to hang these Bike Nutz. In most cases, owners do not want to drill this hole in their fender...

"Please review your installation before placing your order..."

"Sincerely, John D."

Perhaps this is the best advice of all for Sandeep's personal equipment: "Please review your installation."

Want to trade your Royal Enfield Bullet for his Triumph?

The Triumph Trident three-cylinder motorcycle was fast and controversial.

Time for something completely different? The owner of a 1974 Triumph Trident is offering to trade it for a Royal Enfield Bullet.

His ad on CraigsList in Corpus Christi, Texas, says that he wants a Royal Enfield for his wife to ride.

"She wants to start riding, so I thought I would try a trade." The bike is not for sale otherwise, he writes.

The Trident is certainly interesting. A three-cylinder in-line, four-cycle, 740cc motor made it in the eyes of some the first "super bike" when introduced in the summer of 1968.

It was soon overshadowed by the Honda CB750 four, however. The Honda came with overhead camshaft and an oil-tight engine. The Trident couldn't initially match the Honda's five-speed gearbox, electric start, left-side shift and front disk brake.

The Triumph was fast: probably 120 mph. The collapse of the British motorcycle industry was proceeding just as quickly and production of the Triumph and similar BSA Rocket Three trailed off with only 27,480 built.

AMF Roadmaster moped was a boy's dream in 1978

This dusty AMF Roadmaster moped was once a young man's dream.

"Proof that man will try to motorize anything," I wrote in my notebook after spotting a forlorn looking 1978 AMF Roadmaster at the Dania Beach Vintage Motorcycle Show Jan. 26.

The AMF Roadmaster has no connection to Royal Enfield motorcycles but, oddly, it does have a modest connection to Harley-Davidson. AMF owned Harley at the time. But this is no Harley-Davidson.

Every boy wants a motorized bicycle, whether he has anyplace to go on it or not. When I was a boy we knew about the Whizzer-style motor bicycles, of course. But they were expensive and, with their multiple drive lines, too complex for young engineering skills.

More accessible, at least in our dreams, were the friction-drive motors that simply sat atop the front wheel of the bicycle and propelled the wheel with a roller. When you wanted to stop you just pulled the motor up and off the wheel.

Even in our dreams we knew there was one additional problem: that motor on the front wheel would make the bike top heavy, almost certainly toppling it when parked on the kickstand.

I'd never heard of the AMF Roadmaster, but it solved that problem by putting the friction-drive motor over the rear wheel. That would be far more stable. Why hadn't that ever occurred to me?

It wouldn't have mattered. By 1978 I had a job, a wife and a house to keep me busy.

The Roadmaster I spotted in Dania was in rough condition. But it must have been a dream machine when it was new. It had a headlight, speedometer and front rack — even an electric horn!

The 48cc McCulloch two-cycle motor was controlled by a right-hand twist grip. There apparently is an automatic clutch that engages when engine rpm increase.

There's no mention in the manual but it looks as though the motor must be started by pedaling the moped forward.

An automatic stop switch turned off the motor when the lever on top of the motor raised it from the wheel. You could then bicycle normally.

Reaching back blindly to pull up the lever while riding would have been dangerous. A better plan would have been to let the motor slow so the clutch disengaged, then brake to a stop and pull up the lever with both feet on the ground.

Hand brake levers on left and right appear to operate front and rear drum brakes.

McCulloch illustration with engine cover removed. No. 1 is the lift lever.

The Moped Army website refers to the Roadmaster as "the butt of jokes and at best a quirky little trophy owned by collectors." They estimate top speed at 15 mph and suggest even that would have been terrifying.

The Roadmaster was never a thing of beauty. I frankly doubt that friction drive would have conquered the first hill it met. But a boy could dream.

Photos of great motorcycles, big and small

The 1922 Gillet-Herstal looks toy like but was a real motorcycle.

What is it in motorcyclists (and all humans) that allows us to appreciate both the exquisitely delicate and the grotesquely muscular?

Every sort and variety of motorcycle could be found at the Dania Beach Vintage Motorcycle Show Jan. 26. My eye was drawn to two very different examples:

One was a 1922 Gillet-Herstal, a 3.5-horsepower Belgian motorcycle so dainty it almost dares you to ride it.

The other was a 1938 Ford flathead V8 motorcycle, so hulking it invites you to try to ride it, if you dare.

1938 Flathead V8 in a motorcycle, a seeming impossibility.

Both motorcycles are works of art.

Surprising, in a way, is that it was the slim Gillet-Herstal that was intended as an actual transportation device. Founded in 1919, the company knew something about building motorcycles, remaining in business until 1958. Its motor bikes quickly grew into serious motorcycles, some tugging sidecars and serving with the military.

The flathead motorcycle is a one-off show bike. As one spectator commented, it's so low to the ground it can't be ridden at all unless its suspension is adjustable.

Delicate ignition control on Gillet Herstal suggests using a light touch.

It is the Gillet-Herstal's control levers I couldn't get over. They appear as fine as dental instruments.

Meanwhile, the flathead probably doesn't need a transmission at all. Its carburetors breath through binnacles that rise through its fuel tank, steamship style! A square Model-T style radiator keeps it cool.

Binnacles rise through the tank to feed air to the flathead V8.

Bob Campbell of Miami showed the flathead motorcycle. I didn't get the name of the Gillet-Herstal owner.

I wonder if either owner ever rides his work of art very far?

Slim two-speed gear selector on Gillet-Herstal.

Photos of 2013 British Car Show in Boca Raton, Fla.

British cars and British motorcycles share a spirit.

Anyone who loves Royal Enfield motorcycles would have loved the 20th Annual British Car Show Sunday at Royal Palm Place in Boca Raton, Fla.

It's natural to suggest that there are similarities between the great British cars of the past and that (oddly) British motorcycle of the present, the Royal Enfield.

Many are green, for instance, and all display a soul that is frankly, sometimes romantically, mechanical. And they smell of oil.

A pair of driving gloves cast casually by the gearshift.

What impressed me as I walked around the show was the number of design elements British cars share with British motorcycles.

A fondness for wire wheels, for instance. Open-air seating is another. Mechanical parts are proudly on view. Even when the bonnets are closed, a strategically placed bulge in the hood will suggest what lurks beneath.

MGA roadster could quickly shed even that small windscreen for a bit more speed.

One would think that Britain had founded its empire on the strength of the exterior door hinge alone, so many were proudly on view.

When speaking of "convenience features" in a British sports car, you are apparently speaking almost entirely of the wing nut.

Whimsical door latch on the cut-down door of a British sports car.

Heaters might be optional at extra cost, but the windshield was bound to fold or be removable should you be seized by a sudden urge to go racing. What could be more convenient?

Good show!

This MG  TF packs an aluminum Buick V8 and supercharger.

1937 BSA Scout front-drive sports car.  Wooden box at right housed passengers' legs.

Jaguar XKE trunk was tiny and impractical. Who cares?

This Royal Enfield custom is 'a wicked blend of details'

Feast your eyes on the photographs of this custom Royal Enfield Bullet.

The pictures of his custom Royal Enfield Bullet are stunning, but Marco Möller, a German living in Dubai, says "the project will never be finished, ever."

How much farther can he go? It's remarkable how far he has come, starting with a Bullet so far gone Marco writes that "It wasn't love at first sight, it was merely pity!" Here's his story:

"About two years ago I met HER, my Royal Enfield Bullet 500, made in 1994. She was carelessly put down in my former bosses’ front yard, covered in grease and dust, oil stains all over her body. Poor thing totally abandoned and parched by the desert sun!

Note the effect of the brass parts and engraved aluminum.

"One man’s trash another man’s treasure!

"When I brought her home, she was black and chrome, strained by rust. Since I was no expert on motorcycles whatsoever, it proved to be quite a task getting the Old Lady started at first. Finding someone, capable of curing my Indian beauty’s soul here in Dubai was almost impossible; until I met the guys from “Classic Motorcycles” at a bike show.

"They had just opened their new showroom with a workshop and happened to be the new local Enfield dealer. I’m telling you, these guys are good! They definitely know their babies by heart and stand behind their workmanship! I was back in business!

(There's an article in Dubai's The National showing Marco consulting with a mechanic at Classic Motorworks.)

Wheels are smaller than stock.

"I finally got my engine fixed and learned a whole lot about my Bullet. Now I had two options: restoring an original or modifying something my way and making it my first very own project.

"I stripped her down to almost nothing, trying to imagine how she’d suit me best. It took several turns to become what I had in mind; a wicked blend of details. Unfolding every single layer of her I could clearly see right through her.

"In order to give her, a smaller appearance I’ve reduced the size of the front wheel from 19 to 18 inches and the rear wheel to 15 inches. A friend translated my vision of brown and beige into action; in fact he did a marvelous paint job.

More brass, and leather.

"The handle bar and the grips are wrapped with leather strips, which I also used to cover the seat. I’ve customized some parts myself, bought quite a few of brass pieces in India and started to engrave all of them by hand using hammer and chisel.

"Engraving the larger aluminum parts took me an insane amount of time, and it’s by far and away not finished yet.

Clean, understated, yet elegant tail.

"I guess you cannot put my modified Bullet in any category like bobber, chopper, cafe or anything else. However it was very critical that I maintained the basic features of a typical Royal Enfield as those are indeed what make her special and remarkable.

"I do enjoy it when people ask questions about the bike. But if anyone asks me, she’s not a show bike! She’s much more than that! She’s loud and furious, she’s moody and temperamental, she’s so much fun to ride! She’s always changing, but always the same."

The starting place.

Royal Enfield tricycle is in great shape, seller says

Looking at ads for used Royal Enfields is often challenging.

A Royal Enfild tricycle for sale on CraigsList here in Florida is "in great shape," the seller says but, unfortunately, the photographs make it hard to see the bike.

I've tracked down the origin of Royal Enfield pedal powered tricycles, which often turn up for sale in the U.S.

No doubt they were especially popular in retirement communities like those in Florida. This one is in Altamonte Springs, near Orlando.

Look closely at the photos. It does appear that the tricycle is in like new condition, although it probably has been around since the 1980s.

A U.S. company brought the tricycles to the United States branded as Royal Enfields. They were manufactured in Asia, with no connection to Royal Enfield of England or India.

The white-wall tires on this one are especially attractive.

The asking price seems high: $1,000, about 10 times what we normally see in ads for these tricycles.

New video of Royal Enfield V-twin, The Musket 998

The smile on his face tells you how well his Royal Enfield V-twin runs.

Aniket Vardhan gives us a hint of what it's like to ride his homemade Royal Enfield V-twin in this new short video of The  Musket 998 running through a parking lot.

He writes: "After a long freezing cold stretch, a gift from God — a 60 degree day in late January! Obviously, some noise had to be made! Had to do this quick, after work, before the sun went down. Had no helmet at work, I know, tsk tsk, shame on me, but needed to grab the moment. Did I mention that this thing GOES."

The smile on his face says it all, but turn up the volume anyway.

Royal Enfield motorcycle sales roaring: in India

Did you see the amazing mass of Royal Enfield motors
at the Chennai factory in the Vita Brevis Films video?

Future historians of Royal Enfield may view our time as a crisis for the company as it struggles to meet demand for  motorcycles in its home market, India. Customers there have to wait as long as 14 months for their new Royal Enfields, the Indian financial web site Dalal Street reports.

Will future authors mourn that sales opportunities were missed? Or will the new factory at Oragadam, to open in March, come to the rescue in time, boosting production by 50 percent?

This a crisis corporations elsewhere in the world must dream about. Except for the occasional long lines at Apple Stores, Americans mostly don't line up to buy consumer items unless prodded with low prices.

Supply seems to meet demand, even in the case of Royal Enfield motorcycles. U.S. dealers are advertising Royal Enfield Bullets, for immediate delivery.

In fact, if you watch the ads, there are some nice bargains out there on barely used "demonstrators."

There is no comparison, of course. Motorcycle sales in the U.S. are steady, but Dalal Street says the Indian market for motorcycles above 250cc "grew by 73.5 per cent."

"Royal Enfield, due to a loyal customer base, fan following, niche positioning and pricing (lower than Harley Davidson and Triumph), has managed to see massive growth in demand," Dalal Street writes.

It's hard to beat those attributes.

Dalal Street provided a chart of Royal Enfield sales in recent years. The numbers are impressive.

Year	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012 (est)
Sales	36,786	43,298	51,955	52,576	74,626	100,000
Growth (%)		17.70	19.99	1.20	41.94	34.00