Royal Enfield Super Meteor on 2015 calendar

Here is a Royal Enfield 2015 calendar. Click on it to make the dates readable.

Here's a Royal Enfield themed 2015 calendar for you.

The calendar features the classic 1956 Royal Enfield brochure illustration showing a lucky young couple touring on their Royal Enfield Super Meteor. This 692cc twin was a new model that year. It came with an improved motor, offering 40 horsepower.

"At last Enfields had a 100-mph machine, for on test Motor Cycling managed to exceed the magic ton by one mph," wrote Roy Bacon in "Royal Enfield, The Postwar Models."

The Super Meteor featured new bodywork that some critics thought made it look heavier than the 700 Meteor it replaced. Perhaps the illustrator made both the man and woman in the picture super-model thin to compensate!

According to the sales brochure, the Super Meteor features "robust swinging arm spring frame of entirely new design... The battery, air cleaner and toolbox are housed in a streamlined container with quickly detachable covers."

It's that big central container that gave the Super Meteor the heavier look. The big divided box under the seat had the tools and air filter on the left and the battery on the right.

1956 Royal Enfield Super Meteor had curvaceous new frame and big box for messy bits.

The new look was well in line with the "enclosure" style being introduced on competing brands of British motorcycles at the time.

Ironically, the "look" that endures on Royal Enfield Bullets from India today is the older angular frame with separate air filter box, two toolboxes and battery box, all circa 1955.

Click here to download a pdf of this calendar.

Happy New Year from this Royal Enfield Motorcycles blog.

Royal Enfield nowhere in U.S. Google searches

The ZigWheels Internet site, based in India, recently pronounced "Royal Enfield most searched on Google in 2014."

Yes, probably so — in India.

In India searches for Royal Enfield are more common than searches for other brands.

But not in the United States.

Google Trends shows searches worldwide and by individual countries, including India and the United States.

Searches are charted relative to the number of searches done on Google. So a line headed down on the fever chart may not indicate that the number of searches is declining, only that that term is less popular compared to overall searches.

On the Google fever chart the highest number of searches among the search terms you compare is awarded 100 percent and the less popular terms fall as a percentage of that one.

For my chart, I compared "Royal Enfield" against "Triumph motorcycles," "Kawasaki motorcycles," and "Suzuki motorcycles" over time in the United States.

I had to add the word "motorcycles" to the searches other than Royal Enfield because Triumph, Kawasaki and Suzuki can refer to other products. "Royal Enfield" by itself is distinctive.

If I had not done this, Royal Enfield would not have registered at all on the charts. The same thing would have happened if I had compared these four motorcycle companies to "Harley-Davidson." All four would have faded to insignificance.

Any way you look at it, the chart reveals how far Royal Enfield still has to go in the United States. It barely registers on the chart. This is a powerful indication of public unawareness of the brand.

Note the regular pattern of the fever lines traced by the Japanese/Triumph brands. These reflect seasonal interest in motorcycles, always higher in Spring, lower in Winter. Royal Enfield's level is too low to even mirror this.

Not surprisingly, the Royal Enfield brand has a long way to go in creating awareness and interest in the U.S.

Try your own search terms at Google Trends.

Royal Enfield Motorcycles blog wishes you joy

Royal Enfield Model J carries season's greetings.

It's a Royal Enfield Model J and two bundled riders bringing you holiday greetings this year.

The Model J was just the thing for these two fashionably dressed young people. With its shiny tank and fenders this Royal Enfield was a showy motorcycle. Although it had only a single cylinder it featured dual exhaust ports, giving it a bright, fish-tailed exhaust for each side.

Royal Enfield introduced the twin port version of the Model J (eventually dubbed J2) in 1949, probably the time of the Royal Enfield advertisement I used as the basis for my greeting card (the J2 was discontinued in 1955).

With 500cc it was certainly no slouch on the road, but the lack of rear suspension would suggest the lady passenger ought to hold more tightly to the young man, for fear of bouncing off. Royal Enfield clearly considered the J2 best used as a sidecar tug and upgrades would include forks and steering damper to suit that role.

The Glory of Youth

This Royal Enfield ad, originally entitled "The Glory of Youth," would have been eye-catching at the time, with its rich color throughout and the diagonal slash of yellow suggesting motion along the road.

The artist has reversed the "vanishing point" effect. Instead of carrying your eyes away to the horizon, the diagonal lines powerfully force your eyes to the motorcycle headlight and tank.

Ages ago, Chris Bartlett, the creative designer behind the motorcycle apparel of Her Majesty's Thunder, graciously created a logo for my Royal Enfield Motorcycles blog using "The Glory of Youth" as a starting point.

Unfortunately, I never managed to work it into the layout, but I didn't forget it. While casting about for a Christmas greeting this fall I decided to do my best at altering it to suit.

Whether you're riding or not, I hope the season brings you joy.

Royal Enfield crossed paths with the Wright Flyer

The 1903 Wright Flyer, on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
(Photo by Greg)

Some Royal Enfield employees spent World War II and many postwar years laboring underground in a once secret bomb-proof factory in England.

Oddly, the quarried passageways that sheltered the Royal Enfield workers as they produced precision weapons  and motorcycles hid another secret: the boxed up treasures of British museums, sent there to be safe from the Luftwaffe.

Among those irreplaceable artifacts was a precious American object, one that today is the pride of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

It was the first airplane, the Wright Flyer, restored as it was when Orville and Wilbur Wright first flew it at Kittyhawk, N.C. on Dec. 17, 1903.

According to the Smithsonian Institution, "During World War II, the airplane was kept in an underground storage facility near the village of Corsham, approximately 160 km (100 miles) from London, where various British national treasures were secured. The Flyer was not stored in the London subway as has been often asserted."

What was the world's most famous airplane doing hiding in a tunnel in England during the Battle of Britain?

The Flyer might have been safer across the ocean at the Smithsonian. But an argument over who had flown first had prevented that.

In 1903, before the Wrights left for Kittyhawk, the then secretary of the Smithsonian, Samuel Pierpont Langley, built his own winged machine.

Although this only succeeded in crashing into the Potomac it had a rebirth in 1914. Engaged in a patent fight with the Wrights, Glenn Curtiss finally got Langley's machine to actually fly.

The museum's insistence that this, then, must have been the world's first flying machine deeply offended Orville Wright, the surviving brother. In 1927 he sent the Flyer to the Science Museum in London.

The Smithsonian backed off its claim in 1942 and Orville relented. The Flyer returned to the United States in 1948.

It's a curious story, well told in Lawrence Goldstone's new book "Birdmen: The Wright Brothers, Glenn Curtiss and the Battle to Control the Skies."

Fascinating to me, of course, is the Flyer's obvious debt to the bicycle shop the Wrights ran back in their hometown of Dayton, Ohio. If ever there was a tribute to chain drive, the Flyer is it.

Curtiss's own connection to motorcycles is well known: before he flew he manufactured motorcycles and motors for motorcycles. Curtiss is the inventor of the twist-grip throttle.

In 1907 he designed and rode a V8-powered motorcycle to an unofficial world record that stood until 1930. That motorcycle is on exhibit in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, one floor down from the Wright Flyer.

Record setting Glenn Curtiss V8 motorcycle on display at the Smithsonian.
(Photo by Cliff)

Dania Beach Vintage Motorcycle Show: Jan. 31, 2015features the Harley-Davidson Sportster

The Harley-Davidson Sportster is the featured class at this year's Dania Beach show.

The American motorcycle that would be Brit is the featured class at my favorite local vintage motorcycle show.

The Ninth Annual Dania Beach Vintage Motorcycle Show is Jan. 31, 2015 at Frost Park in Dania Beach, Fla. You get that great Florida weather, 300 vintage motorcycles competing in a variety of classes, motorcycle skill team, field games, vendors, antique bicycles, live music, food and swap meet.

Featured class this year is the Harley-Davidson Sportster. It's bound to be a controversial choice.

Created to battle the British invasion of post-war motorcycles, this American iron icon is always a great way to start an argument.

"If you want to know how much history you can pour onto two wheels, look no further than the Harley-Davidson Sportster. How many bikes can you name that outlasted Elvis, the Beatles, the Cold War, and TV's 'Law & Order'?" writes Mark Masker in "History of The Harley-Davidson Sportster: Pursuit of Xlence."

"No other Harley has as long or rich a story as the Sportster line. The bike's tale runs the gamut from racing to touring and everywhere in between."

Derived from the Harley-Davidson Model K in 1957 to compete with the British, the Sportster XL offered overhead valves, a unit motor, swing-arm rear suspension, telescopic front forks, and a transmission with a foot shift, on the right, just like the Brits.

Displacement steadily increased, to bring competitive speeds, and Harley kept building the Sportster, even as the competition from England dropped away. Harley competed with the new Japanese motorcycles by staying old fashioned. A five-speed transmission came in 1991 and belt drive in 1993, but not until 2004 would the Sportster get insulated motor mounts to curb vibration.

Fans of British style motorcycles always kind of liked the Sportster. Maybe that's why fans of other Harley-Davidsons often don't. But there was another reason as well.

"Harley-Davidson also debuted the Sportster Hugger in 1988 and changed the bike's image dramatically," Masker writes.

"All of you out there who hate the Sportster label of being a women's or beginner's machine have the Hugger to thank for that. Why? Because H-D aimed the Hugger at bringing women and beginning riders into the fold. Its lowered suspension brought the seat height down to 26 inches so that little people could sit on it with both feet touching the ground. For some reason, the Motor Company tripped over its own shoelaces by not advertising it toward women to draw them in and actually buy it. Still, the reputation has stuck despite the XL's rich heritage as an early super bike and race machine."

I asked Clare Frost — with Clive Taylor one of the organizers of the Dania Beach Vintage Motorcycle Show — why the Sportster was chosen as the featured class for the 2015 show.

"Well, as you know, a lot of our spectators are Harley folks and it seems when we put an American-made bike on the shirts they sell out. AND we are making it new and old Sportsters to show how they have been through the years. Also, I got a lesson on the K model Harleys, and even though they are not Sportsters, I think we are letting them into the theme area to show the history.

"BUT, next year, Clive says he is the boss and the theme will be pre-unit English and that his 1939 Triumph will be on the shirts!"

I think the Sportster is an inspired choice as it is a landmark Harley model that gets far less respect than it deserves. In fact, it gets a lot of grief! I would think this show would interest Sportster owners across the nation. Must be a lot of those.

Vintage Royal Enfield ads sold the joy of riding

"The Home of the Royal Enfield — Bicycle" is the title of a lovely 1913 advertisement showing the Royal Enfield factory in Redditch, England.

I came across it on the Vintage Bicycling blog.

Redditch, home of Royal Enfield.

Yes, it's an ad for bicycles, but it goes on to claim "Today there is no cycle or motorcycle which may be more fitly labelled HIGH GRADE than the evergreen Royal Enfield."

And why is that?

"Picture to yourself a manufacturing town set on a hill right in the heart of the beautiful Midland country. A town with as little sign of manufacturing smoke and dirt as possible, and all around rolling pastures and woodlands. Imagine pure country air, tree-topped hills and a factory set at the foot of them. That is Redditch — and the factory is the home of the Royal Enfield bicycle."

"...The environment of the Royal Enfield workers ensures good work, for one of the soundest industrial truths is that good working conditions make for good craftsmanship."

That's probably true; hopefully the workers who build today's Royal Enfields in India enjoy good working conditions.

This much is true: the description of the Redditch countryside certainly captures the appeal of motorcycling on a Royal Enfield motorcycle.

And here's part of another delightful 1913 Royal Enfield advertisement, again spotted on Vintage Bicycling.

Think of the days you can spend a-wheel on Royal Enfield.

Original Royal Enfield Continental GT restoration

It's going to take awhile but this Royal Enfield Continental GT will look great.

This original Royal Enfield Continental GT needs a little work, but it's hard not to envy the fellow who now owns it.

"I have acquired my father's RE Continental GT 250, complete with fairing kit and has only seen the road for three years until laid up in 1970!" he wrote.

The owner is member "cb1rocket," writing on the UK-based Bike Chat Forums (BCF). His real name is Greg and he lives in the UK.

I wrote to ask him about it.

"It is indeed a rare machine, maybe a little more common here in the UK but none the less my father wants the machine done up and restored. It is a very time consuming matter for me; I'm into more modern bikes and this is something that has made my mind blow! A lot of research is needed and I have to determine as to why it won't start, which was the main reason for being sat for so long!" he responded.

"I was expecting the worst, a seized engine that wouldn't turn over, however that wasn't the case. Now my mission is on to get a spark out of the ignition circuit and hopefully a running machine prior to strip down and repaint...

"The history on the machine is quite very well intact: my father bought this new in 1967 and rode it until it sadly stopped running. Work took over all his time and unfortunately it was partly stripped and that's how it was left — for the next 44 years until it starts to see attention again!"

I hope he gets it sorted out. It will be great to see this machine back on the road with the new Royal Enfield Continental GTs about.

Royal Enfield Dreamliner was a streamlined wonder

The Royal Enfield Dreamliner probably came about as close as any land vehicle could to being that flying car we were promised was in our future in the 1950s.

Whenever it's discussed, the Dreamliner's looks are compared to a frog or a Messerschmidt microcar.

This year it popped up on the Hitchcocks Motorcycles message board when one member asked whatever happened to the experimental Dreamliner fairing.

The conversation brought the answer to that question and much more.

The Royal Enfield Dreamliner under test
for The Motor Cycle magazine.

Most enthusiasts know that in 1956 Royal Enfield cooperated with The Motor Cycle magazine to build the Dreamliner fairing on an old 350cc Bullet.

"This had been a rather futuristic experiment with full front and rear enclosure, widely spaced dual headlights and a deep screen," writes Roy Bacon in his book "Royal Enfield, The Postwar Models."

But it did the job.

"Tests had indicated a top speed improvement of 11 per cent and fuel consumption down by some 25 to 35 per cent, depending on the machine's speed," Bacon notes.

The more I look at the Dreamliner the more I think it resembles a motorcycle sidecar with the motorcycle inside the sidecar!

Well, surprise: it turns out that the Dreamliner concept originated with sidecars.

In "Watts My Line, The Life and Work of Editorial Artist Lawrie Watts," author David Dixon explains that the talented Watts created a streamlined Watsonian sidecar for sidecar racing champion Eric Oliver.

Oliver went on to win four successive sidecar championships and The Motor Cycle's editor, Harry Louis, took notice. He asked Watts to design streamlining for a road motorcycle, and set up a connection with Royal Enfield development engineer Tony Wilson-Jones.

Lawrence Watts rides his Dreamliner in photo from
the book "Watts My Line" by David Dixon.

Don't blame Watts for the broad frog face of the Dreamliner, though. He wanted to switch the Bullet to 16-inch wheels to permit a more streamlined (and perhaps more attractive) fairing. But Royal Enfield Sales Director Major Mountford insisted on keeping the standard 19-inch wheels.

This required much greater front-end width to allow the front wheel to turn lock-to-lock inside the fairing when parking — the only time it would have to do so.

"That extra width penalized us in order to satisfy a maneuverability requirement at zero miles per hour!" Watts told Dixon.

The streamlined 350cc Bullet still gained 7 mph top speed and even struggled less on hills despite carrying an extra 45 pounds.

And it was practical. Two people working together could remove all the bodywork in 60 seconds; one person doing it alone just took a bit longer. Watts praised the motorcycle for the weather protection it offered.

The Dreamliner influenced the partial fairings Royal Enfield would go on to offer the public.

These production "Airflow" fairings did not fully enclose the front wheel. They were not big sellers, as the riders of the day lost interest in enclosure when international racing banned fairings.

With racing heroes now riding naked motorcycles, the cafe racer look became popular, dooming the plastic — but fantastic — streamliners.

On the Hitchcock's Message Board, member "Richy" came forward to say he is the owner of Lawrence Watt's Dreamliner fairing and Bullet motorcycle, and they will be restored "as a tribute to his work."

Then, in October, member David S. revealed that he owns a related Royal Enfield Meteor Minor 500cc twin that had carried experimental "Airflow Super" fairings. This motorcycle has lost its front fairing but still has the rear bodywork and David S. said he hopes to restore it eventually.

A similarly equipped 250cc Crusader is said to have been purchased by a Japanese collector.

Royal Enfield Christmas gift suggestions

My Royal Enfield Bullet, all decorated for Christmas.

With Christmas coming up, you may be wondering what to buy for your Royal Enfield motorcycle.

Here are some suggestions, provided in poet Simon Taylor's "The 12 Days of Enfield." (Reprinted with permission.)

On the first day of Christmas my true love parked for me,
A Royal Enfield Bullet underneath the old Pear tree.

On the second day of Christmas I took it for a ride,
I ordered two new tyres as the fitted ones did slide.

By the third day of Christmas I'd got used to the seat,
I ordered MotoVision bulb and brand-new headlamp peak.

On the fourth day of Christmas by chance I did discover,
I should replace the Bakelite that forms the push-rod cover.

On the fifth day of Christmas another thing I spotted,
The battery had leaked sometime, it's holder is quite rotted.

The sixth day of Christmas saw some more bits for the bike,
A Lithium-ion battery, L.E.D. Tail light.

The sun shone on the seventh day the paint did not look right,
Six previous owners, six shades of green, poor Bullet, what a sight.

The eighth day saw fresh paint applied, where once bike looked forlorn,
Parading proud in army green, a brand-new uniform.

The ninth day took it for a ride, performance seem quite fettered,
But bike cheered up with correct slide and jets in carburettor.

It must have been day number ten, rear brake began to shudder,
Another order, new brake pads, to try and stop the judder.

On day eleven I worked all day just to complete the bike,
Chronometric M.P.H., ammeter, looked just right.

Day twelve we rode down into town, with pride and some emotion,
So many came to see my bike, which caused a big commotion.

Christmas is finished, my purse is too, to keep my bike in health,
A Bullet gets all that it wants and uses up your wealth.

The moral is, a bond does form, somewhat like you're it's mother,
No matter how you look at it, you'll depend on each other.

I wrote about Simon Taylor's Royal Enfield themed poem "Service Brown" on Veteran's Day. You can read more Royal Enfield inspired poetry by the poet who signs himself "Scaleyback" at this link.

Decorating a Royal Enfield Bullet for Christmas.

A Royal Enfield mystery: Case of the busted alternator

Everybody loves solving a riddle, although perhaps not when it leaves your Royal Enfield stopped by the side of the road.

Since 2000, the Royal Enfield "guru of the East" B.R. Gurunandan — call him Nandan — has offered advice to the "Bullet-eers" on his Bulletech Yahoo group.

Often his advice comes as a challenge to figure it out for yourself.

His latest riddle started Nov. 5, with a comment from one member on the subject of "Alternator Clearance."

"May I add my two cents?" he wrote. "Please use nyloc nuts or a dab of medium strength thread sealer on the nuts that hold the stator. I lost my entire primary side and screwed up a crankshaft due to the alternator loosening and locking up the crank."

Nandan was incredulous.

"Gross misinformation with grave consequences to unsuspecting readers can't be left uncorrected," he replied, and he posed this challenge:

"Let's see how many SUSPECTING readers, aka real Bulleteers are here. Anyone (except Pete and Tim) who sees what is wrong in his diagnosis/advice please tell him and group."

Another member offered this explanation:

"I'm sure he was just testing the attention of the group; anyone who's repaired anything in general or an Enfield in particular would know THAT wouldn't happen. In his defense, the advice of using 'thread sealer' and/or 'nyloc nuts' is a good one — his suggested consequences are a bit 'far-fetched' however!"

But this didn't give us the answer to Nandan's quiz, and the original member replied that "Just because you ain't seen it doesn't mean it can't happen."

The victim expanded on the mishap:

"I made the mistake of letting a mechanic change the primary side chain. When he fitted the alternator back, he apparently didn't tighten the nuts enough... I felt a slight grating in the primary, didn't think much of it. At this village we stopped for tea and after a few minutes I started the bike, engaged gear and let go of the clutch. There was a crashing noise and the bike stalled. Tried to kick the engine, engine started. It seemed to be in neutral but it was in gear. Gearshift wouldn't budge. Rocked the bike to and fro, got it into neutral. Engine running, gear shifts, but no drive. Opened the primary case. Alternator mangled, chain piled up behind the clutch drive. All three bosses in which the alternator studs screw into ripped from the primary case inner cover. Crankshaft sheared just at the nut. Enough grinding seen on the inner part of the stator to know it had been rubbing for quite a distance. Seemed like somehow it failed to snag for so long."

So something went wrong. But further responses to Nandan were tentative.

"I really do not think your alternator nuts were lose," offered one member. "If the nuts were lose the alternator would have stuck to the magnet."

So Nandan offered a hint:

"How many of you asked this question: If rotor rubbing the stator can shatter the casing, how come nothing breaks on braking?"

The original poster replied: "The nuts fell off due to vibration. There are only two explanations — one is that the crankshaft snapped first and let the magnet slip out, but that seems unlikely. The other is that the stator got snagged somehow."

Nandan still had not accepted an answer by Nov. 12.

"I'm getting some replies, a tiny handful; by direct email because they fear they may be wrong," he reported.

"All were right about being wrong, sad to say."

And in this post he finally began to reveal the answer. Don't hesitate to join the Bulletech group if you must to view the post. You'll be glad you did, next time your Bullet presents you with a mystery.

Ace performance boost for Royal Enfield twins

You're looking into left cylinder of a Royal Enfield twin maximized for performance.

Ace Performance Bullets sells the bits it takes to make the single-cylinder Royal Enfield Bullet go fast. Now Tom Lyons of Ace has built parts that could pull super performance from vintage Royal Enfield twins such as the Interceptor.

"I'm not sure if you are aware of it, but we have finished a very nice pair of modded cylinder heads for the vintage Royal Enfield twins," he wrote me.

"This particular pair was for an Indian Trailblazer, which is actually a RE Super Meteor sold in the U.S. under the 'Indian' label, but these mods will be suitable for any of the RE twins in the 700/750 range, including the Interceptor.

Custom roller rockers.

"This mod includes a very nice set of custom steel roller rockers which fit into the small rocker area in these heads, and a set of added custom adjustment ports in the heads for adjusting the lash at the top.

"As far as I am aware, this is the first time that a Royal Enfield twin has ever had high ratio roller rockers put into the heads, and I believe that these are the highest performance Enfield twin heads ever produced. They are absolute gems."

Lyons wrote me that an Interceptor in full-race tune with these heads would have a potential of 90 horsepower.

"Just like we did with the Enfield singles, this unlocks the key to power that Enfields have been lacking all these years," he wrote.

First Ace turned the dray horse Bullet into a Fireball.  It adapted those improvements to the Big Head, AVL and UCE motors. It offers to fit Fireball improvements to the Musket V-twin Bullet kit. It is developing a bolt-on head to power up the new Royal Enfield Continental GT.

Now Lyons offers a way to turn the 60-year-old Royal Enfield twin into a threat at Bonneville.

Yes, I do feel self-conscious about featuring Ace so often on this blog. But it seems to me Lyons is the fellow answering all the "what if" questions people ask about Royal Enfields.

Accessories improve look of Royal Enfield Bullet

Standard Royal Enfield Bullet is improved by subtle upgrades.

A 2001 Royal Enfield Bullet 500 for sale on eBay in Washington state is just about perfect.

Literally. It has only 50 miles on the odometer. The seller says he bought it only for display, kept it in his climate controlled home museum, and rode it only three times.

But that's not why I consider it "perfect." To my eye, this Bullet has been tastefully modified in ways I might have done myself, if I'd wanted to spend the money. The seller listed the changes made:

• K&N air filter
• Duck bill breather
• Relocated horn
• Chrome brake rod w/nut.
• Chrome chain adjusters
• Chrome rear wheel spacers
• Chrome rear wheel hub cover
• Bar-end mirrors
• 350 front fender and fender stays
• Re-jetted carb
• Big tri-bar headlight and mounting ring
• Removed turn indicators
• Solo riding seat
• Re-mounted electronics out of sight
• More open muffler
• Removed rear pegs

He doesn't even mention the tomb stone tail light fitted. While my own Bullet has the solo seat, I never got around to removing the passenger pegs. This man did, and it's a nice touch.

Clean look, but visible air filter looks too modern to my eyes.

I would have left the turn signals and the air filter box; the visible K&N filter looks too "modern" to me.

Note that although the electrics were relocated, the battery box remains, so there is no "see-through frame" effect anyway — so nothing would be lost by putting that K&N in the original air filter box.

Fuller 350 model front fender looks better than version on 500.

On the other hand, the switch to the better looking 350 front fender is subtle but effective. However, I wouldn't pay to replace a fender until I'm done denting the old one. That's the difference between cheap me and particular him.

Big headlight looks great.
Relocated horn is neat but why does it face down?

I think he got this one right.

Royal Enfield hires designer Pierre Terblanche

Royal Enfield brings on Pierre Terblanche.
(Photo from Twisting Asphalt.)

Royal Enfield has engaged the services of Pierre Terblanche, a South African widely considered "one of the most influential motorcycle designers in the world today."

Rather a surprising move from a company that hasn't found the need to change the basic look of its most iconic products since — actually? — at least 1955.

Most famous for his designs at Ducati, Terblanche is responsible for motorcycles that look to me to be nothing at all like any Royal Enfield marketed so far.

Here's a short YouTube video of Terblanche discussing one of his Ducati designs. Never mind the motorcycle. Watch the way he strokes the motorcycle with his hand as he speaks.

This is a person who cares about design. He obviously hasn't joined Royal Enfield to reinterpret the glories of its 1949 model.

And Royal Enfield hasn't hired him to turn back the clock. Here's the quote from Siddhartha Lal, managing director and CEO of parent company Eicher Motors Ltd.:

"I am very excited that Pierre Terblanche has recently joined our team; he is one of the most prolific industrial designers for motorcycles, and is best known for having created some extra-ordinary motorcycles as the head of design for Ducati for over a decade."

The key words there are probably "extra-ordinary." On Twitter Lal referred to Terblanche as "the motorcycle design genius of our generation."

The BikeEXIF interview with Pierre Terblanche is three years old, but it is revealing and it is the link Lal provided on his Twitter feed.  It may provide a further clue to what Lal is thinking Terblanche can bring to Royal Enfield.

My favorite part is Terblanche's reply to a critic under "Comments."

"You have to remember that I am a designer and that we are notoriously romantic."

I like that.

I also liked his passing reference to the classic (and often beautiful) fighter planes of World War II.

"I like Spitfires. Not as much as the Mustang P-51 or the P-38. But it's nice."

1967 Royal Enfield Continental GT: What price patina?

Is there room in your heart for this little Royal Enfield?

I'm sure I wasn't the only enthusiast pausing to consider the 1967 Royal Enfield Continental GT for sale on eBay in Ohio recently.

"In this auction we have a 1967 250cc Royal Enfield Continental GT that has a barn fresh patina, a few extra parts, and a strong running motor," the seller wrote. "Here is a video of it being started and idling."

There were lots of negatives: Rear rim, bent. Fork tubes, bent. Swing arm, bent. Busted gauges. Busted headlamp. Missing seat.

Restore it? Or leave the evidence of a hard life?

But it runs and, yes, the patina. What patina! Why not just leave those gutted gauges the way they are? Try to make the forks somehow roadworthy? Keep that delicate looking, scratched up brake cooling intake as it is.

Why is patina appealing, when "wear and tear" is not? And what is patina worth, if anything?

In the December issue of Car and Driver columnist Ezra Dyer has an interesting take on "barn cars," the hottest new/old thing on the auction circuit.

"Just a few years back, you'd go to an auction like this and look for a car that was clean, shiny, and freshly tuned up. Like a total idiot! Originality, we now know, is more valuable than superficial considerations like beauty or safety...

"Up is down left is right and bad cars are good cars," he writes.

As Dyer points out, part of the appeal of patina is the obvious originality. It strikes me that most of what is left of this Continental GT probably is original to it. No one would have swapped in broken parts. This is not "faux patina" — distressed paint added to make a merely mediocre motorcycle look meaningful.

So it's historically accurate, anyway.

Tiny brake cooling duct.

Trouble is, this little motorcycle led an historically very tough life.

It's a question every buyer has to answer. Yes, a motorcycle is only "original" once and patina is evidence of that originality.

But it also is true that a motorcycle is only "new" once and patina equals "very used."

'Service Brown' remembers a soldier and his Royal Enfield

Poem remembers a soldier and his Royal Enfield motorcycle.

A Royal Enfield enthusiast's upbeat and poetic tribute to a motorcycle dispatch rider of World War II and his Royal Enfield motorcycle makes a fitting subject this Veterans Day.

Simon Taylor of the UK signs himself Scaleyback. He posted his poem "Service Brown" in June on a number of Royal Enfield forums in remembrance of D-Day, 1944.

It wasn't his first poem on the subject of Royal Enfields. You can see his extensive collection of original Royal Enfield inspired poetry at this link.

It never says so in "Service Brown" itself, but the motorcycle in the poem is a Royal Enfield, according to Scaleyback's description: "A WWII tale about a despatch rider and his Royal Enfield Motorcycle."

But whatever the make, in whatever branch of whatever allied nation's service, the loyalty of machine to rider and rider to machine reads as an allegory. Soldier and machine repeatedly do more than seems possible when nothing more could have been asked.

You can download the entire poem as a pdf file from this link on the Royal Enfield Yahoo Group.

On that forum I asked the author if the story was true, or "artistic license."

He replied: "Partly artistic license, but as close to the reality as possible."

If so, it's truly special, as the Royal Enfield dubbed "Memo" survives evacuation from Dunkirk and returns to Europe at Normandy, then follows its rider into civilian life in a fresh coat of "Service Brown" paint.

Tuesday, Nov. 11 is Veterans Day in the United States. The date corresponds to the Nov. 11, 1918 armistice that ended World War I. The holiday was originally called "Armistice Day."

In 1954, after World War II and the Korean War, the name was changed to extend the honor to all who serve and sacrifice in times of war and peace.

Author Simon Taylor told me that in "Service Brown" he "wanted to write something that was not only based on the correct historical events, but also showed the relationship between Johnny and his RE whilst adding the very real hopes and fears that servicemen felt in the differing situations that they found themselves in."

Although "not anywhere near old enough to have been in the Second World War," Taylor did serve in the Royal Corps of Signals, which gave him the "Scaleyback" nickname. Signalers of the First World War lugged leaky lead acid radio batteries into battle, resulting in burns that looked like scales.

"The rest of the army ended up giving us the term ’Scaleybacks’ and it is still used today," he told me.

Swearing at your Royal Enfield? Watch your language

What language do you use when you curse at your Royal Enfield?

A part from a Royal Enfield military motorcycle of World War II led to this discussion on the Historic Military Vehicle Forum recently.

Rusted Royal Enfield forks.

Member Einbeck Bowl discovered his Triumph motorcycle project came with a mysterious front girder fork that other members helped him identify as coming from a Royal Enfield WD/CO, circa 1943.

He determined "to put some work in it, in order to preserve it," but soon found he couldn't fully loosen one of the spindles at the top of the forks.

"Are the threads running in opposite direction? The other spindle is completely stuck; I tried heat, oil and yelling at it in German. Unless I find a (cheap) WD/CO without a fork this will be stored here for years or it will become someone else's problem," he wrote.

A member named Ron replied, explaining that the spindle threads are left-hand on the right hand side and right-hand on the left side of the forks.

"I think if you get both links very hot at the spindles, then let them cool for a minute or two, then screw the spindle inwards with the square end, they should move," Ron wrote. "If the spindles are seized in their bushes, then the whole area will need heat.

"Or try swearing in English as I doubt they will understand or even want to respond to German."

Bolt on power for your Royal Enfield Continental GT

Want to make your Royal Enfield Continental GT faster?

Ace Performance Bullets will offer a replacement head for the Royal Enfield Continental GT that will give street riders real world performance improvement.

The new head will line up with existing intake and exhaust components so that owners can swap it in and go riding. Best of all, owners won't need to rebuild the bottom ends of their motors to withstand the increased performance; the new head will make power within the limits of the existing Unit Constructed Engine (UCE) motor.

Ace built its reputation on the Fireball heads it still offers for iron-barrel Bullets. Owners must break the cases of these to install stronger (and pricey) bottom end components, while the stock heads are sent to Ace to be modified and shipped back.

"It was taking three months for each job, and this was something that we wanted to improve," Tom Lyons of Ace wrote on their Ace Performance Bullets Yahoo group.

"With the new heads, it should be available at fairly short notice, depending on how much I can stock at any given time, or short production time, so little or no wait. I think that this ready availability is something that people will appreciate.

"Also, it gives us the freedom to make a new head with a completely clean sheet of paper, other than having to have the inlet and outlet connections at the factory locations. We have freedom to design new combustion chamber, new ports, new valve angles and sizes and locations, new rocker arrangements, etc.

"We plan to pack this thing full of advanced features, and it will all be in the CNC program to cut it out of a big hunk of billet aluminum."

What followed from him were the technical details of high-ratio roller rockers, beehive valve springs and 6,200 rpm. Simple? No-o-o-o. Along with designing and manufacturing the hardware, Ace will need to reprogram ECU software, overcome the rev limiter and adjust mixture and ignition.

At what cost — for a brand new head?

"This is not priced as yet, because it is still not yet released, but we are expecting pricing to be in the $2,000-plus price range. We don't know yet how much higher than $2,000, but we are going to try to keep it as close to that as we can," Lyons wrote.

Ace offers a wide variety of other options — including making use of your existing head — and Lyons answers individual questions on the group. Indeed, he is one of the most helpful Royal Enfield "answer men" on the Internet, regardless of the question.

(You'll find his personal email address listed on the group home page, but please ask your question on the forum so we can all learn from the answer.)

It's fascinating to watch as Ace introduces one product line after another for Royal Enfield applications from ancient iron heads to the newest Continental GT.

It seems clear now that Royal Enfield motorcycles can and will go faster, reliably, if not cheaply. Seemingly under the radar of the most enthusiasts and the motoring press, Ace is leading the way.

I have no connection to Tom Lyons or Ace. I'll personally be leaving my own 1999 Bullet stock-ish (but, if I had a rebuild coming up...).

As an enthusiast I do appreciate Tom's willingness to answer technical questions for anyone, customer or not.

Musket V-twin Royal Enfield order form posted

The Musket V-twin Royal Enfield. Now you can order one.

"Awesome." That's what I called a Jan. 1, 2009 YouTube video of a home-made Royal Enfield V-twin starting and running as the excited young man who built it rejoiced.

"What do you think of THAT!" he yells, as the motor runs. Royal Enfield enthusiasts around the world loved it, and have viewed it 186,000 times so far.

Now Aniket Vardhan has posted the order form for the complete Musket V-twin Royal Enfield.

There are six motors available, for now, to customers in the U.S. You can buy it as a kit for $5,990 or have Aniket put it together for you for $12,750 plus your good donor iron barrel Royal Enfield Bullet 500.

Extras — such as Carillo rods and roller big ends to withstand the Ace performance modifications — will cost extra. Many things will cost extra as your Bullet clutch, just for instance, will have to be in good condition to suddenly confront 998cc.

The Musket is, obviously, a custom product. Any illusions you might have about how cheap and easy it would be to double the size of the old Royal Enfield motor and put it into a Bullet frame will disappear when you view the step-by-step photo gallery.

Many enthusiasts have day-dreamed about making a V-twin out of the Bullet and returning it to the glory days before World War II when you could have purchased a Royal Enfield V-twin from Redditch, England.

Aniket Vardhan, a young Ohio man originally from New Delhi, did it. That was impressive. The fact that he has made it possible for you to come along on the ride is, well: Awesome!

Is Royal Enfield bringing back the old Bullet? Not yet

My 1999 Royal Enfield Bullet, how I love it.

An Internet story recently reported that Royal Enfield has gone back to producing motorcycles that shift on the right side, as Brit-style motorcycles did in times past.

It's not true. New Royal Enfields shift on the left, the international standard. But there are some who wouldn't have minded if the story had been true. These same fans of the brand would like the iron barrel back, too, and the separate gearbox with neutral finder.

No Unit Constructed Engine (UCE) and front disk brake for them.

The topic of the good old days vs. compromise with modern times was intelligently explored in 2012 on the Ace Performance Bullets Yahoo Group.

"Kris" opened the conversation with this:

"It surprises me that there seems to be an interest for the new UCE Enfield in the West. I can understand in India, where the choice of bikes is sparse. But why would one buy a UCE Enfield in the West? It is no longer an Enfield, but a totally new design. It does not have at all the feel that one gets when driving a real classic engine. On the other hand, it is much poorer quality than modern bikes. Why not buy just a good Japanese bike instead?"

My own answer:

"Kris, I am far less qualified than others on this forum to respond, except to point out that any motor vehicle purchase past an economy car is an emotional purchase. I have a 1999 Bullet and love it, but my test runs on a new C5 UCE definitely made me feel that the company hasn't 'lost' it.

"It's still a single-cylineder, pushrod, slow turning, low compression motorcycle that (except for a few built without a kicker) I can kick start. Still slow enough to encourage me to stay off the Interstate. Upright seating... well, it goes on an on. My point is, the Bullet is still the fastest way back to 1955 you can buy in America with a warranty. If that is the trip you have planned, it's the best choice."

Kris asked why Royal Enfield didn't just modify the Bullet "with soul" to meet emission requirements, without making it modern. His guess:

"There are no enthusiasts there, just a bunch of old guys trying to make money."

And make money they do, as the new UCE Royal Enfields have proven immensely popular in India.

"Vivek" wrote a long post explaining how, with modern touches and vastly reduced maintenance, the UCE hit a sweet spot in the market. "That means they are doing something right, in terms of getting customers."

"Rattan" rejected the argument that "if it sells it must be good."

"I love the Enfield Bullet for what it  stands for," he wrote. "An Iron Dinosaur that made it through the Ice Age. And going by the current prices for the 'standard' Bullet in the used bike market in India, I believe a significant number of enthusiasts agree."

Vivek, in fact, is one of those.

"Someday when Royal Enfield is rich enough, I hope they bring back the old school Enfield, but that's a long shot. My strategy is to get rich and acquire as many of those as it would take to ride out my life. As long as I have a frame and a crankcase, I'm all set!"

Royal Enfield Continental GT takes on the competiton

MotorcycleUSA.com compared the Royal Enfield Continental GT to Japanese competitors.

Hold your fire; the Royal Enfield Continental GT "lost" the comparison test with the Yamaha SR400 and Suzuki TU250X conducted by Adam Waheed on MotorcycleUSA.com

It's a thorough test, complete with individual videos of the three motorcycles and charts showing torque and horsepower curves. The Continental GT was rated high on looks, character and handling and nicked for fit-and-finish issues, an imperfect transmission and an occasional stall. It also carried the highest price of the three.

Thorough as it is, the article won't change anyone's mind. You won't be surprised to learn that Yamaha and Suzuki offered Japanese quality, better fuel economy and lower prices. In fact, the two Japanese motorcycles were so consistent they tied for first place.

"Affordable urban transportation" is the phrase used for the Suzuki. Be still, my heart.

For me — and likely for you if you are reading my blog — the Royal Enfield emerged the clear winner.

Do just one thing: start the video  that covers the Royal Enfield Continental GT. Watch and listen just until the Continental GT runs.

Hear THAT? The sound tells you everything you need to know. Go on to watch the videos for the Yamaha and Suzuki if you want. They sound exactly as you know they will, because if you've lived in the United States you've listened to thousands of Japanese motorcycles going by.

They sound OK. Their motors are running, always a good thing.

The Royal Enfield Continental GT sounds tremendous.

Try it:

Royal Enfield military motorcycles in World War II

Is that a Royal Enfield military motorcycle in this movie?

Yes, that's a Royal Enfield motorcycle the soldier stands astride, directing traffic, in the 1943 movie "The Gentle Sex."

Consensus on the Internet is that it is a Royal Enfield, probably a Model WD/C or CO.

Its rider is a woman, shepherding her convoy of lorries through wartime England in this movie with its mildly suggestive title.

No sex in this one, just gender. The film glamorizes the lives of women in the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) of the British Army. There's not much glamour either, although the young women are pretty enough, even in their lumpy uniforms.

At one point the female motorcycle dispatch riders dismount and come prancing, helmets in hand, to a briefing. Their running looks more like ballet than the lumbering jog similarly burdened men would have performed.

The convoy departs, guided by ATS motorcyclists.

"The Gentle Sex" is a well made picture, directed by Leslie Howard, who also provides the ironic "they think they're helping, I suppose" narration.

It was Howard's last film before his death in June, 1943, when the passenger plane in which he was a passenger was shot down by German fighter planes.

Obviously meant to encourage women to help out in the war effort, the "Gentle Sex" rises above the usual "you're in the army now" cliches. For one thing, it's realistic.

The movie's primary drama revolves around a grueling 400-mile drive with vital war supplies. It's not exactly flying Spitfires, but it's no piece of cake either.

And some of the women do encounter the Luftwaffe. You see their variety of reactions when the "mixed" (male/female) anti-aircraft battery they're assigned to makes a kill. Mere propaganda would have been content with one reaction.

The military equipment on view in these wartime films is one of the reasons I watch them. This is what 1943 must really have looked like.

ATS recruits get their first look at army life from a U.S. truck.

One example: the U.S. trucks that are seen with "Left Hand Drive NO SIGNALS" on the tailgate.

Did you know that ATS women pronounced it as an acronym: "ats"?

'Indian Summer' motorcycle documentary now on DVD

The motorcycle documentary "Indian Summer" is a pleasure to watch.

The Royal Enfield content is slim: limited to one Big Head hillclimber ridden by young Bruce Gagne, who explains how American Indian motorcycles were, briefly, built in Redditch, England by Royal Enfield.

But this doesn't lessen the appeal of "Indian Summer," a 1994 documentary by Timothy Cataldo. This precious film has just become available as a DVD on Amazon.com ($14.99).

In this film it's always fall, the leaves are always changing, the setting sun always glows softly. The men are young and brave and the women are young and slim. Motorcycles climb hills, spin around and crash through the walls of death. But mostly they just clatter along country roads. And it's all good.

"Indian Summer" is a gently paced documentary about American Indian motorcycles (so named  not to capitalize on native Americans but because these were the pioneer American motorcycles).

It's a documentary of interviews with experts on the American Indian motorcycles, with flickering background footage of Indians in action.

Cataldo could teach Ken Burns something. Instead of a droning narrator we have individuals (I stopped counting at 20 separate interviews) who love the old Indians, each standing next to one motorcycle telling what he knows:

Why the Indian Four was important. Why the 101 Scout remains the most revered American motorcycle. What it was like to get a call from Steve McQueen and not know who he was, except that he loved motorcycles.

It's the loving "they never should have gone out of business" attitude toward Indian motorcycles that comes through every time.

"Indian always had the heart of the American rider," one subject notes. Our movie maker knows it to be true.

Cataldo, who in 1994 was young and green and using the first footage he shot when he got a movie camera, makes a great documentary not because he cares so much about Indian motorcycles as because he clearly cares so much about his subjects.

They're shown in their shops and garages, maybe with crooked teeth and stubble, but with emotion in their voices that identifies them as the shining knights who rode these machines in their days of glory.

Back when the average motor car did 35 mph max on a good road, and less on a bad road — of which there were many — motorcycles could could maneuver around pot holes; you could adjust the sidecar to keep it out of the horse cart ruts.

But this is not just a ride down memory lane. There's hard information here too. The triumphs and failures of the critical du Pont years are described by du Pont descendants themselves!

Some of those interviewed in 1994 are no longer with us. This documentary is a priceless artifact. Full disclosure: I got my original copy for free, a copy from the Gagnes. It's a favorite of mine.

"Indian is mostly just a feeling," Cataldo concludes.

What a feeling.

1950 Phil Irving review of the new Royal Enfield Bullet

The Royal Enfield Bullet, reviewed in 1950.

The legendary motorcycle engineer and writer Phil Irving reviewed the then brand new Royal Enfield Bullet for The Age newspaper of Melbourne, Australia on Aug. 3, 1950.

By that time, Irving already had worked for Vinicent, Velocette and Associated Motor Cycles, designing motors, suspensions and sketching entire motorcycle designs.

He wrote a technical column in Motor Cycling magazine and would go on to write "Tuning for Speed" and other books. He died in 1992, still president of the Vincent HRD Owners Club.

His 1950 review found the 350cc Bullet tractable and comfortable, with its plonking motor and spring frame.

Brakes were only average, but he found the distinctive neutral finder "a boon at crossings."

Click on this link to read Phil Irving's review of the Bullet.

Irving didn't complain about the motorcycle's looks, although the massive front fender shown in the accompanying photo spoils the appearance for me.

The engine was not broken in, so speed runs were limited, but Irving judged acceleration from 20-50 mph to take about 12 seconds, with top speed probably 72 mph.

Royal Enfield remembers World War II dispatch riders

Are these Royal Enfield motorcycles? Click here to see the video clip.

Royal Enfield's recent preview of its new line of clothing and accessories inspired by Britain's military dispatch riders of World War II is indeed inspired. What could be more appropriate wear for riding motorcycles that look as though they were conceived in the 1940s (because, by and large, they were)?

With that in mind, I noticed the brief appearance of women dispatch riders in the 1943 documentary "The Battle of Britain." It's one of the "Why We Fight" wartime movies produced by the U.S. War Department. This one was clearly meant to create sympathy for the British in the struggle against Hitler.

Judging from the uniforms, the women riders in the film clip are Wrens — as they were popularly known — members of the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS). Created for World War I, the WRNS was revived in 1939 and continued until 1993 when it was integrated into the regular Navy. "Jenny Wrens" remains the slang term for women sailors in the Royal Navy.

There were 75,000 Wrens in 1944 (100 died in the war). Some obviously served as dispatch riders, and their usefulness in propaganda films was also obvious. Here were healthy young women doing their bit in the risky and sometimes uncomfortable job of riding motorcycles.

They were often photographed for inspirational propaganda, sometimes in bulky fatigue uniforms and bad weather, but rarely without fresh lipstick.

Of course I wondered if the motorcycles in the clip are Royal Enfields.

Wren dispatch riders on their Triumph motorcycles.

Apparently not. Front fender registration numbers PMP 199 and PMP 197 are clearly seen in the film clip above and these same motorcycles, described as "Triumph motorcycles" are visible in this wartime shot of Wren riders. Perhaps the same women are riding them!

Royal Enfields were used, of course, as this other still photo of women dispatch riders, in different uniforms, clearly shows. Note the different appearance of registration numbers in this photo.

A Royal Enfield and a Velocette appear in this photo.

Regardless of make, many of the motorcycles in the still photos and film clip are in civilian markings. Perhaps they were among the many pressed into service to replenish the motor pool after so many motorcycles and other vehicles were abandoned at Dunkirk.