Unique Royal Enfield cafe racer with Trailblazer twin motor

700cc Royal Enfield twin makes an impressive cafe racer.

The remarkable custom cafe racer shown here combines an Indian Trailblazer twin-cylinder motor — built by Royal Enfield for sale in the United States in 1958 — and the frame of a Royal Enfield Interceptor.

Builder Scottie Usher calls it the "Blackhawk" and it's currently for sale on CraigsList in Aurora, Colo.

Tank honors both Royal Enfield
and Indian brands.

In his ad Scottie notes that his cafe racier is "slightly rare, 100 per cent unique!" He explained just how unique in a posting on the Britbike.com forum in May 2015:

"I started building this bike the winter of 2011-2012. I found it in a barn collecting dust, and it had been sitting there since 1993, when I saved it, and who knows how long it had sat before that.

"I slowly started fixing her up, finding out the magneto windings were bad and didn't run well, but later discovered that the motor had been gone through at one point, and then given up on. Over the last three years I converted the mag to a Thorspark electronic ignition, head gaskets, new Concentric carb, converted to 12-volt electrical, painted the bike twice, tires, tubes, clutch rebuild and on and on.

"This winter I decided to start converting from a bobber to a cafe racer. I custom shaped the tank myself, installed clip on bars and new controls, custom built the dual exhaust into a two-into-one exhaust, rear set controls, custom aluminum seat pan...

"The paint is black base coat with with gold and white pearl coat on top. The rear seat cowl and primary cover were dipped in hydrographics, and came out really cool.

"Finished off my primary cover... with some perforated stainless steel that I polished. I think it came out pretty good, I'm happy with it."

Custom open primary.

Perforated screen covers primary drive.

There are more details in his ad:

"When I built this bike, I was mindful not to disfigure the frame in any way so that it could be restored back to original if desired. The frame has been identified as a 1963 Series I Interceptor, and the engine as a 1958 Indian Trailblazer, which is why it is titled as a Trailblazer and not an Interceptor."

Despite the big motor, the cafe racer looks light.

Singer used leather, denim and a Trailblazer for '55 hit

Baritone Vaughn Monroe dressed as motorcycle hoodlum on a Royal Enfield twin.

That just could be a Royal-Enfield-built 1955 Indian Trailblazer that singer and band leader Vaughn Monroe is riding in the publicity photos for his hit record of that year, "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots."

Monroe was an avid motorcyclist whose celebrity brought him a relationship with the Indian motorcycle company. Naturally, the motorcycle he's riding has "Indian" on the tank.

But not until Royal Enfield enthusiast Mark Mumford of the UK pointed it out did I realize the motorcycle in the photos could be one of the powerful Royal Enfield twins of that era.

Mark wrote in response to my blog item about Monroe and his love of motorcycles.

"David, great publicity shot of Vaughn. I notice he is riding what is (probably) a Trailblazer and probably a 1955 model as that appears to be the only year this model had the Indian head on the front fender.

"A Google image search brings up a shot from the same shoot but showing the other side in which the Enfield identity is much clearer.

1955 Indian Trailblazer was a 700cc Royal Enfield twin.

"I have recently added a Trailblazer project to the workshop, a particularly desperate example recovered from the U.S. by Allan Hitchcock. It is missing a lot of parts, notably the complete front forks but a bit of swapping and sorting through my parts store has produced most of the components including the top yoke for the huge Stewart Warner speedometer."

Indian turned to Royal Enfield for motorcycles in 1955, having ended its own production. The U.S. company would market virtually the entire line of Royal Enfields under its own name up to 1959. Often these were customized for American tastes, including the tall "Western" style handlebars seen in the catalog photo.

Dressed up in motorcycle boots, denim pants and leather jacket, Monroe looks the part of "the terror of Highway 101" in the publicity shots.

With his broad shoulders and square jaw, the suave, former New York City band leader even played the role of a cowboy in some movies. But terrorizing highways on a motorcycle was not his nature. He was a spokesman for motorcycle safety.

"That article on Vaughn Monroe was swell," reader John Donlon of LaGrange Park, Ill. wrote. "He and his society band with the Norton Sisters were just so classy. The songs were so good and 'old leather lungs' will live in my memory forever."

Old Indian Trailblazer by Royal Enfield needs lots of love

Indian red is the correct color for a Trailblazer tank.

CORRECTION: My guess was incorrect. It's not an Indian Trailblazer, it's an Indian Apache, the trail model of the same powerful, twin-cylinder Royal Enfield. See bottom of article for my explanation.

It's an Indian Trailblazer, a 693cc-twin made by Royal Enfield in England from 1955 to 1959 to sell as an "Indian" motorcycle in the United States. At least that's my guess.

The motorcycle, in pieces, is for sale on CraigsList in Kempner, Texas, for $1,800.  It's intriguing, despite looking like the Scarecrow in the "Wizard of Oz" after the flying monkeys took him apart.

Dirty dials are still stirring to look at.

The seller doesn't know much about it:

"MOTORCYCLE, ROYAL ENFIELD, INDIAN, YEAR, 1954-59???? not sure of year of this cycle or model. Speedometer does say Made in England, frame number looks like 7622, motor has a blown case, not sure if bike is complete, can't guarantee all parts are there, gas tank has Indian logo. More pics on request."

What is so appealing about wonderful old motorcycles found in this condition?

Is that an oil cooler on the seat next to the carb?

Like the dog that follows you home, being scruffy and needing attention somehow makes it more appealing.

"Please, Mommy, can I keep him?"

"Go ask your father."

Dad would point out that your allowance won't cover rabies shots, much less the full cost of restoring this motorcycle.

But we can dream.

Motor.

EXPLANATION: How did I get this wrong? I can't just blame the confusing Indian model names: The Trailblazer is not the trail version, the Apache is! I call that confusing.

I should have waited for word from two sources I trust, Chris Overton of the Royal Enfield Interceptors Group, and Grahham Scarth, chairman of the Royal Enfield Onwers Club in the UK.

"Frame number says it's an Apache," Graham advised.

Chris based his analysis on the photos:

"Note the plugs and sockets to disconnect the wiring to the detachable headlight. Battery shelf instead of toolbox. That bike is an Apache, 1958 or '59, as the '57 had ears to hold  the headlight, instead of struts. It is rare for the QD sockets to survive, and for the front fender and stays to survive as well."

Big hole in front of crankcase.

UPDATE: From reader Bob Viall: I have been a Royal Enfield enthusiast for over 40 years and I enjoy looking at your blog from time to time. I noticed the pics of the Apache listed on CraigsList and I would say that frame 7622 is a 1959 model. I have 7624 and it is definitely a 1959 Apache since it has been dated by Graham Scarth of the REOC.

He's searching for a 1959 Indian Trailblazer like the one he had when he was young

"Bobby's" search for a 1959 Indian Trailblazer like the one he had at age 16 led me to ask if he had a snapshot of his original motorcycle.

"Sad to say, but NO, I don't have a single snapshot of the bike! At that stage of my life I'm pretty sure it was just something I didn't even give a thought about. Funds were short back then and if we had a camera, I don't remember it."

Bobby is the fellow who advertised on CraigsList in Nashville, Tenn., offering cash for a 1959 Trailblazer. This was a 700cc Royal Enfield twin, badged as an Indian and sold in the United States.

"That bike was probably my second or third in a LONG line of bikes up to today, but yet, it seems to bring back such a flood of memories!" he told me.

"I was about 16 years old and didn't have any money to speak of, so most of my 'fun' came from riding my bike (gas was 18 cents a gallon) with a friend who also rode (K-Model Harley).

"In those days you could ride for countless miles and never see another bike, so having a riding buddy was a good thing! We became friends when he stopped to help me after my Cushman Eagle decided to take a dump on a country road a long way from home.

"The Eagle was my first real powered two-wheeler and it was a pile of junk, but I didn't care. It gave me a measure of independence and I loved it. Swapped a go-kart for the Cushman. I'd bought the go-kart with money I made from selling Coke bottles that I picked up along the road (3 cents each if they were COKE brand, 2 cents for all other brands)."

As for whatever happened to his Trailblazer, that is a mystery, Bobby writes:

"I located the man that bought the bike from me and he simply can't remember what he did with it! He's almost 90 years old now and I completely understand how that can happen. He has assured me he will contact me should his memory of the bike return.

"The search for 'it' has become known among my friends as my 'HOLY GRAIL' folly, nonetheless I will continue to seek."

If you have a 1959 Trailblazer that needs a good home, contact Bobby at the email address in his ad.

Wanted: Your 1959 Indian Trailblazer

Here's an unusual "wanted" ad for a rare Royal Enfield motorcycle:

"Searching for a 1959 Indian Trailblazer motorcycle. Made by Royal Enfield and 'badged' as an Indian. You'll know what I mean if you have one. CASH AWAITS. Serious only."

The ad appeared on CraigsList, in Nashville, Tenn.

I could think of only two reasons the advertiser would be looking for a specific year of a specific model of one of the rarest Royal Enfield models ever made — a model that didn't even bear the name Royal Enfield!

1. This was someone who had one 1959 Trailblazer and needed another for parts to restore it.

Or,

2. Here was someone who'd had a 1959 Trailblazer and was seeking to rekindle those memories.

It turned out to be the second reason. Here's the reply "Bobby" sent me:

"No, I don't mind telling you why I want a '59 model. You see, it was my FIRST large motorcycle and I got it from my brother-in-law. I was 16 years old and although I knew it was a 'badged over' Royal Enfield, it really didn't matter, it was MINE and I felt like 'Brando' when I was riding it.

"For a young boy that was raised in the country and didn't get to see a lot of the world, it was my 'imagination machine.' I am diligently seeking this brand and model and money will not be an object (within reason) if I can find the right bike.

"I have literally had countless Harleys and right now I have three ('05, '09 and a '65 Panhead) and the Indian holds the fondest spot in my heart. Thank you for your question."

How can you beat that? If you've got a 1959 Trailblazer that truly needs a good home, contact Bobby through the email address on his ad.