The Royal Enfield Indian Tomahawk was a result of the odd marriage between (surprise) Royal Enfield and Indian. The Indian marque was owned by an English firm called Brockhouse Engineering, and during this time, they imported Royal Enfield bikes under the Indian name.
1957 Ariel Square Four
The Ariel Square Four design goes all the way back to 1931, soon after Edward Turner designed an interesting new four-cylinder motorcycle engine formed from two OHC parallel twins. The design became known as the square four engine, and lent its name to this Ariel motorcycle.
1951 Sunbeam S8
After WWII, as part of reparations, BMW gave up its designs of the BMW R75. Bikes like Chang Jiang and Ural used these designs, but England’s take was the Sunbeam S7. You can see the BMW influence when you look at a side profile, but Sunbeam wanted to differentiate themselves by utilizing a inline vertical twin instead of the German …
1965 BMW R27 with Trailer
The last shaft-driven single that BMW made, the R27 produced 18 horsepower. 15,364 were sold, and who knows how many remain. All I know is that most R27s definitely do not come with this sweet trailer! Unfortunately, the seller seems to be selling two R27s and confused his descriptions, so we get no details on the trailer (and I can’t …
1989 Honda PC800
The Honda Pacific Coast was marketed towards white-collar professionals as an easy daily rider, and was one of the easiest motorcycles in the world to own and maintain, with a comfortable riding position, low-maintenance shaft drive, and a reliable drivetrain that can easily go 80-100k with just regular services. By far the niftiest feature was the integrated trunk. The passenger …
1980 Moto Morini 500 Strada
Post-Sale Update: This 500 Strada sold for $3,161 after 14 bids on eBay. Most riders think of the 3 1/2 when they hear Moto Morini, but the firm was also known for their 500 Sei-V that was produced a decade later…to very little fanfare. What was once a classically beautiful motorcycle became an odd jumble of plastic and angular lines …
Nearly Finished – 1958 Ariel Square Four 1000
Post-Sale Update: This Square Four sold for $10,605 on eBay. The Ariel Square Four 1000 design goes all the way back to 1931, soon after Edward Turner designed an interesting new four-cylinder motorcycle engine formed from two OHC parallel twins. The design became known as the square four engine, and lent its name to this Ariel motorcycle.
Ex-Military – 1957 Harley-Davidson Sportster XLA
Post-Listing Update: This XLA did not sell at the BIN price of $42,500. Harley produced thousands of WLA models for the US Government in WWII, but it wasn’t until ’57 that the feds would tap Harley again. This time, they wanted a patrol bike, and the company responded with the Harley-Davidson Sportster XLA. Just 418 were ever built, and Harley …
A Lovely Shade of Red – 1954 BMW R67/2
Post-Sale Update: After 39 bids on eBay, this BMW R67/2 sold for $17,400. Alright, I know I just said I didn’t like the Fireflake Red of the Commando I just featured, but there’s something about the red on classic BMWs that just does it for me. The R67/2 featured a 594cc boxer twin that produced 26 horsepower and was capable …
1946 BSA B31
BSA’s first new model after WWII, the B31 was a single-cylinder four-stroke designed to be used as basic transport. The 17 horsepower engine was sufficient to get the bike up about 70 miles per hour. Normally a 348cc engine, this engine on this specific BSA B31 (VIN: XB31 8688L) supposedly has a 500cc top end and cams from a Gold …
1979 Honda Gold Wing GL1000
Post Listing Update: This Wing sold for $2,475 after 25 bids on eBay. This excellent example of the first generation Honda Gold Wing (VIN: gl14112748) has just 18,000 miles and looks great in my favorite color scheme for these bikes: black and gold. (Cue the Sam Sparro song) It has a recent service with plenty of work, and it comes …
Failed Resto – 1961 Matchless G12
This Matchless G12 has just 159 miles after a beautiful restoration, however it has “developed an engine noise”. So for someone who’s comfortable working on these engines, you may get yourself an excellent deal on a beautiful classic British bike. And once you fix it, you’ll get yourself 35 horsepower to push around less than 400 pounds of bike. The …
Brand New Wankel – 1976 Suzuki RE5
6-27 Update: This Suzuki RE5 is back up for sale with bidding up to $15,000 and the reserve still not yet met. Find it here on eBay. Not sure how this happened, but here we’ve got a 38 year-old bike with less than 1 mile on it – and it was rare even when it came out! Along with some …
Concourse Resto – 1976 Honda Goldwing
Post-Sale Update: This Goldwing sold for $10,100 after 28 bids on eBay. Pistol Pete is a well-known Goldwing shop who is affiliated with Randakk’s Cycle Shop – you may remember the supercharged Randakk bike I featured a while back. Interesting enough, Randakk even mentions this exact bike in a blog post about Pistol Pete’s work, so it’s a fair assumption …
101 Miles – 1956 Zundapp 200S Challenger
Zundapp was a German firm that eventually sold out to a Chinese firm in 1985. But before that, they built plenty of motorcycles that were often “first bikes” for teenagers. Unfortunately, they had plenty of electrical issues and struggled to compete with the Japanese. Nevertheless, one of their 200cc models was the Challenger, a 12 horsepower 2-stroke that was good …