First outing of the year…

Kempton Park autojumble again, same faces, same stalls but always something new…

I love autojumbles; ever since I started going to the ‘Maidstone Autojumble and Toy Collector’s Fair’ aged sixteen I have felt the same excitement. Popular opinion declares that Ebay has killed autojumbles but I disagree. Internet auctions are like the ‘Day of The Jackal’, the lone wolf endures an excruciating wait over five, nine or more days until in the last second it is ended, either by a triumphant success over the other miserable bidders or a crushing defeat at their hands.

I far prefer mooching around a jumble, talking to all the other addicts and sometimes finding gold in the bottom of the pan. This time I did pretty well. First stop, I spotted a manual end cap for a Matchless magneto. This goes back to the Classic Bike Project Triumph CSD, I bought one of these post-war Matchelss mags for it – they look okay on a vintage bike and are easy to get parts for. Stupidly I failed to notice the one I bought was for automatic advance not manual – and the manual end cover is the bit that is NOT easy to get. In the end  had to buy a complete manual mag and rebuild that. Finding this end cover means I can now build the original as a more useful manual type – and it only cost a tenner! Looking in another box I pulled out a kick starter. “£20” said the stallholder, “What’s it off, anyway?” Well, it’s off a Sunbeam and since mine took a bit of a pasting in my Isle of Man accident I’m pleased to have a spare – especially at that price.

Next stop was the stall I have bought loads of 20s BSA stuff from over last year. Even though I pick it clean every time, stallholder Ian always seems to find something else to catch my eye. This time was no exception and I wandered off with a piston, four cams and a rear wheel hub but I was rather disappointed to hear a shuffler-by mutter to his mate “That’s all good stuff for Ebay…” The culture of internet auctions has caused a problem for anyone building pre-war bikes. The older bits always command really high prices and there are now speculators, perhaps including the guy who made the comment, going round picking off anything obviously pre-war purely for internet resale. Of course, speculation is nothing new; I’ve sold autojumble items too cheaply and found them on somebody else’s stall for twice the price. My fault for not knowing the going rate. Then again, I’ve sold bits not knowing what they were, “Really, off a Brough Superior you say…(dammit!)” but – like the Sunbeam kickstart this month – it works both ways and the greater your knowledge and experience the better your chance of getting it right. But the internet bypasses that accumulated nouse. All it takes is a magpie’s eye for spotting something old enough to be worth money; the bidders themselves identify it and give you the value.

Anyway, here’s my day’s treasure trove…

TV’s Henry Cole was there with a TV camera filming an Excelsior Consort as a possible project for his show. Having owned one of these incredibly basic little bikes for thirty years (see ‘my bikes’ page) I stopped to get a couple of pictures. I used to be the Excelsior Marque Specialist for the British Two Stroke Club (until I got sacked – just because I forgot to renew my membership) and old habits die hard, so I still record details of every one I see for my machine dating register and before Henry turned his camera on to it I took a few notes. Entering them onto my register when I got home I found this is not the first time I’ve seen this bike but it has changed….

Sorry to keep banging on about this but here’s a perfect example of what I mean about restoring original paint bikes. Last time I saw this little Excelsior was at Netley Marsh four years ago. It was unrestored, scruffy yes but all of a part; a survivor with a story to tell. It’s often said that so many old bikes have survived because they take up little room and have limited scrap value. Fair enough, but more than that isn’t it also the bond that develops between riders and their motorcycles? It’s hard to resist when you have got wet and cold together in the same downpour and suffered matching  blows and grazes as you slide down the road. A bike becomes a part of you and if it ends up of little value it’s much more appealing to wedge it behind the shed under a pile of carpets that to get rid of it. You never know, one day you might need it again. I saw this with my Dad’s generation and now with mine. So many people I knew in the 1980s still have the old Trident/GS1000/Commando/Z1 tucked away somewhere ready for the day. Maybe I’m getting too romantic in my old age but I like that and when I see a bike like this little Excelsior I want to know the story…

Where has it been all this time and for how long? Bikes in this condition fuel the imagination and so what if it’s scruffy? It’s old, hasn’t it earned the right to look it? It just needs a wipe over with an oily rag.

If you must restore it, well, then I guess it should look brand new again, shouldn’t it?…

Apparently not. Here’s the same bike again as I saw it last weekend. Am I alone or do you agree that something irreversible and rather sad has happened. Nobody can help the size of their budget but wouldn’t it have been better to spend it on giving the bike a clean up, new tyres, chains and cables instead of wasting it on a rattle can paint job in the wrong colours? Even though today there’s a greater than ever appreciation of unrestored bikes, unfortunately a bike like the Excelsior is cheap enough to appeal to someone who just ‘wants something to do up’ but it’s a shame when it’s something that deserved a more sympathetic approach; hey ho….

Still on the subject of obscure British two strokes there was also this Ambassador, maybe a bit more than just an oily rag on this one…

Belle of the ball for me though was probably this very purposeful-looking Goldie…

Yet another good day out and a final opportunity to find bits for the winter project, after all time is maching on… Better get on with it, it’ll be Spring before you know it!

Cheers, Rick.