Mr R - fascinating history, my memory of JH only goes back to 1999 at his house when he transformed my 900SS, not been anywhere else since. My love for Ducati started in 1995 looking at a 400SS Junior in Birmingham Motorcycles. In 1999 I bought a Monster from Chris Clarke.
I took my '74 750 Sport to Mick for a service and gearbox issue in the early 80's. When I went to collect it, it would still not select a gear properly. The workshop foreman refused to accept the gearbox was faulty even after riding it and riding beside me to see the problem and wanted to go 'round the back' to sort it out. Eventually the mechanic took the outer gearbox case off and could see the selector wasn't engaging and adjusted a cam to solve the problem(with the foreman looking on). No appology from the foreman, looking back I should've had a go at him but being 100 miles from home and on my own I was a bit cautious and just wanted my bike fixed. Stocky guy with blondish curly hair, arsehole. I found a local guy after that at Upminster, Elby Moto, Italian specialist, mainly MV but knew his way round a Duke. Very helpful and friendly, real old school workshop. One time when my bike wouldn't start my Grandfather towed me there (20 miles) with his car, which was possibly the scariest experience of my life, I had towed bikes and been towed before, car to bike and bike to bike a few times but my Grandad didn't have a clue and braked and cornered really hard as if I wasn't there. I nearly wasn't a few times on that journey.
Great thread this, loads of things come flooding back from the past. I think myself and Mr.R may be the same sort of age because i well remember Coburn and Hughes as well, bought an RD 250 from the Luton branch in the 1970's. A good personal memory for me is Ongar Motorcycles. At the time i lived in Biggleswade and rode my RD 250 to Ongar to look at a brand new Guzzi LeMans Mkii...............did the finance and rode it away the same day. Needless to say the heavens opened all the way home.........................scarry to say the least lol. My other memory is Bryants motorcycles in Biggleswade. They were a Ducati and Guzzi dealer along with Honda and Yamaha. The LeMans i bought from Ongar saw all it's servicing done there until i moved to the midlands in the 1990's. Bryants was a typical old school dealers.....................workshop was filthy (wipe your feet on the way out), showroom was completely disorganized and they did the worst finance deals ever. But all the staff were great and the spanner men were top notch. It was also a great meeting place for all us bikers on a saturday morning....................you couldn't move in shortmead street for the bikes parked outside. Bryants was also the first place i saw the Mike Hailwood rep and fell in love with it.......................i had to have one.....................and i did.
Once I was towed on a bike from Benson to Oxford behind my brother's van. He was not a biker so didn't have a clue. Again, one of the scariest experiences ever, especially as it was in the pitch dark.
I used to love visiting Moto Vecchia in colliers wood and then their 2 other locations as they migrated slowly out of london. Also used to get a lot of help from , although not a dealer but a breakers, Shokko's in kilburn
I used to use Oxford Motorcycle Engineers when I bought my first proper bike, a Guzzi V50, in 1991. Unique and interesting place. They sold me spares and generally laughed at me for my crap ride. Didn't spend much time downstairs in the showroom (where they sold new Ducati's), but the spares department became a second home at times. Olly (I think) used to generally have anything I wanted in stock, as he stood there ticking off his roll ups into a giant piston used as an ashtray. I still have the green motorcycle tarpaulin they sold me. They sold second hand bikes on the first floor, and I remember a 500 Pantah being prepped for sale, at around £1500. The lift from the ground floor was interesting as there were always broken down bikes stored in there. Gavin was very helpful in the workshop, and I believe still has his own business spannering mostly Italian bikes: Gavin's Bike Hospital - reliable motorcycle servicing and repairs in Oxford
kevark motorcycles in grimsby loved going in for parts and such just to look at the new dukes (well new in circa 1991/2) later bought out by carnells then closed down
I used to go a drool at the Ducati's in Birmingham Superbikes when I was a poor student at Birmingham Uni. They always seemed to have lots of SP4's and 5's . Suddenly went bust just after the 916 came out..... Strange.
I once rode from Cambridge to Luton on my CD175 to try on a set of one-piece leathers at Coburn & Hughes. It was freezing midwinter and I was wearing a pair of jeans over leather jeans and my leather jacket. I seem to remember trying on the leathers with their padded knees and an over suit and suddenly I was toasty warm. Unfortunately, having no money, I had to hand them back and freeze my bollocks off riding back to Cambridge in the same attire I had arrived in. I think I got given the leathers and oversuit shortly afterwards (which is surely why I went there to try them on). Oh the luxury of real motorcycling gear. You couldn't credibly ride a CD175 in one-piece leathers, no matter what the weather was like, so fortunately I soon passed my test and got a Honda 400 Wetdream. Is this a good place to ask if Carnells still exist and say I hope not?
Do people remember Newton engineering just off Leytonstone high road seam to remember that they did quite a bit for ducati And also motodd in Corydon for the laverda,s .
Carnells are long gone Mr glidd, they used to have the one big shop at Doncaster which was always the cheapest place to buy your tyres, but the bikes in the showroom were way overpriced as they were only interested in finance deals. I once offered the salesman a realistic price of £1000 less than the figure on the headlights (a Gixer 1100) for a cash sale and he came back from his consultation with the DP with a severe case of the shakes and declined my offer. My first real thoughts that Ducatis were interesting rather than expensive and unreliable was a trip to a small village south of Lincoln one afternoon with a friend who was having a test ride on a 900 Darmah - a black one - and as he rumbled off along the back lanes I and the friend's wife were invited in for a cuppa by the vendor. I nearly tripped over my tongue as we went into a conservatory containing several exotic machines including a yellow and green Bimota KB1 and there was another very clean, partially re-built Honda-engined Bimota in pieces between the furniture in the next room. John rumbled back into view, and despite our encouragement, he didn't buy the Darmah and I went home with a hankering for an SB4S Bimota to stick my tuned GSX1100 lump into. Some time later I saw the Gent who was selling the Darmah, he had opened a small shop on Monks Road in Lincoln called Italia Classics, which outgrew those premises, moved to Bargate in Lincoln and became Italia Moto, which outgrew those premises and is now Ducati Lincoln with the the same Gent by the name of Phil still selling lots of stuff I want and can't afford.
Thank God for that. They ripped me off severely in the 80s for money I couldn't afford as a student. It went to court but I lost (never play away from home in court). Quite clearly crooks.
I remember the one in Birmingham selling Ducati's at cheap prices all with KPH speedo's. I nearly bought a 900SS FE from them in 98.
An Yes Motodd, just up the alley past the knocking shop. I was going to mention them but left them out 'cos they were not Ducati people. Phil Todd ruined my brothers 180 Jota. I do also remember newton in Leytonstone, i used to drool over the purple/blue 900ss set of tank and bodywork they had hanging up . It had been used for a bike in a magazine and as a 900ss was my dream bike at the time i hoped i might be able to afford to buy it. We are talking Bevels here of course .
Newton Equipment, and that tank and seat unit, I remember well. I ordered a set of fork legs for my 750 Sport from him(Mike). What a joke, he came out with all kind of excuses why he hadn't got them. The best was that whoever he was getting them from was into porno, could I get hold of quantaties to speed up the deal. Just out of interest I asked how strong, he said just top shelf material. He did finally get the legs though, a month or two later(for cash). Another time he was supposed to be able to get hold of 500 Pantahs in crates for 1/2 price(this was when the 600 was current). They never materialised.
Ah Birmingham Motorcycles A long story associated with the purchase of my 900 ss from there (still own her) but never went back for servicing and the like going straight to Baines's where they knew the bike intimately. 900ss ws bought because I couldnt afford the £16000 they were asking for a 916 when they very first appeared! Next time I went to visit some years later they had closed, creative accounting (allegedly) Oh and another one I frequented (ish) was Speedaway Motorcycles in Blackheath owned by one Steve Bastable of Cradley Heathens speedway fame. Again gone!
Oh and another one I frequented (ish) was Speedaway Motorcycles in Blackheath owned by one Steve Bastable of Cradley Heathens speedway fame. Again gone! Was in there last October time, down sized but Steve was still there. Have they now gone ? He's done me a few favours over the years. They used to be a Ducati dealer in the 90's, remember looking at a SL there.
Mid 70's, I used to drool over the yellow Ducati singles in Kitsons on Westgate rd, Newcastle. its long gone now, fairly crappy shop as I remember but that 450 they had on display above the other bikes used to have me dreaming........
Yes, Mike Byrne the proprietor could be very friendly and helpful one day, then offhand the next day for no obvious reason. Blowing hot and cold you might say. Newtons gradually went down hill, probably because Mike was not very businesslike. Pity.
