This bike belonged to my friend Miles (your wife knew Miles too Ixion). Miles didn't have the front brake connected, because it was a chopper...and everyone knows choppers don't have front brakes. One morning at the end of Melrose Rd he found that someone had disconnected his rear brake - in those days Melrose Rd ended at Hillsborough Rd (to those who don't know Auckland, it's now a dead end), so he went straight across Hillsborough Rd into a concrete wall. Originally possibly a 1954 B31, Miles had Neville Lowe turn it into a chopper. Rear section of the frame has been cut away and converted to rigid, the oil tank is on the front downtube. Neville used to do all our forks too - he extended the lowers not the uppers, and they look like they were pretty strong. He was an old rodder from way back - he did everything on that bike, the frame modifications and forks, handlebars, rear guard,sissybar, tank, upholstery and paint. Ridden and been on the back of it many times. The engine is a modified A7 with 11:1 pistons and other stuff - but it's an early A7 with bolt on gearbox. At the time I had a '54 A10 with blown engine, and a wrecked 1951 B31 - so I got all the B31 stuff, engine, gearbox, primary and clutch, and chrome engine plate. I built the bike up with my engine...but no rear wheel. After a 3 day build from a bare frame, I had to fit a YDS3 rear wheel - this is what I had on the day I got it going. After the chop hit the wall there wasn't much left to salvage - but I got the rear wheel. Finally, an 18in QD rear wheel. Then it got an M20 engine - I haven't changed a bit. Looks like I have a new rear guard and solo seat too. The last day of it's life - 19in rear and 21in front wheels.
How was Miles after head butting a concrete wall ??? Cool pics , thems the days, thank christ they are gone along with your hair by the looks of it.
good story and pics...to be honest i got lost after the mention of miles and ixons wife....
I put my first car into a power pole on the corner of Hillsborough Road and Carlton st..... I blamed the Gummit for the high cost of Michelins and having to buy NZ made cross plys.....nothing to do with me going to fast in the wet in a VW....
No one was too concerned about any injuries, the pranged bike was more exciting than any cuts and bruises. Helmets had just been made compulsory that year,and I remember Miles turning up a few times without one....I did it a few times too. I rolled the Stornello on Carlton St one day. Back when there was a slow crawl along Carlton St to get onto the Onehunga Motorway, I came off Hillsborough Rd and was winding up through the gears when I discovered the slow moving line of cars had stopped, the Stornello had a bit of a savage rear brake, and I hadn't used it in a couple of years, so maybe the tyres were a bit off. The rear locked up and I crossed up - nothing comes up Carlton St in the mornings, letting the rear brake off would've resulted in a highside, and seeing as I'm happy in a full lock slide anytime on any surface I decided to just ride it out. All was fine until that last few kph when the tyre grabbed - I didn't highside, I stayed on the bike, when I hit the ground I was still astride the bike with my hands on the bars. The bike went over me and landed on the otherside....I picked it up, kicked it over and carried onto work. One ballend off a lever, small ding in the tank and a shattered instrument panel was the only damage to the bike. My biggest concern that my jacket was having a zip replaced, and I was wearing my wife's leather jacket - it has a small graze on the shoulder, and she's still not happy about it.
i wrote me umber off when a pole jumped out into the middle of the road on market rd overpass.....
The old man had a Hillman Hunter, it was his pride & joy, until the first time I took it out on my own & bent it into a banana around the front of a Holden Kingswood coming the other way. Wet roads , cross plys & white paint on a pedestrian crossing was clearly the culprit, speed had absolutely nothing to do with it.
Mate of mine had a panel shop, and I used to to the mechanicals on the side. One day he had a Hunter in, and the left strut tower was up against the air cleaner....I was thinking I'd have to pull the engine so he could straighten it out. He put a 4x2 on the tower and gave it a huge smack with a sledge hammer - it went straight back to where it should be.
