Fishtail 430 The Journal of the Owners’ Club DISCLAIMER The views expressed in articles and letters contained in Fishtail magazine are not necessarily those of the Editor or the officers or members of the Velocette Owners Club. Any information, including advice and suggested modifications, contained in Fishtail has not been tested, checked or ap- proved by the Velocette Owners Club. Before acting on any such informa- tion you should obtain appropriate technical advice and if necessary have the work carried out by a professional motorcycle engineer. The individuals who are listed as providing “Advice” on particular issues do so in good faith on a voluntary basis and the Club cannot accept liabil- ity for the consequences of any information provided by them. Save as required by Law, the Club cannot accept liability for any loss or damage resulting from the use of any information contained within the Magazine (or any other publication by the Club). © Velocette Owners’ Club 2010 PLEASE NOTE: The Velocette Owners’ Club does not under any circumstances guarantee the authenticity of any Velocette motorcycle. Anyone intending to buy a Velocette should make their own enquiries before purchasing the motorcycle in question. VelocetteVelocette Owners’ Owners’ Club Club Regalia Regalia Store Store www.freewebstore.org/velocette-owners-club-regalia-storewww.tinyurl.com/voc-regalia-sales Visit the VOC regalia store online (above) or through the main VOC web site and browse the whole collection of current regalia that the club offers. Place your order, choose where you want it delivered to and pay online - all from your armchair! All clothing items are made to order, in a variety of sizes and colours, If you don’t see what you’re after, you can always email the Regalia Secretary with your enquiry. Don’t forget the badges and books, made to the usual high Velocette standards, such as Norm’s Technicalities or the 1928 Veloce Brochure, along with the posters and Fishtail binders to keep everything neat and tidy! You can pay via PayPal. Cheques will be accepted by Rprioregalia arrangement with the Regalia Secretary, Mark Newsome - [email protected] Velocette Owners Club 1 Magazine of the Velocette Owners’ Club f i s h ta i l september 2015 58th year of publication Number 430 reGulars editorial 2 Chairman’s scrapbook 3 Welcome! 4 events Diary 4 spares News 9 Fishtail Mail 11 Centre News 40 Going spare 56 Centrefax 62 Club Officers 64 reports 17 NOtiCes 10 the rally the Bob Foster run south Hants in France the Derbyshire Dawdle Wye Valley Camping Dorking in shropshire Features Cadwell Park Festival ‘a thruxton for the thruxton’- Paul Stewart has his first taste of Castle Combe in a parade 27 ‘Velo your Garden’ - Tim Hendy describes how a member’s heroism put Velos on prime time TV 28 ‘elves in the Chapel’ - we spend a day with VSL 30 a Blue Viper - Have you ever seen one? asks Stephen East 32 Crankcase Breathing - The last word from Peter Woodward 33 ‘Velo Front Brake adventure’ - Alan Glen makes a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. 34 ‘a Velo in the Family’ - three generations keep repairing the same old bike, despite having bought a steam roller along the way 38 Cover Photo: Alan Borthwick at the controls of his Aveling & Porter steam roller admires the MAC owned and restored by 3 generations of his family. See page 38. Editor: Peter turnill Trade Ads. Secretary: eric Bushell Tel: 07774 649 644 Tel: 07860 812 272 31 Constantine Avenue, Chandlers ‘Milestones’, 6 Cedar Court, Langley Park Ford, EASTLEIGH sO53 2Br DURHAM DH7 9FG [email protected] [email protected] Club Web Site: www.velocetteowners.com 2 Velocette Owners Club s mall is good! Peter turnill Having had to leave the Venom in France I found myself bike-less for the Rally, until temptation fell in my way - or was it the other way round? Either way, I found myself the proud owner of my first racer! It is based on a 1934 MOV but with considerable engine mods and a close ratio KSS gearbox, not to mention a completely hollow Brooklands can... For me, a motorbike should be two wheels held apart by an engine and just enough tubes to keep it together. The pre-war Velos, to my mind, epitomise this, but the MOV is TINY, and I am a six footer! Happily, commonsense seems to blow away once you have the wind in your hair, and after the first couple of miles I was captivated. It was as if I had recaptured my youth! Back then, it was a G*** Star (our Chairman says I must wash my mouth out with soap!). Not much below 5,000 but then that gorgeous sound as it hit the mega and the needle seemed to jump to 7! So, with the little MOV, although the numbers are a bit lower. And because of its size, every ride is an opportunity to, er, optimise your riding - just to keep up with the big boys. As with so much, it’s not the performance, but how it’s delivered... On the same theme, although we are one of the larger clubs, I feel part of a small group of friends at every gathering I attend. I know this is partly due to my role, but our almost federal structure means that Centres organise themselves to suit themselves - each being a small club in its own right. Many members have commented to me how welcome they felt when they first went to a Club night locally. So, if you have yet to try it, why not make the effort and find out good ‘small’ can be? There is, of course, a report on the Rally in this edition, but I should say here how much Danie and I enjoyed it. We were lucky with the weather, but it also had a family feel with children and dogs, the barbecue, the ride-out, the visit to the amazing steam engines - what a great weekend. If you weren’t there, make sure you don’t miss it next year! Peter [email protected] 07774 649 644 Deadline for contributions for the next Fishtail: 22nd september Printed and distributed by Berforts Information Press. Velocette Owners Club 3 We have seen another Annual Rally, the second at Burntwood and a much more encouraging attendance than last year. Congratulations to Alan and all his helpers who made the weekend such a success. Let’s build on this and get an even better turnout next year. Thanks also to Brian and Mike for leading the runs on the Saturday: great fun and especially so as we were blessed with fine weather. The big thing about events such as this is that you get to meet people, very often the only chance you get. It is always great to meet up with old friends and we met up with some Dorking Centre members prior to the rally who had arranged their annual trip to Shropshire to coincide with it. And also John and Angela Bryant, all the way from New Zealand. That is what this club is really about – Friendship. There are still plenty of events to get in before the end of the season. One that Jane and I always enjoy is the Bob Foster Run. It is the 25th this year and I am proud to say that we were there on the first and have missed very few since. Jane and I will be there and if you haven’t done so yet now is the time to fill those entry forms in. Sandy tells me that the route is changed this year but with the same lunch stop. Let’s have a full turn out and keep the run for pre- 1970 machines - so please don’t turn up on anything else. After the rally Jane and I had a week’s holiday in Cornwall and decided to take the MSS with us. We used the bike to get around those narrow Cornish roads. Great fun even if we chose the wettest week of the summer. We did have some dry days though and one memorable run all around the Lands End peninsular from St Ives, past Lands End to Penzance. Basically using the main road and then going down as many lanes to the sea as we could. A quick stop for coffee or lunch and away again. Due to all the rain the bike got very mucky but a bucket of soapy water at the end of the day made it presentable again. The MSS attracted a lot of interest and not just from the older (“I used to have one”) contingent. Perhaps there is a moral there, if we want to attract new and younger members they have to see what a Velocette looks like. Get out there with the bikes and use them for all to see, and not just on club runs. On that note we have been looking at ideas to attract members. The new members’ application forms have been reworked to make more use of Paypal. Currently this is used for overseas members only, but in time we will extend it to UK members. For subsequent years we would like members to set up standing orders - our preferred method of subscription payment. The new forms will also ask for dates of birth to give us some idea at which age groups we should direct our efforts. We are also looking at using social media - don’t forget it is down to all of us to promote our great Club and what great bikes Velos are to ride.