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Here's a Norton for y'all. http://www.youtube.com/embed/iKqpvriKZuA

Hi again ok my first bike in 1963 was a B.S.A bantam 125 did 55mph downhill with a following wind! then a enfiel bullet, triumph 21 , tiger 100, B.S.A shooting star, B.S.A goldie, Tiger cub, Tiger

I'm not a biker and I've never owned a bike, but my dad always had one so I grew up seeing them around.

He wasn't a biker in the way of most people on this site, he was just a man who went to work on a motorbike. The other bikers here probably all knew somebody like that.

And as a kid I saw a lot of this region from the windows of a sidecar. Names like Busmar and Carmobile come to mind. Looking at them now they must've been death traps – a plywood box on a pram chassis. THIS kind of thing.

I remember on a Sunday morning (early 60s) my dad would go round various bike dealers just to wander around and look at the stuff on display and I'd usually go with him. I can still remember the atmosphere/noise/smell of those places. So I was a kid, probably rubbing shoulders with other people on this site when they were all 40 years younger.

Places I remember we went to were the bike dealer at Daybrook, next to the old railway bridge on Mansfield Road (can't remember their name). The one on Shakespeare Street near the fire station – main entrance was on Shakespeare Street but there was a small side entrance on Church Street. And the one on Carrington Street near Broad Marsh.

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Now let's see if I can get these right, Ashley will let me know if I am wrong. The shop at Daybrook was Wragg's, the Shakespeare Street shop was Dawson's, he used to specialise in ex MOD bikes. The Carrington Street shop was Kingston's.Did I get them all correct Ash?

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Last 2 correct, but not familiar with the one at Daybrook, only one I knew at Daybrook was Wing's, Velo agents somewhere near the old spot pub (funnily enough in a terrace house converted to a shop as per those mentioned in "wheres this and when" post) Exton's original shop at Bulwell was similar, in his mothers front room

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Now you've mentioned it, Dawson's and Kingston's are the ones because those names suddenly seem very familiar.

I never knew the name of the Daybrook one; we always just use to refer to it as going to "Daybrook Bridge"

It was HERE at what now seems to be a big pet shop. I can position it because if you go up towards B&Q you can still see bits of the old railway embankments, which eventually lead to the bridge over the road

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I had completly forgoten about Extons & Wings , Extons was Gold star parts i think

Jack Glover had a shop in Basford near the scrap yard he used to drive around in a old Bentley with the rods about ready to come through the block

Dont remember anything open on Sunday ever, But i do remember half day closing. what was that all about ?

Ruston Bucyrus was in Lincoln it was a great big building that did Ironwork My grandad was a engineer there ,Then they started building the big trucks

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not heard of Wraggs, and didn't know re the one at the bridge, there were no end though, esp as I recall Arkwright St area, Blacknells? Macton Motors, Andy Bone, plus one on Queens Rd? and big one canal street, Hooleys/Moons? just seen your post dgbrit, that's another one I didn't know of, do recall a guy Brian who had a shop on vernon rd near nottingham rd, bought a combo off him, BSA plunger A7 and jet 80 chair, within half hour of buying it hit back of a bus with the chair! then girl friend Issy went mad!

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Jack Glover became Granby Yamaha

I just Remember my first 2 bikes were given to me no one could get them to run. A Victoria Vicky & a Rummi Little Ant this was when i was about 10y old

The Vicroria after many hours of pushing fired for about 5 secs to which me and my mates thought was brilliant didnt know a thing about 2strokes back then

The Rumi got it running & my dad took it back, because we tore up the back yard grass as we got caught a few times on the street by the rozzers & there was always gang of kids lining up for a ride if they brought petrol

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Ruston Bucyrus built drag line excavators, face shovels and diggers, rope operated unlike today's hydraulic operated machines, Rustons made the first military tank (WW1)and some early diesel loco's many of the old Ruston buildings are still to be found in Lincoln around the Tritton road area (now retail park)I've worked on a few of their face shovels fitted with air and water cooled engines and either four or three cylinder Ruston engines, company still producing heavy machinery but now based in the USA.

If you are interested there's the "Museum of Lincolnshire Life" in Lincoln thats full of their stuff as well as others including all the stuff mentioned here, and it's free to go in with free parking

Rog

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not heard of Wraggs, and didn't know re the one at the bridge, there were no end though, esp as I recall Arkwright St area, Blacknells? Macton Motors, Andy Bone, plus one on Queens Rd? and big one canal street, Hooleys/Moons? just seen your post dgbrit, that's another one I didn't know of, do recall a guy Brian who had a shop on vernon rd near nottingham rd, bought a combo off him, BSA plunger A7 and jet 80 chair, within half hour of buying it hit back of a bus with the chair! then girl friend Issy went mad!

Blacknell's had at least 5 shops on Arkwright Street,and there was Campion's (BSA)on the road the other side of the Midland Station from Station Street. The shop on Canal Street was Hooley's, and the island was known as Hooley's island. I collided with Geoff Hickman's bike going round there in 1961, my very first prang, nobody hurt.

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When I mentioned the bike shop on Carrington Street which I used to go to with my dad, it was this one.

bikeshop.jpg

Scanned in from one of my Old Nottingham books, you can clearly see the name Kingston's across the top.

If you can't locate it; Canal Street is going left to right, and the photographer is standing on Carrington Street with the station s short distance up behind him

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No joking, but someone had the lead off radcliffe police station roof last week, re bikes through windows I didn't see it but didn't mick marriott fail to take the bend on st peters gate and went through the (luckily open) doors of marks and spencers?

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  • 2 months later...

Joselyns...

Another big bike/scooter dealer, around Nottingham and Ilko, is/was Glovers...

Created by Jack Glover, who came from Wollaton Vale.

Cheers

Bockscar

Another Scooter dealer on Radford Road wes Roy Wharton ( Lambrettas mainly I think ! )

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Is it too late to join in here??

Let's see:

Yamaha 350 *

Bridgestone 90

Suzuki 250

Yamaha 180 *

Kawasaki 200 *

Yamaha 250 *

Yamaha 250 - a second one *

Triumph 650

Yamaha 650

Honda 175 *

Norton 850 *

Suzuki 750 (reworked to about 900) *

I loved the Norton 850 the most. I always wanted one and I finally found one. After riding it for a few years, I had it professionally restored. I noticed a slight amount of oil weeping from the drain plug on the oil tank just after I had it restored. So I took it back to the place where I had the work done. On the way, I managed to run up the rear end of a car. I went head first through the rear window.

The Norton was a mess. I had it restored again. I was a different story though, I ended up in a wheelchair.

The bikes marked with a '*' are the ones I had at the time of the accident.

I still own:

Yamaha 350 - as it was the first bike I ever rode. I've owned it for 38 years.

Norton 850 - it was the last bike I ever rode and the one that I always wanted.

Martin Conquest 1200 - I can ride that in my chair.

VW trike 1600 - so my wife can tag along.

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Ian

I have seen your excellent web site, you should add the address to your signature here.

Reading some of the same you must know some of our members, Oldace and 'Piggy & Babs' to name just a few?

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  • 4 months later...

Just found this topic, and saw the reference to Dawsons in Shakespeare Street. It appears that my BSA M20 ex WD came through them in 1961. I am trying to find some reference to it so that I can get DVLA to reinstate the registration number. I dont suppose Dawsons still exists or anyone may have the records from then? I know its a long time ago......but!

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  • 1 year later...

I always loved motorcycles, my first experience of them was my fathers Francis Barnett. Later I used to get half a crown for cleaning my brothers Ariel Golden Arrow a poor starter and heavy smoker (the bike not my brother :) ). When I reached the stage in life when I needed transport to work all my friends had scooters, so In 1968 I became the proud owner of a new Lambretta SX150 on 2 years HP. I kept the Lambretta for almost 2 years, I then got fed up of it's top speed of 60 mph and part exchanged it for a 1966 Triumph T90 350cc twin. The T90 still sits in the corner of the garage today looking I'm sorry to say in a very sad state. I would love to get it restored and running again if only to be able to scare my son to death with it :Shock: but It will probably never happen.

I use to ride the Triumph the 12 miles to work on cold winter mornings and then had to stand about for 10 minutes before I could feel my fingers enough to undo all the various zips, press studs and belts so I could start work, happy days.

Went onto Reliant three wheel vehicles then for a few years, driving them on a motorcycle license, can you still do that I wonder?

Here is the bike, 46 years old and I have owned it for 43 years but have not rode it for 30 or so years, shame isn't it.

I have the log books still, but didn't have any of the more recent single sheet registration documents.

I do though remember getting a letter from the DVLA at Swansea that asked if I still had the vehicle and want to keep the original registration number. Free road tax if I do get it back on the road, now there is an incentive.

8214669306_06fa36d09b_c.jpg

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Briyeo

Love the old Triumph, a nice restoration project.

My elder brother was a rocker, he had many bikes that I sort of grew up around. He had a BSA Road rocket, which we used to ride together, me on the back, easily do a ton up Porchester road after an early mornings fishing somewhere!

I started my motorbike/scooter fetish when I was 14, got a Sun 197cc (3 speed villiers engine) form a mate, swapped it for my electric guitar and amp.

I used to torment the neighbours screaming around Breckhill fields, till I cracked the crankcase and that was it, I stripped it down but never got it repaired.

My next happening was a major accident on a mates Aerial Leeder, I ended up in James Forman ward at the General hospital for 9 weeks on traction as I broke my femur pretty bad.The Wheldons dairy milk float fared much better.

During my 12 months recuperating I had to visit the hospital 3 times a week for physio and the ambulance bloke that used to come and pick me up asked if I wanted an old bike to do up, turned out to be an Excelsior 90cc 2 speed.

Got it running and used it daily for a year, till some old plonker knocked me off of it on Edwards lane, a year to the day of my previous accident !

Ended up back at the general with a dislocated kneecap on my damaged leg, but the old break was fine.

I then moved to my first scooter a Lambretta LI 150

Then a TV 175.

Now a backward step - an NSU quickly Lol! It was cheap and got me to work ok till I could buy my first car.

Still had bikes though

Sunbeam shaft drive S8 with chair.

BSA 250 C15

Triumph T110

A Honda CB250

Kawasaki trail bike

To name a few.

After moving to oz I rekindled my bike fetish and had a 2008 Harley softail, but now own a 2010 BMW R1200 GS and love it !

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