Engine Punk

Here's the Buckingham glassfibre monococque resting on its headstock. What I'd really like to see is an image of the complete bike. From my stats page for this blog, I can see that one of the most visited posts on this blog is for the Buckingham 4 valve JAP 500, a speedway device featuring a GRP monococque frame and a DIY 4 valve conversion. It was built by Graham Buckingham who was a technician when I was a student at Coventry Polytechnic in 1985. We fell into conversation as fellow piston heads are wont to do and he brought in some parts to show me. From above you can see the recesses for the detachable tank and seat. They were held in place by rubber straps or over centre catches. I've posted all I know about this machine before and following recent erudite feedback on other automotive queries you might expect that I'd heard more about this curious machine. But no. It's as much a mystery as it ever was. Unless I hear something dreckly (good C...

The Buckingham 4 valve JAP was built by Graham Buckingham, a technician at Coventry Polytechnic when I was a student there in the early eighties. I was making a mock up of motorcycle riding positions for a project and he took an interest in what I was doing and eventually let slip that he had designed and built a motorcycle. I was immediately fascinated and in response to my constant questions brought in what remained of it. The curious influence of the moon and tides on the flotsam and jetsam of my photographic print collection brought these snaps of it to the surface the other day so I thought I would record what I could remember of it now before these snaps disappear again. The engine was a four valve conversion of – no less – a speedway 490cc JAP engine. Graham said he had a mate who worked in the Jaguar drawing office and it was he who drew up the head. I think he said the valves were Jaguar parts. No Jaguar engine had four valves per cylinder until much later. The camshafts were ...

Following on from VT17 , John Deacon was telling me of Bill Martin a legendary grasstrack racer and Douglas rider from Cornwall who rode his bike around the wall of Redruth railway station. Nothing very special in that - except that he was on top of the wall! This triggered an old memory of mine. I'd seen an elderly and fairly rotund gentleman being helped onto a dirt track Duggie at the West of England Traction Engine Rally back in the eighties. I had a vague idea I had photographed his machine. Searching for something else in the Anarchadia photo archives, I turned up a photo of a dirt track Douglas. And - very rare for me - I'd written down some details on the back. It was indeed Bill Martin's 1928 500cc dirt track Douglas. I remember the knobbly rear tyre. I think the cover was very old. I doubt you can get that tread pattern any more. To me, this bike looks fantastic. Even the hand change and rudimentary springing don't put me off. Hossack double...