Sunday, October 13, 2024

Cat Crescent sidecar racer

The very special 1974 Cat Crescent sidecar racer of Rudi Kurth and Dane Rowe. It has a 500cc triple two stroke engine out of a speed boat. Rudi was the man behind the low and fast streamlined monocoque sidecars. Also he was the one who build the first triple TZ Yamaha's.
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Saturday, September 7, 2024

Lynx Saab 850 sidecar racer

Lynx Saab Sidecar (1965), as raced by Richard and Samantha Holmes. It is powered by an 850cc two stroke triple Saab car engine with reed valves and a Norton 6-speed gearbox. 
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Friday, August 16, 2024

Suzuki G-54 RG500

I made a photo set of the very rare G-54, the precursor to the iconic XR14 and RG500 machines that went on to take Suzuki and Barry Sheene to world championship glory. The G-54 concept was born in May 1973, five years after Suzuki withdrew from Grand Prix racing following regulation changes by the F.I.M. But, after competing in the smaller 50cc, 125cc, and 250cc classes, Suzuki had decided to make a return, this time in the premier 500cc class. The G-54 was inspired by RZ63 250 four-cylinder, nicknamed ‘The Whispering Death’. This nickname explains why the model was already withdrawn from competition in 1965 without a single title to its name, dogged by unreliability and with a tendency to seize at high speed without warning. The new 500cc bike – where G denoted Grand Prix use only and 54, strangely, stood for 1974 – was designed and built under the stewardship of Makoto Hase and Makoto Suzuki. Barry Sheene got his first taste of the machine in November 1973, but to help keep the weight down the G-54 employed an open cradle chassis with no lower chassis rails beneath the engine. However, despite finishing second in its first ever Grand Prix at Clermont-Ferrand in April with Sheene aboard, by June the chassis had been replaced with a conventional double cradle design because without the lower rails the chassis was too flexible. It also had a two stroke oil pump. It was raced by Sheene, Paul Smart, and Jack Findlay that year. 
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Friday, July 26, 2024

Barton 500 triple

Ruud Siebelink on his Barton dragrace bike with modified Suzuki GT frame. I added a lot of new pics to my Barton 500 set. Barton has been founded by engineers Barry Hart and Tony Ryan, and made its first impact on the racing scene with a three-cylinder water-cooled '500' based on the Suzuki GT380 bottom end. Ridden by Martin Sharpe, a Spondon-framed, Barton-engined 'Sparton' won the 1976 North West 200 with similarly-mounted Frank Kennedy in 2nd place, while the previous year Sharpe's bike had proved as fast as the works Kawasakis at the Isle of Man TT.
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Saturday, June 15, 2024

Ducati Club Races 2024

A beautiful Suzuki TR500 replica seen at the Ducati Club Races at the TT circuit Assen May 2024.
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Sunday, May 19, 2024

Hamove races 2024

STR (Stefan Tauber Racing) RG500 seen at the Hamove races in Hengelo Gelderland the Netherlands May 2024.
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Friday, April 19, 2024

Reimo Suzuki

The Reimo GTR900, made by Reimo Suzuki from Germany, this was their top model. Reimo was founded by Wolfgang Reinhard and sidecar GP racer Horst Owesle. The company was well known for their tuning and special parts for the Suzuki GT750. Tank seat combi's, special exhausts like 3into1's and expansion pipes, wheels, swing arms, shocks and a chain protector. Reimo still exists today and even now they make a TR750 replica.
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