April – Houston Motorcycle Auction

 

We don’t have a lot of detail about this one. But it might be worth checking out if you’re in that neck of the woods around the appropriate time or fancy taking a punt online.

The date is Sunday 13th April 13, 2014. The time is 11.00am. The venue is The Reliant Center, Houston, TX 77054.

 

Mecum Auctions is running a number of sales over that weekend ranging from cars to motorcycles to automobilia to whatever comes along. The cars (around 1000 of them) will be sold between 10th and 11th April. Two wheelers go under the hammer the following day. Sunday.

The Mike Doyle Museum Collection gets the star billing on the motorcycle platform and boasts over 100 lots. Doyle, who hails (or hailed) from Dixon, California, amassed a huge private and very eclectic collection of motorcycles. We don’t know if he is alive or dead, but the collection is surplus to requirements.

The machines include various Harleys, BSAs, Triumphs and Ajays; a Mustang or two; plenty of Hondas; an Ivory Calthorpe; a Benelli; a tribe of Indians and …well, all kinds of obscure stuff. You’ll get dizzy checking the list.

 

 

 

▲1946 486cc Scott Flying Squirrel. Doyle Collection. “No British motorcycle collection is complete without a water-cooled Scott.” We like ’em plenty, but they’re very much an acquired taste, and best served rare.

 

 

 

▲Lot U67 1942 Indian 841, one of 1,000 built at the request of the US War Department. Shaft drive, 4-speed, transverse V-twin, the 841 (like Harley’s rival XA model) was not a success and helped put Indian in the poor house. That’ll teach ’em to muck around with a tried & tested formula…

 

 

▲Lot U16. 1960 T20 Tiger Cub. Doyle Collection. A run of the mill Cub filling a Cub shaped hole. Much of the collection looks similarly unfocussed, but represents a lot of obsessive dedication. It is possible to have too many motorcycles. Ask Doyle.

 

 

▲ Lot U41. 1953 Mk2 Ariel Square Four. Clean, but sadly long dormant.

 

Also in the weekend sale are a number of “road art” lots, notably a collection of guitars signed by bands such as Aerosmith, Eagles, ZZ Top, Van Halen and the Rolling Stones. Plenty, if not most of the lots, have no reserves, so there could be a real chance of snapping up a bargain here. We’ve got our eyes on Lot J24, below, which is a Strat-style guitar autographed by the Rolling Stones. We could certainly find a spot on the Sump garage wall for that.

 

Go check it out of you can- I’d love to be there to see this cool old iron.