Tag Archives: rickman

Building an Inline Four Project out of bits and parts laying about.

Posted on by Steve Carpenter
15 Aug

Well, I still have not made my mind up how I am going in the design part of this ride, I thought I would use my phone and record a few sessions as I continue creating a machine that I personally like and want to use and I am sure that it will go through a few guises before I get on the right track, although that’s half the fun of it.

So here are a few videos I have cobbled together and hopefully you will like what I am trying to achieve, remember, Rome was not built in 7 days.

1960’s Triumph Rhind Tutt RT3 650cc Pre-Unit WASP Scrambler

Posted on by Steve Carpenter
08 Nov

Rob Rhind Tutt started making his RT3 frames in the early sixties.

They were produced in motocross and road race variants and were a contemporary of the Rickman Mk 3 scrambles frames. They look very similar to each other due to the fact that the fiberglass fuel tanks mudguards and saddle/airbox units were designed and manufactured by the same people. Also both frames carry their oil supply inside their nickel plated frame tubes. Underneath the plastic however the frames are quite different, when you look at them in detail. In my opinion, (and not surprisingly that of Rob Rhind Tutt) the Wasp RT3 is simply better than the Rickman Mark 3……let me explain;

 

The Rickman frame has two full loops, each is made of two main tubes. One swoops down from the top of the steering head in front of the engine, passes under the engine then cranks up and finishes at the rear shock absorber top mount.

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The second is welded to the first tube close to the swinging arm pivot, this then heads upwards behind the engine, then over the top of the engine before joining the bottom of the steering head. This gives two areas of weakness the welded joint near the swinging arm pivot and the point at which the frame tubes cross over just behind the steering head.

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The former is strengthened by a pair of hefty plates carrying the swinging arm pivot point and the latter requires some serious head- steady bracing (like on the Norton Featherbed). It isn’t really a surprise then that Rickman frames that are used on modern motocross tracks with huge jump tend to break their frames in the area of the steering head cross over.

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When you come to adjust the rear chain on a Rickman you are in for a horrible task. Adjustment is done at the swinging arm pivot point with a huge variety of different eccentric discs that have to be replaced by a trial and error process, until the correct one is found……not a job you’d wish to carry out ion a rush between races, in a muddy field.

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The Wasp RT3 frame is made from two full loops of smaller diameter tubing. Each tube starts at the bottom of the steering head then swoops under the engine before heading back up from the swinging arm pivot straight to the top of the steering head.

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By avoiding a tube cross over at the steering head it is intrinsically stronger and most Wasps don’t need to run a head steady…..the frame is that strong! This frame design is the same as the later Rob North Triple race frames. When the time comes to adjust the rear chain, the adjustment is carried out at the rear wheel spindle.

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where a pair of beautifully crafted aluminium offset drilled spindle holders rotate inside the swinging arm and then get pegged into a crescent of holes which give exact linear movement increments, through their rotation. It really couldn’t be easier.

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While the Wasp frame was used successfully by a number of top racers in the sixties, it is the Rickman that was produced in greater numbers both then and now.

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In the mid 1960’s Rob built a run of about 8 RT3’s intended for tarmac racing rather than for playing in the mud, on of these was used by a serving Royal Marine Sergeant in the Singapore Grand Prix in 1966 running a 650 pre-unit Triumph engine and AMC gearbox together with Norton forks and wheels.

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Another RT3 was used by Brian Scammell running a unit 500 Triumph engine, which Brian later up-rated with his own designed and manufactured double overhead cam top end. This was raced by Brian on British race tracks from about 1966 through to 1972.

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In the Restoration Gallery is a selection of photos of Wasp RT3 framed bikes, showing they can be fitted with a variety of different engines from Triumph Unit 500 to NRE 950 and everything in between!

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Bit more on the WASP SOLO:

Wasp Motorcycles Ltd

50 Years

Manufacturing motorcycle frames and forks.

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RT3 Solo

Following Rob’s original RT1 grass track outfit and the first RT2 sidecar outfits, one for Rob for grass track and one for motorcross rider Mike Guilford. The RT3 was the first real production kit built by Rhind-tutt Motorcycles. Designed and built by Rob Rhind-tutt with bodywork created by Ken Marsh, the RT3 entered the solo scrambling scene.

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With this bike was born the name “Wasp”

Although at a glance it’s appearance is similar to the “Metisse” created by Derek and Don Rickman, without it’s pretty fibreglass it’s clearly not a copy.

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Ridden by some great rider’s,  Rob Jordan, Ken Messenger, Frank Underwood, I could go on. The RT3 entered the world scrambling scene with some success. It was also used as a road racer and has been made into some nice street bikes.

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The frames are made from 4130 chromoly tubing, bronze welded and bright nickel plated.

Kit weight:

Large capacity fuel tank available.

Fiberglass is available in a large range of plain and metalic colours.

Seats are upholstered in black as standard with bespoke upholstery available.

Contact Rob or Mark

Tel: 01722 792827   

Fax: 01722 790503

info@waspmotorcycles.com

Insane Meat Slicer Turbo Visor from back in the day!

Posted on by Steve Carpenter
12 Nov

As a kid, I used to think that this was nuts even then and now, well how frigging crazy is this invention to see, I cannot imaging the distraction from the noise of this circular Buzz saw that screams around at the speed of sound to “Fling” off any H2O that maybe sitting on the visor.

So Today I thought that I would show some of these Crazy inventions and make you smile today, but- in all the many decades of riding I have done back home and all over Europe, I have never encountered one of these.

Were there ever any injury’s from this contraption at all I wonder?

Even the infamous Formula 1 race car driver Graham Hill tried this insane idea out.

 

So I wonder what happened to these things, as these were very antiquated inventions.

So I did a little research and bloody hell, they still frigging make them.

Some use them for Go karting and racing, how mad is that?

So . Pardon the Pun-it has actually come full circle?

 

So keep your eyes out for one of these, but I bet you hear it coming before you see it, it is sure to sound like an old Bi-Plane losing power.

So, what is there now that maybe knocks this into a cocked hat?

How about this then?

Now there cannot be anything more embarrassing than this contraption.

 

So, stick this on your Christmas list.

MY OLD SEELEY HONDA

Posted on by Steve Carpenter
25 Apr

 

 

 

 

Well, back in 2007 I was lucky enough to have not One , but Two Seeley Honda’s and this one I am featuring was a really sweet ride and one of the last ever made by Colin Himself.

I saw Colin at Snetterton race track back in 1977 as this was the year before I left school, I hitched a ride on the back of a old Gt suzuki and jumped the hedge to get to see the trans- Atlantic races, Colin was there with a Honda britain and boy did that bike stand out, Colin was far superieor to anyone with frame design back then and this Duplex cradle from for the DOHC and round swing arm was a first and boy did it perform, little would I know that later on in life on the other sode of the world, I would own 2 of his examples.

 

 

This was complete with Lester rims and had never been touched since 1978 when it was assembled and sent to the USA.

 

This still had the Original Number plate on the bike of which i rode about for a while with this on, reminded me of home. 

 A fantastic machine, the Duplex cradle frame handled the road like a Ducati, this was a 836cc motor and it purred through the Dunstall exhausts.

 

 This even had the original Avon tires on the bike and road it with them on, I was so stoked to get the machine running as it had ZERO miles on the whole bike.

 

 The rear Lester rim was unusual as Seeley had used a stock CB750 Hub and machined it to fit the rest of the rim.

 

 The Paul Dunstall rear sets really were a superb set up and so smooth.

 

 

 This was the last bike made and left the shores of back home in 1978 which for me was cool as that was the year I left School.

 No stickers here, Colin used the same sign-writer for years, so these were all hand lettered.

 

 

 You do not see many of these around these days but the ones you do are used and some are even raced on a track and I love seeing that.

 Early front forks with a Double disc set up was the trend of the day and worked very well once it was all bled etc.

 The Tommesselli clip ons were amazing and set just right, the bike handled so well.

 

 I had original Koni shocks on here too.

 

 Paul Dunstall rear sets were so nice and smooth in the gear transition it was a super ride.

 

 Round adjustable rear swing arm was a really good engineered design and function so well.

 

 

 Original cb750K hub had been machined and pressed into the rear of the Lester rim which was a disc brake version.

 836cc old Bellmouth Velocity stack and untouched since 1978.

 

 The Paul Dunstall megaphones sounded really sweet and had a nice deep tone as you shifted gears.

 

 

 Alloy rear seat was comfortable and had the original tuck n Roll cover and had the Colin Seeley initials hand painted on the sides.

 

 I doubt I shall be lucky enough to have another of these but so glad I had the chance to own 2 of them and ride this, the bike now resides in Brisbane- Australia.

 

 A superb time piece and something I believe will always turn a few heads when it blaps down the road.

 

The bike was such a lovely design, and a dream to ride, the bike hugged the corners like a Ducati and the motor was a strong 836cc that put the power to the tarmac with a Linear feel and as this also had a Jerry Branch head, the bike pulled hard when you got over 5000 revs.

 

 

 The fairing has a few scuffs and a lot of it all cleaned off, but the brakes were seized but only took a couple of hours to get everything dialed in.

But as this was the last bike to be made, the sign writer must of been in a hurry , as he painted the logo the wrong way around, making this an even more unique machine.

 

 This bike had ZERO miles, I did about 11 miles on it and loved every mile of this ride.

 So- if you see a Seeley, take a good look at the cool work that went into that bike as the frame is a piece of art.

 Hope you like the photos? I was lucky enough to get in  a few magazines with this machine.

 

 Time waits for no man and now a geezer in Australia is bombing about on this machine with a mile wide smile.

 

 On the road and this bike was just pure fun to ride and like stepping back in time to 1978 as nothing had changed on the bike at all.

 

 Sure wished I had videoed it as the sound of the exhaust tone was really cool and unusual to hear these days.

 If you see a Seeley for sale- grab it, a cool piece of history and Colin is still around and meeting people at bike shows and race events.

 

 

 

So until I find another one, I will bid you all a fond farewell and hope you enjoyed the photos?