Just thought I'd post this link in case anyone hadn't seen it - it had me
belly laughing and brought back many memories.......

http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html

Partac <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
> Just thought I'd post this link in case anyone hadn't seen it - it had me
> belly laughing and brought back many memories.......
>
> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html

Heh.
They were actually quite nice bikes in their day if properly fettled.
My bruvver had one, the only real problem was that the exhaust ports
and silencers needed regular decokeing.
A lot of the Arrows around today actually started like as Leaders
and lost their panels to rot and damage over the years.

--
01Y CBR600F
78 Honda 400/4 in black
98 Yamaha YP250 Majesty

Thus spake (E-Mail Removed) ((E-Mail Removed)) unto the assembled multitudes:

>> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html

> Heh.
> They were actually quite nice bikes in their day if properly fettled.
> My bruvver had one, the only real problem was that the exhaust ports
> and silencers needed regular decokeing.
> A lot of the Arrows around today actually started like as Leaders
> and lost their panels to rot and damage over the years.

My first 'proper' bike (after a Lambretta SX200) was a Leader, a 1959
ex-police bike, with a big hole in the false tank where the radio kit used to
be which was filled out with a chunk of foam with a loose lid on top. It had
long since lost its screen. It was pretty tatty and pig-ugly, but I had some
good times on it, and it never let me down (mechanically at least, but it
never pulled any birds :-). Handled pretty well for its time too, even
wearing Avon Skidmasters.

--
Andy Clews
*** Remove DENTURES if replying by email ***

(E-Mail Removed) wrote:
> Thus spake (E-Mail Removed) ((E-Mail Removed)) unto the
> assembled multitudes:
>
>>> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html
>
>> Heh.
>> They were actually quite nice bikes in their day if properly fettled.
>> My bruvver had one, the only real problem was that the exhaust ports
>> and silencers needed regular decokeing.
>> A lot of the Arrows around today actually started like as Leaders
>> and lost their panels to rot and damage over the years.
>
> My first 'proper' bike (after a Lambretta SX200) was a Leader, a 1959
> ex-police bike, with a big hole in the false tank where the radio kit
> used to
> be which was filled out with a chunk of foam with a loose lid on top.
> It had
> long since lost its screen. It was pretty tatty and pig-ugly, but I
> had some
> good times on it, and it never let me down (mechanically at least,
> but it
> never pulled any birds :-). Handled pretty well for its time too,
> even
> wearing Avon Skidmasters.

Point of order. I realise... now... that getting a bike as a teenager was
not a strategy destined to attract the fairer sex. At least not the ones
you wanted to notice.

--
Hog

On Wed, 1 Jun 2011 16:45:02 +0100, "Hog." <(E-Mail Removed)>
wrote:

>
>Point of order. I realise... now... that getting a bike as a teenager was
>not a strategy destined to attract the fairer sex. At least not the ones
>you wanted to notice.


Oh I dunno. I recall one day when out and about of my RD250 with it's
blue over gold metalflake fairing and me in my matching blue with gold
silk lining Rivetts leathers needing to stop and buy some snout and while
doing so was accosted, picked up, taken home, sucked in and blown out in
bubbles by a bird onna scoot and all because she was into blokes on bikes.

--

steve auvache

Hog. wrote:
> (E-Mail Removed) wrote:
>> Thus spake (E-Mail Removed) ((E-Mail Removed)) unto the
>> assembled multitudes:
>>
>>>> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html
>>> Heh.
>>> They were actually quite nice bikes in their day if properly fettled.
>>> My bruvver had one, the only real problem was that the exhaust ports
>>> and silencers needed regular decokeing.
>>> A lot of the Arrows around today actually started like as Leaders
>>> and lost their panels to rot and damage over the years.
>> My first 'proper' bike (after a Lambretta SX200) was a Leader, a 1959
>> ex-police bike, with a big hole in the false tank where the radio kit
>> used to
>> be which was filled out with a chunk of foam with a loose lid on top.
>> It had
>> long since lost its screen. It was pretty tatty and pig-ugly, but I
>> had some
>> good times on it, and it never let me down (mechanically at least,
>> but it
>> never pulled any birds :-). Handled pretty well for its time too,
>> even
>> wearing Avon Skidmasters.
>
> Point of order. I realise... now... that getting a bike as a teenager was
> not a strategy destined to attract the fairer sex. At least not the ones
> you wanted to notice.

You are not wrong - I never pulled anything (not even the skin off a
rice pudding) with my BSA Dandy - another contender for lemon-i/n-the-eye.

In my defence, I wanted a nice little Excelsior Talisan Twin (£10), but
the ole man insisted i had the BA Damndy as 'that old bike will always
be breaking down'.

Dandy broke down first at 273 miles and needed a new stator plate.
Having got into the habit, it continued to break down until I gave up,
and not consulting the 'expert', bought (£5) a 1941 G3 Matchless, which
I took twice round the clock, chair on, chair off...

--
Old Nick

On Wed, 01 Jun 2011 11:04:18 +0100, Partac wrote:

> Just thought I'd post this link in case anyone hadn't seen it - it had
> me belly laughing and brought back many memories.......
>
> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html

I remember a mate telling me how he seized both pistons and wrecked other
engine components in his simply by shutting off the throttle for much too
long on a lengthy stretch of steep, downhill road.

--
Tony
'04 Ducati ST3, '08 DL650GT,
97 TW200, '87 semi-rat LS650, OMF#24

"Partac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...

Wotcha.

> Just thought I'd post this link in case anyone hadn't seen it - it had me
> belly laughing and brought back many memories.......
>
> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html

As a friend of mine once said
"There's only one thing worse than a two stroke - and that's a British two
stroke"


--
--
^..^ Lone Wolf
www.moonshiners.org.uk

Macabre of Auchterloonie wrote:
> Hog. wrote:
>> (E-Mail Removed) wrote:
>>> Thus spake (E-Mail Removed) ((E-Mail Removed)) unto the
>>> assembled multitudes:
>>>
>>>>> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html
>>>> Heh.
>>>> They were actually quite nice bikes in their day if properly
>>>> fettled. My bruvver had one, the only real problem was that the
>>>> exhaust ports and silencers needed regular decokeing.
>>>> A lot of the Arrows around today actually started like as Leaders
>>>> and lost their panels to rot and damage over the years.
>>> My first 'proper' bike (after a Lambretta SX200) was a Leader, a
>>> 1959 ex-police bike, with a big hole in the false tank where the
>>> radio kit used to
>>> be which was filled out with a chunk of foam with a loose lid on
>>> top. It had
>>> long since lost its screen. It was pretty tatty and pig-ugly, but I
>>> had some
>>> good times on it, and it never let me down (mechanically at least,
>>> but it
>>> never pulled any birds :-). Handled pretty well for its time too,
>>> even
>>> wearing Avon Skidmasters.
>>
>> Point of order. I realise... now... that getting a bike as a
>> teenager was not a strategy destined to attract the fairer sex. At
>> least not the ones you wanted to notice.
>
> You are not wrong - I never pulled anything (not even the skin off a
> rice pudding) with my BSA Dandy - another contender for
> lemon-i/n-the-eye.

I realised my mistake when I turned up one day in a new Ford Consul V6. the
change in interest was profound.
The fact that I was 17, with no car licence and the vehicle belonged to an
old neighbour (I didn't like) who was on holiday, restricted the
repeatability of the event.
I didn't trash it however and the **** never did realise.

--
Hog

^..^ Lone Wolf wrote:
> "Partac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>
> Wotcha.
>
>> Just thought I'd post this link in case anyone hadn't seen it - it had me
>> belly laughing and brought back many memories.......
>>
>> http://www.realclassic.co.uk/ariel03090500.html
>
> As a friend of mine once said
> "There's only one thing worse than a two stroke - and that's a British two
> stroke"

I had a lovely, reliable, smelly lawn-mower powered by a Villiers 2/ engine.

My next-door neighbour gave it to me 'because it wouldn't go'.

He was curious to know how it was that minutes after I'd acquired the
thing I was cutting my lawn - well, the grass, anyway - with it.

I had to explain the significance of the rotaty slideything over the air
filter...

--
Old Nick