The Barber Vintage Festival is arguably the most famous, largest and best vintage motorcycle event in the world (with the Bull City Rumble coming in at a close 2nd or 3rd ;) The event does a comprehensive job of covering all facets of motorcycling including collecting, restoring, racing and riding vintage motorbikes. The 13th edition of the event will take place on October 6, 7 and 8, 2017 and you can be certain that Ton Up NC will have a strong presence at the event as they have since the first edition of Barber Vintage.
Aside from racing, one of our favorite pastimes at Barber is the swap meet, with its eclectic mix of motorcycles in various states of repair and the interesting people who make or supplement their living selling them. What follows are some photos from the 2016 edition of the Barber Vintage Swap Meet.
There are few things more satisfying than kicking an old motorcycle to life. Whether this follows a total resurrection of a once left for dead machine or after a momentary pause on a country ride when you just stopped to take in the scenery. That moment when the perfect combination of air, fuel, spark collide and explode never ceases to leave one with an ear to ear grin. Its one of those things everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime and completely contrasts the complete lack of emotion and effort involved in modern push-button ignition systems. Without going into great technical detail, what follows is a step-by-step instructions on how to start that old Triumph, Norton, BSA etc.
1. Shift the bike into Neutral (this is located 1/2 click between first and second gears). A good way to make sure your bike is in Neutral is to check and see if the bike rolls or the rear wheel turns freely without the clutch engaged.
2. Bring the bike outdoors or at least open the garage or shed door (Brit bikes are not emissions free machines and do create quite a bit of poisonous gas when running).
3. Make sure you have fresh gas in the tank. It is good practice to drain your tank if you plan on storing your bike for a while or at least add some fuel stabilizer to the gas to prevent it from getting stale. Stale gas typically has a very strong sweet shellac-like odor to it.
4. Turn on the gas. This is done by moving the petcock lever (located on the underside of the gas tank) from the horizontal position (off position) to the vertical position by pushing the lever downward.
5. Enrich your fuel mixture by actuating the choke lever, usually located near the clutch lever on the left side of the handlebar. If your bike has no choke lever there is a "tickle" button located on the outside of the carburator that can be depressed to release some extra fuel into the carburator (do this on both carbs if you have more than one.) You want to tickle until a little bit of fuel seeps out of the button onto your finger.
6. If your bike has a compression release (not all do), actuate the lever or button. This will make the bike much easier to kick over. If your bike has no compression release, skip to step 7.
7. Flip out your kickstarter (typically located on the right side of the bike) and with a mild amount of pressure push it with your foot until you feel some resistance (you may have to push the kickstarter all the way through once and repeat to achieve this end.) This puts the bike on its compression stroke.
8. Turn on your bike with your key. Make sure your kill-switch is in the "on" position, if you have one.
9. With a moderate amount of pressure, kick the bike all the way through. When you hear the bike beginning to start a small twist of the throttle can help the bike start and begin to idle. Be wary of kickbacks, some bikes are known to bite you in the shin or eject the rider if not careful.
10. Turn off your choke and if the bike keeps on idling you are ready to roll. Turn lights on for safety. Congratulations you just kickstarted your bike.
A lot of people ask us whether we can build a bike for them, if we're motorcycle dealership, a custom build shop or a repair station. The answer is "no." But within that "no" answer lies a bit of "yes." We do build, repair and maintain all of the bikes that we use for riding and racing and its no small task. Collectively the club has well over 100 vintage bikes of all nationalities: British, Spanish, Japanese, Indian, German, Italian, Ohian as well as a few modern machines. Three cylinder, two cylinder, single cylinder; two-stroke, four-stroke, you name it... we love them all. Keeping all of these bikes road worthy is a year-round collective effort and a challenge that is not for the faint of heart (ask anyone who has owned and/or raced a Bultaco). Be it in the garage, the shed, roadside in the pouring rain, on the patio with the boys sweating over an old repair manual (wrench in one hand and a beer in the other) or trackside moments before the race; its a labor of love. Its one that pays off in spades when you finish that long ride or grueling race error free. Its also the smile on the old timers face who lovingly reminisces with you about their old Triumph that makes all the time and energy worth it.
What follows are some pictures of Ton Up NC tech days/moments from the past...
Ton Up NC = Riding, Racing and Restoration of Vintage Motorcycles
Aerial view of the Rumble in the late afternoon byJohn Huber.
The Bull City Rumble #9: NC's Largest Vintage Motorcycle, Scooter and Cafe Racer show is now a piece of history. Thank You for attending or supporting our event in its 9th year. Many of you know the story of what started as a small get together of close friends in a parking lot in Raleigh, NC to what it is a now: thousands of motorcyclists from all over the country/world coming together in historic downtown Durham, NC for a weekend of rare motorcycles/scooters, great rock and roll/burlesque and camaraderie. This year's event broke all attendance records with nearly 400 motorcycles in the bike show and nearly 5,000 people in and out of the event over the weekend making it one of the largest mods vs. rockers themed events in the world. Now, onto planning for the 10th Anniversary of the Bull City Rumble scheduled for Labor Day Weekend 2014 and we hope you make plans to be there again to party with us. Its gonna be the best one yet. August 29-31, 2014.
Bike Show Results:
Photo by Audible Gasp
Best in Show: Ronald Ridfed- 1963 BSA Rocket Goldstar
Photo by Speedfoos
Best British: Rick Scott- 1973 Norton Commando
Photo by Bill Braile
Best European: Steve Schwartz- 1974 Ducati 750GT
Photo by Stephen Sellars
Best Japanese: Jacob Warner- 1979 Honda CB350
Best Competition: Johann Keyser- Honda CR750
Photo by Bill Braile
Best Scooter: Eileen Hood- 1957 Zundapp Bella
Best Modern Classic: Adam Musson- 2006 Triumph Bonneville
Best Vintage Custom: Chris Blare- 1967 Triumph T100R Bobber
Thanks again to everyone who showed up, the photographers whose photos I've used in this blog post, our sponsors: Ray Price Triumph, Combustion Cycles, James Joyce Irish Pub, Monk Mechanic Wipes, Sunex Tools, Continental Tires, Sunbelt Rentals, Velocity Cycles, Triangle Cycles, and Runaway Clothes and YOU. See you all next year!
