BUYING AND SELLING
No need to chicken out of year-round riding if you bag yourself a winter hack like a battered old Bantam
Remember winter hacks? You can still pick ’em up pretty cheap
Back in the day, we all had one. A winter hack that is. A bike you could keep on riding through the dark days of winter without worrying about getting it dirty, corroded or dropping it on slippery roads. Back then, of course, a lot of us relied on our bikes for daily transport. These days, a lot of the machines we used to ride out of necessity are cherished as classics and ridden for pleasure. But, if you want to make the riding season a year-round experience, buying a bike solely for winter use can still make sense if you want to preserve that immaculate resto you’ve spent so much time and effort on.
Back in the freezing winter of 1981-82, I bought a Yamaha SR500 to run through the dark months, while my immaculate
GS750 sat in the back of the shed under a blanket, waiting for spring. The SR cost a few hundred quid and was just the job for winter riding conditions. The trouble now is that a lot of the bikes we’d happily ride through a miserable January are sought-after classics in their own right. So, what to buy for year-round riding today?
Something that’s affordable, not so rare it makes you feel guilty about riding it – and yet still able to give you the buzz of riding just for the fun of it. Something like a BSA Bantam, in fact.
They’re still affordable (if you avoid mint and collectable, rigid D1s), light, practical and fun. Parts are readily available and relatively cheap, and BSA’S little stroker is simple to work on if anything goes wrong. There are plenty of upgrades available, too – from electronic ignition to tuned heads and big-bore conversions if you fancy improving the breed. Perfect.
A 175 is probably more practical than the early 125cc models or the interim 150s, so a D5-on model makes the most sense. If you must have a four-speeder, you’ll need to go for a 1967 D10 Sports or D14/4,
although they seem to command a higher price than the three-speeders. This 1960 D7 model on sale at Andy Tiernan’s fine emporium in Framlingham, Suffolk looks like an ideal mount for the winter and is priced at a modest £1250. It comes from one of Andy’s regular customers, is up and running and will go through the Tiernan workshop as soon as time allows. It’s no museum piece, but looks like all the major parts are present and correct and we’d be happy to buzz round over the winter months on it.
Keep on riding. • andybuysbikes.com