Simon Little on his A65-engined, Wasp-framed BSA special. The rest of the family are BSA mad, too
These well turned-out BSA motocrossers – including a unique, recently built A65-powered special – belong to one family of Pre-65 racing enthusiasts
‘IN THE SEARCH FOR
MORE POWER, SIMON GRAFTED AN A65 TWIN
INTO A WASP FRAME’
In the mid-1960s, the BSA works team dominated international motocross (or scrambling, as it was still known back then). Jeff Smith won the 500cc World Motocross title in 1964 and 1965 riding a very trick, unit-construction single, initially based on the B40, which then became the B44 Victor in 1965. Dave Nichol won Grand Prix races with his B44 in
1916 and ’68. At home, too, the entire BSA team was successful, with titles in the British Motocross Championship and the winter televised series.
So it’s no wonder that the BSA singles are popular in classic Pre-65 motocross – and the Little family featured here have fully embraced the B40 with a collection of bikes based on the successful single.
It all started when Simon Little took up Pre-65 in May 2016 with his 350cc B40-based machine. His brother Terry followed two months later on a similar machine and, by the end of the year, Simon’s son John was racing one, while Terry’s son Anthony joined the ‘team’ in 2019. And this year Simon took the BSA theme a stage further. Searching for more horsepower, he grafted a BSA A65 twin into a Wasp frame.
We spoke to John Little about the family’s obsession with Pre-65 motocross – and BSAS in particular.
CB: What previous motocross experience did you all have before embarking on Pre-65 racing?
JL: None, but we’ve always used motorbikes for fun, riding in the woods where we live. When my dad decided to have a go at Pre-65, none of the bikes we owned at the time were compatible with modern motocross or enduro events, but him and Terry wanted to be involved in something that had interested them when they were kids. They lived near Tweseldown and Tunnel Hill, where scrambles took place – and, of course, BSAS were among the bikes to beat back then.
CB: What part of the country do you normally race in?
JL: Our local club – and the club that we are all members of – is Mortimer Classic Motorcycle Club. However, the majority of races are held in Essex (Maylandsea, Marks Tey). We have competed in Northampton club meetings, but more recently are trying out some Somerset and South Coast events.
CB: So your dad and uncle both started out with B40s. But why not the later B44s or B50s?
JL: There was no real reason for not using B44s or B50s, except the first pre-65 bike dad got was a B40 and the others followed. In the spirit of racing, we decided to
all compete on the same machines. However, I have built, raced – and since sold – a B44.
CB: The #479 bike looks like it has really early outer cases, and some of the other bikes’ heads look different. Were the singles all bought as race bikes or built from parts?
JL: The #479 was the first bike my dad bought. That was already built as a scrambler and has the early distributortype engine, although some improvements were made to this as time progressed. Terry’s first bike, #799, was bought in trials spec and then converted to a scrambler with closeratio gears and upgraded suspension. Since then, three more complete bikes have been built from parts, including complete engine rebuilds. Two of these were BSA B40s and one was a BSA B44.
CB: What spec are all these bikes?
JL: They are all on standard petrol, Amal carbs, high-comp pistons, ported valves, ‘sporty’ MX or enduro cams, and standard BSA four-speed gearboxes. All the bikes have standard BSA frames. The forks are all 35mm, but from various makes such as Betor, Marzocchi and Ceriani. The wheels are, again, from different makes, such as BSA QD wheels, CZ wheels, Royal Enfield and an AJS Stormer. The shocks are YSS and Reiger, supplied by Mark Goodall at our local specialist Kamar Motorsport.
CB: How did you get involved in racing?
JL: I’m 25 and, much like my dad, I never competed in motocross but did use bikes for fun – I rode my 1987 Yamaha DT125LC to college. After watching my dad race in his first Pre-65 meeting at Mortimer back in May of 2016, I realised that I wanted to have a go, too, and started racing later that year.
CB: Why did your dad go for the A65 motor? Is he a hardcore BSA fan, or was it simply daring to be different?
JL: Simply to be different, I think, but the hardcore BSA fan in him is definitely developing rapidly! Rather than going down the typical Triumph twin route, he decided on using the under-appreciated A65 engine which was built using some of SRM’S special products and put together by Michael Mead who races an A65 engine bored to 840cc in his sidecar outfit.
CB: What exactly has gone into the A65 in order to make it suitable for motocross?
JL: It’s benefited from an end-fed crank conversion, roller bearing conversion and an outrigger bearing to the sprocket drive. Billet alloy conrods have also been fitted, along with an SRM oil pump. It’s got standard high-compression pistons, but dad kept the 650cc, rather than opting for the big-bore conversion. It’s got a standard four-speed box and a competition clutch.
CB: What carbs and ignition does it run?
JL: It’s got a single Amal 28mm MKIII Concentric and Electrex World ignition.
CB: Is the Wasp frame something they made to take an A65 motor, or is it one of their other frames converted to take your dad’s engine?
JL: The Wasp frame is a replica of a BSA and, by using various engine mounting plates, will accept many different engines. However, we’ve been told by Wasp that no one else they know has built an A65 solo scrambler! The frame was bought in kit form, comprising the tank, frame, swingarm, panels and seat. A few of the problems we faced were rear-wheel alignment and the offset of both wheels.
CB: Aside from the kit parts, what forks, shocks, wheels, and brakes does the chassis use?
JL: Ceriani forks, Reiger shocks, plus Husqvarna wheels and brakes.
CB: It looks great, but what’s it like to race – especially after the single?
JL: The livery is reminiscent of our B40 machines with the Victor paintwork on the tank, which my dad did himself, so the bike looks lovely and sounds fabulous, too. Dad reckons the power delivery is instant – and sometimes unexpected, compared to the single!
CB: What kind of investment did it take to create the A65, compared to building a B40?
JL: The A65 build took a full year from start to finish, and in terms of cost I’d say it was approximately three times the expense of a B40 build.
CB: Are there any plans to equip the rest of ‘Team Little’ with Wasp A65s?
JL: I have opted for a Matchless G80CS, so there are no definite plans, but there is an A65 supermoto hybrid being built, so watch this space!
‘TERRY’S FIRST BIKE, #799, WAS BOUGHT IN TRIALS SPEC THEN CONVERTED
TO A SCRAMBLER WITH CLOSE-RATIO GEARS AND UPGRADED SUSPENSION’