RICK’S RUDGE RESTORATIONS
Our man Parkington couldn’t resist taking on these long-term projects – the last three bikes left over from the National Motorcycle Museum fire of 2003. He likes a challenge...
New acquisition?” enquired a neighbour as I gazed absently into the back of the van, trying to work out the best way to singlehandedly unload three awkward and fairly heavy bikes without a rolling wheel between them. “No,” I replied. “But I wish they were...”
He gave me one of those pitying looks usually reserved for the harmlessly deluded and continued on his way.
You see, what we have here are three very special 500cc racing Rudges. The first is reputedly Graham Walker’s 1933 works machine, the other two are 1934 ‘Syndicate’ bikes – works-supported, but nominally privateer machines. All three were on display at the National Motorcycle Museum until September 16, 2003, when a carelessly discarded cigarette butt claimed three quarters of the collection. The following day, the equally devastated museum founder, Roy Richards, vowed that no effort would be spared to make good the damage. Typical of a man who had made his own way
in the world, it was no idle boast – and just over a year later in December 2004, the museum reopened.
But that was not the end. Tragically, the fire brigade had contained the worst of the blaze in Hall 5, home to most of the irreplaceable, historic racing bikes. How Roy must have felt to hear that the fire in there must be allowed to burn out, defies imagination.
Relief came in action. Roy quickly set about an immense programme of restoration. It was too much for the museum team, so enthusiasts all over the country were engaged to take on the work, salvaging what they could and finding or remanufacturing what they could not, regardless of the cost.
But even though some Hall 5 bikes were absent for the reopening, Roy still hadn’t given up on their return. By the time he passed away in 2008, nearly all of the bikes had returned, with only a handful awaiting repair. The 1914 TT Matchless and two Sunbeams were completed last year, leaving just these three Rudges... Being a Rudge man myself and (thanks to my Martinsyde) already familiar with fire-damaged bikes, I was keen to volunteer my help to end the nightmare, especially since my friends Bruce Hazelgrove and Paul Horton are deeply involved in the manufacture of Rudge parts – and can deal with frame retubing, tank and even crankcase remanufacture.
Convinced? Well OK, maybe I’m not entirely either, now I look at what I’ve taken on... but I won’t be alone. I’m going to sort out what needs doing and who can do it, aiming to hand the bikes back as ‘dry builds’ to the museum team, who will do the cosmetic bit at the end. The grand finale, both for the bikes and the museum’s continuing commitment to honour Roy’s mission to restore these historic bikes, will be a celebratory test ride of all three Rudges at a race circuit, before returning them to their rightful places in the museum.
Well, that’s the goal – but it’s a long way off yet and I have to add that success isn’t a foregone conclusion. Dotted around these pages are descriptions of the bikes and photographs of them in the condition I received them from the museum store. On first inspection they were better than I expected, but looks can be deceiving.