Steve Tonkin Classics
He might not have plans for more specials just yet, but the man behind these Metisses will still take on a resto...
NATURALISED Lancastrian Steve Tonkin has lived and breathed motorcycles for as long as he can remember. And he’s lived in his adopted county almost as long, moving there from London when he was around five years old. He proudly wore the red Lancastrian rose on his racing helmet (and still does on his road helmet) and his roots are firmly in the North West. He rode his first motorcycle in a village just a mile or two from the house he lives in today and, since he retired from racing in 1984, he’s lived and worked within a few miles of his current workshop. He’s been here 15 years and had a rented workshop just up the road before that. And, of course, before he became a respected name in classic bike restorations, Steve enjoyed an impressive career as a top-flight motorcycle racer. “When I packed in after the crash in 1984, I spent the next three years sorting the house out,” he says. “Then I thought: ‘What are you going to do
‘I GOT MY FIRST CUSTOMER IN 1988, AND I’VE JUST HAD ANOTHER OF HIS BIKES IN’
now?’ So I bought a shed, put it up in the garden and started restoring bikes. “I think I got my first customer in about 1988 – and I’ve just had another of his bikes in to do. A barn came up for rent in Carnforth just up the road, so I moved the workshop there and stayed for 12 years.” Word of mouth recommendations kept Steve busy with restorations, but then a customer asked him to build a Seeley Gold Star for him. “Then another customer saw it in the workshop and wanted one,” recalls Steve. “I persuaded him to have one with a Matchless G50 engine – and then George Beale wanted me to build him one... That set me off thinking about building some Manx Norton-engined specials and I ended up creating about 20 road-going Manxes and batches of Gold Star and G50-engined specials.” Restorations are the main part of Steve’s business now, though. Although he still enjoys the challenge of building something new – much like these three Metisse specials. “I’m back working on my own now, although Sid drops in to help out. I’ve had a couple of great employees over the years – Ken Hodgson, who was one of my old racing sponsors, and his cousin John Mason. They’ve both retired now, so it’s just me. I’m happy with where I am. I’ll still take on restoration work, but I take my time a bit more these days. I haven’t got any plans to build any more specials, but you never know, if something catches my eye...”