MICK'S MACHINE
The Ossa Mick Andrews Replica was synonymous with the rider and brand who won back-to-back European Trials Championships, as well as three Scottish Six Days Trials from 1970 to 1972.
Ross Osborne isn’t your typical garage restorer, which is fitting as Ossa is in no way your typical bike manufacturer. This story starts in a slightly unusual place: Ross had years of experience riding and racing bicycles and decided to build a fillet-brazed bicycle frame, which was then turned into a brakeless fixed-gear bicycle that Ross has to this day. This was eight years ago and in the intervening years Ross’s early passion for motorcycles grew, starting with an Aprilia RS125 everyday ride. The RS125 was later sold to purchase a 2001 Triumph Bonneville, which was no sooner home than stripped and turned into a café racer project. The inspiration for the project actually came from Ross’s foray into Trials, starting with a 2009 Beta Evo 250 before upgrading in 2011 to a new Ossa TR280I. With a modern Ossa in the stable (the firm was revived in 2010) it didn’t take long for Ross to start researching the iconic marque, harking back to its glory days in the 1960s and 1970s when it made a real impact on the global racing scene. The Ossa MAR, or Mick Andrews Replica is famous as its namesake joined Ossa during the same period that the brand’s four-time 250cc Grand Prix winner Santiago Herrero died racing in the Isle of Man TT. This event saw Ossa withdraw from roadracing and turn its attention to Observed Trials, with Mick Andrews taking the brand to victory in the European Trials Championship in both 1971 and 1972, as well as winning the Scottish Six Days Trial from 1970 through to 1972. With a keen interest in Ossa’s history, Ross came upon an ebay listing for the 1972 Ossa MAR 250 Mk1 that you see here. “I bought the bike from a guy on ebay who was a collector of Maico VMX bikes and had come across the Ossa as part of another deal. It sat in his shed doing nothing for nine years before he decided to sell it and when I saw this bike pop up on ebay I bought it within 10 minutes of seeing the ad – a total impulse buy.” Ross admits he had misgivings about such an impulsive purchase, but felt that fate favoured the brave, “I hadn’t spoken to the owner, or seen the bike at all; it was a bit of a gamble but I am really happy I bought it. After I bought the bike, the guy selling it had about 10 more enquiries asking about buying it at that price too. It wasn’t running, was loosely assembled and was fitted with lots of non-original parts like the wheels and seat. Luckily for me all the original parts were supplied with the bike. It just needed a complete rebuild from the ground up.” Ross started by stripping the bike down, allowing him to figure out just what would need replacing – which was thankfully mainly non-original parts, such as the KTM wheels, Fantic seat and Amal carb which actually turned out to be missing its internal components. A few choice changes were also made, with a lightweight aluminium fuel tank sourced from Sammy Miller Products, along with new Betor rear shocks and universal fit alloy front and rear guards. Upon disassembly, Ross realised the frame had been poorly painted in silver over the original chrome, requiring the entire frame to be stripped. “I stripped the paint and found a nice chrome finish which looked good and worked well with the theme, so I decided not to repaint and just kept the chrome finish.” The previous owner’s claims of the engine being rebuilt when he purchased the bike (nine years prior) turned out to be accurate, with the bore freshly honed, with new rings and everything looking clean. At this point however Ross realised the 27mm 627 Amal carb was not what it seemed, requiring a set of jets, float and a gasket kit from Surrey Cycles who also provided factory spec jetting information, while a locally sourced float spindle and float needle completed the carb. The clutch was also seized but in good condition requiring only a clean to be back in working order, while the original five-speed gearbox likewise required some attention, with reassembly not quite as easy as Ross would have liked, “Anyone who has worked on an Ossa will
know what I mean when I say rebuilding an Ossa gearbox is an interesting challenge to say the least. Every shaft is ‘shimmed’ to within an inch of its life and if it’s not right the gearbox refuses to work… It took me a few attempts but eventually it was all sorted. It’s now silky smooth.” Ross rebuilt the stock front Betor telescopic forks with the original springs and Sammy Miller fork caps, while one of the few outsourced jobs was sending the hubs and rims to Russell Collet to be laced, which shows a lot of trust in his abilities as Ross admitted Russell was the only person he trusts to work on his bikes. The original Ossa wheels were returned to an as-new condition under Russell’s care, with the front 2.5 x 21in, 36 spoke stainless steel spoke wheel now clad in a Michelin Trials Light Competition tyre, with the rear 4.0 x 18in, 36 spoke wheel likewise clad in Michelin competition rubber. With the wheels coming back looking so good, Ross ended up visiting the Trials Experience, where the team were able to help fit the tyres without damaging the rims. Fitting the wheels also turned out to be a challenge as the previous owner had modified the swingarm and forks in order to use the KTM parts that had been previously fitted, meaning Ross had to return the bike to original condition to get them fitted properly, in an exercise which stretched his patience. The original Ossa drum brakes have also been retained, using Renfrew brake shoes via Venhill cables, both front and rear, with braking performance described as “pretty average”. Meanwhile, the aforementioned universal guards were modified to fit the front and rear of the bike and you would be hard pressed to guess they aren’t made for the current application now, when you look at the bike. The original side covers were also replaced with custom hand-made offerings that Ross fabricated up, along with the new seat pan, made from a 1/16in alloy sheet, keeping weight low, the seat streamlined and not detracting from the overall look of the bike. This was then finished in ¼in Neoprene rubber, with a proviso that it would be properly upholstered if it didn’t stand up to the wear and tear of use. As you’ll see from the pictures it’s still going strong. With the bike coming together well a few details that aid the overall look of the bike were taken care of, including the blacked out yokes and exhaust. The exhaust header and kick-starter were meanwhile re-chromed, with the header coming out particularly well as it snakes over the engine in an unusual feature that really sets the bike apart. Following a more traditional approach the head and barrel were both painted satin black with 3M engine enamel and came out well enough to satisfy Ross, who was coming to the increasingly conclusion that his bike was very, very silver! With all the polished alloy, broken up only by a few black bits, it was time to add a splash of colour. Ross again went for a more traditional or original approach, adding hand-cut green decals bordered by white stripes, closely matching the bike’s original green striping on the earlier models. The bike looks remarkably original with the decals, sporting only a
few quirky differences from when it was released, such as the Uni Pod air-filter, which Ross plans to replace with a fabricated replica of the original air-box in the future, as the mud laden environment trials take place in isn’t kind to pod filters. The stock exhaust system also remains, albeit without the muffler and can be seen poking out the rear of the bike under the rear guard. Now while the little 250cc, air-cooled two-stroke, single-cylinder was considered top stuff at the time of its release, we have to ask how the bike compares in current times, with technology moving on so far – particularly for someone who has the newer generation offering that is almost 40 years its junior. “I chose the Ossa MAR as I have a modern Ossa Trials bike and it only seemed right to add another Ossa to the collection,” explains Ross. “It’s great and while I had gearbox issues when I first started riding the MAR and still have a few engine gremlins, it is powerful and rides really well. I did all the work on this bike myself with the exception of the wheel builds and it was 100% worth the effort. I enjoyed the build of the bike and it is fantastic fun to ride! Everyone should own at least one classic bike – it reminds you just how much technology has moved in 30 to 40 years.” So, how much? Ross paid £1000 for the bike including some spares and a further £800 after that. “I didn’t keep track,” says Ross. “So it’s more, but I am going to tell myself it was only £800!” Smart man…