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Monday, November 30, 2009

BMW SALE AT THE BMW MUSEUM

In what must be regarded as a marketing coup, Bonham's auction house held a sale (11/28/09) of the Willy Neutkens BMW collection at the actual BMW factory Museum in Munich (see my post on the new Museum here).

Neutkins was well-known in BMW circles as a focussed and dedicated collector, to the point of earning a place in the Guinnesss Book of Records as the holder of the largest private single-make collection of motorcycles in the world. He had an example of just about every production Bavarian flat-twin, from the earliest R32 to the end of the 'air-head' era, and developed a special relationship with the Factory over the years, using their archives and expertise to assure his restorations were accurate to the nut.

That doesn't mean the machines were 100% original, and a few examples of his collection had mis-matched frames and engines (eg, I heard from one collector of an R12 frame/R17 engine combo, etc), but for the most part it seemed his bikes were solid, and what a shopping experience it must have been for bidders! Pre-war BMWs especially are difficult to source nowadays, and an accurate restoration even more so. The combination created an air of excitement around the world for flat-twin enthusiasts, and the bidding reflected such.

The auction was a total sell-out, with BMW itself (Welt und Classiche - now combined under the direction of Karl Baumer) out-bidding my friend Yves on the ex-Works ISDT '53 R67/2 (seen below), which ranks among collectors as one of the most desireable 'street' BMWs.

Here's the Bonham's summary:
A clear highlight of the sale was the 1924 BMW 493cc R32 (Lot 40) which was at the heart of a five way bidding battle between three continents, eventually realising Euro 109,250 against a pre-sale estimate of Euro 33,000 – 45,000.

Bids also came from the BMW Museum, host of today’s sale, which secured the Ex-Works ISDT 1953 BMW 594cc R67/2 – Lot 76 - for Euro 26,450 (estimate Euro 19,000 - 22,000). This historic competition machine beautifully complements the other motorcycles in their own impressive collection.

One of the sale’s most emotional and charming purchases involved a lady bidder who secured the 1982 BMW 649cc R65LS (Lot 23) for Euro 2,530. Having bought the motorcycle when it was new – proceeding to cover an incredible 170,000km over 14 years on Continental tours – she was delighted to be reunited with it so many years later.

In all, over 320 customers had registered to bid, making this one of the most successful sales for the Bonhams motorcycle department.

Malcolm Barber, Bonhams CEO and auctioneer on the day commented, “The BMW archivists, directors and management team at the Museum worked closely with our company following instructions from the Neutkens family to market and offer their collection for sale. The combined strengths of our respective companies ensured full marketing, an informative catalogue and a perfect setting to obtain this fabulous result.”

Fred Jakobs, BMW’s Archivist for motorcycles at the museum commented, “I was delighted with the outcome of today’s sale, it was a pleasure for my company to work closely with Bonhams, they presented a first class auction. We too were delighted to have acquired the Ex-Works, ISDT, 1953 BMW R67/2BMW for our collection. It has come home and will be on display here at the museum next year it is the grandfather of our Enduro bikes”.

Many thanks to Yves J. Hayat for the photos!

BMW SALE AT THE BMW MUSEUM

In what must be regarded as a marketing coup, Bonham's auction house held a sale (11/28/09) of the Willy Neutkens BMW collection at the actual BMW factory Museum in Munich (see my post on the new Museum here).

Neutkins was well-known in BMW circles as a focussed and dedicated collector, to the point of earning a place in the Guinnesss Book of Records as the holder of the largest private single-make collection of motorcycles in the world. He had an example of just about every production Bavarian flat-twin, from the earliest R32 to the end of the 'air-head' era, and developed a special relationship with the Factory over the years, using their archives and expertise to assure his restorations were accurate to the nut.

That doesn't mean the machines were 100% original, and a few examples of his collection had mis-matched frames and engines (eg, I heard from one collector of an R12 frame/R17 engine combo, etc), but for the most part it seemed his bikes were solid, and what a shopping experience it must have been for bidders! Pre-war BMWs especially are difficult to source nowadays, and an accurate restoration even more so. The combination created an air of excitement around the world for flat-twin enthusiasts, and the bidding reflected such.

The auction was a total sell-out, with BMW itself (Welt und Classiche - now combined under the direction of Karl Baumer) out-bidding my friend Yves on the ex-Works ISDT '53 R67/2 (seen below), which ranks among collectors as one of the most desireable 'street' BMWs.

Here's the Bonham's summary:
A clear highlight of the sale was the 1924 BMW 493cc R32 (Lot 40) which was at the heart of a five way bidding battle between three continents, eventually realising Euro 109,250 against a pre-sale estimate of Euro 33,000 – 45,000.

Bids also came from the BMW Museum, host of today’s sale, which secured the Ex-Works ISDT 1953 BMW 594cc R67/2 – Lot 76 - for Euro 26,450 (estimate Euro 19,000 - 22,000). This historic competition machine beautifully complements the other motorcycles in their own impressive collection.

One of the sale’s most emotional and charming purchases involved a lady bidder who secured the 1982 BMW 649cc R65LS (Lot 23) for Euro 2,530. Having bought the motorcycle when it was new – proceeding to cover an incredible 170,000km over 14 years on Continental tours – she was delighted to be reunited with it so many years later.

In all, over 320 customers had registered to bid, making this one of the most successful sales for the Bonhams motorcycle department.

Malcolm Barber, Bonhams CEO and auctioneer on the day commented, “The BMW archivists, directors and management team at the Museum worked closely with our company following instructions from the Neutkens family to market and offer their collection for sale. The combined strengths of our respective companies ensured full marketing, an informative catalogue and a perfect setting to obtain this fabulous result.”

Fred Jakobs, BMW’s Archivist for motorcycles at the museum commented, “I was delighted with the outcome of today’s sale, it was a pleasure for my company to work closely with Bonhams, they presented a first class auction. We too were delighted to have acquired the Ex-Works, ISDT, 1953 BMW R67/2BMW for our collection. It has come home and will be on display here at the museum next year it is the grandfather of our Enduro bikes”.

Many thanks to Yves J. Hayat for the photos!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving


Taking off for the Holiday so I won't be posting for awhile. Keep leaving comments and I'll post them when I can. Later!

World's Fastest Motorcycle!!


At one time. I believe the record was set in 1969. Sportser powered too. Another gift courtesy of Big Scott.

"Keep on Chuckin"


Big Scott gave me these. They came with the '70 custom dresser he had. To refresh your memory go to:

http://aplee-motorcycleart.blogspot.com//2009/05/1970-nok-new-old-kustom.html

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Pack Rats

Talk about a Garbage Wagon.

I remember when a rat bike was just an old bike (sometimes chopped), that was greasy and grubby with maybe a few odd pieces that were usually functional.

Now it seems it's mostly about piling on useless junk. Sorry but, I don't see what's cool about that!?

Friday, November 20, 2009

DERMOT DRAWS STANLEY




Dermot Walshe is a cartoonist of some clear talent, and an enthusiast of early motorcycles and history - clearly a man of excellent inclinations! His blogsite Zoomfrog was the recent host of his hand drawn exploration of Stanley Woods' first Isle of Man experience, racing a Cotton - the start of a long and illustrious career. Dermot's drawing style is as old-school as his content, in the manner of classics like Tin Tin; I love the sepia coloration, just like the photographs and films of the era.
Dermot is hoping for funding to make a full-length animated film out of his story... and let's hope he is successful!

DERMOT DRAWS STANLEY




Dermot Walshe is a cartoonist of some clear talent, and an enthusiast of early motorcycles and history - clearly a man of excellent inclinations! His blogsite Zoomfrog was the recent host of his hand drawn exploration of Stanley Woods' first Isle of Man experience, racing a Cotton - the start of a long and illustrious career. Dermot's drawing style is as old-school as his content, in the manner of classics like Tin Tin; I love the sepia coloration, just like the photographs and films of the era.
Dermot is hoping for funding to make a full-length animated film out of his story... and let's hope he is successful!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Art Imitates Life


Many of the crazy images that were put out by Roth had some basis in reality. Note the Iron Cross on the gas tank.


Dick Cook aboard "Big Daddy's" mini bike. It was said to be too big for Ed. This thing is more ridiculous than in the art.

Helmet Collector


Robert Williams with some of his collection of WWI Pickelhauben.

The Pickelhaube (plural Pickelhauben; from the old German Pickel = "point" or "pickaxe", and Haube = "bonnet", a general word for headgear) was a spiked helmet worn in the 19th and 20th centuries by German military.


As a kid, I was obsessed with these helmets. I always made sure I saw this one featured in the ending credits of Hogan's Heros. I would still like to have one.

Bronson Bikes

Next to the Easyrider bikes, the "Then Came Bronson" Sportster is probably the next most commonly imitated bike. Still, you don't see that many. I found these photos on the web (Flicker?), taken outside the H-D museum.

The third one back is a replica of the H-D Sprint used sometimes in the show for stunts.


It really wouldn't be too hard to build one. Most I've seen are not completely correct.


These two are the closest to the real thing in the bunch. They both feature a correct 21" front wheel.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

What Sort of Man Reads MC ART?


An adventurous man. A free spirited man who can handle any curve life's long lonesome highway throws his way. The kind of soul that knows where to find MotorCycle entertainment that's cool to hang with.

The Sportster

...That Never Was

Where would they have fitted a generator?

The KL model was originally planned for release in the early 50's. Instead, the poor performing K model was rushed into production to fill it's gap. The high cam KL was continuously plagued by overheating problems, so the later (1954), experimental XL overhead design superseded it. At one point both the KL and XL were being tested side by side. Harley originally didn't want an overhead design based on the old flathead four cam bottom, but it worked and it's performance pretty much surprised everyone. What shouldn't be a surprise is that the XL's top end was designed by the same guy (Charley Featherly), who had done detailed work on the Knucklehead and later the Shovelhead. Since early Panheads had trouble with their aluminum heads, he stuck with iron like on Knuckles. Charley also thought that the valve covers on Pans held too much heat.

Monday, November 9, 2009

French Connection


Stephane of Versailles France sent in this photo of his 70 H-D. He didn't say but, the black wheels, forks, and the silver paint makes it look like a former police bike. I couldn't resist posting it as I have a soft spot for them done up this way, ....it doesn't hurt that I have a 70 myself.