Early in the year I brought a rolling chassis and some engine parts , didn't have a clue what it was but thought it was for a Villiers engine and it looked a well made bike ( the guy I brought it from didn't know either).
It came with a few manky Villiers parts and a unusual alloy barrel but no head.
I thought it might be a Cheetah or Wasp but after asking several people on Facebook sites and lots of other suggestions I was not sure what it was.
I then contacted Blue Miller at OBM and he put some photos on the Feedback page and then I got an email from a chap called Trevor Andrews with the answer .The bike was owned buy Trevor and is a very rare and historic one off bike called a BURIAN .
It is a Villiers engined bike built in 1965 by John Banks BSA works rider and he called it a BURIAN after Bury st Edmunds where it was built and is what a person from Bury is known as .
Trevor told me lots about the bike but had no photos of it and told me to try and contact John Banks which I managed to do and had a good long chat on the phone.
I now know what the bike is but not what it looked like when it was built.I was then contacted buy Alan Garrett who now lives in New Zealand and is a great mate of John and along with Trevor Kemp helped with the build of the bike in Johns garage in 1965 ,Alan tells me John is a very talented engineer he must of been to build this bike .
Alan brought the bike from John in the late 1960s and rode it for a number of years and said it was a brilliant bikre to ride and handled very well alot better than the heavier ex works DOT he had before ,Alan also had photos of both sides of the bike and of him riding in the early 70s so I now know what it looked like.
A bit about the bike it was originally fitted with BSA works Victor forks and alloy tank ,it now has Ceriani forks and the original Husqvarna alloy conical hubs and Dunlop alloy rims which i refurbished and rebuilt and are now fitted ,The original engine was a Villiers 36A with full Alpha crank and the alloy barrel which I was told by Alan is a cut down Greeves Challenger one .
Have now sorted out the frame,wheels, forks and tank and made a start on the engine .I managed to get a rebuilt 37A engine and the barrel is being rebored and have found a Challenger head which will be cut down to match barrel.
A few photos of bike when I got it and now plus photos of bike when Alan owned it .
Will post more as I make more progress .
Simon
It came with a few manky Villiers parts and a unusual alloy barrel but no head.
I thought it might be a Cheetah or Wasp but after asking several people on Facebook sites and lots of other suggestions I was not sure what it was.
I then contacted Blue Miller at OBM and he put some photos on the Feedback page and then I got an email from a chap called Trevor Andrews with the answer .The bike was owned buy Trevor and is a very rare and historic one off bike called a BURIAN .
It is a Villiers engined bike built in 1965 by John Banks BSA works rider and he called it a BURIAN after Bury st Edmunds where it was built and is what a person from Bury is known as .
Trevor told me lots about the bike but had no photos of it and told me to try and contact John Banks which I managed to do and had a good long chat on the phone.
I now know what the bike is but not what it looked like when it was built.I was then contacted buy Alan Garrett who now lives in New Zealand and is a great mate of John and along with Trevor Kemp helped with the build of the bike in Johns garage in 1965 ,Alan tells me John is a very talented engineer he must of been to build this bike .
Alan brought the bike from John in the late 1960s and rode it for a number of years and said it was a brilliant bikre to ride and handled very well alot better than the heavier ex works DOT he had before ,Alan also had photos of both sides of the bike and of him riding in the early 70s so I now know what it looked like.
A bit about the bike it was originally fitted with BSA works Victor forks and alloy tank ,it now has Ceriani forks and the original Husqvarna alloy conical hubs and Dunlop alloy rims which i refurbished and rebuilt and are now fitted ,The original engine was a Villiers 36A with full Alpha crank and the alloy barrel which I was told by Alan is a cut down Greeves Challenger one .
Have now sorted out the frame,wheels, forks and tank and made a start on the engine .I managed to get a rebuilt 37A engine and the barrel is being rebored and have found a Challenger head which will be cut down to match barrel.
A few photos of bike when I got it and now plus photos of bike when Alan owned it .
Will post more as I make more progress .
Simon
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