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1979 and the Centurion ( Helmets ? ) 100 , probably not 1000 as it says at the start , Race at Snetterton...No 8 in the picture of the start is a Laverda triple which obviously didn`t make it to the finish.....
There are some famous names in there....Greg Page , Dennis Cartwright , Mick Hemmings , Dennis Mc Millan , Neil Tuxworth ( who raced the Laverda powered version of the M&T Nessie , and later steered John Kocinski to his WSB Title as manager of Castrol Team Honda ) .
 
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Avon Bikes Moto Plas framed triple ( 1979 )....with modified JPN Norton Commando fairing .

OK from some angles , a mobile eyesore from others...but look at the ground clearance......

I reckon I spotted / followed this bike ( I suspect only one was put together ) back around 1980 , near Lyneham airfield in Wiltshire .
 
I can't believe the stated weight saving of 120lbs. That's like 50 kgs!!! It's even carrying a big heavy lead acid battery. Bet all the bodywork is fibreglass which isn't that light either.
 
motoddrob said:
I can't believe the stated weight saving of 120lbs. That's like 50 kgs!!! It's even carrying a big heavy lead acid battery. Bet all the bodywork is fibreglass which isn't that light either.
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Maybe it has a magnesium crankshaft and gearbox? ;)

Closer to 60kg. Swapping the frame and swingarm could save around 15kg, maybe 20 at the very best. But with stock wheels and forks? And that boat anchor of a battery? Yeah, no way...

piet
 
motoddrob said:
I can't believe the stated weight saving of 120lbs. That's like 50 kgs!!!
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That`s Dennis for you......don`t start letting the facts get in the way of a bit of publicity....." A lovable rogue " as Richard Slater once described him.........( not sure about the lovable bit ).....and Dennis was one of his official dealers ...!...
 
Paul Marx said:
Motoplast?
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That is probably the correct way...I think they also wrapped their stuff around endurance race Jap fours....maybe Dennis made the " t " an optional extra over here ...and charged you a few extra quid for it......The frame actually looks a nice piece of work...just a shame about all the stuff tacked onto it .
 
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rocketonarail said:
That is probably the correct way...I think they also wrapped their stuff around endurance race Jap fours....maybe Dennis made the " t " an optional extra over here ...and charged you a few extra quid for it......The frame actually looks a nice piece of work...just a shame about all the stuff tacked onto it .
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Probably gets the job done, but not particularly pretty imo. I remember the fuel tank being gigantically high and wide, quite uncomfortable to sit behind! I also remember very limited steering lock, making it a pain to manage when pushing or attempting to leave a parking spot.

piet
 
I must admit I always lusted after one of the kits whenever I visited the shop in Bristol but at the time I didn’t have a suitable motor to put in it. Perhaps if I had known about the motor offered by Slaters in another one of your recent posts it might have been different.
 
dude said:
I didn't know his name Paul , but Lezennes with you ! 😁
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Yes, that's Patrick Kahn with his Motoplast that was on sale recently.
A very old photo. It looks like Charlotte and the kids behind. They're nearly 40 now.
Do you know who that is on the red triple behind me?

Paul
 
Andy J said:
I must admit I always lusted after one of the kits whenever I visited the shop in Bristol but at the time I didn’t have a suitable motor to put in it. Perhaps if I had known about the motor offered by Slaters in another one of your recent posts it might have been different.
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I wonder how many of those engines Slaters sold.....and wonder if they came directly from the factory and if they were numbered....given that Laverda engine / frame numbers match ....if they came from the factory and were numbered then maybe there were a number of " ghost bikes" ...that is a frame serial number with no completed machine to go with it....
I wouldn`t have thought Slater would remove engines from bought in bikes and sell them separately .... or maybe they did .

There was a story about fake SFC`s involving serial numbers ( sort of ) some time ago regarding a chap in Spain who was very good at building fake SFC`s ( to a very high standard apparently ) , and would then obtain registration papers duplicated or obtained relating to a genuine SFC , these papers without a bike changing hands for a fair sum , and then match the replica to this paperwork .
I heard that at least two of these fake SFC`s married to either genuine or duplicated documents ended up in Germany......

Just a story / rumour I heard , can`t vouch for it`s accuracy ........
 
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rocketonarail said:
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Avon Bikes Moto Plas framed triple ( 1979 )....with modified JPN Norton Commando fairing .

OK from some angles , a mobile eyesore from others...but look at the ground clearance......

I reckon I spotted / followed this bike ( I suspect only one was put together ) back around 1980 , near Lyneham airfield in Wiltshire .
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I went to look at one of these up near Millom in Cumbria many years ago, it was in a sorry state after the owner came round a bend at speed and found a herd of cows in his path. There can't have been many in the UK, someone beat me to that one.
 
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