Montjuic model verification

Richard's retiring-thats a shame.I visited him at home last July when the Collington Works had been sold and the bulk of the spares had been moved upto Powys where there was more room.
Regarding the Monty/Formula thing,the J_LO book mentions 75 Formulas made for the Cup Series,so I can well imagine the few that escaped that fate worse than death being converted into Montjuics.
I believe just over 200 Montys were produced in Mk 1 and Mk2 forms,so when that handful of Formulas were used up,then I guess Alpinos were used as the basis,or converted from.
 
"the Monty would require the electrics to support lights,instruments etc.,which the Formula would not have."

the formula did have everything to support the road legal lights, some of it on the bike and the rest in the box that came with it when supplied new, and at a massive discount low price, but only if you were entering the formula cup series, there were two batches of 75 race bikes, nothing to state that more could not have been ordered by Slater part assembled, remember the race was a formula so the riders were not allowed to alter the bike, they all had the exact same kit, unless they cheated!

I do not believe the story that Slaters bought formulas and converted them, it would have been far to expensive, the story probably eminates from one bike that Slater bought in for re-sale in the showroom, and it looked like a Mk1 Monty, but when it was getting some pre-sale service work, the cams where there to prove it was a formula, and the factory existed so that despatch records could be checked, needless to say that "Monty" was completed as a formula and sold as a race bike, very rare items in the UK are the formula's then and now AND THANK GOODNESS FOR THAT noisy unsociabole titchy little four stroke with two stroke type smaller power band that a TZ700 on long circuit pipes would call WIDE

I had glorious and memorable years racing mine, and I do so miss it, I would love to have it back even if my belly might stop me reaching the bars, PLUS it would be great to see Nickdav7 folding up into it!

CLEM
 
Yes, the Formula was basically a road version, stripped of road equipment, in fancy dress.  Want lights?  Plug 'em back in, simple as that.

Reckon it would have been far more expensive converting roadsters into Montys.  Take out the engine, disassemble, install and adjust CR gearbox, install larger valves or swap for Formula head, install cams, pistons, and inlet stubs.  Re-install engine with exhaust system exhausts.  Quite possible that there were surplus Formulas hanging around in Breganze, sending them part-assembled to Slaters would have been a great means to shift them.  There's still loads of spares floating around, maybe a few were specially assembled for Slaters' requirements.  It's a lot easier/cheaper to swap out cosmetic bits and bobs than converting engines.

If 150 Formula 500 were produced, where did they go?  Italy staged the F500 competition for several years, it ran in Germany for 2.  Makes a total of maybe 60-80 bikes.  Certainly a few were trashed.  A few ran in Belgium and France.  Where else was the competition held?

So, are Montys with standard engines fakes? :D

piet
 
I had the remains of a Formula engine bought in France which I rebuilt as a standard 500 engine in a Montjuich lookalike except the head for my then wife.

Paul
 
As I understand, the first Montys were built up from Formula 500s supplied without bodywork but with a road wiring harness etc, the later ones from Alpino S models that had the same high compression pistons as a Monty.
I have the F500/Monty that was in Made in Italy m/c. It was raced by PK Davies in the TT in 1978 and then converted to a MK1 Monty by Slaters and sold as a road bike. It was subsequently used on the road and raced during the next 40 years. I am in the process of ?restoring? it back to as close as possible to how it was raced in 1978 (because that?s what floats my boat).
I tend to agree there is little difference in performance between a good Alpino and a Monty, but the ?legend? of the ?brain-out? Monty rider has of course helped to create a demand (and thus a higher price) for that model (whatever it is under the body work)!
 
Andy J said:
As I understand, the first Montys were built up from Formula 500s supplied without bodywork but with a road wiring harness etc, the later ones from Alpino S models that had the same high compression pistons as a Monty.
I have the F500/Monty that was in Made in Italy m/c. It was raced by PK Davies in the TT in 1978 and then converted to a MK1 Monty by Slaters and sold as a road bike. It was subsequently used on the road and raced during the next 40 years. I am in the process of ?restoring? it back to as close as possible to how it was raced in 1978 (because that?s what floats my boat).
I tend to agree there is little difference in performance between a good Alpino and a Monty, but the ?legend? of the ?brain-out? Monty rider has of course helped to create a demand (and thus a higher price) for that model (whatever it is under the body work)!

You sure it's not a TT2?
Because of course, some Formula and Montjuich engines were converted to TT2 specs.

:LOL: :LOL: :LOL:

Paul
 
Although the advertising said "lots of history",I did'nt realise the Made in Italy bike was the Pete Davies IoM Formula 2 machine.I'm glad it's gone to a good home,good luck with putting it back to how it was.
Mention of the Mad Monty rider "brains out" legend,Bike magazine probably helped to start this off when it road tested an original Monty.The article was accompanied with a picture of the tester sat on the Monty,his left hand carefully withdrawing his brain from the top of his (hinged) helmet before setting off.
The test seemed to be basically a high speed blast upto Edingburgh  and back.
On the return motorway trip,he found himself in the company of a large black saloon,containing four sober haircuts,also travelling at a speed well in excess of the speed limit,so decided to tuck in behind for the last 40 miles or so back to London.
Back amongst the traffic he pulled alongside,only to discover the 100 mph+ car he'd been using as cover actually contained four policemen.It seems the Montys presence in the rear view mirror had been noted,as the driver remarked through the open window "that's a pretty quick bike",so obviously from that moment on ,as far as Bike magazine was concerned,the bike was known as the Laverda Mont-quick.
A legend was born!

 
Andy J said:
And probably the rarest of the lot?

By very, very far.

Gijs van Dijk managed to find pistons for my TT2 engined race bike. God knows where from.
They appear to be water resistant.

Paul
 
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