Motorcycle Investor mag
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Alladin'scave
– Nabiac motorcycle museum
(Guy 'Guido' Allen, February 4,
2024)
The giant 2000-lot motorcycle auction by Mecum in Las
Vegas, which concluded last Sunday, set a couple of
records. The pic is a snapshot of the top three bids.
Perhaps the
biggest surprise was the 1915 Cyclone racer. This
was a firm that was only production from 1912 to 1917 and
managed to produce some very advanced machines. This one,
for example, features bevel-driven overhead camshafts.
It was restored by a 'name' expert, Stephen Wright, and
fetched Au$2.13mil (US$1.32mil, GB£1.06mil). Cracking the
US $1mil mark is a significant milestone.
Meanwhile Crocker V-twins were similarly innovative and
proprietor Al Crocker built a reputation for making
sophisticated go-fast gear for Indians, along with a line
of speedway bikes and even a scooter, across the 1930s and
through to 1941.
Just 70 of his light and fast V-twins are thought to have
been built, with 68 known survivors. In their day, they
had performance which was more than a match for a Vincent
twin.
Though they've long been desirable, the price for
this 1938 example (listed as number 46) has set a
new high. It went for Au$1.42mil (US$880k, GB£709k).
Overall auction results were strong...a few examples...
What did your money buy this year? Honda CB750-Fours were
doing well, as the example above suggests. Previously we
would have only expected those sorts of numbers for
earlier K1 and K0s.
The catch here is the CB had received a high-end
restoration, with zero miles since.
Meanwhile an identical result for an early Suzuki Hayabusa backs up what we've suspected for a while, which is they are now very much on the collector radar.
Conversion: Au$33,600, US$20,900, GB£16,700
1970s Kawasaki hero bikes are pretty much a currency now with the price shown here consistent with recent events in the USA, where they're worth more than they are in Australia. We suspect this Harley Panhead for similar money was a solid buy.
Conversion: Au$47,700, US$29,700, GB£24,000
Exotic V-twins from different eras and different sides of the Atlantic. The Indian price seemed about right, but we were surprised at how little the Black Shadow went for and would have expected at least 30 per cent more.
Weirdly, a freshly-restored Series B Rapide, albeit with
a good story, went for Au$160,000 (US$100,000, GB£81,000)
just minutes later.
Conversion: Au$97,200, US$60,500, GB£48,800
Good quality green frame 750 SS Ducatis have been in this
range for some time. However 1920s American four-cylinder
bikes have reached this level more recently and there were
two others not far behind in this auction.
Conversion: US$198,000, Au$318,000, GB£160,000
See our features page for stories on the Ducati Imola bkes, (the inspiration behind the SS), Suzuki Hayabusa and Honda CB750-Four...among many others!
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