Regarding the museum I've always enjoyed my visits, usually combined with an extra pilgrimage to what's left of the BSA factory....
The classic bike market is currently all over the place in the UK with fluctuating values/sale prices...The introduction of electric vehicles (at some point), generational changes, the effects of a long recession, the pandemic etc. etc. have all served to destabilise the market for old bikes though the ups ad downs affect different makes and models differently...
It doesn't seem to have affected military bikes much though and prices continue to rise year on year....I think that is partially down to the fact that they aren't the 'investors choice' generally. They are coveted by a lot of people that still like to ride...That is something that is sadly lacking in many parts of the classic scene...I don't think 'users' are quite so concerned about investment values etc. and apart from riding many have the associated interest in history...A very different mind set to the chap with his polished up pre unit Bonnie or a Vincent in the study...Long may it continue, it's one of the things that attracted me to military bikes in the first place (when you could hardly give one away)....Ian
It's really terrible there! and if someone put's it there "on loan" it's theirs forever, a big scam! they come up with so many insurance and upkeep fees, it's not worth trying to get it back, it's all in the small print, they got so many bikes of widows of deceased VMCC bike owners that didn't know what to do with the bikes, it's not funny anymore, like I said a big scam! don't ever fall for it.
Cheers,
Lex
When the NMM got started back in the late 1970s I had an approach from Roy Richards whom I believe was one of the pioneers of this project. He wanted me to part with my experimental prototype WD Royal Enfield and offered in exchange a brand new Honda Gold Wing. He clearly did not know me as I turned it down immediately. He then asked if I would loan the machine to the Museum which I said I would consider. When I asked about the arrangements for taking the machine out of the Museum to run on the road in future years the details of storage costs, insurance costs and all kinds of other costs were flagged and I would have to pay these costs to the Museum to get the machine back even for a short period. Needless to say I declined the offer even though I was told I had a duty to put the machine in the Museum.
I knew a couple of guys in the Midlands at the time who were employed to restore motorcycles for the Museum and was often approached for rare spares to assist in the restorations. I believe the early restorations were full and complete including all the internals but sometime later I was told that in order to save money some were externally restored only.
I have visited the Museum only once when a friend from the US visited and he wanted to go and whilst it is only 20 odd miles from where I live it holds little attraction for me to be honest.
I like the museum too, as long as you don't use the bikes there as a sample for your restorations, and just enjoy the atmosphere, it's OK, I ones tried to record all the prewar/wartime Norton handlebars on all the bikes, and took pictures of all of them, to see what levers they had, but 99% was wrong, very dissapointing!!
I won't go any deeper into the "scams" and other practises, as I won't divulge my sources, but they are first hand experiences from real people.
