Tag Archives: classic bike

1923 Henderson ‘K Model Deluxe ‘ with sidecar

The motorcycle with sidecar outfit was restored back in the 1980s and was fully operational. It was taken on a number of rallies with the family on board and undertook a road trip from Sydney to Perth and back. In between rallies, it was housed in Kevin’s garage until 2011 when it was moved to its current display stand at the National Motor Racing Museum in Bathurst.

The motorcycle has sustained minor damage from a leaking battery (which has since been removed from the battery case) and from an article recently falling onto the paintwork on the front mudguard.

1924 ‘Around Australia’ Douglas

1924 Douglas
Kevin with his 1924 Dougieon his way around Australia

This little Douglas was ridden around Australia by Kevin in 1995 to commemorate and replicate the five month trip that was made by Arthur Grady in 1925, the first person to circumnavigate the continent on a motorcycle.

Sponsored by National Geographic, Kevin made the arduous trip at the age of 57 in ten weeks. The Douglas was restored to be as close as possible to Grady’s original bike. It now sits in the Motorlife Museum in Wollongong.

1958 Adler 250cc ‘Favorit’ – SOLD

The Adler is a relatively rare German motorcycle which has been increasing in popularity amongst collectors quite recently. The ‘Favorit’ model is rarer still. Most Adlers in Australia are MB250 models and there are estimated to be only about 30 of them in the country.

Kevin was a fan of this 2 stroke manufacturer, no doubt due to the role they had inspiring the development of the Yamaha YD-1s in the 60s and because the bikes were fitted with unique ‘Eberspaecher’ exhaust pipes to enhance the power through ‘back pressure’. He was also known to race on an Adler.

This particular bike was manufactured in the very last year of Adler production and was fitted at the factory with 18″ Sprinter forks rather than the regular 16″ of the Favorit – a rare but not unknown occurrence.

The bike was never restored and is in its original condition and even has its original ignition key, speedo, Bosch horn and Denfeld seat. It is not currently running, the chain is broken, the exhaust needs fitting and new tyres need sorting out. The clutch has also not been fitted properly. It will need a bit of work to get it back on the road.

It comes with a complete new exhaust system which Kevin had acquired for the bike as well as an original pipe and baffle, original exhaust clamps, a complete (and very rare) spare chain guard (black) as well as half of its original blue one, a carburetor cover and side horn box cover (black). It is missing tank rubbers but is otherwise remarkably complete.

This bike was sold through Shannons auctions.

Many thanks to Michael Liebig for his help with our understanding this bike as well as to various members of Adlers Oz who have provided incredible assistance. We have donated an Adler toolkit to this group in gratitude.