c.1972 Machin-Yamaha 125cc Racing Motorcycle

Frame no. none visible Engine no. AS3-220205 (see text)

• Frame built by Jack Machin
• One of only a handful made
• Modified Yamaha AS3 engine
• Unused in the present ownership for almost 40 years
• 'As last raced' condition

It would be fair to say that during the 1970s and into the 1980s the Japanese manufacturers' frame and suspension technology left a lot to be desired, both on road and track. The result was the emergence of a cottage industry of bespoke frame makers such as Harris and Spondon in the UK, and Bimota and Nikko Bakker in Europe, plus a host of smaller enterprises on both sides of the Channel.

The machine offered here incorporates a frame made by Jack Machin, brother of the late Steve Machin, the former British 250cc Champion who was tragically killed in a testing accident at Cadwell Park in 1974. Steve Machin and his business partner Dave Saunders operated out of the Machin & Saunders garage at West Barkwith near Wragby, Lincolnshire. They modified and prepared Steve's race bikes and those of their customers, including manufacturing frames for the racing Yamaha TD and TR twins. One of their projects was an extensively modified Yamaha AS3 125, for which Jack Machin constructed a new and vastly superior rolling chassis. The engine too came in for modification: the cylinder fins being removed, and an aluminium water jacket welded on. The water-cooling helped reduce the power-sapping cylinder distortion of air-cooled two-strokes once they got hot; no water pump was employed, the water circulating via the thermo-syphon principle. The machine offered here has an engine modified in this way, though whether it was originally sold as a complete motorcycle or as a rolling chassis to take the customer's own engine is not known.

It is understood that Jack Machin made only two of these frames for the 125 class: one for himself (later sold to Clive Horton) and the other for club racer Dave Saltwell. Their effectiveness can be judged from the fact that Clive Horton used his to secure his only Isle of Man TT victory, which came in the 1974 Lightweight 125cc event. The whereabouts of Clive's machine are known, so by a simple process of elimination the Machin-Yamaha offered here must be Dave Saltwell's. Nothing else is known about the history of this machine, which has belonged to the current vendor since he purchased it (from an MCN advertisement) in 1981. The motorcycle has been dry-stored since then and not been used. Its mechanical condition is not known and thus the machine is sold strictly as viewed (it should be noted that there is damage to the engine number stamping). There are no documents with this Lot.