LOT 662

Ex-Ray McCullough 1966 Bultaco 250cc TSS Racing Motorcycle Frame no. B-600 600 Engine no. M600-600-D6

Sold for £10,925 inc. premium

Lot 662

Ex-Ray McCullough, 1966 Bultaco 250cc TSS Racing Motorcycle
Frame no. B-600 600 Engine no. M600-600-D6

The Summer Sale - The International Classic MotorCycle Show (Three-Day Auction)|4 July 2021, 10:00 BST|Stafford, Staffordshire County Showground

Ex-Ray McCullough
1966 Bultaco 250cc TSS Racing Motorcycle
Frame no. B-600 600
Engine no. M600-600-D6

• Supplied by Irish Bultaco importer, Harry Lindsay
• Known ownership history
• Rebuilt by marque specialists Kevin Breedon Racing

Spurred on by the successes achieved by tuned versions of its first model, the Tralla 101, Bultaco went one stage further and developed its first purpose-built racing motorcycle: the legendary TSS. Among the first racers to campaign the Spanish two-strokes in the UK were Tommy Robb and Dan Shorey, the latter taking the coveted ACU Star (British Championship) in the 125cc class in 1961. Armed with a 196cc TSS, Shorey enjoyed a phenomenal run of success in the 1962 250cc World Championship, twice finishing 4th behind a trio of works Hondas to end the year in 7th place overall. He also took the British 125 and 250cc Championships that same year. The factory went on to offer a full '250' from 1965 having developed it throughout 1964. Although successes at Grand Prix level were few, at national level the new water-cooled Bultacos were better than almost all the opposition.

This Bultaco TSS was despatched on 3rd May 1966 to the late Harry Lindsay, Bultaco importer, trials guru and third generation motorcycle dealer, whose collection Bonhams sold in 2012 (see factory despatch record on file). Irish road-racing star Ray McCullough campaigned this machine with considerable success for three seasons (1966-1968), securing seven victories and a further seven podium placings (results sheet on file). The TSS was returned to Harry Lindsay at the end of the 1968 season and was sold directly to Neil Buckley, who campaigned the machine throughout 1969 until the crankshaft broke. Neil laid the bike up, forgotten, until circa 5-10 years ago. Since deceased, Neil was in poor health at the time and the TSS was offered to the current vendor, who entrusted Bultaco specialist (and racer) Kevin Breedon to rebuild the engine (piston, bearings, crankshaft, re-bore, etc). Sadly, the vendor has found little opportunity to do anything with the machine since, although he did reunite it with Ray McCullough (see images) who confirmed his exploits on it. Also on file is a letter to the vendor from Harry Lindsay, confirming the machine's provenance. There are no invoices for the aforementioned work, nor anything in writing from Ray, but it is evident that this is an important machine and worthy of inclusion in any racing stable. Some re-commissioning may be required before returning it to the track.

Saleroom notices

Since going to print, we have been advised Kevin Breedon Racing did not rebuild this machine. Kevin Breedon Racing's involvement with the machine was limited to, rebuilding the crankshaft, reboring the cylinder, supplying a new piston and racing ignition. Please click the link to view the walkaround video of Lot 662: click here

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