Former Gold Star Owner in Santa Monica

Hello to you all. When the new series Cafe Racer began airing on American television, it stirred my soul. My first Brit bike was a Velocette 500 single. Then I owned a gorgeous BSA Gold Star 500. I just loved those thumpers, and being short of stature they were easy to handle.

I spent a summer transforming what started out as a Gold Star Catalina Scrambler into a Cafe Racer. American sources of supply were meager, so I ordered spares and mods from a place called Kay's of Ealing in London. Man, was that Sea Mail a slow process of shipping.

I had the cylinder head bored out to accept a 1 1/2 inch Amal GP carb. Put in a 10.5:1 high compression piston. Those stock Hepworthys were for old ladies and invalids. I'll rummage around and post some photos of it. Everything but the frame was painted British Racing Green. Instead of the stock transfers, I created my own b s a logo from Architect's press-on type and lacquered it to the tank..

One questions you might help me with. What was the name of the English fiberglass part manufacturer? A name beginning with G..L..A..S. I can't remember. I had their small petrol tank and used their front scrambler fender as a rear fender.

Just retired from the airlines and ride bicycles. My bike was made for me by Chas. Roberts in South Croydon. Visited there a few times, and stayed in Doncaster with some D Day veterans I met in France. I'm not a pilot, but I flew 747s. I wrote the flight manuals and had to learn the aircraft. Worked for Flying Tigers and then FedEx after the merger.

Oh, it is cool and foggy here in Southern California. So don't envy us.

Welcome aboard! Looking forward to seeing pictures of your Goldie, my old man had one in the early sixties (along with an endless procession of AJS's, an Arial square 4, an odd selection of Triumphs etc. etc. My early memories consist of the smell of engine oil and the thump, thump, thump of big British singles and twins!)

Now, enough of the nostalgia trip, when are you getting down to reliving your youth and starting another cafe project? The folk your side of the pond have taken to cafe culture big style, in fact as I said in one of my earlier posts, it's easier to get cafe bits from the States than it is the UK these days!

Found a bunch of photos of the Gold Star and am wrestling with my computer scanner so I can post them here.