Steve's Clock

My customer Steve, back in Red Bluff IL, emailed me that the parts package got there ok. His email had an attachment of this image of the Velo theme clock he made from the large decal I sent him in his last order - made from Mac's old clutch chainwheel and rear wheel sprocket -

Current images of my office / bedroom

Allen Dow Venom

Greg McBride recently posted this photo on Velocette Motorcycles Facebook page, and I recall the bike as one Allen Dow from California asked me to rebuild for him many years ago - - - Unfortunately - I have suffered and live with mental issues, for most of my adult life, bipolar , ADD, and terrible depression bouts, that I have been taking treatments and meds for many years to combat it the best I can - but it still occasionally rears up and swings it's axe - a true demon from within. - As I was nearing the completion on Allen's bike, I had a massive attack / breakdown- forcing me to call Allen to take his bike away. He had someone collect it immediately, and found Paul Zell in San Francisco to finish it. I do warranty all my work, so if you are reading this Greg, and find anything terribly amiss - do let me know -. I believe I have the original workshop notes and file on the bike, letters between Allen and me, etc, somewhere in my records -

Branch Motorcycle Sales

My shop - Ed Gilkison Velocette was back in the 1950s through 1975 - Branch Motorcycle Sales - when Lou retired and sold out to Ellis Taylor, who moved the inventory to Ellie's home in Montecito, California -just south of Santa Barbara. Ellie had the Velo business for a couple years, then when he had a nasty divorce, was forced to sell, and sold the Velo business to my long time friend Bob Strode in Woodinville Washington, in about 1978. I helped Bob move the inventory, along with or friend Charlie Cravens, loading it into a huge rental truck, and driving it up the I-5 . I then spent a week at Bob's and erected all the shelving and reloaded all the little parts boxes in Bob's basement, until he could get a proper little separate workshop / garage built. - I purchased the Velo business from Bob Strode in 1987 and have had it ever since - 33 years , and hope to continue on for many more, concentrating on repairs, and obsolete and used spares. I can't compete with the super fast suppliers of new spares in the UK , as I am dealing now with my health & taking care of 'me' - heart and cancer issues is now my main daytime job- ( I am having prostate removal surgery in a couple weeks ) required exercising, physical therapy and doctor appointments during the daytime hours take much of my time, and I do the Velo work in the very early mornings, and late evenings and weekends. Here is a scan of an bit of Lou Branch's printed paper box tape - and a crop scan of just the bike - a 1948 Dowty fork , rigid MAC 350

Jim's Clubman

Jim's Clubman project, photographed while in the shed here in Lakebay. This particular project was one we started with Mike A. in New Jersey. Mike wanted a kit of used parts that could be assembled into a little Cafe' Velo as a 'built from bits from the attic' budget bike. I have done a bunch of these for my friends over the 33 years I have had my shop, as it offered a way for me to move dead inventory, and used stock from my attic Velocette motor cycle wrecking yard. Like building a giant - 3000 part, full scale model kit that you can actually ride when you get done. This particular one has many miles on it , as it has been shipped back and forth from Lakebay to New Jersey a couple of times, as Mike would do a bit of work on it in New Jersey, then I would some in Lakebay, etc. After about twenty five years of hit and miss building, Mike decided it was time to sell his interest in our project on to another giant scale modeler, and found Jim S. willing to take it on, hopefully seeing it into it's final assembly, running and riding it. Jim has our project in his shed at the moment - working on the last leg of the build - and of late I have been helping Jim with parts for the building of the engine.

Rick's MSS

We have done three bikes for Rick in Montana. This one, his rigid MSS, was one we did several years ago. It came to us as a MSS in KSS cycle gear, in that it had a KSS oil tank, 21 inch front tire, and skinny mudguards, etc. I have not found yet the beginning photos of what we started with, but Rick did send me these photos of it when completed. Rick had a friend local to him in Montana do the painting of the mudguards, fuel and oil tanks, and we had the hard parts powder-coated in gloss black by Ken's Powder Coating in Tacoma ( Spanaway ). The sidecar was in excellent original finish, and we left it that way. We sourced new mudguards from Armour in the UK, fabricated new hand bent front and rear mudguard stays here in the shed to fit. Wheel rims on the bike and sidecar we custom ordered in from Devon Rim Company in the UK, and are stainless steel, with painted black centers and boarders done in gold pin stripe. In all the bike turned out very nice-

No Time -

I have decided it best for me at this time - or lack of it ( time ), to drasticly cut back on both my Facebook, and Instagram social media accounts. I want to be concentrating on this blog, my Ed Gilkison Velocette blog and my Ed Gilkison Workshop - BLACK COFFEE - photo and image blog - to get them up to speed, and more useful in both my business, and personal use. - I love and charish my actual hands on workshop time, and prefer to spend much more of what time I have, - to being in the shed, rather then on my 'puter - Email is the best way to reach me : veloguru1@yahoo.com, or leave a message on my house phone (253) 884-2319