Latest Car Extreme

Every large city at some time in the past had a shop that specialised in motorcycle spare parts...
We had several in Sydney, but time has taken its toll and Jack Graham Motorcycles closed a year or so back after trading from prewar, Ryans Motorcycles 10 years or so ago closed, Allparts over 10 years ago, W.F.Omodei, the list goes on......
This left Jim Eade Motorcycles as the last survivor still trading.
Trading from before WW2.....
A year or so back Max Eade, son of the original propritor, Jim Eade, decided it was time to "hang up his apron" and as luck had it Bob Milner who had purchased a lot of the old Allparts parts cache intending to trade at swap meetings etc was able to arrange a deal with Max and so intitially Eade-Classic Allparts, but now Classic Allparts took over.
Same address.... 536-540 Parramatta Road, Ashfield, NSW 2131, Australia.
Same telephone numbers...02.9798.7822 ( international +61.2.9798.7822) and fax 02.9799.9798 (+61.2.9799.9798)
Postal Address; P.O. Box 8, Riverwood, NSW 2210, Australia.
But now with a website.... www.classicallparts.com
And email....classicallparts@bigpond.com
















So in this era of shrinking parts we source them from where we can.....
Lets take a stroll through Classic Allparts.....
Left click on images to enlarge....
















Bob Milner now tends to customers needs. Bob has been involved with motorcycles all his life and had a career in aviation engineering, as well he's a member of the Australian Velocette Owners Club.
I mentioned Bob bought a large part of the old Allparts cache...he has much of this stored elsewhere and so spends Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and occasional Saturdays at this new venue and the rest of the time sorting and searching for parts from this cache to fill orders received.
















I mentioned Max Eade...after a lifetime in the trade he finds it hard to resist a day a week assisting ..."I'm scared if I don't keep exercising the brain I might end up with dementia!..."

















Racks and racks of organised new parts , basically now 1950's onwards but still some prewar stuff around...it often pays to enquire.
































Racks of second hand parts...

The main Velocette distributor for the West Coast of the USA from around just post WW2 up into the perhaps 1970's was Lou Branch Motorcycles of 2019 West Pico Boulevard, in Los Angeles, California.........
Below is one of the invoices Branch Motorcycles received for the receipt of three 350cc Velo Scramblers in August 1957.....I'll do a future blog on these invoices, as I have a large quantity from the early 1950's to 1960. It will "set a cat amongst the pidgeons" as they say over Velocette paint colours and specifications........
























On his closure of the business, Ellie Taylor purchased the stock inventory, which included Moto Guzzi stuff ( this was sold off) and he ran a mail order parts business for a time.
Then Bob Stroud purchased the stock of Ellie amd finally Ed Gilkison from Lakebay in Washington State on the far NW of the USA took the lot.
Ed has expanded this with further used stock purchases over the years, purchases of some of the Canadian distributor...Bateman's final new old stock from Win Muehling and injections of used stock via Geoff Blanthorn from the UK.
Ed purchases new stock from the UK from the main suppliers, plus has stuff made or sources other car parts that could be used...for example the copper cylinder head gasket for the 86mm bore engines comes from a US car.
When I visit Ed, he always says to me.....
Come lets visit the "toy shop"....
I was there again in mid may this year, which is just a week or so ago and I want to take you on a visual photographic tour of Ed's business, which is mail order and you can contact him via post at Ed Gilkison, P.O. Box 226, Lakebay, WA 98349, USA, or email edwin@ncplus.net.
Use Velocette parts numbers where possible and of course a good description.
Be patient....Ed has lots of customers and a reply may take time.....
Left click on images to enlarge......
The usual method Ed uses to satisfy customers....US Postal Service, Lakebay Post Office....

















Ed with some of his parts inventory...still in the original Lou Branch parts drawers and racks....
































































































Upstairs in some of the used parts inventory....































































A Velocette Viceroy scooter engine on a display plinth....















Some of Ed's machine tools.....















Downstairs workbench areas....
















































Ed with a proprietry magneto re-magnetiser....
























Ed had special long shafted adjustable reamers with pilots made in various sizes to enable accurate reaming of renewed Webb girder fork bushes....
















Not everyones "cup of tea"...a customer requested a special paint job on what looks like an American bobber bike....
































Ed's place is a bit hard to find if you travel down to Lakebay....pass the Post Office on the right, quickly onto a bridge over an inlet of Puget Sound, but hang on...turn right just before the bridge onto Herron Road then the first dirt road on the left some 100 yards/metres later- unsignposted- and follow this to the end, arriving at the "toy factory"... you won't find it on Google maps....
Actually this is wrong according to Ed's cousin Bert Giebels, who lives in Holland and has visited this blog and left comment.
Bert tells me the co-ordinates for Google Maps is....
47.262729,-122.770025 (+47 15' 45.82",- 122 46' 12 09")
I've checked and remember thats exactly where I went....
Thanks Bert!!
Incidently Ed no longer takes in complete restoration, but apart from selling parts, he does engine and gearbox, front fork etc overhauls......

Every year I make the trip to the US to stay with my good friend, arch motorcycle and car enthusiast, Mick Felder. This time it was to travel with Mick up to the Napa area of middle California for the US Velo OC “Spring Opener” ride at Sue and John Ray’s “Rancho Veloce”…and while a Velocette aficionado, Mick likes British and early American cars… So come stroll with me through the photographs I recently took inside his business…Felder’s Body Shop, 210 Pacific Coast Hwy., Hermosa Beach, Ca. 90254……
Mick Felder will tell you he is on the wrong side of 70, but a fitter person of this age would be difficult to spot. A bachelor, he has had a life-long love affair with mechanical things.
As a restorer of older cars his body shop… panel beating shop would be the term in Australia or the UK, is a constant source of supply of these gems.
A 1917 Studebaker sits in the centre of the showroom, more often used yearly for local Rotary club fund-raisers ( Mick is a great supporter of such community organisations and regularly does Meals-on-Wheels deliveries to the less mobile members of the local community and has served on the Hermosa Beach Chamber of Commerce for over 40 years).
MG B, Porsche 356, MG Midget, 1952 Moto Guzzi Falcone 500, Triton ( Triumph engine in a Norton “Featherbed” frame), Velocette Venom and numerous engines on display greet you when you walk through the door.
Back in the spacious work area a Triumph TR3, several 1980s BMW motorcycles, a mid 50s Triumph, and many examples of good American “iron” nestle in corners.
All the while Mick in his usual laid back style answers queries on the telephone, rebuffs disappointed callers with more modern cars suffering from the inevitable “fender bender” from LA traffic and discusses restoration work with friends and fellow enthusiasts.
So if you’re in this area of Los Angeles, it’s a shop that beckons to be stopped at….

Left click on photos to enlarge them.