1928 BSA Model B28

[David Reilly]

We were living in the North of England in 1972 and, on our 8th wedding anniversary November 7, a week before our daughter Lesli was born, Patricia’s present to me was CJB507. I am not sure where or how she found it, but it came as parts in many boxes.
Since the original registration plate on the front fender (CJB507) was intact, contact was made with licensing authorities to obtain a new log book.
I was still completing the restoration of KR9277, our 1931 Austin Seven Tourer, but began to look through what was in the boxes. It seemed to be complete, mechanical parts in good condition – metal not so good. The metal parts (frame, fenders, front suspension and small parts) were rusty, so they were cleaned, painted with iron oxide and then black Hammerite to protect them. The piston and cylinder looked good; the roller-bearing crankshaft/connecting rod assembly was sent out to be rebuilt, the tank for restoration, the Mag-Dyno for rebuild, the wheels were sandblasted, and I bought new valves and misc. small parts.
Then IBM sent us to Nigeria for two years. All of the piece parts of CJB507 were wrapped carefully in tea chests and boxes and put into storage with the rest of our personal effects, The BSA stayed in its boxes when we returned to the UK and then back to the USA: Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, back to Massachusetts.
Lesli found the bike in our garage one day and asked me to rebuild it for her. I said 'one day.' She kept asking and was always told 'one day'. When she went to college, I rebuilt a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia coupe for her. After graduating Magna cum Laude, she got her motorcycle license, started riding a lot, asked about the BSA again. I told her “I'll rebuild it when I retire.”
In 2006, Patricia and I retired to Arizona – the BSA was still in its boxes just waiting to be restored! I finally realized that the project was now too much for me and shipped it all to her in New Hampshire as ‘Pallet of Vintage M/C Parts’, and with the message, “Merry Christmas”.
She found the right guy, an old biker with a bunch of old motorbikes in his barn, who could be trusted with this ‘family heirloom’. They worked together on it for a year or so and it was first started up and running in 2014.
When living in Boston, I had been active in the Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, MA and become friends with the curator, Sheldon Steele. He knew of the bike and asked if it could be displayed in “Beauty of the Beast – art- form-function-freedom” exhibit of motorcycles, which opened Friday, May 8, 2015.
The BSA arrived in South Carolina and was stored with our stuff from Arizona and Lesli’s from New Hampshire as we slowly got things sorted out.
In the Spring of 2022, I felt caught up enough to give attention to the BSA and cleaned it up, and built a trailer and installed the Witter tow bar to the ‘S’-type. We all went to our local Carolina British Classic XIV Car Show and our ‘S’-type placed 2nd in the ‘Jaguar Sedans pre-1967’ class and the BSA won ‘Other British’.
We towed to three other British Car & Bike shows this year and both our ‘S’-type and the BSA won one 2nd and two 1st place ribbons
We plan to have the BSA running for the 2023 shows.

[Tom Hoffman]

What a great display.