Books by Aldo Carrer

I would like to introduce you to my friend Aldo Carrer. He is also a veteran motorcycle enthusiast and collector of all things paper and photographic regarding the same. His collection of motorcycle photos numbers around ten thousand pieces from which he has selected a great many to portray in three books that he has published. Aldo lives in Treviso, Italy and spends much of his free time riding his motorcycles and searching for new photos for his collection.

His first book was published in November of 2003. It is a photographic study of motorcycles from 1894-1944. Descriptions of the photos are supplied, but unfortunately for us here in America, the captions are all in Italian. The book covers the world in terms of those manufacturers who produced motorcycles. Beginning in 1894 the chapters are arranged by country or region in terms of decades. The photos wonderfully depict many aspects of the history of motorcycle use. There are 263 black and white photos printed on a nice, heavy paper. The book has a soft cover and is very well presented. There are 102 pages in this book.

In April of 2006 Aldo published his second book. It is titled “The Dawn of the Motorcycle” and covers the years from 1894-1906. This book is truly a wonderful look at those very early motorcycles that set the direction in which future manufacturers would improve upon and advance the sport of motorcycling. There are so many rare and remarkable images of those long ago days that one has to marvel at the effort Mr. Carrer has put into accumulating such an astounding collection. This book is wonderfully bound with a hard printed cover and the paper is an exceptionally nice gloss stock. Within those pages you will see not only the images of motorcycles, but have a good look at the riders and the clothing of the day. There are 189 large and well presented photos in this book of 127 pages. This book, unlike the first is written in Italian with English translation.

The next book from Aldo is titled "The Motorcycle's uniform during the World War One". It was published in 2008 and is a comprehensive look at the military motorcycles and the uniforms of their riders during the Great War. Within the 183 pages of this book are 264 wonderful photos that are large and clear portraying aspects of the military from that era that most people do not get a view of. The book is broken into chapters by motorcycle manufacturer which in turn shows the uniforms worn by the soldiers of each country. This book is again a very high quality publication at 8" x 12" in size with hardcover and heavy gloss paper. This is a book that motorcyclists and military historians alike will be eager to own.

Mr. Carrer’s latest publishing effort has out done the other two in terms of quantity of photographic images and overall scope of the subject. Published in 2010, this massive, hard covered book is 360 pages in length and again printed on superb high quality paper. There are 538 glorious, black and white images from the years 1894-1945. Titled “The Women, The Motorcycle, and the Womens Fashion Trends”, this is a book that any lover of history, motorcycles and the women who rode them will be fascinated with and certainly want to own. The images are stunning in their observation of the riders and clothing trends over the decades. The book is large, 9” x 12” and heavy at just under five pounds. Photo’s fill every page with a great many covering a two page spread while many others range from full or half page to pages with three or four images each. Written in Italian, the book has been translated by his sons Marco and Maurizio into English and German. The motorcycles range from some of the rarest every made to names we all know like Harley-Davidson and Indian to those European brands that most of us have never heard of.

The above books are being sold through Mr. Carrer from his home in Treviso. He may be contacted through his E-mail address at oldbike1@virgilio.it. The cost of his latest book is 52 Euro’s.

Suspension tuning with a sidecar

Some years back I was privileged to attend an highly informative suspension clinic conducted by Dave Sallberg of the Honda Sport Touring Association. What I discovered was that sport bikes and grandpa rigs are entirely different critters. As a service to other three wheel road pilots, I will try to explain some of the fine points of tuning for maximum road handling ability.

Toe-in and lean are two critical issues in sidecar handling, followed by fork suspension travel and rear shock adjustment. All of these contribute to making the sidecar experience one of joy or one of sheer terror. In an effort to alleviate the latter, I offer the reader nearly 35 years of my experience in sidecar tuning.

Having the right tools is essential. Because alignment of the sidecar is so critical it is imperative that precise methods are used to set the toe-in. I have found that a well calibrated set of steel bed rails is the best device for taking initial measurements. If you have a spare set, that would be the best way to go. If you have to remove a set from one of your childrens beds, you will want to try to get them back before the evening which can make this whole process a little rushed. In fact, you probably just want to explain to your son or daughter that they will be sleeping on the floor for a few days.

As for calibrating the bed rails, you will want to make sure that they are straight and true within .001” over their entire length. If you know someone who has a coordinate measuring machine, that would be very helpful. If it is determined that your rails are out of tolerance, place one end in a vice and yank on the other end until you feel some give and then have it re-measured. You may have to do this a few times until you get everything into specification.

Next you will require a good box end wrench or crescent wrench for loosening the attachments between the cycle and sidecar. Be careful if using a crescent wrench so that you do not round over your nuts. Worse still, if the wrench slips completely, you could damage your nuts. Ouch!

It is not necessary that your measuring device has a metric scale if you are more comfortable with inch readings. This is personal preference. A calibrated, digital tape measure is recommended, but there are other alternatives. In a pinch you can tape together two yard sticks making sure that the mating ends are sanded square. Use duct tape if you can to join the two and make sure that you carefully re-mark the tape where you have covered up the scale markings. You may need the markings under the tape. You will want to have paper and pencil at hand to record the measurements you will be taking.

The place to begin this whole process is with some initial measurements. Your rig must be on a flat surface, i.e. the garage floor. Place one of your calibrated bed rails on the floor and against the front and rear wheel of the cycle. Take the other rail and place it against the sidecar wheel. Next, measure the distance between the two rails, first from the rail at the front wheel of the cycle and then between rails at the rear wheel. This is your toe-in dimension. I have found that 3/4”-1” of toe in is a good starting point. All rigs are different and each will be set to what is best on an individual basis.

Assuming that your toe-in measurement needs adjustment, you will have to loosen the struts that connect the sidecar to the bike. In my case, there are two fixed upper mounts and two ball and socket lower mounts. The lower mounts can be moved in or out as necessary and the upper mounts can be lengthened or shortened by screwing them in or out. You will probably find that each mount will have to be adjusted to get the proper setup.

A word of caution is due here. If you disconnect the upper struts in order to adjust the lower ones be careful that you do not lose control of the situation. Should the bike decide to fall inward you will be left looking at something akin to a folded up pita sandwich. Run quickly to the house and look in the mirror, you do not want to miss the expression on your face. This is the voice of experience speaking. If you have dumped your solo bike and had to lift it off of the pavement, you know that it can be a bit of a strain. Try lifting it back up with a sidecar attached and the sidecar wheel dragging against every effort you make. Better still get a ratchet type cargo strap and attach one end to the bike and the other end firmly to one side of the garage or other fixed point and start ratcheting. Do not remove the cargo strap until your upper and lower mounts are once again firmly attached, unless you enjoyed the previous experience.

Assuming that by this time you have set all of your attachments for toe-in, next you must consider lean. Ideally the cycle should lean away from the sidecar by about 1/4’. A carpenters square against the rear wheel is a good way to determine this measurement. Tighten all of your connecting hardware and proceed to a static test of spring compression. You will need a second person to help you here. Place yourself on the saddle while your partner stands behind you. No need for your friend to hang on to anything, you are not going to fall over, Duh! Your friend is there to visually determine whether you need heavier rear shocks or less ass. If it is a good friend, heavier springs will be recommended. You do not want your shocks to bottom out by virtue of your just sitting there. If that happens, I recommend a trip to your favorite cycle supply.

The front suspension may or may not have adjustments. Mine does not. If the front end feels like it wants to dive to the limits when you apply the brake and throw your weight forward, you may need new springs, you may not have any fork oil, or the oil may be of the wrong viscosity. Check the owners manual and head for your favorite cycle supply.

Now the moment of truth has come. After all of your efforts, a road trip is in order as a reward for your hard work. If everything is aligned perfectly your riding will be effortless. Fat chance! Did you really think that you would get it right on the first try? You may be experiencing a tendency for the rig to pull one way or the other. This makes riding very tiring as you constantly fight to keep tracking in a straight line. You will also eat up your rear tires at an alarming rate. You will have to return to the garage and tweak the alignment a bit more until you feel comfortable that the tracking is straight down the road. Ultimately, your tire wear will be a great indication of whether you have things right or not. The wear should be even across the width of the tire. If it is not, you will have to keep on tweaking the alignment. Eventually you will come to a compromise where you find that everything is as good as you can make it or you are just not willing to mess with it anymore.

The sidecar experience can be quite rewarding once these few minor adjustments are made. Just do not expect that once they are made they are permanent. Unfortunately things loosen up and move. You will know when that happens as your arms and shoulders begin to strain at the effort of keeping things on a straight line. Do not despair, by now you have gotten good at aligning your rig and you will certainly be the envy of all of your two wheel friends who constantly risk falling over at stop lights when they forget to put their foot down. Eventually you will make the decision to permanently weld your brackets in place so they cannot move.

2010 Schedule of events I will be present at.

My vendor schedule this year includes the following event: Please stop and visit with me if you can.

1. April 23-25, AMCA meet at Oley Pennsylvania.

2. June 11-13, AMCA meet at Rhinebeck New York.

3. July 16-18, AMCA meet at Wauseon, Ohio

4. Sept. 12-15, AMCA meet at Davenport, Iowa

5. October 6-9, AACA meet at Hershey Penn.

So you think you want a sidecar

So you think you want a sidecar
By: Jerry Hooker

Around thirty five years ago, I started looking at sidecars as a means of transporting my growing family. With a wife, an eight year old daughter and a one year old daughter, the solo BMW was definitely not “family” transportation. Not wishing to reduce my riding time, a sidecar made good sense in terms of total family enjoyment.

I began looking at sidecars in 1974 and had inquired about the Bender Florin which was being manufactured in Denmark. It was a remake of the original Bender’s made in the 1950s and used all of the original sheet metal dies and tooling.. It's suggested retail price of $942.50, was well beyond my means. In October of 1975 I received a letter from the manufacturer indicating that because of the soft sidecar market, a few units left in California were being sold at the attractive price of $ 630.00 each. I could not resist.

With the assurance that comes with ignorance, I looked at attaching my new sidecar to my trusty 1972 R75/5 BMW. I was able to purchase a sub-frame from a company in Iowa, called the Iowa Sidecar Company. The sub-frame has provided very stable attachment points for the sidecar. It's main purpose is to distribute the stresses to both sides of the frame to minimize any harm to the bike. It has worked well. The BMW seems to have been a good choice for the sidecar even though BMW no longer makes cycles for sidecar use, nor do they warrant them with a sidecar. With a stock steering damper, good front end control is maintained. I changed my rear shocks to Koni, with 150 lb. springs which have provided better suspension. I also replaced the fork springs with heavier ones.

I was totally ignorant about sidecars. I knew no one who owned one or had ever driven one. I was on my own. Learning to drive the rig was a long and often exasperating experience. I chewed up rear tires at the rate of about every 1000 miles. Alignment was all trial and error. I am now very comfortable that my alignment is as good as I can get it. I judge this by even tire wear, but mostly by straight tracking down the road. It is effortless. Handling is great on the straight-aways and cornering is extremely stable. I have found that alignment is all about compromise. There are many factors including whether there is a passenger, the surface and crest of the road and not to discount the torque of the Beemer engine which wants to pull everything slightly to the right. I usually ride solo so my setup favors that condition, but adding a passenger does not change things much, other than acceleration and gas mileage. Solo, I get 35-40 MPG. I haven't checked it with a passenger lately, but it has gone as low as 25 MPH fully loaded, in up and down terrain. I usually and easily cruise the expressways at 65-70 MPH.

Piloting a sidecar rig in the twisties is all work. There is no lean or effortless flow through the corners. The arms and shoulder muscles take a lot of abuse since it is all about steering the front end into the corners. The straight stretches of road are effortless often requiring only gentle pressure on the bars. The corners can get a bit frightening with a sidecar, but more than a few solo riders have also entered corners and had the fear put to them. Left hand turns are great since our friend, centrifugal force helps to keep the sidecar down and tracking through the turn. Right hand turns are an entirely different matter. If one’s speed is too great, the sidecar is likely to rise up precariously creating a condition know as the dirty underwear syndrome, which all new sidecarists experience. With a passenger or ballast in the sidecar the right hand turn lift effect is reduced, but not eliminated.

So why would anyone want a sidecar rig? From my own experience, I would like to offer the following pros and cons:

Hey this sidecar thing is great!

1. Very few people you know have one
2. Sidecars are as old as motorcycling and an integral part of it’s history.
3. You get lots of smiles and no one gives you the finger.
4. For the most part, even a poor rider does not fall over.
5. You don’t need bungee straps, just throw everything in the hack.
6. The sidecar provides great visibility unlike a solo machine.
7. When the wife gets bored, she can read a book.
8. If you ride a lot, you get good at changing tires.
9. In desperation you can sleep in the sidecar.
10. If the ladies don’t find you handsome, at least they will know you’re handy.

Hey this sidecar thing sucks!

1. Forget about leaning into the corners and feeling the rush as your knee scrapes the
pavement.
2. Don’t even think that you are going to squeeze into the smallest parking place.
3. There are times you definitely wish that you had a reverse gear.
4. How the heck are you going to fit a truck a car and the rig into the garage this
winter.
5. If you ride a lot, you change a lot of tires
6. If you have old fashioned drum brakes you need to start thinking about your next
stop after you leave your last.
7. What do you mean, the drive spline is worn out again, and the clutch is slipping?
8. It seems like I just stopped for gas and now I’m on reserve again.
9. When caught in a storm, can you say bathtub?
10. If the ladies think you’re handsome it’s a lie, they just want on your rig.

Latest postcard addition to my collection

This is a wonderful postcard dated March 1907 that shows a variety of early transportation. The motorcycle is an Indian ca. 1905 and is shown pulling a trailer full of children. From the horseless carriage to the ox cart, the scene is delightful. The photo was taken at Ormond Beach Florida the same year that Glenn Curtiss made his world record speed of 137 mph using his V8 motorcycle on Ormond Beach.

Index to posters currently available by Manufacturer

The following list comprises the posters that I have available for early motorcycles, Approximately 1895-1940. If you would like a complete list including the poster numbers as found on my web site, send me an E-mail and I will send you a PDF copy back.

ACE, AJS, Alcyon, AMC, America, American, Apache, Ardie, Ariel, Armac, Arrow, Autobike (Tiger), Automoto, Badger, Bailey Flyer, Baker, Bayliss Thomas, BD, BI Car, Bianchi, Black Diamond, Blackhawk, BSA, BMW, Bradley, Briggs Motor Wheel, Brough Superior, Buffalo, Campion, Century, Champion, Charter Lea, Clement, Cleveland, Columbia Bicycle, Columbia motorcycle, Coventry-Eagle, Crawford, Crescent, Crown, Crouch, Curtiss, CVS, Cyclemotor, Cyclone, Cygnet (rear car), Dayton, DeDion Bouton, DeLong, Deluxe, Detroit, DKW, Douglas, Duryea, Durkopp, Eagle, Eggerdinger/Swain, Emblem, Erie, Evans, Excelsior, Excelsior (England), Feilback, Flanders, FN, F & S. Frera, Geer, Hampden, Gladiator, Gnome Rhone, Greyhound, Griffon, Goulding sidecar, Geer, Harley-Davidson, Haverford, Hedstrum, Henderson, Hercules, Hilaman, Holden, Holley (Autobike), Humber, Indian, Imperial, Iver Johnson, J.DeBoisse, Jefferson, Jefferson Motor Wheel, Johnson Motor Wheel, Keating, Kelecom, Keystone, L.Bleriot, Lamson, Leon Bollee, Liberator, Light, MB, Manson, Matchless, Metz, Mars, Marsh, MM, Marathon, Marsh, Marvel, Matchless, Mayo, Merkel, Merkel Motor Wheel, Mesco, Midget BI-Car, Miami, Michaelson, Michigan, Militaire, Minneapolis, Mitchell, Monarch, Monet & Goyon, Moto Galloni, Moto Guzzi, Moto Reve, Motosacoche, Motosolo, Ner-A-Car, New Era, New Hudson, NSU, NUT, Nyberg, OK Junior, Orient, Ormonde, Ourish, Oxford, Pacemaker, Paramount, Peerless, P.E.M., Pennington, Peugeot, Pierce, Pirate, Pittsburgh, Pope, Pope Mfg. Co., Puch, Quadrant, Racycle, Raleigh, Rambler, Reading Standard, Reliance, Rollaway, Royal, Schickel, Scootamoto, Scout, SDM. Sears, Shaw, Simms Motors, Simplex, Smith Motor Wheel, Spacke Motors, Steffey, Stratton, Styria, Sylvester & Jones, Thiem, Thomas, Thor, Torpedo, Tourist, Triumph, Velocette, Victoria, Vincent, Vindec, Yankee, Wagner, Waltham Mfg. Co., Waverly, Werner, Westfield, Whizzer, Yale, Zundapp.

My history with motorcycles

How a passion for antique motorcycles is born, by: Jerry Hooker

My life began in the year before the end of WW11. As my parents would recall, I was a very adventuresome young man and likely as not to ride into some sort of trouble. Non-motorized transportation was my first introduction to what would later become a fascination with two and three wheeled vehicles. My first vehicle was a wooden duck that rolled around on four wheels and quite nicely conveyed me to the bottom of our basement stairs. Fortunately both the duck and I survived. My grandchildren now ride the same duck. I do not know if this first adventure implanted some fearlessness in my mind, but the thought of riding a motorcycle was not at all traumatic for me.

It was not until I reached my early twenties though that I acted upon my interest. My first real exposure and lust for a motorcycle came in the shape of a Norton Atlas. That would have been around 1962, the year I graduated from high school. At that time I could not act on the impulse, but the thought of doing so was like a small ember constantly burning in the back of my mind. It was not until 1966 as a matter of necessity that I joined the ranks of two wheelers. I was in California having enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and could not possibly afford an automobile, but a used 1963, 305 cc, CB77 Honda was not an unreasonable proposition. I learned to ride it on one Sunday afternoon and the next day was off on the freeway headed for San Jose to see the woman of my dreams or at least the one who at the time fancied me. The motorcycle was all about going where the girls were and that was mostly to the beach.

My affair with the Honda was fairly short lived as I was transferred to Viet Nam and then England selling the Honda before leaving. In England I became entranced with veteran motorcycles and attended old time rally’s where they were displayed in their magnificence. Had I know better then and had any money I would have jumped at the two early belt drive machines that were offered to me at what would now be nearly give-away prices. Alas, the lack of money usually kills the pursuit of extravagant expenditures.

In late 1969 I was out of the Air Force and in the back of my mind that little ember started to grow and I knew that I had to have a real motorcycle. Early in 1970 I took the plunge and purchased a new Moto Guzzi,750cc Ambassador. I wanted to travel and cover a lot of miles in relative comfort. My first real adventure came in 1971 when I decided to head west through Canada to British Columbia from my home in S.E. Michigan. That trip fell short before I reached the Mackinac Bridge when the crankshaft broke in half at 22,000 miles. Getting it home and repaired was a very frustrating experience. Not only had the Guzzi failed me, but finding out that Italy takes most of the summer off on holiday, it was a long wait until a new crank could be obtained. A manufacturing defect was the blame, but it ruined my summer and cost a lot in labor charges. I no longer trusted Mr. Guzzi and promptly sold him having bought a new 1972 BMW R75/5 while the Italian was still in the garage. The change in motorcycles has never been regretted as Mr. Beemer is still my sole ride thirty eight years later. He is too close to me to ever be replaced and my goal is to ride him a minimum of fifty years. As I get older the merits of the sidecar are much more apparent as the thought of falling over does not trouble me.

The Beemer and I did complete my trip to British Columbia in 1972. That was a three week adventure that I will never forget. In years to follow, and tens of thousands of miles later, I have seen a great deal of the Midwestern and Eastern U.S. as well as Eastern Canada. In 1976 my wife and I went east. I had installed a sidecar that same year and we loaded up for a trip through Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and on to Newfoundland. That too was a wonderful adventure. Unfortunately I think it cured my wife of any great desire for further extended motorcycle adventures. Now it is my grandchildrens time to experience the thrill of the motorcycle. Two grandsons have now joined me on separate short excursions. They were both three years old at the time and with them firmly strapped into a car seat in the sidecar they were happy as a pea in a pod. Two granddaughters await their turn in the sidecar, but they are too young and small yet to take to the road.

My first real introduction to antique motorcycles came in 1979 when I purchased a 1949 Velocette LE from a friend of the family who had always intended to restore it, but never found the time. I took up the challenge and with the help of another friend who owned a 1969 LE, we brought the Little Engine back to life. This machine was one of the very first made in the thirty year lifespan of that same model. Having no place to store the LE, I ultimately donated it to the AMA Heritage Museum in 1985 where it has been since before the museum was even built. Unfortunately it does not see the light of day very often with the AMA exhibits more often than not displaying a racing theme or one with more mass appeal than a little and somewhat odd British motorcycle would command. With the restoration of the LE, I was hooked on early two wheeled machines.

In 1995 My wife and I traveled to England on holiday and it was on one of those days in Bath while rummaging through a flea market that I came upon a postcard depicting a studio photo of a couple on an early Triumph motorcycle. I had never really thought about postcards as a collectible, but with that acquisition another flame was lit and it has grown measurably over the years. I started looking for more postcards with a motorcycle theme and shopped at antique stores progressing to postcard dealers and on to the Internet where a world of postcard opportunities presented itself. The collection grew and at some point I decided that I would make photographic reproductions of them and offer them as matted reproductions. With that in mind I thought I needed a catalog. First I developed a website at www.motorcycle-memories.com where the pictures could be displayed and purchased. As I went along I realized that I really did need a printed catalog and started formatting the pages. Soon I came to realize that what I was doing was not far off from printing a book although to be sure a lot more expensive. I queried a number of publishers who were not interested in my idea for a book and thus I decided to move forward and self publish.

I like to say that self publishing is easy enough with some basic computer knowledge, the right software and a bank that believes in lending money as long as one has enough equity in their home to guarantee the banks investment. Aside from the hours of time involved in preparation, when it comes to the actual printing costs, they can be frightening. The printers do not care if you ever sell a book because they get their money up front. Marketing the book may be the hardest part of all, but I have advertised and evolved into selling as a vendor at antique motorcycle events. As my postcard collection grew and the popularity of antique motorcycle cards became intense, the prices started to climb rapidly. I am at a point now that unless an item is unique or really special in some way, I do not bother with it. I have shifted my collecting more to vintage advertising and magazine covers depicting motorcycles. These are still affordable and I am now making posters of these early materials. My web site has grown to encompass my book as well as 600 different posters primarily from the first third of the last century.

It is partly my goal to make a little money on my investments, but I feel that it is also important that I help to preserve the history of the earliest time in motorcycling. I will help others as I can and ask only a little appreciation for my time and effort. My best friend lives in Belgium and I met him through my web site. He is an avid veteran motorcycle enthusiast and treasures and preserves the history that he collects along with some remarkable early motorcycles. It was my pleasure to help him acquire an original paint, 1909 Indian that I picked up, crated and shipped to him.

I retired two and one half years ago after my tool and die business was forced to close along with hundreds of others here in Michigan. For me it was not that devastating in that I was ready to retire, but for my employees it was a sad and difficult time. With a lot of time on my hands I am building doll houses for my granddaughters and when they are done, the next project will be a miniature motorcycle shop keeping with the veteran theme.