That BSA was gorgeous! No two ways about it. Purchased it from Buddy Stubbs, the BSA dealer in Phoenix at that time, in 1957. It was, if memory still serves, manufactured in '56. Once Buddy received it he set it up with performance mods and rode it a few hundred miles as his personal bike before selling it to me.

I had just turned 18 when I bought it. Lived some miles west of the Phoenix metro area in Litchfield Park. Indian School Rd. was a direct shot from Phoenix west to Litchfield Park. In those days Indian School Rd. west out of Phoenix was a two lane concrete WPA road through miles and miles of farmland with almost no stop signs the whole distance. Nothing out there except the occasional vehicle, so I often rode what today would be way too fast as crowded as the West Valley area has become.

Anyway, yes, that was a beautiful bike, and the one I bought from Buddy Stubbs was literally dynamite on two wheels performance wise.

The Buddy Stubbs dealership is still around, with Harley Davidson their main product these days. Here's a link to their awesome motorcycle museum, a don't miss seeing collection of vintage bikes if there ever was one: https://www.buddystubbshd.com/dont-miss-our-motorcycle--museum

Thanks for relating this story, Az4x4. Arizona must have been just up and coming at that time! Thanks for the Buddy Stubbs museum info. I'll definitely check it out if I'm in the area. Best Regards...

The Territory of Arizona became a State in 1912. By the late '50s, nearly 15 years after the end of WW2, Arizona was in the midst of an economic boom that continues to this day.


The Buddy Stubbs vintage bike museum is a fascinating place to visit, particularly if someone has a real interest in bikes and their development. Wish the museum had a classic mid to late '50s BSA 650 'Spitfire Scrambler' on display. That would really be the frosting on the cake as far as I'm concerned!..

"Cowboy Weather Station"......made me laugh my a-- off ! I had to show the wife and she just shrugged her shoulders. Just confirmed what I already knew......that our funny bones are different. Anyway....GOOD ONE !

That BSA model is a beautiful bike ! I sure would liked to have owned one. The engine design looks similar to a 69 Triumph TR6 650 that I owned. Mine was a chopper though and the only thing left from the original bike was part of the frame and the engine. I put a 750 big bore kit on that. Vibrated like hell though. Both piston go up and down at the same time. That's what the guy that put the big bore kit on for me said. I never looked at it apart. Crap would just fall off if it wasn't lock tighted on. Love the look of the vintage/antique English motorcycles. The guys I rode with during the 70's/80's allowed English bikes but not Japanese bikes. Different world back then. Who would know that I would end up in my 60's with 2 Yamaha's.

When I rode my XT225 home a couple of weeks ago(just bought it), I revved it out pretty good in 2nd then got the wheel up when I hit 3rd. I didn't notice any problem at all so maybe I didn't get the R's up high enough. I'm pretty good at NOT hitting the rev limit though. My Yamaha Road Star 1600 has a pretty low rev limit and I still don't hit it very often. I think I can feel the power curve that is always lower so makes no sense.

The only T-bone I had was about 5-10 MPH when I thought I could make the stop and that was enough to bend my forks and break my nose when my face hit the passenger window. So you were luck to be alive. I saw my riding buddy get busted up real bad when he T-boned a car. He went up and over the car. Cracked his helmet right off when he hit the ground. That put a bad fear of riding in me for a long time. Hell of a bad thing to see.

I gotta git me a "Cowboy Weather Station" LMAO !

You can hang anything you like on a cord and suspend it outdoors as a Cowboy Weather Station. First one I saw was a small polished rock on a base with an arched arm holding the rock suspended. It was a Cowboy Weather Rock, for what that's worth!..

YEA....that's the ticket. Think I'll do that when I get time. Maybe use a wrought iron plant hanger I just happen to have. Now to find a good rock that'll tell the weather real good ! LOL