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Clay Jones in Dalian (& Beijing)
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Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 |
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While
Clay was in Beijing for the huge sidecar rally he spent
some time at LRM hanging around with Gerald. |
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That
gave him an opportunity to take some pictures of LRM's
top secret facilities. |
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Here
we see a bunch of SV engine casings and a stack of
vintage PLA fenders. In case you're wondering, these
components all belong to Beta. |
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There's
an early M72-style sidecar frame in this view. |
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Again
from a slightly different angle. |
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That
gas tank in the foreground has the unique offset filler. |
| June 23,
2004 |
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What's
the big deal? It's just Wang Xin, one of
Gerald's buds in Beijing. |
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Wait
a minute. He's about to do something... |
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...yes,
indeed. There's nothing quite like than flyin' the chair. |
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He
looks like he could ride like that all day. |
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Here
he comes.... |
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...zooooom... |
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...and
there he goes. The flag gives it all the more class. |
| June 17,
2004 |
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As
many of you know, Clay went to Beijing to attend the big
sidecar rally and spend some time with Gerald
at LRM. Recognize the bike? It's Alpha,
and Clay got to ride it. As a result of the experience
Clay has developed a great deal of respect for 6V SV
machines. |
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Clay,
Alpha and Gerald's crew fuel up. |
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Meet
Gerald's crew. And feast your eyes on those fine bikes
they're riding. |
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Another
view. |
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And
another. |
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Heavy
traffic. Lights and helmets aren't mandatory in Beijing. |
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Wouldn't
you like to be there? I sure would... |
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A
road hazard. Better him than you. |
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While
in Beijing, Clay got to meet some local CJ enthusiasts
including Ma Lei who we know from
elsewhere on this site. That's Gerald talking with him. |
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Great
tats. He'd fit in nicely with the guys here in New York. |
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I'd
like to get my hands on a set of those police lights. |
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Some
of these fellows are crazy about license plates... like
me, for instance. I've been swapping lots of old American
tags for Chinese tags and sometimes wonder if the tags
that appear in some of these pictures may have originated
from my shop! |
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What's
funny? I was stopped by the local PD for displaying a
small Beijing tax tag one time. Meantime, this bike has
nearly half a dozen different tags on it! |
| June 17,
2004 |
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Clay's
images provide insight into China that we don't see
elsewhere. Here's a shot taken at Liberty Townright
down the road from Wealth Town. Everyone has a
different interpretation on the meaning of these
symbolsincluding the Chinese. |
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This
open-air upholstery shop is reminiscent of the way things
were done here in the US at the start of the
transportation revolution. These guys re-use as much of
the original seat as possible due to the lack of parts. |
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The
fellow in the army pants owns the bike. |
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Here's
a guy detailing someone's CJ. I like that T-shirt! |
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Take
a look at this road near Dalian! Wow! That's Jia
Yin in the sidecar. CJs are the only way to go
on roads like this. |
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Another
view of a local road. |
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And
another. |
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Clay
says that in Dalian, newlyweds are often photographed in
CJs. That's cool! |
| June 11,
2004 |
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This
old school CJ belongs to a Chinese navy guy who didn't
want to be photographed. |
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So
here's his bike instead, about as original as they can
get. |
| May 11,
2004 |
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This
man sells produce for a living and uses his CJ to pick up
and deliver. The sidecar has been gutted in order to
carry his products. |
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But
according to Clay, bikes are being banned in Dalian which
will impose hardships on people who depend on them for
earning their living. |
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So,
will the authorities ban these bikes as well? |
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Or
this one? |
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Something
suggests otherwise. |
| April 30,
2004 |
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Take
a look at the swoosh emblem on this Shihu police
bike in Dalian. |
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Cool
emblem... |
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Lurking
underneath all this is a CJ OHV engine. I like the spare
tire cover and the license plate. |
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They
sure know to ruin a perfectly good bike! |
| April 29,
2004 |
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Introducing
Scorpio who Clay met recently in Dalian. |
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He
rides an M1 in Afrika Korps tan. |
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Cool
bike! |
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Time
nerver dies. Oops. |
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The
stern. |
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Looks
like a Type I Lanxiang engine. |
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Another
stern shot. |
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Too
many chefs. They're working on Clay's bike... and no,
that's not Clay sitting on it. |
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Off
they go... |
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Clay
shot this sidecar running light with a blue lens and a
visor. |
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This
home-built fender has potential. |
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Jiangxi
speedo. |
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It's
not a bike but it's still pretty cool! It's a speedboat
with PLA markings! |
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How
would you like to own this thing? |
| April 24,
2004 |
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Wow!
See how many CJ parts you can identify in this junk pile.
I see at least eight flatheads and several gearboxes.
What a waste! |
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This
SV engine has an electronic ignition... |
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...which
you can see a little better in this image. |
| April 21,
2004 |
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During
a recent cruise Clay makes a stop by this windmill
(visible in the enlarged image) to check the oil plug. |
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Jia
Yin at the helm and Qi Qi in
the bucket. |
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Here's
Clay doing a little roadside task that many of us are
familiar withbolt tightening. |
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Introducing
"the restaurant guy" who bought his M1M for
300RMB and spent 7000 more to get it roadworthy. (Sorry,
we didn't get his name.) |
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He's
a police traffic investogator who is opening a coffee
shop and game parlor. |
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As
you may have noticed, he's fond of miltary stuff. |
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He
has an entire room dedicated to miltaria. |
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Outside
the restaurant. That's Clay's bike in the street. |
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It's
Gong Shan Ju, aka, the tax collector. |
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He
rides around on this M1M disguised as a modern bike
looking for street vendors who don't have permits. |
| April 18,
2004 |
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Clay
just got a new garage! It's in a former PLA installation
on the side of a mountain. This little dirt trail leads
to it. |
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And
here comes Clay on his CJ! |
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Jia
Yin outside the entrance... |
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...and
next to the oil pit. |
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This
is a short video clip from a Chinese WWII soap opera
where the hero rides a flathead CJ! |
| April 9,
2004 |
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A
CJU first! Clay sent this short film clip of a so-called
plastic Chang being ridden by a local in Dalian. |
| April 6,
2004 |
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Say
what you might, but it's still a CJ750! |
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Dalian
Petrol Technology Company. Is that a CJ gas tank I
see in there? |
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It's
a CJ all right, in this case a sidevalve, probably an M1M
since it has a reverse lever. |
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Interesting
dashboard. |
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The
speedometer appears to be a Huangshan. |
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It
reminds me of the COE Jeeps of the late fifties and early
sixties. Hard to believe it's really just a motorcycle!
The badge says petrol. |
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A
close-up of the badge. |
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Would
you recognize this as a bike? How would you like to own
one?! |
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Imagine
how fast this thing goes with a full load. It must get
pretty damn hot inside that cab, especially in the
summer. But in winter it's probably fine, fumes and all. |
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The
license plate number is also painted across the back end
of the vehicle. |
| March 21,
2004 |
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Clay
finally got his M1S down to Dalian last week. Here it's
being made ready for the journey from Changchun. |
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Loading her up in the big blue
truck. |
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The
reward? Beautiful, crisp and clear riding weather! That's
Clay with Jia Yin and her friend
Qi Qi. |
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While
they were out riding they stopped to check out this rock
band called the Firebirds. The band
posed with Clay's bike in exchange for some free beers! |
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Here's
the lead singer. |
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Here
she is again... |
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...and
once more in a slightly different pose. |
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Jia
Yin and Qi Qi. |
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One
last shot. |
| March 20,
2004 |
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Clay
went back to the shop in Dalian for a closer look at that
old M1 in the back room. The asking price of 5000 RMB is
pretty high for China so the bike is still available. |
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There's
the frame tag... underneath that green paint. But it's
there! |
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Your
basic 6V regulator. |
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Sidecar step as described on LRM's
page for identifying vintage Changs. |
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Gearbox.
See the 6V battery tray? |
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This
is a perfect example of how taillight wiring was routed
on older Changs. Those fasteners are hard to find
nowadays. |
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And
here's that mysterious speedometer again. Does anyone
recognize that trademark? |
| February
18, 2004 |
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