In the world of vintage motorcycles, there are rare bikes and then there are rare bikes. Simply breathing the name Rickman just about guarantees that you’re going to speak of the latter, and that is indeed the case here. What you’re looking at is a 1971 Rickman-Enfield Interceptor. It’s just one of 138 ever made in total, and one of only 26 bikes that were exported outside of renowned period chassis specialist Rickman’s home country, England.
To make it even rarer, this specific machine was purchased new in July 1974 at Chariot Cycle in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada by the person who is now selling the bike. That’s right; it’s a one-owner machine. According to them, the bike was stored from approximately October 1980 to October 2022, indoors, in a humidity-controlled environment kept at between 66 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit.
It was also not exposed to sunlight during this time, which helps to explain its impressively good condition for its age. As further good news for the future owner, it was completely reconditioned in late 2022, including full engine, fork, and front master cylinder rebuilds. The fuel tank was also sealed at that time, and the fuel tank retaining strap was replaced. Your eyes and ears don’t deceive you; there’s also a startup video for this machine after all its reconditioning work was completed.
Gallery: 1971 Rickman Interceptor
Features on this 1971 Rickman Interceptor include its nickel-plated Reynolds 531 duplex frame, swan-neck clip-on handlebars, a 41mm Rickman front fork, Girling shocks in the rear, Dunlop and Borrani alloy rims with magnesium wheel hubs, a dual Amal carburetor setup, a chrome dual exhaust, orange fiberglass bodywork that’s in remarkably good shape, a black vinyl two-up saddle, and both center and side stands.
If all that isn’t cool enough for you, this Rickman Interceptor comes with something that’s priceless: Its original sales and import documentation. You’ll find an original sales slip, as well as shipping and import documents from when it traveled from England to Canada. It also comes with a set of Rickman Metisse fuel tank decals, chain adjusters, a Rickman Metisse embroidered patch, and the section of seat pan that was cut out to access the battery.
The kickstart lever rubber, which appears cracked in the photos, has since been replaced. Other small imperfections are noted in the photos, including some small cracks toward the bottom of the front fender. The tires are Dunlop Roadmaster TT100s that were installed in or about 1979.
Fascinatingly, this 1971 machine had disc brakes installed by Rickman at both ends. They’re a pair of single-piston Lockheed brake calipers with cast iron brake discs. The seller also notes that they’ve replaced the rubber shroud on both brake lines with a double layer of heat shrink tubing to protect the braided cloth lines underneath.
At the time of writing on June 2, 2023, the current bid over on Bring a Trailer is up to $7,000. This auction is scheduled to end on Monday, June 5, 2023, at 12:40 p.m. Eastern.
