So what is it?



The bike just separated from the sidecar

On collection of the machine the DVLA log book was not available but entering the registration number into the DVLA website showed the bike to be a Panther 600cc first registered February 1960 with tax due on 1st February 1994 and no MOT details. The registration letters on the rear number plate, LVS, are listed as Greenock, Renfrewshire, in Scotland; this is a replacement number for one presumably sold off. The bike came with a copy of the P&M Maintenance Manual and a Pitmans Book of the Heavyweight Panther. Inside the Pitmans I found three old tax discs for a Panther with the number 185 MTD,   a Lancashire number and presumably the original number of the bike. The DVLA website shows that this now resides on a 1994 Porsche.

Documents that came with it.

 

             I found the frame number 27379 on the left hand side of the frame round the sidecar mount boss under the saddle. I've only seen it there once before, it is usually on the right hand side of the same lug. Sending that number to the POC Registrar (pocregistrar@yahoo.co.uk) produced a very fast response saying that the frame was stamped with the number on 19th January 1960. (Thanks Ginger).

Frame number 27379

            John has now found the logbook and sent me a photo although the paper copy has never turned up. The log book shows that the bike was first registered on 5th February 1960 and has had four keepers since January 1978. The change to Eric Kirby took place on 12th December 1992, the change before on 5th December 1990. The engine number is given as MS133, M is Model 100, 600cc, S is rear suspension, 133rd engine built that year. Although the number should commence with the year, say 60 if this is the original engine, this is not quoted on the log book.

The old log book.

Engine number.

             The engine number on the bike now is 51M1760B, a 1951 engine, clearly not the original and not the one fitted in 1960.

             In order to restore/rebuild or just run a Panther you really need to join the Panther Owners Club, (www.pantherownersclub.com for information) for spares, manuals and like minded people. The subject of this blog, a Panther Heavyweight, is extensively covered in my two manuals, the Engine  and Gearbox Manual and the Cycle Parts Manual. These were written in response to the many queries received by the POC spares secretaries and the lack of detailed manuals from the factory. Both are available from myself, just drop an email to laurence.e.neal@virginmedia.com.

              My intention is to return this outfit to the road as a working Panther sidecar outfit using as many of the original parts as possible. Where parts are beyond repair I shall replace them from the depths of my shed or, failing that, look for second hand parts. Finally of course there is the POC spares scheme to fall back on. I shall not be seeking a prize-winning finish, no chrome, little or no stainless steel and no powder coat.

Let's see how we get on!

Back in Southampton

Unloading was a doddle with a couple of planks and the help of Mr.Gravity, bike first followed by the sidecar, finally sweeping out the debris. The pristine carpet in the van was no longer pristine. I could now assess what I have.

Unloaded.

The sidecar boot contained most of the clutch, the primary chaincase, the cast alloy air filter, a silencer and an empty battery case holding a pile of small clutch parts all rusted together in a brown watery soup. I emptied the boot, and removed the wheel and brake from the chassis before placing the chassis and body on a trolley made for scrap timber and  some old castors. This was wheeled into the greenhouse for later consideration.

Boot of treasures.

Attention turned to the bike itself. As I know these Heavyweights fairly well there was no need to make any notes or take photos. If the machine is strange to you, you need to do this, and buy my manuals as well of course!
With no primary drive or top mounting in place removal of the three engine bolts allowed the motor to be pulled clear. Most bolts gave in fairly easily when attacked with WD40, long spanners and sometimes heat. More brutal methods were used here and there; the foot brake lever bolt would not unscrew and eventually ripped off the stud. The steering damper was seized solid so the top stem nut was sawn through just below the damper knob. The petrol tank and seat were not attached at all.
Finally the machine was reduced to a pile of large pieces.

Engine open for 25 years

A pile of parts

Tank, front wheel and mudguard.

Introduction and First Steps.



This Panther outfit was first offered for sale on the Panther Facebook Site in 2014 by the owner John Kirby. It had belonged to his late father, Eric Kirby. Eric wasn't very active within the Panther Owners Club but was part of it and associated with it from time to time. He spoke highly of the POC for the help and advice they gave him. The photo was taken shortly before he passed away. 

Eric Kirby

         The Panther is a 600cc model in black\silver with a  non-transferable registration number. On the Facebook page John went on to say, “it was taken off the road, still running but needing an exhaust.  I'm unsure why he started to strip the engine. The brakes are starting to lock on although I can push/move it on my own. The spare wheel is still in useable condition including a never-used tyre that still holds air. The spokes on the wheels on the bike look 'dodgy' at best, the side car has a  stereo and an old-school heating system (from the exhaust). I would just like her to go to a loving home preferably to part of the POC (it was his pride and joy in the 1990's as it's the same type of bike he got married on. The last few times I’ve come to mothers I kept looking at the bike and at the moment she's breaking my heart - hence I would rather let her go before it's too late. The restoration is easy enough, it's the engine that scares me to start it. I would love to see her back on road (as would mother) but due to the engine being in bits it’s  not going to happen anytime soon hence my posting. If I can't do it then someone who can might as well make use instead of her rotting away.”

          

The outfit in 2014

           There were no takers and the outfit was slowly buried under a pile of old car and bike parts. In early 2019 John offered it again on Facebook. This time he was keen to clear the yard of his mother’s property and made the comment that if no-one wanted it he would scrap it. It was clearly too good to scrap so I made contact. We came to a deal and I promised to rebuild it and return it to the road so I made arrangements to collect it from Blackpool on 8th March 2019. 

Sidecar just visible

           This Panther M100 left the P& M factory in Cleckheaton, Yorkshire, on January 19th 1960. It was in use until the road tax ran out at the end of February 1994. The then owner, Eric Kirby, had used it for some years fitted with a single seat sidecar on a Panther chassis and leading link forks. When Eric sadly passed away, presumably around 1994, the outfit stood outside his home in Blackpool slowly disappearing in an accumulating pile of car parts, old motorcycles and general junk. At the time of his death Eric had been working on the bike; the engine was partially dismantled with the rocker cover off, and the clutch, Magdyno and exhausts had all been removed. There the machine stood until offered by Eric’s son John.

        I made my way to Sherb’s place in Lostock and we took his car and trailer over to Blackpool where John had excavated the outfit from the pile. It was in poor condition having stood outside for about twenty-five years. The front wheel had collapsed with rust but we were prepared having taken a wheel with us. The bike would still not roll as the rear chain was rusted solid; the angle grinder attended to that. Eventually we got it on the trailer and took it back to Lostock.

 

On the trailer with replacement wheel.

          Back at Sherb's and in the rain we took it off the trailer and started to separate the sidecar from the bike. Most of the fittings unscrewed, bolts that were immovable surrendered to the angle grinder. Using ramps and brute force we got the sidecar on its chassis into the van. Fitting in the bike was more difficult but using a couple of trolley jacks and grinding off obstructions we eventually closed the van doors before settling down for a well earned beer. Thanks to Sherb and Barbara for labour and B&B. The return to Southampton was simple by comparison.

Squeezed into the van.