I spent a bit of time with Jim Scaysbrook on Saturday and the conversation got around to the 350 Maico Paul recently sold to Dave Mac. He sparked up when I told him the bike still existed and in fact had just changed hands and will soon hit the track. While the bike was owned and originally raced by Blair Harley, Jim rode it for most of its early career and reckoned that it was one of the best Maicos he ever rode. Like everyone who's ever owned or raced one he reckoned that 350s are unique and a step ahead of all the other square barrels and reckons he's rather race one than a 400 or 440 radial. When I told him of mine, Mick Hockleys and Daves bike having running engine numbers he recalled seeing all "four or five" 350s in Blairs garage (he operated out of home at that stage) and blair picking the orange one. Is that bike originally orange? Mine was red as was Mick Hockleys but mine only remained red for as long as it took me to replace the guards and paint the tank yellow.
I think it'd be a cool thing to do a magazine article mapping out the directions the three bikes took after they left the factory together. It's amazing that all three bikes still survive in great condition and all three show the little quirks that individual ownership has bestowed on them over the last 40 years. Once I've rebuilt my sadly blown engine (bigend) I'll try and arrange a photo shoot with all three bikes. I reckon there's a great yarn in there.
Paul, why did you have to move the fuel taps if the tank had originally been on the 350? I had a Vic Eastwood tank on my '74 440 and I occasionally fitted the tank to the 350 with no clearance problems at all.
ps..I've got an alloy airbox as well. It's been in my 350 since about 1972., I made it as a foreign order at work. The welding's ordinary but that was my standard at the time. I could go over it and make it all pretty but then that little bit of its history wouldn't be as correct as it was with the dodgy welding.
