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ometimes the oddest things provide the catalyst to spring into action and turn piles of bits into working motorcycles... or at least launch the project. For instance, 2013 has been largely intense for me, for reasons outside motorcycling, and things in The Basement have been neglected a bit. Like everyone, I’ve always got something in there that could do with fettling a wee bit, always something that is in need of attention or a full scale rebuild but it’s been sealing wax and string this year. However, the new lad on CBG pitched up next to my desk with a B31 bottom end; he was going to see if he could assemble a complete B31 by trawling through autojumbles etc. Any amount of people have done this over the years but is it still possible? At least with a BSA B31 there’s the advantage that loads of the things have been made over the model lifespan and I suppose if you’re not an originality fetishist a lot of parts are interchangeable too. However, this set me thinking that I should do something with the parts in my workshop. There’s quite a mix of stuff there – as I’ve a Triumph, there are plenty of parts kicking around, including enough ‘C’ range unit bits to make a bike feasible. The BSA B40 has largely resisted temptation to reproduce... a bit like the giant Panda species, though I did notice a pair of BSA forks peeking out of the stuff on the top shelf... influence from a certain Bultaco world trials champ has inspired me to acquire a spare frame that can be modded to a slightly better spec than the standard one and of course there are the Can-Am bits. Having built the Can-Am we offered as a prize in Classic Dirt Bike and being mightily impressed with it, I was offered the bones of another. I kicked it around the workshop for ages, doing this and that to it but nothing major. Then once CBG boy stated his intent, I had the Can-Am engine off to the specialist in short order... Looks like my nights will be taken up from now on. Tim