ClassicMotorcycleMechanicsJune2020

Miller time!

CMMreade rGraham Zimmatorefindsa1975 Suzukirotary

beingsold by none other thanSammy Miller and restores it

WORDS AND PICS:

GRAHAM ZIMMATORE

W

interwas coming andIneededaproject:

something quirky,somethingrare!

I’verestoredafewMachIIIKawasakis

in the past,acouple of Triumphs,aNorton

Commando,GT Suzis(125, 185, 250) so what next?

Eventually,Ispott ed atiny ad inaclassicbike

mag fora1975 SuzukiRE5 Mthat had been sitting

in agarage for35years.Iknewnothing about RE5s

other than thefact thatthey’v ebeentoutedasthe

worst motorbikeevermade and thatSuzuk inearly

went to the wall because of them. Cl earlywith no

logic in the decisionIhad to have it...

It wasanon-runner (a bad thing), butitw as a

completebike(agoodthing.) Best of all,itwas

being sold by thegreat Sammy MillerofT he Sammy

Miller Museum fame! He wanted £3500 for it, so I

saddledupthe TDM850andheaded south to take a

gander.I’d always wanted to meet this legend of a

man andcheckout his museum, so thiswasgoing

to be an interesting trip.

Sammy isan enigma: he’s86, but looks60,and

is still brimming with energy and vitality and I

realisedIwasn’t goingtobehaggling the price

down!Ihad agreat timelooking atthemuseum’s

collection (andbikes yet to findroom), but that’s

anotherstory.Sammy agreed to the RE5 delivered to

me as part oftheprice.

READER’S RESTOINASSOCIATION WITH

W

OR

DS

AN

D

PI

CS

:G

1
2

1. Oxidisation was
   everywhere.


2. Grubby,but
   complete is the best
   we can say.

26 /classic motorcyclemechanics