1972 Bsa B50 500 Mx on 2040-motos

A 1972 BSA B50 500MX Unrestored Survivor….

On March 1, 1973, Captain Ted Bick, a pilot for Ross Aviation in Albuquerque, pushed his new BSA B50 Motocross bike across the threshold the doors of Joe Turney’s BSA dealership and out into the New Mexican sunlight.

Apparently, Ted never rode the bike much as it was only lightly used when he sold it to Larry Baughman in mid 1979. 

Larry and I were classmates and close friends at Clovis High School in New Mexico, but lost contact after graduation. He moved to Albuquerque and I went to Palm Springs, California,  following an uncle who had been there since the thirties.

In 2014, when our Fifty year class reunion was coming up, a common friend told me Larry was back in Clovis and gave me his contact info.

While we were in school, I always envied Larry’s history with motorcycles as I lived, sadly, in a no-motorcycle household. When we were reunited, I now had decades of motorcycles under my belt, so we started talking bikes. Soon, he said he had this cool old BSA he was thinking of selling and told me about Captain Ted’s B50.

Built in the waning days of BSA’s glory, the bike never fought wheel to wheel with those upstart ring-ding two strokes, but had found its fun chasing jackrabbits in the desert.

Ted and Larry had stowed away the original fenders (with Turney’s Albuquerque dealer sticker still on the rear) and the paint, seat, wheels, etc.  were never touched. 

I have a video of Larry starting the bike cold on the first kick! You can see it on YouTube by searching 1972 BSA B50MX survivor startup. 

The bike is in remarkable condition. It has a few little scrapes here and there, because it was lightly ridden, but shows and runs absolutely great! 

Everything about the bike is either completely original or period correct. As an example of the period correct parts, the grips are period Preston Petty and the air filter is a K&N. The bike was originally ridden with plastic fenders, so the original stainless steel fenders are like new. In the video, it had a different set of handlebars. The correct bars are now on the bike. You will not be disappointed. 

Please note the paper inspection sticker on the left side of the engine, as well. 

It also has the original tool roll, owners manual, BSA workshop manual and all documentation going back to the original sale in 1973.

The bike is a fantastic show bike and draws lots of attention. As a survivor, the judges look at it kindly, as "they are only original, once". The photos were taken at the 2016 Quail Motorcycle Gathering, probably the most prestigious motorcycle concours in the United States. It was an honor to be accepted to show the bike there. 

But, it could also be a fantastic vintage motocross race bike, as the B50's were terrors in their day. 

If you have been looking for a time capsule BSA B50 MX, this is it!

The bike is currently in Costa Mesa, CA and is available for inspection, local pickup or shipping, including international. 

I would be happy to deliver it to a new Southern California home or will assist in getting it ready for shipment either nationally or internationally. Cost of shipping will be the buyer's responsibility.