Flickr Photos

[Tom Penton]

I wanted to mention I have some Photos at my Flickr site:  Tom Penton Flickr Photos

Well, I see a couple older postings of mine were moved to the top of the listings. Not because there's anything new, I just had to edit because photo links were broken. I've moved from Google Plus to flickr and screwed up some links.

[Kip Kern]

Thanks for sharing the photos Tom, made my day!

[Paul Danik]

Tom,

Your photos are simply incredible. Thank you very much for sharing them.

Paul

[BrianTaylor]

Tom thks for posting these pics. You mentioned in one of the other post about "memories from the past " well we all look forward to hearing anything that you and your brothers can pass along regarding stories , races, or even your thoughts ..... Thks Brian T.

Brian Taylor

[Daniel Desranleau]

Tom,
Thank you for sharing your history; as a newbie from Vermont it's great seeing how it was back in the day. It's much appreciated. Penton motorcycles have become a large part of my life like so many others here on the site.

Dan.

[Tom Penton]

Thanks for the nice replies. I'll be going in to the Flickr Albums here and again to try to do better on captioning.

Brian, I do plan on continuing writing, in my own plodding way. Stay tuned!

[skiracer]

Thanks for posting all those pictures, Tom!  I don't know who has more history photos; you or Helmut Clasen....  Keep the info coming!

1976 MC 5 Original Owner
1982 Suzuki PE 175
1976 Penton 175 XC

[Paul Danik]

Tom, years ago you wrote a couple of columns that I remember, but can not find anywhere, and believe me I have looked! Or am I dreaming...

 One was titled "swing weight", and it had to do with the effect on the handling created by all of the enduro equipment that we attached to the handlebars "back in the day" in the hopes of staying on time and on course.

The other column dealt with the fact that perfectly good motorcycles were effectively made obsolete by the rapid developments with in the industry, such as the CMF Penton VS the Steel Tanker. Your column dealt with the abundance of these perfectly good machines and your solution was for organizers to have a class for these "dinosaurs", my term, not yours

Al Born would have remembered where those columns were written..

Do you remember those topics Tom?

Thanks,
Paul

[Lew Mayer]

The swing weight article was in a "Keeping Track". It prompted me to
pick up a "Petty" headlight/number plate.

Lew Mayer

[Tom Penton]

Paul,

I remember writing the swing weight article way back when. I was always sensitive to "ease of rotation" of the handlebars around the steering axis. Besides the swing weight, other things that drove me up a wall were the hydraulic dampers some bikes had (crutch for poor design) and tight steering head bearings. I just encountered these recently: a couple years ago my son Spencer bought a Kawasaki KLX250, low mileage, that upon riding I immediately noticed "weaving". Upon putting the bike upon a milk crate (plus the additional 2 x 4's needed now days), sure enough the steering head was tight. The bars should "flop" to the side, a smidgen of play being preferable to tight bearings.

I don't remember exactly an article about "perfectly good motorcycles were effectively made obsolete by the rapid developments with in the industry". I do remember two glaring disappointments with the introduction of the CMF frame. First was the total disregard for the wonderful under-tank breathing system pioneered by Leroy. Second was a lengthening out of fork rake (and subsequent slower steering) that was more suitable for European ISDT events types and their faster special tests. It proved worse, in my opinion, for tighter Eastern USA woods riding.

This was a moment in my mind that we and KTM started moving apart.

Lew,

Ah ... good old Preston Petty Plastics!  We got the royal factory tour back in Trask days. Lately, I've gone by the old mill converted to factory location in Newberg (OR) about once a year  and tell the story again each time to my wife, who humors me. Brother Jack, Spencer and I went up to visit Carl Crank this past summer and his awesome CAD/CAM place in Portland, and he retold his humble computer designing roots there with Preston. (Carl said Preston had only the 3rd rig of that capability in the country ... out there in the sticks!)

Thanks,

Tom