One of more interesting aspects of the vintage motorcycle world are the people one encounters during their travels. One such person is Jim Bryant of JIMBO’S CLASSIC SIDECARS, (www.bmwsidecar.com), located just outside of Beijing, China. 
Take a moment to read Jim’s background on his website, which details his very interesting background and career. Born and raised in New Hampshire, Bryant worked on the famous Bobby Rahal’s Indianapolis race-car team as an Indy car driver, introduced The Pizza Factory and Subway sandwich shops to China and my personal favorite, drove his motorcycle / sidecar around the world for a year!

Ironically, while chatting on the popular Wild Goose Chase Moto Guzzi forum, (www.wildguzzi.com), I conversed with a fellow Guzzitisti named Nick Barton, (aka “Nick-in-the-PRC”). I told Nick that I traveled to Beijing frequently for my day job and wondered if we could connect on my next visit. I learned that Nick lived in Shanghai, not Beijing, but he turned me on to his good friend Jim Bryant.  One email later, Jim graciously invited me to stop by his shop next time I was in town.

So, on one of my rarely free Saturday mornings I took a taxi from my hotel near the center of Beijing to Jim’s shop which is near the airport on the outskirts of town, about one hour away.  No missing the large red sign with the gold letters (in English) as I arrived. Jim was in the back and his five full-time employees were busy on a variety of repair and restoration tasks.  Jim’s “niche” is taking the Chinese CJ-750 motorcycle and installing the more reliable BMW engine into them. He also services and repairs CJ-750’s for his many customers.  

The Chinese CJ-750 is a copy of the Russian URAL, which was a copy of the original and famous WW II-era BMW R71. If you want more detailed historical information about the popular CJ-750, you can find it at: www.changjiangunlimited.com. When browsing this site you will see a link to Jim's website, plus (www.bmwsidecar.com) and three other very interesting CJ-750 websites including www.cjsidecar.com, Luke’s Sidecar; www.sidecar-solution.com and the Long River MotorWorks at www.changjiang750.com.

Jim told me that the Chang Jiang factory officially went out of business in the year 2000.  However, when visiting Barton the following week in Shanghai, he exsplained that the factory will produce small numbers of CJ-750’s for the police and military on a made-to-order basis. Thus is the fascination and reality of modern China. Sometimes, a given situation is not always what one is told or what one reads.  As I have often stated in the past: “Adaptability is the key to survival!”

As a result, there was a huge inventory of motorcycles, sidecars, and parts available. These were eventually sold and parted out in many directions to many different people. Many “mom and pop” shops sprung up in and around Beijing and China, generally offering these motorcycles for sale. One such shop was “Beijing Sidecar” (www.beijingsidecar.com) that I visited on a previous trip to China.  You can read about this particular shop in VMOL’s story archives.

From looking around Jim’s shop, he certainly has plenty of donor bikes, assorted parts, engines, and sidecar “tubs” available for restoration. On the day I visited there were several “ex-pats” that came in on their bikes or just to chat. It appears that ex-pats living and working in and around Beijing are his main clients. 

When I asked what the main challenges of his business were Bryant replied: “Getting engines / parts expedited from Germany.” Also, there are issues occasionally with customs, etc. and that is where his Chinese partner, Kian Jian Chao or “Kang” as he is called, comes in. One of the best customer service aspects of Jim’s business is his personal guarantee repeated here word for word from his website:

"Our 100% Guarantee

When you buy a CJ750 from our shop, you get a 100% guarantee: Your bike is reliable; you can ride it everyday and not worry about getting stranded on the roadside somewhere.
We know the job. We do it well, better than anyone around, matter of fact. And we stand behind the quality of our workmanship.

That's our 100% guarantee.

Come visit us, and watch your bike being built."

Another interesting data-point is that if you are living and working in Beijing and want a large (750cc or bigger) motorcycle to ride, the plates and registration can be very difficult to obtain and very expensive. There are officially licensed Harley-Davidson dealers in both Beijing and Shanghai now, and I am told, a BMW dealer as well. 

Still, the versatile CJ-750 is a very cost effective approach to large displacement motorcycling in China.  Best of all, there is a great network of friendly and interesting people that share the enthusiasm.  If your travels bring you to Beijing in the near future, and you like motorcycles, stop by Jimbo’s Classic Sidecars and introduce yourself.  Tell him “JJ” from VMOL sent you!

Until next time, RIDE SAFE and I'll see you on the road. JJ Cerilli