Discovered - a special factory Mecatecno mr 326
A Catalan collector who is a good friend of mine relentlessly scours the classified adverts for the strange and unusual Spanish Enduro and Trials bikes of the 70's and 80's. This task is never far from his mind and without fail , as reliably as the vicar attending mass he collects the local new papers from the shop not far from his house. This has paid off very well for him as he has amassed a sizable ( 3 figures ) collection of beautiful old bikes from Puch to Gilera , Alfer and Merlin to name just a few. He is quite specific about what he buys , but when he does buy ...it is firstly strange ....and also a very good price.
On one typical day this chap was reading the local paper , which he reads only for the motorcycle adverts. He wouldnt normally look at the Montesa section because although he loves Montesa , they are not unusual enough to get his heart racing and not suitable for his collection.
A Catalan collector who is a good friend of mine relentlessly scours the classified adverts for the strange and unusual Spanish Enduro and Trials bikes of the 70's and 80's. This task is never far from his mind and without fail , as reliably as the vicar attending mass he collects the local new papers from the shop not far from his house. This has paid off very well for him as he has amassed a sizable ( 3 figures ) collection of beautiful old bikes from Puch to Gilera , Alfer and Merlin to name just a few. He is quite specific about what he buys , but when he does buy ...it is firstly strange ....and also a very good price.
On one typical day my friend was reading the local paper , which he reads of course ,only for the motorcycle adverts. The sport of football concerning Barcelona is of interest , but when there hasn’t been a game , then its strictly motorcycles only.
He wouldnt normally look at the Montesa section, because although he loves Montesa , they are not unusual enough to get his heart racing and hence not suitable for his collection. On this day however he did , for some reason peruse the Montesa adverts and came across a strange looking bike that ruffled his feathers. It was described as Montesa Trial moto and it said that the bike was original and had been stored for many years. My friend looked at the one photo and drew it closer to his face trying to distinguish any details he could. The pennies started to drop and he recognised the image of a Mecatecno MR326 . Only 30 - 40 MR’s were produced at the Llica de vall based Mecatecno factory on the edge of Western edge of the Catalunia racing circuit in Barcelona . Finding one of these bikes is difficult enough , however this bike appeared from the photo to be different in 1 or 2 ways. My friend knew this bike was one that he wanted …..one that he wanted desperately. You see , he is a big Mecatecno fan and did not have this bike in his collection.
So , my friend emailed the seller as frustratingly there was no telephone number . He then waited and waited. Then a few days later a text appeared on his phone and it was from the Mecatecno seller who confirmed that the bike was still available. My friend quickly telephoned back eager to secure the Mecatecno , but at the same time trying desperately to act cool , so that he could negotiate the price if he wanted to buy it.
Just a short while later He was standing over the Mecatecno , acting cool and trying not to reveal how much he wanted this bike in his collection. The owner stated that he had been given the motorcycle by a doctor who had to sell his house and leave , and that it was entirely original.
On one typical day this chap was reading the local paper , which he reads only for the motorcycle adverts. He wouldnt normally look at the Montesa section because although he loves Montesa , they are not unusual enough to get his heart racing and not suitable for his collection.
A Catalan collector who is a good friend of mine relentlessly scours the classified adverts for the strange and unusual Spanish Enduro and Trials bikes of the 70's and 80's. This task is never far from his mind and without fail , as reliably as the vicar attending mass he collects the local new papers from the shop not far from his house. This has paid off very well for him as he has amassed a sizable ( 3 figures ) collection of beautiful old bikes from Puch to Gilera , Alfer and Merlin to name just a few. He is quite specific about what he buys , but when he does buy ...it is firstly strange ....and also a very good price.
On one typical day my friend was reading the local paper , which he reads of course ,only for the motorcycle adverts. The sport of football concerning Barcelona is of interest , but when there hasn’t been a game , then its strictly motorcycles only.
He wouldnt normally look at the Montesa section, because although he loves Montesa , they are not unusual enough to get his heart racing and hence not suitable for his collection. On this day however he did , for some reason peruse the Montesa adverts and came across a strange looking bike that ruffled his feathers. It was described as Montesa Trial moto and it said that the bike was original and had been stored for many years. My friend looked at the one photo and drew it closer to his face trying to distinguish any details he could. The pennies started to drop and he recognised the image of a Mecatecno MR326 . Only 30 - 40 MR’s were produced at the Llica de vall based Mecatecno factory on the edge of Western edge of the Catalunia racing circuit in Barcelona . Finding one of these bikes is difficult enough , however this bike appeared from the photo to be different in 1 or 2 ways. My friend knew this bike was one that he wanted …..one that he wanted desperately. You see , he is a big Mecatecno fan and did not have this bike in his collection.
So , my friend emailed the seller as frustratingly there was no telephone number . He then waited and waited. Then a few days later a text appeared on his phone and it was from the Mecatecno seller who confirmed that the bike was still available. My friend quickly telephoned back eager to secure the Mecatecno , but at the same time trying desperately to act cool , so that he could negotiate the price if he wanted to buy it.
Just a short while later He was standing over the Mecatecno , acting cool and trying not to reveal how much he wanted this bike in his collection. The owner stated that he had been given the motorcycle by a doctor who had to sell his house and leave , and that it was entirely original.
"Rolling " is a very unusual make of rear shock Removing the blue paint revealed black paint underneath
The photo beneath on the left shows the engine number missing from the standard location. The number has been placed under the rear sprocket using what i can see to be the original Mecatecno punches.
This was the first MR326 that my friend had come across ,so he wasn’t to concerned about the originality at this stage …simply to take it back home . He held his cool , negotiated a crazy good deal and took it home .
He then played games with me ….and my head ….telling me that he had bought something special and asked me to guess. Well , I tried all of the usual bikes that I thought of , but nothing was right . he then started to send me photos from strange angles to confuse me further ….but finally the penny dropped and I saw the full MR326…..a rare beast indeed and rarer still to find unrestored.
But this bike was strange . You are reading this knowing that the bike is a factory riders bike , but at the start we had no idea what he had . Was this just a jumble of parts . Of course the Mecatecno MR326 should be green , with a drum front brake. The engine should be black and the frame not littered with holes. The engine number should be at the front of the engine below the exhaust , but this engine number was located by the front sprocket. There was no rear silencer and no place to even hang it from on the frame. The seat should be blue and this is red. Very strange .
The whole bike reminded me of the 3 photos I had of Albert Juvanty’s bike
He then played games with me ….and my head ….telling me that he had bought something special and asked me to guess. Well , I tried all of the usual bikes that I thought of , but nothing was right . he then started to send me photos from strange angles to confuse me further ….but finally the penny dropped and I saw the full MR326…..a rare beast indeed and rarer still to find unrestored.
But this bike was strange . You are reading this knowing that the bike is a factory riders bike , but at the start we had no idea what he had . Was this just a jumble of parts . Of course the Mecatecno MR326 should be green , with a drum front brake. The engine should be black and the frame not littered with holes. The engine number should be at the front of the engine below the exhaust , but this engine number was located by the front sprocket. There was no rear silencer and no place to even hang it from on the frame. The seat should be blue and this is red. Very strange .
The whole bike reminded me of the 3 photos I had of Albert Juvanty’s bike