When the tide goes out…

… they set the benchmark. That is why the most modern factory of classic motorcycles, IMZ (Irbitskiy Mototsikletniy Zavod) or Ural, has moved from Russia to Kazakhstan. There is a new factory hall in Petropavlovsk. The people who move with us speak Russian. Most people in the new location do the same. And there is no shortage of trained personnel. That is almost ideal for the next round for this illustrious brand.

In the beginning

Meanwhile, in their original homelands, the Urals and Dneprs are 'our grandparents' engines'. And that might as well be the great-grandparents. Because the basis of all (ex) Russian tricycles is the BMW R71, a machine that was considered too dated by the Germans.

That 1-on-1 BMW clone had some start-up problems because the Russians couldn't handle it under protective gas. And the fact that early KMZs were built partly in the open air in a former brewery during the Russian winter was also a thing.

The business is growing apart

The M72 was the beginning. After that, the factories I Kiev (Dnepr) and Irbit (Ural) began to carefully focus on evolution. That started with the production of OHVs. The technicians in Kiev showed themselves to be a bit more enterprising. The Urals remained more agricultural.

The machines were built almost by definition for the government.

They were made available to privileged citizens only after their retirement as civil servants. RECOVERY: Comrades. The machines with a driven sidecar wheel were the most popular among farmers. In a country where agriculture was still little mechanized, such a two-wheel drive boxer could be used as a tractor for the plow. As transport for livestock or non-livestock to the market. And as transport for the whole family, including household goods.

Since the war until the death of Dnepr, hundreds of thousands of 650 cc overhead valve boxers have been made

This was done on the basis of the planned economy. No thought was given to necessary numbers, nor to quality. Near Kiev, thousands of factory Dneprs were waiting in knee-high grass at other times. And meanwhile, near Irbit, there are still about 200 brand new M72s in a forest that was not there about three-quarters of a century before. At the time of their production, the military leadership decided that the necessary fuel was needed elsewhere.

So there are still many seriously classic boxers in the ex-Soviet Republics

And they stay there. Most are too far away to restore. And they are 'there'. And 'there' it is so big and corrupt that it is almost impossible to get the machines 'here' too.

The demand for those machines is increasing because after motorcycle enthusiasts have looked at these tricycles with pity for years, a certain cult has developed. That is a matter of some risk if you as a new-fangled enthusiast only go for the nostalgic looks. But if you realize that a well-maintained Ural or Dnepr simply has to be seen in its time and that these machines are only very limited (or not or hardly) suitable for highway use, then you can do it with basic technical knowledge and skills. very pleasant to travel with. And when you have grown a bit in the world, you realize that only riding a stolen bicycle is cheaper. By the way, we are talking about the sustainable use of used parts and without the consumption of fuel.

Original or not?

From the early days, the Russian world had an unbiased view of originality. That was in line with the ex-Soviet approach: “Is he doing it? Then it's a good one." The advantage in this is also that, despite quite a lot of detail changes, it is possible without any problems to mix parts of different construction years – and that amounts to several decades. Add to this the fact that the parts of Urals and Dneprs are largely interchangeable. However, the current trend is that machines that have remained as close to the original as possible are most valued. For example, you can easily replace a 650 cc block from the nineties of 34 hp with a 23 hp side valve block from the sixties. Then you are at least fast enough to drive at the front in every traffic jam.

We keep dreaming

If you dream about better times, then you can still see yourself on a parts hunt in the former home countries. In addition, it is useful if you speak Russian and that your liver is in top condition. Because doing business in the former Soviet Republics? That includes inappropriate amounts of vodka.

In Europe there are only a few companies that are able to do this. And in the Netherlands there is even a dealer for new Urals. But we'll be talking about that in about thirty years.

By the way: Until recently there were quite a few young people in the region who also restored such a Dnepr or Ural for nostalgic reasons. But it is said that most of those projects have now been halted. Locally, the range of Urals and Dneprs is now large for the same reasons. But where the Ukrainian refugees themselves come this way, that is unfortunately not the case with the classic boxers.