I think that, like with the others on the list (save for the Winchester Model 12 ) there's a real rose-coloured glasses comes into play when people talk about the unkillable old 2 strokes of the 50s. I have one of these, a British Seagull, and yes, it is bone simple, was built to last, and you can easily tear it down and fix just about anything on it, with no more than some spanners and a pocketknife. However, it is also noisy and dirty, leaving a slick in its wake, and while you can get at everything and fix it, you also often need to be doing something. Whether it is replacing the cork on the fuel tap or adjusting the throttle linkage there's always some little [bleep] thing. There also seems to be a "knack" to everything, such as starting it for example, or manoeuvring (no neutral or reverse on these). A modern outboard of the same horsepower which I have is basically crank and go, and while I mightn't be as keen to pull it down I just don't need to do so. It is quiet and smooth and I don't burn oil. I don't think it is a matter of the Seagull being old and cranky either - they were like that from new. All good fun and all, but if you actually just want to have a reliable means of getting from A to B they have long since been left behind.

I think the same's true of old cars like VW Beetles. I've driven several and even back in the 80s they were slow and noisy and pretty basic. By today's standards they are glacially slow, loud and spartan, the handling, braking and secondary safety is dark ages stuff, and personally nowadays I wouldn't drive one on a public road on a bet. Old bikes ditto - I can't speak directly of Nortons but Triumph, bevel-drive Ducati and Guzzi made me wary of the sort of bike where you always wonder whether you'll actually be going for a ride today or not.