THE MACHINE FILE

I discovered Matt Darwon through his blog Machined and we became friends quite quickly: this australian architects has started another life building great motorcycle like Vincent, Norton, Rudge, Triumph, Guzzis and this last beautyfull 900SS Ducati.

You can imagine that this mix between architecture and motorcycle culture suits perfectly to us!

Issue #1 is about this legendary Ducati: very high quality photography and a story by Paul d'Orleans

Suscribe HEREI hope you will enjoy as I am now!

Matt on his aluminum Guzzi His workshop full of australian light!Hey, I’m not really sure where the whole “machine files” thing will eventually go, but I suppose, if I write a little piece about where it has come from, and a bit about where I hope it will go, it might give me a better idea of what I should be working towards and focusing on, as well as giving you some background on the matter.
I suppose, my love of machinery, and in particular motorcycles and cars started when I was very young spending time with my father, our relatives, and our friends in garages listening to these men talk about cars and motorcycles and trucks and working on these vehicles and using their tools to do it.
I bought my first car when I was very young. 13. From that time on I had a thirst for knowledge of how to do work to this car. How to do mechanical things, how to do stuff concerning bodywork, and generally how to do anything that would save me having to get someone else to do something that would cost me money. Money I didn’t have.
When I bought my first motorbike when I was 18, a 45ci Harley Davidson that was in pieces, I started this learning process all over again. 25 years later I’m still learning, still with a thirst for knowledge.

About 5 years ago, I started a blog about what I was doing in my shed, what I was trying to learn about and over the years I had hundreds of responses to my work, to questions I posed, and it became clear and obvious to me that the nuances, the intricate details of being involved in the rebuilding/modification of old machinery were slowly getting harder to seekout. What I began to fear was that the knowledge would be lost. The knowledge that time with the machine, whatever that machine is, can give, and more importantly the knowledge that has been passed between man to man, father to son, master to apprentice.
I’ve owned many vehicles in my life. I’ve tried to always do right by the vehicle during the time it was in my possession. In a custodian sort of way I suppose. I don’t necessarily think every vehicle should be restored to its original specifications, I think that a custom vehicle can be just as important a vehicle as a concourse restoration or a vehicle in completely original condition.When I say important, I mean as a marker, as a reflection of life, and trends, and techniques and ultimately of the world at any particular time.
The world moves so quickly these days. New advances in technology every minute of every day. The modern world is mostly centred around feeding our brains with snippets or small parts of what is supposedly important in the hope that we can grasp enough of the parts to make up the whole. Where I think this may be true for certain aspects of the modern world, I don’t think it holds true for the understanding of machinery, especially the techniques used to build and maintain machinery, and I am 100% sure that it does not satisfy the curiosity of many people who really want to delve into the intricacies of building or using machines.
So, The Machine Files is a reaction to this world of fast processing, of getting the answers to every question by simply typing the question in a search engine, and is more about reversing this so that our attention is dedicated to a single item or machine, so that we stop and really dedicate ourselves to understanding and learning.
I have started this website and the first issue 001 very simply, somewhat understated and basic in format, to allow room to move and shift, and really organically grow the product with each issue. I’m hoping we will very quickly be able to go into limited edition print copies and that we can very soon include video documentation as a supplement to the online and printed material.
If you would like to contact me to discuss anything or make a suggestion or even to put forward a motorcycle you feel is appropriate as a feature please email matt@themachinefiles.com.au
Thanks for your time.
Matt Machine