Honda 1969 CA78 “Dream” 305 cc OHC twin frame # CA78-1036181 engine # CA77E-1036233 Soichiro Honda will go down in history as the man who truly changed the face of motorcycling forever. Honda founded his enterprise in 1947, using war-surplus Tohatsu generator motors clipped to bicycles. After his supply of engines dried up, he designed his own 50cc two-stroke clip-on motor, the first Honda Cub. Sales boomed, but Honda wanted more, and in 1954 he made the unheard-of plan of visiting Europe and le ...
MV Agusta 750S America Frame # MV750*2210380 DGM Engine # 221-0360 The 750S America model was introduced in 1975. It featured blockier styling and a larger engine than previous MV 750s. MV Agusta’s glorious racing background gave rise to numerous street bikes over the years, such as the 1977 MV Agusta 750S America motorcycle. The 790-cc double-overhead-cam four-cylinder engine in the 1977 MV Agusta 750S America motorcycle had its roots in a 500-cc racing powerplant. The exhaust system is a combi ...
BMW 1943 R75 748 cc transverse ohv twin military combination frame & engine # 766143 In the 1930s BMW were producing a number of popular and highly effective motorcycles. In 1938 development of the R75 started in response to a request from the German Army. The authorities had laid out specifications for a military sidecar machine that should be designed and built in cooperation between the BMW and Zündapp factories. The idea was to design a machine that was built along the lines of the sturdy Be ...
BMW 1928 R57 494 cc ohv transverse twin frame # 25723 Engine # 70343 The 1928 BMW range comprises four models: two in the 500 cc class, the R52 sv and the R57 ohv, and two models in the new 750 cc class, the R62 sv and R63 ohv. The new 494cc models are again further developed: the front brake diameter goes from 150 to 200 mm, and there’s a new 3-speed gearbox with oil lubrication instead of the earlier grease-filled boxes. The kick starter now works in line with the crankshaft, the earlier model ...
Harley-Davidson 1925 “JE” 989 cc IOE V-twin engine # 25 JE 12139 The 1925 Harleys look completely different from the older models: they have a new type of frame that causes the saddle position to be 3 inches lower than before, the wheels go from 28 to 26 inches and the petrol tank gets a dynamic teardrop shape. But there are many more changes as the 1925 brochure points out: there’s a list of no less than 27 big improvements. A small selection: the petrol and oil tanks get a higher capacity, the ...
Norton 1948 Model M30 “Manx” 499 cc OHC single frame & engine # C11M 14566 After five years of meticulous work, Dutch self-employed mechanical engineer and 3D-artist, Niels Schoen, has completed a unique document. Counting 164 pages and narrated in English, this book entirely reveals his 1948 Norton racer down to the very last nuts and bolts in a series of 3D illustrations that are unseen before. It took him nine months to execute the main task: have each item taken from the motorcycle, measure ...
Rudge 1937 “Sports Special” 495 cc four-valve OHV single frame # 61107 engine # S3394 The Rudge-Whitworth company is already an established bicycle factory when the firm starts to manufacture motorcycles in 1911. Their first machines are 499 cc IOE singles. They develop the famous Multi Gear, with a possibility of up to 21 gear positions. In 1924 the factory introduces a new range of four valve singles and in 1928 Graham Walker manages to win the Ulster Grand Prix on a Rudge, after a heroic hand ...
Clément 1903 ca 1 ¾ HP 143 cc OHV Autocyclette frame # 18463 engine # LM 1815 Clément is one of the true French motorcycle pioneers and this particular model was produced around 1903. The big outside flywheel acts as a pulley for the direct round rubber belt transmission to the rear wheel. The seat tube is fitted with an adjustable belt tensioner. A spray carburettor takes care of the correct mixture and there is a throttle valve in the intake tube. Ignition is by trembler coil and battery, neat ...
BSA 1934 J34-11 498 cc ohv V-twin frame # B11 634 engine # B 11.624 At the 1933 Olympia show BSA displayed a 14-model range; more than 60 machines were showed an one of the newcomers was a handsome 498 cc (63×80 mm) 45 degree OHV V-twin, the model J 34-11. The machine was actually not a complete newcomer: it was based on a design specially prepared for the War Office a year or so earlier. After extensive tests the military authorities were satisfied with its performance and between 1933 and 1936 ...
Henderson 1919 “K” 1301 cc four cylinder side valve frame & engine # 2Z4261 One of the most charismatic names in American motorcycling history, Henderson produced nothing but four-cylinder motorcycles in the course of its 20-year existence. The company was founded by Tom and William Henderson in Detroit in 1911 and with the phrase “a new one from Detroit” the Henderson factory introduced its first production model in November 1911. To underline its qualities Carl Stevens Clancy made a journey ar ...
Ascot-Pullin 1929 “ Sports Utility” 496 cc OHV frame # 184 Engine # AP 184 Cyril Pullin was a rare bird among the many fascinating motorcycle inventors of the early 20th century; while there were many rider-designer-manufacturers during the era, he was in very rare company of men who not only designed, built, and raced motorcycles, but also won an Isle of Man TT race, a distinction he shares only with Howard R. Davies (HRD) and Charlie and Harry Collier (Matchless). Pullin had an extremely inven ...
Royal Enfield 1925 2 ¾ HP “Standard Model 350” 346cc side valve single frame # 2455 engine # A4343 The Redditch-based Royal Enfield firm enters the motorcycle business as early as 1898: in the early days engines from De Dion power their tricycles and quadricycles; Minerva supplies the power for the first motorized cycles. In the years before WW I the company is very successful with light Motosacoche-engined V twins. These machines are equipped with the famous Enfield two-speed gear, involving tw ...
Phébus 1899 “Berceuse” 2 ¼ HP 269 cc De Dion Bouton quadricycle frame # 1368 engine # 10618 In 1895 De Dion Bouton begins to market motorized tricycles and from the start they are very successful. Year after year the design is improved and soon many manufacturers, big and small, introduce three wheelers, often with De Dion engines. A well-known make at the turn of the century is the Phébus motor tricycle. The marque takes its name from the Greek and Roman sun god, Phoebus (Apollo). The vehicles ...
Triumph 1973 X-75 Hurricane 740 cc ohv triple frame & engine # TRX75 XH 01920 When, in 1968, the new BSA Rocket 3/Triumph Trident triples were shown to the American BSA-Triumph management, they were not impressed. They knew Honda had the CB750 coming along and they felt the triple’s price of $1800 was too high and that technical details (like vertically split crankcases and pushrod ohv valve train) were far from “cutting edge”. However, they acknowledged that the bike was fast, and a sales team ...
BSA 1955 DB 34 GS “Gold Star” 499cc OHV frame # CB32.2881 engine # DB34.GS.302 Top model for 1939 in the BSA range was the M24 Gold Star, the ultimate sportsman’s dream. It had bore x stroke dimensions of 82×94 mm, a foot-controlled 4-speed gearbox and a specially tuned engine, individually built and bench tested. It was fitted with an aluminium cylinder and head and Amal TT carburetter. The Gold Star name was derived from the award won on 30th June 1937 by the great Wall Handley who achieved a ...
Indian 1923ca PowerPlus “Big Valve” racing style special 998 cc side valve V- twin engine # 71V409 The Indian PowerPlus engine is a design of Charles Gustafson, who had already earned fame as an engine designer at the Reading Standard company. His task was to design a powerful, robust, reliable and production friendly engine to replace the old F-head V-twin design of Oscar Hedstrom. The resulting 61” side valve PowerPlus introduced in 1916 was an immediate success and this model is still one of ...
Indian 1919 “ N-19 ” PowerPlus 998 cc side valve V- twin engine # 82M971 By 1915 the Indian Board starts to have worries about the financial situation of the company, because the IOE engine and Hedstrom-designed carburettor are costly to produce. The inlet-over-exhaust configuration was adopted by most American manufacturers and was basically a good design, but it had one weakness: the inlet valve pushrods and rockers were external to the engine and thus exposed to the elements. This could give ...
FN 1920 “285 T” 285 cc side valve frame # 60056 engine # 35 The first FN single with shaft drive came on the market at the end of 1909. It was quite an innovative little machine with bore and stroke dimensions of 65×75 mm giving a capacity of 247 cc. The specifications included a multiple plate clutch and a two speed gearbox. Weight of the machine was 65 kg and the fuel consumption was less than 3 litres per 100 km. This light single became a popular seller next to the FN four cylinder model. In ...
Harley-Davidson 1914 “10E” single speed 989 cc IOE V-twin engine # 1580EH The first V-twin Harley prototype is displayed at the Chicago Motorcycle Show in February 1907, but it isn’t until 1909 that the first twins are for sale; officially they are still considered prototypes and only 27 are sold. The engine has a capacity of 880cc and has atmospheric intake valves. The standard colour of these machines is Renault Gray with carmine striping. The engines are not as good as the company expects so ...
Moto Guzzi 1972 ”V7 Sport” 748cc OHV V-twin frame # VK12879 engine # VK32041 The Moto Guzzi V7 Sport is introduced in 1971 as a new and improved version of the standard V7. For their new superbike the engineers at Moto Guzzi install the alternator on the crankshaft nose which allows the engine to be fitted lower in a new frame, thus improving the centre of gravity. The new frame is a significant improvement over its forbear and when combined with the revised 5-speed gearbox and large-diameter dr ...