Matchless 1996 “G50” 496cc OHC Tom Kirby tribute racer frame # MRD 93044 engine # RVB The Matchless G50 was a racing bike made by Associated Motorcycles (AMC) at the former Matchless works in London. It was introduced in 1958 and developed from the 350cc AJS 7R but with the engine capacity increased to 496cc. The “G50” designation stands for the 50bhp that the engine developed. The G50 was immediately popular, and while slightly less sophisticated than its Norton rival, it was nonetheless 30lb l ...
NSU 1957 251 OSB “Supermax” 247 cc OHC frame # 3229907 engine # 1836241 Production at NSU was resumed already in May 1945. The company had been lucky that only part of the production facilities had been damaged and the American occupiers immediately consigned the works as a repair facility for US army vehicles. At first bicycles and Kettenkrad off-road vehicles were produced and from the summer of 1947 the pre-war 125 ZDB and 251 OSL models left the factory again. Chief designer became Albert Ro ...
Nimbus 1952 746 cc OHC four in line frame & engine # 10398 In April 1934 the “Nimbus II” is brought out. The flat steel strip frame is a feature in common with the earlier “stove pipe”, but most other features are totally new: the top half of the crankcase is cast in one piece with the ribbed air cooled cylinder block. The iron cylinder head sports an overhead camshaft. The crankshaft drives the overhead camshaft through the upright mounted dynamo via sets of bevel gears. Its distinctive humming ...
Harley-Davidson 1920 “JS” 989 cc IOE V-twin engine # 20 JS 3390 In April 1920 the new Juneau Avenue factory building was completed; this made H-D the largest motorcycle factory in the world with 2,400 employees and established dealerships in 67 countries. There were 50,000 subscribers to “The Enthusiast” magazine. Harley-Davidsons were fast becoming famous for their power, comfort and reliability: more than 7,500 Model Fs and more than 14,000 Model Js would be delivered to customers during 1920. ...
Saroléa 1926 494 cc OHV “23 M Super Sport” frame# 30060 engine# 30060 The firm was established in 1850 at Herstal (Liege) as an arms factory by Joseph Saroléa. In 1892 the production of bicycles was started. Joseph died in 1894 and under the management of his sons the company grew bigger and bigger. In the early years of the new century the company started to develop motorized bicycles and soon Saroléa was a force to reckon with: around 1907 the firm employed some 200 labourers and had 4000 m2 o ...
BSA 1953ca A7 “TRIBSA” 750 cc vertical twin with Triumph engine frame # BA7S 5378 engine # 6T 46984 In 1937 Triumph had launched its Speed Twin which became a great success. BSA couldn’t stay behind so the company started to develop a vertical twin in the years before the war. This model was to make its appearance in 1940 but by that time BSA got very much involved in the war effort and the launch of new models was postponed. In September 1946 the new twin became available as the A7; it was to b ...
BSA 1939ca G-14 986cc side valve V-twin combination frame # 5762-29 engine # KG14.941. BSA’s first V-twin was the Model A and it was primarily intended as a sidecar machine. It was introduced for the 1920 season and remained in production for about 3 years. A larger 986cc version debuted as the Model F in 1922 and would continue in production as the Model G, regularly revised and updated, until 1940. The 80 x 98 bore x stroke engine has the cylinders set at a 50 degree angle. The constant loss l ...
BMW 1951 R25 245 cc OHV single frame # 235723 engine # 239114 Built to the same exemplary standards as the Bavarian company’s famous flat-twins, the single-cylinder BMW first appears in 1925 as the 247 cc R39. Throughout the twenties and thirties singles are brought out in various capacities, ranging from 198 cc to 398 cc. For a number of years after the war Allied restrictions prevent German companies to produce machines of greater capacity than 250cc, so BMW’s first postwar model is a 247 cc s ...
BMW 1961 R 50S 494 cc transverse OHV twin frame & engine # 564812 Bayerische Motoren-Werke is known in English as the Bavarian Motor Works, or more simply as BMW. The firm launched its first horizontally opposed twin in 1923 and has stood by this style of engine layout ever since. The opposed design offers riders buttery smooth performance as the engine has inherently good balance. In 1955 BMW created its R50, R60, and R69 models. These new models had a similar engine and the same shaft-drive as ...
Triumph 1910 3½ HP 499 cc with Brampton Variable Gear frame # 152324 engine # 8564 4 2 The first Triumph motorcycle appears in 1902, equipped with a Belgian Minerva engine. In 1903 and 1904 JAP and German Fafnir engines are employed and by 1905 Triumph’s own engine, designed by Charles Hathaway, comes in use. Winning the single cylinder class in the 1908 TT races on the Isle of man gives an enormous boost to sales of Triumph machines. The cubic capacity of the engine grows from 363 cc in 1905 ti ...
BSA 1933 B33-2 249 cc OHV frame # A1806 engine # A2.561 BSA’s 1933 range comprises models from 249 cc till 986 cc. The model ranges get a letter code: “B” for 249 cc, “R” for 348 cc, “W” for 499 cc, “M” for 595 cc and finally “G” for the big 986 cc twin. Three types of machines are offered in the “B” class, all with bore x stroke dimensions of 63×80 mm. The B33-1 is a side valve machine, the other two have overhead valves. The B33-3 is the “Blue Star” Sports version with tuned engine, full cradl ...
Harley-Davidson 1942 “WLC” 750cc side valve V-twin frame # 8A 1354 A engine # 42WLA68130 Harley-Davidson began producing the WLA in small numbers in 1940, as part of a general military expansion. The later entry of the United States into World War II saw significantly increased production, with over 90,000 being produced during the war (along with spare parts the equivalent of many more). Harley Davidson would also produce a close WLA variant for the Canadian Army. This model was called the WLC. ...
Ariel 1955ca KH 499 cc OHV twin frame # CAPR 13268 engine # LE 787 Triumph starts a parallel twin vogue in 1937 and the other British manufacturers have to follow suit to stay competitive; BSA designs the A7 and in late 1947 Ariel comes up with the KH 500 cc twin. It’s designed by Val Page and well-received by the motorcycle press, who praise the pleasant and easy-going nature of the engine. Most of the design pretty much follows contemporary best practice, with a one-piece crankshaft carrying a ...
Hobart 1921 “2 ½ HP Spring Frame” 269 cc Villiers MK IV two stroke engine # C 2285 William Hobart Bird (c1851-1934) started to manufacture bicycles in 1884. In 1901 motorcycle production was also taken up and soon the company developed an excellent reputation for the high workmanship that was apparent in their bicycles and motorcycles. The company also supplied frames and engines to other manufacturers. At first Dalton and Wade engines were employed, later models were fitted with JAP singles and ...
Indian 1915 7 HP “Model C3” 994 cc IOE V-twin engine # 72G745 Indian’s first, 38.61ci (633cc) v-twin appears in 1907 with an engine clearly derived from that of the single, though mechanical inlet valves – introduced for 1908 – are an early improvement. The twin’s rear cylinder continues to form part of the frame until 1909 when a loop frame of the type favoured by rivals Harley-Davidson is adopted. The Springfield Company’s first ‘Big Twin’ debutes that same year displacing 61 ci. By 1913 India ...
Indian 1916 Model K “Featherweight” 221cc two stroke single engine # 22H179 Late in 1915 the Indian management decides that a small two stroke utility type machine will add to their coverage of the market. In many countries light two strokes are getting popular and also the American domestic market appears to be ready for such a type of Indian. So early in 1916 a new model is presented in the catalogue: “ The Indian Featherweight is transportation made practically universal. By this we mean it h ...
Indian 1907 2¼HP ca 311 cc IOE ‘CAMEL BACK’ engine # 5378 Oscar Hedstrom and George M. Hendee, both active in the cycle racing world, got together to found the Hendee Manufacturing Company as a partnership, with Hendee as President and General Manager, and Hedstrom as Chief Engineer and Designer. Their first prototype was presented in 1901 and during that year six machines were built, of which two were sold. The first machines were powered by a single-cylinder, ca 213 cc ‘F-head’ (inlet over exh ...
Raleigh 1922ca 2¾ HP 348cc side valve “2¾ HP Lightweight” frame # 11773 engine # 11340 In the beginning of the 20th century Raleigh’s main business is in the cycle trade. Company founder Frank Bowden is a firm believer in variable gear systems and from the end of 1902 the Raleigh Cycle company puts the Sturmey-Archer cycle hub gear on the market. There is some motorcycle production between 1899 and 1906, but only after the first world war serious thought is given again to motorcycle production. ...
BMW 1969 R69US 590 cc OHV transverse twin frame & engine # 665749 In 1955 BMW introduces a new line of twins with a completely redesigned frame with trailing fork rear suspension and Earles fork front suspension. The final drive shaft is no longer exposed but is enclosed in the right arm of the trailing forks. All three new models, the 500 cc R50, and the 600 cc R60 and R69 have 18 inch wheels in place of the earlier 19 inch ones, twin leading shoes in the front brake, smaller mudguards and larg ...
BMW 1957 R26 247 cc OHV single frame & engine #353439 Built to the same exemplary standards as the Bavarian company’s famous flat-twins, the single-cylinder BMW first appeared in pre-war days. Indeed, BMW’s first new post-war model was a single-cylinder design – the 250cc R24 – which arrived in 1948. By 1956, BMW’s quarter-litre luxury lightweight had evolved into the R26 that boasted a more powerful (15bhp @6,400rpm) engine, Earles-type leading-link front fork and a larger fuel tank among numer ...