From The Archive

Ariel Square Four in traditional ad pose Four cylinder motorcycles have been with us for a very long time – longer than many of us would think. The first was the Holden, which went into production during 1901, followed by the Binks of 1903. Others soon followed suit and most of us will be familiar…

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Triumph TR5 Trophy Edward Turner, the Managing Director and Chief Designer of the Triumph Engineering Company held firm views about the extent to which manufacturers should take part in off-road competition events. He considered it futile to spend vast sums of money trying to win races when it could be better deployed in making better…

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The Sun Cycles and Fittings Company Limited, of Aston Brook Street, Birmingham, bad a long association with the British motorcycle industry. Founded by the Parkes family in 1885, their first involvement with two wheels was when they made the Sun Spider, a penny-farthing bicycle. In 1911, they moved into the manufacture of motorcycles, offering three…

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1949 Scott Unlike some of the other motorcycle manufacturers, the Scott Motor Cycle Company did not supply motorcycles to the armed forces during World War 2. Instead, they became involved in war work of a different nature, some of which came from the Admiralty. Single cylinder models of rugged construction, needing only a minimum of…

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Indian Brave The Indian Motorcycle Company, of Springfield, Massachusetts, a formidable rival to Harley-Davidson, were just as famous for their large capacity vee-twins. The first appeared way back in 1906 and by 1911 they had made a tremendous impact here, when they dominated the 1911 Senior TT, taking the first three places. Not only did…

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Continental Sports had a cobby look It would seem that Frank Willoughby Cotton, the founder of the Cotton Motor Company, shared similar ideas to Alfred Scott when it came to motorcycle frame design. Impressed by his triangulated layout, which avoided the use of anything other than straight tubes, Cotton devised his own design. It differed…

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1934 Velocette 350cc ohv in 250cc cycle parts The overhead camshaft KSS Velocette was the flagship of the Velocette range, expensive to purchase but also costly to make. By the early Thirties it was becoming evident that at least one other model was needed to fill the gap between the KSS and the GTP two-stroke…

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245cc BMW R27 If you are ever offered a 'veteran' BMW you will know it's a fake because BMW wasn't founded until August 1918. Their earlier origins  lay in the manufacture of six-cylinder inline engines for the German airforce, one of which was used by the legendary fighter pilot Baron Manfred von Richthofen. However, after…

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1961 Norman B4 250cc twin sports model The town of Ashford in Kent may seem an unlikely place for a manufacturer of bicycles and motorcycles, especially when the hub of the industry lay in the Birmingham and Coventry areas of the Midlands. However, not every successful business was located there – Yorkshire produced both the…

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Norton Commando Fastback Norton Motors was one of the earliest casualties of the crumbling British motor cycle industry when, in early 1953, they encountered serious financial problems and were acquired by Associated Motor Cycles Ltd. That in itself was bad news for all Norton enthusiasts, but worse was yet to come. Although initially Norton managed…

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