DOT 1927 Super Sports 350 cc OHV JAP frame# 3204T engine # IO / I 80041 The firm’s origins are obscure: founder Harry Reed stated many times in his sales brochures that the name Dot had been seen on motorcycles since 1903. He was certainly in business at this time as a cycle frame builder and dealer in a shop on Eccles New Road, Salford, ..
Gilera 1936ca racer based on VTGS “Otto Bulloni” 499 cc ohv single frame # 214547 engine # 1003In 1935 Gilera presented its “VT” series, in which the VT stood for “Valvole in Testo”, or overhead valves. These ‘VT’ overhead-valve 500cc singles were among the best fast touring bikes that money could buy. They are commonly known as either ‘Q..
Connaught 1921 293cc two stroke single engine # 479 Connaught motorcycles were produced by the Bordesley Engineering Co. of New Bond Street, Birmingham. Their first machine was presented at the 1912 Olympia Show and The Motor Cycle of November 28, 1912 wrote: “This is an interesting little machine, which is shown on the Service Company’s ..
Sunbeam 1926 “Light Solo” Model 5 499cc side valve frame # 09205 engine # 294/16545/ S Although vintage Sunbeam side valve machines look very much the same to many people, there are actually three different 500cc models in the mid-twenties: the standard 85x88mm Model 3 machine is marketed as an all-purpose machine and is suitable for side..
Humber 1914 3½ HP 499 cc side valve single frame # H 2828 engine # F 2856A Coventry firm with its roots in the Victorian bicycle industry, Humber began experimenting with powered transport in the closing years of the 19th century, introducing its first successful motorcycle -a built-under-license P&M – in 1902. Because of the n..
Harley-Davidson 1924 989 cc IOE V-twin model “FE” engine # 24FE12029 1924 is not a good year for the firm: the losses amount to almost $ 120,000 and the workforce is trimmed down from 2,500 to 1,000 employees. Sales in the USA have seriously diminished in the early twenties because of the competition of the cheap automobile. A positive th..
FN 1912 498cc AIV four cylinder frame # 37593 engine# 1365 To many enthusiasts the FN four has always been one of the most appealing machines of veteran and vintage times. Its production runs from 1905 till 1926.The earliest type has a 362 cc engine with atmospheric overhead inlet valves and side exhaust valves. It’s single geared,..
Peugeot 1904 2½ HP 300 cc aiv single frame # 11790 engine # 9294 Although a prototype De Dion-engined Peugeot bicycle was displayed at the Paris Salon in 1898, the first motorized cycles to leave the factory were actually tricycles with De Dion & Bouton engines. The popularity of the tricycle was unchallenged at first, but by 1902 the..
Royal Enfield 1937 Model JF “Bullet” 499 cc four-valve OHV single frame # 21785 engine # JF 2514The famous “Bullet” model name came into existence in the 1933 model range, presented in September 1932 and is still carried on nowadays by a 650 cc model built by Royal Enfield India at Chennai. The 1933 model year catalogue introduced ..
Indian 1913 7 HP T.T. Two-Speed Model 988 cc IOE V-twin frame & engine # 70E691 By 1913 Indian becomes the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world; the 1913 production amounts to almost 32,000 machines. There are 2,000 dealers all over the world and Indian controls some 42% of the domestic American motorcycle market..