Restorations

This year has been another successful and eventful period for the Museum, and below you will read about some of the classic motorcycles we have acquired, renovated and ridden.

As ever, the workshop has been a hive of activity, and alongside projects destined for display in the museum we also help owners improve their BSA B40 and Triumph Tiger Cub trials bikes, and we can create new ones whenever a donor machine is available.

Our own bikes need regular maintenance, and the engine and gearbox of the famous AJS Porcupine racer have been checked over in readiness for more race parades. While the engine was dismantled we had the crankshaft rebalanced, which has greatly improved it. The equally famous AJS V4 racer, with its liquid-cooled supercharged engine, was also due for attention after a serious number of demonstration miles. The piston rings and most of the bearings were replaced, and at the same time the wheels and frame were re-painted, so the whole machine is again better than new.

The number of bikes in the museum continues to expand (as does the size of the Museum) with new exhibits from a variety of sources. We restore new projects, which continue to surface, and display worthy machines restored by local enthusiasts as well. We also purchase interesting motorcycles and restore them to their former glory.

Completed restorations in the past include the fascinating and unique Haythorn; a home built machine with an overhead camshaft, oil cooled, four-cylinder engine, and a novel two-speed transmission utilising two different chains drives to the rear wheel. This is the second of two motorcycles made by John Haythorn who was a Scottish automotive engineer working for a supercharger manufacturer. Its development ceased when he was transferred to war work in 1940, but it was already a useable machine that had been featured in the motorcycling press. The Museum’s re-creation of the Haythorn purrs along beautifully and shows just how advanced it was.      

We’ve also restored an ultra-rare matching pair of pre-War HRDs – a 500cc single cylinder Meteor and a 1000cc Rapide. The smaller machine is one of the first HRD-Vincents with an in-house engine, developed in a couple of months after proprietor Phillip Vincent became disenchanted with the JAP engines used previously. The larger motorcycle is one of the small number of twins made before the war, setting new standards for performance and sophistication.

Also the Grindlay Peerless, this remarkable machine has a sleeve valve engine – where the cylinder liner oscillates to open and close the valves – and it was donated to the Museum by none other than John Gindlay, the son of the firm’s founder.

Sporting machines include a TT Blackburn Cotton, which has loads of authenticated history.  Also the REG special. This private enterprise by Reg Geeson is a renowned double overhead camshaft twin-cylinder racer that was used by stars like John Surtees, Derek Minter and John Hartle.

Sammy uses the Museum’s existing racers in events like the VMCC’s Festival of a Thousand Bikes at Mallory Park and also at Goodwood at home, and also abroad at Spa in Belgium and ASI Motoshow, Italy.

Some more of the latest restoration projects to come out of the Workshops are:

OK Supreme 250cc 1933 - Lighthouse Model

This bike was made by OK Supreme in Birmingham and is a very rare bike. It has a 250cc overhead camshaft and a 3 speed Burman gearbox. It is called the Lighthouse model due to the window at the top of the camshaft housing, which enables checking the oil supply. In the 1933 T.T the Factory raced the 250cc but without success.

ABC Skootamota 125cc 1919

This was made at Brooklands and was the first scooter for ladies and gents which was easy transport, small and lightweight.
It was designed by Granville Bradshaw and made by A.B.C Motors Ltd. Some were used for wireless and other purposes.

RCS - Robert (Bob) Collier Special

Bob made six of these bikes using BSA M20 running gears.