Great British Motor Cycles of the Fifties PDF Download

Author: Bob Currie
Publisher: Bounty Books
ISBN: 9780753703786
Category : Motorcycles
Languages : en
Pages : 140

View

Book Description

Author: Bob Currie
Publisher: Bounty Books
ISBN: 9780753727621
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 224

View

Book Description

Author: Steve Wilson
Publisher: Herridge & Sons Limited
ISBN: 9781906133603
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 0

View

Book Description
In the 1950s and '60s the British motorcycle industry was at its postwar peak, with its large-capacity high-performance bikes in strong demand all over the world. AJS/Matchless, BSA, Norton, Royal Enfield and Triumph were all making 100mph-plus big twins, with the king of them all, at least into the 1950s, being the mighty1000cc Vincents, while among the ton-up singles were the BSA Gold Star and the Velocette Venom and Thruxton. In this book veteran motorcycle writer Steve Wilson reviews the top-of-the-line bikes of all these manufacturers, first giving an introduction to the motorcycling scene in the period, with a particular look at the emergence of the Rockers, the black-leather too-fast-to-live-too-young-to-die bikers who developed a culture all their own, inspired indirectly by Marlon Brando behaving badly on his Triumph Thunderbird in the banned-in-Britain 1953 movie The Wild One. Then the motorcycle makers are dealt with alphabetically, with their big bikes described in detail and their performance, handling, strengths and weaknesses discussed. In addition to a wide selection of archive photographs, specially commissioned colour photography features examples of the outstanding bikes of the period: AMC/Matchless CSR 650 twins and their Norton Atlas-engined 'Hybrid' siblings, BSA A7SS 500, Gold Star singles, AIO Super Rocket and Rocket Gold Star 650 twins, Norton SS 500/600/650 twins, Velocette Venom and Thruxton 500, Royal Enfield Constellation 700 twin, Triumph pre-unit 500 and 650 twins and unit Bonneville 650, and finally the Vincent 1000 vee-twin.

Author: Roy Hunt Bacon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781856484039
Category : Motorcycles
Languages : en
Pages : 288

View

Book Description

Author: Roy Bacon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781856481250
Category : Motorcycles
Languages : en
Pages : 240

View

Book Description

Author: Roy Hunt Bacon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781856483001
Category : Motorcycles
Languages : en
Pages : 288

View

Book Description

Author: Mick Walker
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0747811040
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 65

View

Book Description
For the first half of the twentieth century, Great Britain led the world in motorcycle design and production, exporting its products to countries all over the globe. However, by 1960 this once-great industry had fallen into what was to be a terminal decline. During the 1960s and '70s Britain still manufactured a wide range of machines, but a combination of poor management, lack of investment, foreign competition (notably from Japan), and the arrival of the small, affordable car conspired to sound the death knell for most British motorcycles by the end of the 1970s. Mick Walker uses a host of colourful illustrations to explore the models produced by British companies and their foreign competitors, and explains what the industry did to fight its ultimate demise.

Author: Mick Walker
Publisher: Shire Publications
ISBN: 9780747808053
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 64

View

Book Description
After VE Day in 1945 the British population returned enthusiastically to the road. But the cost and availability of both vehicles and fuel led to the post-war scene being dominated by motorcycles, most of them ex-military machines, eagerly snapped up for everyday use in an age when a family car remained just a dream for many. The British industry, meanwhile, was exhorted to 'export or die', and until well into the 1950s the majority of new British bikes were sold abroad. During this period, the industry - the largest and most important in the world - continued to develop new and exciting machines, which increasingly populated Britain's roads. Mick Walker tells the story of the British post-war motorcycle during this golden age of the industry. Machines from the big names, AMC (AJS and Matchless), the BSA Group (BSA, Triumph, Sunbeam and Ariel), Douglas, Norton, Panther, Royal Enfield, Velocette and Vincent, are here plus a myriad of smaller firms such as Cotton, Excelsior, Francis-Barnett, James and Scott. With the help of archive photographs and advertising material this book conjures up a lost age of the British bike.

Author: Paul Collins
Publisher: Ian Allan Publishing
ISBN: 9780711024908
Category : Motorcycles
Languages : en
Pages : 128

View

Book Description
For motorcycle enthusiasts worldwide, the names of great British marques like BSA, Norton, Triumph, Vincent, and many others, conjure images of an era when the U.K.'s bikes dominated motorsports. Such was the impact of postwar Japanese production, however, that the British motorcycle industry all but died. With its comprehensive A-Z coverage, British Motorcycles Since 1900 provides a readable account of one of the Great Britain's great industries -- an industry that gave employment and pleasure to thousands. Author Paul Collins examines the history of each manufacturer, and illustrates his accounts with nostalgic black-and-white photography that superbly recalls the British motorcycle industry's halcyon era. Collins also examines the state of the industry today, and current optimism for its revival.

Author: Andy Tallone
Publisher: Key Publishing
ISBN: 1802821031
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 196

View

Book Description
Classic British motorcycles were more than simple machines, they were a cultural phenomenon that lasted half a century. From the early days of motoring, British innovators led the way, building some of the world’s most famous motorcycles, as well as some of the best performers. At one point, the rest of the motorcycle world followed Britain’s lead, and by the late 1950s, the British were by far the largest producers of motorcycles in the world. However, barely a decade later, the British motorcycle industry was almost bankrupt and in utter disarray. Illustrated with over 150 photographs, this book explores the rise and fall of the British motorcycle industry, looking at its history through the years and then at the motorcycles themselves by brand, giving the complete story of these amazing machines.