Vintage British Motorcycles
"And 'tis no little reason bids us speed" Henry IV, Act 1
Anny Deim
Notes on some of the rarer British marques
This page lists brands for which we currently have only an historical precis.
For a more complete listing visit the British Index.
Earles 1951
Edwell
Manufactured by Williams of Bromyard, Herefordshire around 1911 or 1912.
Some ten motorcycles were built using TD Cross 499cc 3½ hp sidevalve engines. They had belt drive with pedal starting and were fitted with Saxon forks and an enclosed ZE1 Bosch magneto. It is possibly based on the Haden. One of these machines has survived and was featured in an article in The Motorcycle, October 1998.
Sources: Nick Smith, et al.
EEC
Manufactured by EEC of Totnes, Devon in 1952.
A three-wheeler powered by a 250cc Excelsior 2-stroke twin, the machine had an aluminium body bolted to the steel chassis, with a single rear wheel. Only one was built before fire destroyed the workshop in 1954.
Source: 3-wheelers.com
Elliott
Manufactured by Elliott and Co, 325 Upper St, Islington, London, N.
In 1904 they advertised motorcycles fitted with Bradbury engines.
N.B. Unrelated to Elliott's of Adelaide, S.A.
Source: Graces Guide.
EMB
Manufactured by EMB Motors in Vicarage Road, Watford. The owner, J.G. (Jim) Bound used his wife's initials E.M.B. to name the company which was the Montesa importer. Their creations were raced at the 1951 IOM TT and elsewhere, certainly as late as 1955.
An example had a German D.K.W. frame with plunger rear suspension and E.M.C. wheels. The engine has a modified cylinder mounted on a a Villiers bottom end and was capable of a crackling 11,000 rpm.
Jim's daughter caught the virus and became a star in her own right: Barbara Bound
Sources: watfordobserver.co.uk, et al
Rarer British Marques
