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.
Majestic
Majestic Engineering Co. Ltd., Birmingham 1931-1935
When AJS was acquired by the Collier brothers in 1931, EH Humphries of OK Supreme bought the AJS 248, 348 and 498 cc models. He continued to build them under the Majestic name until 1939.
Source: Tragatsch p199
There was an earlier Majestic built in Britain - see Disambiguation
Malone 1999~2004
MB (Merrall-Brown)
Manufactured by Merrall-Brown of Bolton, Lancashire, 1919 to 1921, the MB was a three-wheeler with a water-cooled 1500cc four-cylinder Precision engine which drove the single rear wheel by chain. The cockpit had a steering wheel and seated two on a bench seat, and it had a folding cover which sat atop the rear luggage compartment when not in use.
Source: 3-wheelers.com.
Mead & Tomkinson 1960s-70s
McLachlan
E. A. MCLACHLAN, 55, Brighton Road, Stoke Newington, S.E. This exhibitor shows a two-seated sociable motor tricycle, which he catalogues at £75 - a machine of simple construction, but with no attempt at finish, and driven by a heavy oil motor, a simple construction, adopting the usual plumber's lamp for starting the vaporisation of the oil, which then acts by direct suction. Two speeds are obtained by means of belts with jockey pulleys, and the weight of the car is given as three and a half hundredweight.
From a report on the 1899 Motor Show (Cordingley)
Source: Graces Guide
Megelli 2007-2014
Mepward Engines 1920-1921
Merlin Sidecars
Manufactured by the Merlin Coachworks in Pity Me, Durham.
merlinsidecars.co.uk ✝
Ken and Mike Minns, with their sons Michael and Peter, built stylish road-going sidecar combinations.
Many are displayed here: Merlinowners @ Flickr
Sources: merlinsidecarowners.blogspot.com, et al.
Merlin Sidecars
Wallows Road, Brierley Hill, West Midlands
Run by Alan Baker and John Hardcastle, sidecar racers.
Offered to build replicas of their racing outfit.
Source: Motor Cycle Weekly 8 November 1980
Mitchell (1960s)
A 50cc four-cylinder two-stroke built by Duncan Mitchell of Moto Decla, Stevenage, in the early 1960s. The engine was designed by Eric Fitz-Hugh some years earlier and further developed by Mitchel, an experienced 50cc frame constructor, who also built a 5 speed gearbox for the machine. With a bore and stroke of 25.3 x 25mm, each cylinder has a capacity of 12cc. The machine was not completed due, it is said, to financial constrictions.
Source: classic50racingclub.co.uk
Moto Roma
Manufactured by Zongshen in China, imported by barrus.co.uk.
Models include the MRX200, the Mustang 125 and the RDG125.
Sources: totalmotorcycle.com, moto-roma.co.uk✝, et al.
Motor Wheels, Ltd.
A Curiosity in Motor-Bicycle Design.
The machine illustrated is the speciality in motor-bicycles brought out by Motor Wheels, Ltd., Euston Road, London. It departs entirely from conventional practice in design, the whole of the motor gear being carried by the front forks. The motor is a Simms, fitted with magneto ignition, and the drive is by a Crypto gear to the front wheel axle. The petrol tank, carburetter, coil and accumulator are supported on a bracket attachment carried by the forks.
A stout flat spring fixed between the handlebar and stem reduces the vibration considerably. Whether or not a machine of this type would be liable to side-slip badly is a doubtful point.
Source: Motor Cycling Magazine, Nov 12th 1902
Mumford 1971-1994
Murchie
William Murchie of Newton Stewart, Wigtownshire, Scotland built several motorcycles and at least one car (in 1904) before becoming a dealer for Ford and Austin.
Source: scotsman.com.
Mutt
Constructed in Kings Norton, Birmingham, by Will Rigg and Benny Thomas using 125 and 250cc engines and other components sourced from the Far East, the firm has distributors in Japan, Australia, Indonesia and elsewhere.
Sources: muttmotorcycles.com, motorcyclenews.com, et al
Rarer British Marques
