Melen motorcycles were produced by F. and H. Melen of Cheapside, Birmingham, from 1912 to 1913 and from 1922 to 1926.
1912 The first machine, a combination, was exhibited at the late Olympia Show. It had a 6hp JAP V-twin engine, Roc two-speed gear and belt drive. The wicker sidecar had a four-point attachment.
1913 The enterprise was short-lived and did not last beyond that year.
1922 The Melen resurfaced on a tradesman's motor carrier tricycle, in the form of a conventional motorcycle with the exception of the front. This had two wheels and a closed-top delivery box positioned between them. It therefore resembled the rather out-dated forecar of yesteryear, and was powered by a 292cc two-stroke Union engine.
1924 By now, the Union engine had been replaced by a 343cc Villiers, but otherwise the design was virtually unchanged.
1926 was the final year of motorcycle production. In the 1930s the company was renamed Melen Ltd., with directors G.F. Melen and G.F. Fisher. Having moved to Sydenham Road, Sparkbrook, Birmingham, they continued to produce carrier tricycles and bicycles until 1940.
F. and H. Melen, Ltd., Cheapside, Birmingham. - This firm show a very sturdily made sidecar combination in which the motor cycle is upon standard lines with a large petrol tank and a pronouncedly dropped frame. The rider's comfort is provided for by the use of the Melen patent spring handle-bars, which insulate the wrists and arms from road shocks.
A Roc two-speed hub gear is controlled by pedals fitted on the footrests, which are of the plain tubular variety. The engine is standard J.A.P., with a single silencer to both cylinders. The sidecar is made on neat lines with a cane body, in which attention has been paid to luggage carrying. A fourth attachment tube is taken from the top of the head to the sidecar chassis to give extra rigidity. The attachments are of the positive nut and bolt type. Generally speaking, the combination presents a very agreeable and radical appearance.
Olympia Show, The Motor Cycle, November 28th, 1912.
Box Carrier Motor Tricycle.
2¾ H.P. Model.
F. AND H. Melen, Ltd., Sherlock Street, Birmingham.
A unique little business three-wheeler is shown on the Melen stand, which otherwise is for the most part devoted to bicycles. It is fitted with a 297 c.c. two-stroke engine, three-speed gear, and chain transmission. Two brakes act on a single rear drum; one is an external contracting band and the other is a shoe, pulled on to the inner periphery by the hand lever. From experience on the road it has been found to be a particularly stable little vehicle, efficiently sprung, economical, and very suitable for the type of driver who is likely to handle it. The accommodation, too, is good, the carrying capacity being from 1½ to 2 cwt.
Sources: Graces Guide; The Motor Cycle.
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