classic motorcycle forum

Yep £20k is a lot!! I don't want to own one, but it might be nice (and interesting) to ride. I wonder how far they got the weight down - did you notice the lightening holes in the forged backbone of the frame on AMP366? And the oil tank in the petrol tank in grandad's photo would also save weight. A peppy 500 twin with the weight of a 350? Nice.

Leon

"Crickets are omnivores... a natural cricket diet consists of plants and meat and includes protein, grains, and produce."

Leather + neatsfoot oil. Yum.

Leon

Some reading:

The photo of AMP366 comes from here https://motorcycletimeline.com/1935-2/ where it was captioned: "Three years after acquiring its first BSA 498cc V-twin for assessment the War Office ordered a lightweight version (hence the undersized fuel tank) but subsequently decided a side-valve single would be more suitable."

Here's a similar model that was for sale (some time ago) https://motorcycles-for-sale.biz/sale.php?id=37628 The model was called the B15 - some interesting comments on "standardisation" that happened on the military models. The tank on the bike in the photo with your grandad is most likely BSA C11; perhaps part of the standardisation process.

Leon

And whats that circular object in front of the engine, below the horn ?

No idea! Guess it could be magneto or generator related, or...

The nearly-vertical front down tube on the frame must be a decent identifying feature, but can't think of what it identifies!

Leon

My first thought with the twin filler caps was BSA C11, 1939-ish, but I can make out enough different bits and pieces to rule that out. Rear brake inside the back sprocket on the left, decent size front brake on the right, and I fancy I can see a full cradle frame under the engine joining the front down tube. Mmm... tricky. Much easier to identify a British bike from the timing side!

Leon

Wow.

I'd love to be a fly on the wall when management and designers were talking over new models and future directions. We think of 2-stroke lightweights as being pretty utilitarian, but there were obviously people in the companies who had aspirations to build a better mousetrap. I have to admit I don't know (or didn't know!) much about Normans, but I'll think better of their efforts from now on.

I recently researched Tilbrook in South Australia, and like some of the more interesting UK brands (DOT, DMW, Greeves...) it was a good reminder that there were some very interesting Villiers-engined bikes built in the 1950s.

Re the swing-arm Roamer in the photo above, I'd say 33d6 is spot on with 1954 (see attached). In 1951 and 1952 Super Elliott seem to have sold autocycles and Villiers engined "Super Elliotts", but I could find no photo or survivor... I assume they were just re-branded Norman/Roamer/Rambler. Yell if you've seen one!

Cheers

Leon

Do we know what the Roamer transfer looked like?

I bumped into this photo recently, showing a Roamer on a Super Elliott display in Adelaide the 1950s. Seems to be a 197cc Villiers (?) with swinging arm rear suspension, so maybe 1953 or so. In Adelaide you could buy this bike as a Roamer, Rambler, Norman, (all Norman brands) or it seems (during 1951-52) Super Elliott.

Anyway, the Roamer transfer is particularly ugly!

Leon

Nice one Geoff! Hope you enjoy it.

Leon