classic motorcycle forum

Interesting. I don 't know that I'd be too keen to mix up oil and grease myself but I think I'll look more kindly on that stuff they recommend for vintage car steering boxes and the like. Can't remember what Penrite call it. Thick like grease when cold but quickly liquefies when stirred up. Thixotropic?

Albion introduced their first “Featherweight “ 4 speed box intended for up to 150cc machines in January 1933. Unfortunately the majority of the motorcycle industry were reluctant to take it on for their bottom of the range lightweights as it was dearer than the EJ 3 speed.
Some did but the general attitude seemed to be that they were building cheap’n’nasties and building an optional cheap and interesting version wasn’t going to happen.
I can see why Albion wasn’t interested in making a close ratio 3 speeder when they had difficulty selling their much better 4 speed box intended for the same purpose.

Curiously I’ve never seen any Albion literature advocating a thin grease. Where did you get that?

Back to Albion boxes. I've just returned from the State Library where I was ploughing through 1931 copies of MotorCycling. The 11/11/31 copy had a paragraph introducing the new "E Junior", a new 3 speed box for featherweights up to 150cc. Weight 12 lbs. internal ratios 1.57 and 2.78 to 1. High gear the usual direct drive 1:1 of course.
Then referred to the the regular 'E' for 200-300cc machines and advised the smallest 2 speed as redeveloped in 1931 was still to be produced.
The new box of course is the good old EJ, probably the most common survivor found today. As the cheapest 3 speed box they made it was calmly fitted by all and sundry to whatever piece of equipment they needed a box for and  absolutely no notice paid to the factories advice it was a featherweight for up to 150cc engines only. It was the cheapest they could buy and who cared if it was ferociously overloaded. Lucky for us it was tougher than the factory thought. Love them.

I love a good map! Hope to see an illustration or photo of the Albion Works soon.

In the past week I've been looking at the relationship between Precision (Moorsom St), Sun Cycle & Fittings Co. Ltd (Aston Brook St) and A.H. Haden (Princep St) in relation to frame lugs. Interestingly these three are clustered just to the northern side of Birmingham, while Albion (Upper Highgate St) is a couple of miles away on the south side. It was a hot bed of manufacturing in the early days.

Leon

Bit of a side-step here, but has anyone seen a photo of Albions' Tower Works (factory),
in 48-56 Upper Highgate Street, Birmingham.
Demolished, at some point in the 1960s ?, and the area redeveloped extensively.

I've looked at all the usual sources, and a few discussions of this, with zero result.
Sometimes the parts books show a factory view. But not in this case.

Burman, by contrast, was keen to show off their Lee Banks works - parts books view.
https://i.postimg.cc/hGXnwpnq/Burman-and-Sons-Lee-Bank-Works-Brum-1922.jpg