what do I have?

[rtw]

Picked them up today, what are they?
https://photos.app.goo.gl/pU7cPygDbmFqB1kB3

[33d6]

Any one of a multitude of Villiers Junior de Luxe powered autocycles. The frame number will be of help to identify what make. With luck it will be an Australian Malvern Star. Only of interest to us locals but we do like our home grown bikes.

Cheers,

[mini-me]

Its a Wilfred.

[Rex]

Put new tyres on it, give it a rub down with an oily rag then stick it on Ebay with silly-arse comments like "barn find" and "just needs a spark plug to run". When some mug  avid buyer gives you the money you can go and buy something you'll enjoy riding at more than 20 mph and without looking like the district nurse..

[murdo]

Ha ha ha ha.

[rtw]

Morning,
Both frames are different, the frame without the motor and front wheel has two stars on the head tube. the bike with the engine has no stars, it also has handlebar levers that point forward from the end of the bars.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/1RbwICX7ePIl0pfb2

[33d6]

That isn't very helpful. As I said earlier, frame numbers are much better and the Villiers engine number would be useful also.

I suspect the frame with the stars on the headstock could be Malvern Star. Mum rode a Malvern Star bicycle when I was small and it had a single star on the headstock. That and it was monstrous heavy to learn to ride on is all I remember of it. Riding a ladies bike and being too small to sit up on the saddle didn't do much for the sporting image either.

Malvern Star autocycles were made from 1940 to 1951 here in Melbourne and the last had a 2 speed 1F Villiers fitted as Villiers stopped manufacture of the horizontal Junior de Luxe engine in 1949. Oddly enough Malvern Star have a collector following as they just squeeze in to the Australian made motorcycle category and are dead easy to restore.

Put up the frame and engine number and possibly you'll learn more.
Cheers,

[rtw]

The frame with no engine and the 2 stars on the head--------- 8M 16282

The bike with motor --------------- frame AAU726
The number cast  on the engine sleeve or case B5764
The number stamped on the alloy lower housing is 608/20791

[rtw]

After a few hours of searching I have concluded AAU prefix is for an Aberdale! Its believed less than 2000 were manufactured with the highest number recorded of 1328. http://www.icenicam.org.uk/articles/art0006.html

[mini-me]

pre war those autocycles were generically known as Wilfreds. Beloved of district nurses and vicars, if you get to ride it turn your collar back to front.

 They all looked virtually the same.   My very first 'powered' two wheeler was an Excelsior Autobyke. I never got it going but learnt a lot from it, like bikes won't run without sparks, or piston rings and on paraffin the tank.

It gave me and my brother some useful exercise pushing it up and down the garden in the hope it might start one day.

[33d6]

I lean even further towards the frame numbered 8M/**** being a Malvern Star. My old Vic Police book show the last of them being numbered in that type of sequence. For example, the 1951 Malvern Star frame was numbered 51M/****. I would look more closely at the frame, it may have a poorly stamped 4 before the 8 or it may be that in 1950 the maker realised they needed more than just the year stamped on so included the decade as well.
I'll also reinforce RTW remarks that AAU identifies an Aberdale. Thats what I find as well.
The 608/ engine prefix was also used by Aberdale so you have the original engine still sitting in the wee beast.
Mini me is also dead right in saying these things were beloved of district nurses and vicars. It was a deliberate decision by wartime authorities. Some community workers like them could be called out at any time night or day to places with no public transport and where a bicycle was impracticable. In such cases they would be issued with an autocycle as being absolutely the cheapest form of  transport available. They took minimal material to make and used the least petrol so they diverted a minimal amount of resources from the war effort. It's easy to find old wartime publicity  photos of district nurses being issued with their Wilfred.
Cheers, 

[mini-me]

Yes, the wilfreds served  a very useful pupose in a time of naional need, in fact they were still in production in the 1950s.

I'd give one a home if it was free but as for the  ridiculous prices being asked for them in some quarters.............

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-HUDSON-AUTO-CYCLE-98cc-1956-/263249474879?hash=item3d4ae4353f:g:V4AAAOSwbZJZpoCa

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NORMAN-98cc-Autocycle-Classic-Vintage-Junior-de-luxe-Villiers-Engine-/132334533901?hash=item1ecfc0bd0d:g:f7gAAOSwb3NZtSUA

Its good to see some dealers still have a sense of humour.

[mini-me]

Aberdale.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/The-Aberdale-vintage-motorcycle-peddle-and-pop-vintage-retro-bike-/172936100608?hash=item2843cb7b00:g:~7sAAOSwXxhZ6TNW

[rtw]

Thanks, interesting colour!