Can someone identify this bike for me?

[Lunchie]

I was recently go through some of my later father's belongings and came across this photo of my grandma on her motorbike. Whilst I recall seeing this photo as a kid and marvelling that my little gran used to ride a motorbike I know nothing about it!

I'm guessing the photo was taken in the late 20s somewhere in Oxfordshire.

[bikerbob]

It looks like a Levis they were produced from 1906 until 1924 the company was started in 1906 by 2 brothers William and Arthur Butterfield they did race bikes in the 1920 TT in the 250cc or less class and took 1st 2nd and 3rd.

[wetdog]

they used to say every part was made in Birmingham , the other is a douglas , this is a good day out if your in the area http://www.vmcc-nbs.co.uk/levis_history.htm

[cardan]

It would be interesting to try to pin down the date from your grandma's date of birth and how old she looks in the photo. Both bikes (Douglas and Levis) could be WW1-ish, so by the late 1920s they would have been quite old. You might find that the photo was taken some time post WW1 - early 1920s.

Cheers

Leon

[33d6]

It looks like the bottom of the range direct belt drive Levis Popular of the early 20's. Very easy, very mellow and great fun to ride. The more expensive models had a gearbox with kickstart and clutch so were even easier to handle.
A great friend had one but got fed up with traffic lights so upgraded it with a Sturmey Archer 2-speed box. Very easy as the whole range shared the same frame whether direct drive or with gearbox so all the necessary mountings were there.
We enjoyed many happy trips and he steadily turned me into a devoted vintage two-stroke fan. There's no type of bike more guaranteed to bring a silly grin to your face than a lightweight two-stroke and the Levis is one of the best.
Grandma had the right idea. You should follow her example.
Cheers,   

[33d6]

I just searched YouTube. I put in "Levis motorcycles" and found a solitary clip showing more or less the full range of Levis two-strokes through the vintage period. As you can see they are little sweeties.
Cheers,

[Lunchie]

Thanks for the responses. While I love vintage cars and bikes, I know nothing about the bikes!

Well, after a quick look at the family tree, my Grandma was born in 1898, and was married in 1925. I'm sure this was taken before she was married, so it must have been the early 20s. The picture I posted is zoomed in, as there are two more bikes in the shot. It's quite a small photo, only postcard-sized.

[cardan]

Our pleasure I'm sure! Let's have a look at the other two bikes.

Leon