Australian-made motorcycles in the 1950s - help please

[john.k]

Transport by the railways was the standard up to the 1970s ........I recall as a wee lad going with the truck driver to the Newstead goods yard to pick up stuff from 'the rail'...also recall nearly getting mangled when the wagon we were unloading was hit by a loose shunt wagon and 44gallon drums of detergent concentrate were rolling around inside .......In those days ,to loose shunt a wagon was hit by a loco billiard ball style ,and the shunters had to run along side the wagon with long brake poles and apply the brakes when the wagon was on the track it was directed to......... the couplings were hook and chain ,so shunters had a dangerous job.

[john.k]

The was no interstate trucking before the mid 50s ,and the well known Hughes and Vale decision which broke the NSW road tax ..........even after the loss ,the NSW Govt wouldnt accept the decision ,and there were several further attempts to impose a road tax.

[cardan]

I came across a very original Malvern Star Autocycle in the museum in Rupanyup [edit: not Pupanyup as I first typed], not far from Horsham in country Victoria. It originally belonged to the uncle of a chap at the museum.

33d6, is this one listed on the rego records? It's a 1948 model (8M frame number prefix) and the engine number is 586/15554. Interesting to see if the original rego was in Rupanyup!

Thanks

Leon

[R]

That bike could be greatly improved by dabbing on some phosphoric or citric acid ?.
And careful rinse off and then a light wipeover with linseed oil.
(gently removes the bulk of the rust, and puts a shine back in original paint)

Or even just a wipeover with an oily rag.
But that precludes any future gentle rust removal.

I know some folk like the rusty crusty look, but when it has sooo much potential as an original paint bike ... 

[33d6]

Interesting. S586/15553 and S586/15555 are listed, both first registered mid 1949 but no S586/15554. There are little gaps like this all throughout the list, remember that this is only the Victorian records. I've no idea how many were sold in other States.

[cardan]

Oh bummer. Why is the one you're looking for always missing? It's said that the bike was bought new for use in Rupanyup, but even though it's way out in the sticks you'd think it would have been registered when new. Maybe communication between Melbourne and Rupanyup was a bit flakey. Thanks for looking!

By the way, I missed the "S" at the start of the engine number - looking more closely I see it tangled up with the "No".

Yes, R, it would benefit from a wipe over. Or better still, an occasional spin around the car park. The Auto-byke is not much of a motorcycle, but this one is a very nice example. Worth repeating something from above: the frame is fully gas welded (no lugs) at the Malvern Star factory, which was a modern process for 1948.

Leon