Douglas
After last
Monday at the Museum with just a few visitors that had braved the
stormy weather Pete, Chris and I munched our way through the remains
of the festive mince pies and chocolate coconut cheese cake that Gita
was experimenting with, the next day out was Thursday. At the Wey
Valley Advanced Bike club meeting on the first Sunday of the month I
was asked if I could stand in and do a presentation because the
arranged speaker had dropped out. I had a bit of time to do some
research with a view to confirming that Bosch really had produced
Douglas motorcycles for a few years after the First World War. This
is a 1910 model.
The result was
no more information than I had even the 2007 edition of the
illustrated encyclopaedia of motorcycles by Erwin Tragatsch and that
had dropped the reference that was in the 1975 edition that I have.
However other information was discovered buried in the Bosch
archives. This was about the relationship with Fred Simms. He was an
automotive entrepreneur who sent Mr Bosch a De Dion Bouton tricycle
in 1897 for his to investigate its performance. Up till then Bosch
had only made a low voltage magneto that would allow engines to
run at about 200 rpm. Fine for the big stationary engines but no good
for a motorcycle. Bosch needed to develop a better system and the
first high voltage magneto was born. In 1898 Fred Simms and Mr Bosch
set up the UK distribution centre located in London. By 1902 Mr Bosch
had got the high Voltage magneto working properly and had obtained
the right ceramic that would stand the heat for sparking plugs and
the two together made Bosch very rich. Everyone was using the
magnetos and sparking plugs. Fred Simms had close contacts with Bosch
but he could see there was an even better way of producing a spark so
he manufactured his own motorcycle with the first proper horseshoe
magnet magneto in 1903 and used it on the Clyde Motorcycle.
Sadly, the
Clyde is no longer at the Museum, the motorcycle was sold by the
family and we have not been able to trace where it has gone. In 1907
Mr Lucas took a fancy to the Clyde Motorcycle Company and Mr Simms
sold it on. Every one was using the Bosch magneto until the out break
of war. During the war Douglas motorcycles were the bike of choice.
It was smooth, reliable and had good performance. Large numbers were
produced and production was only second to Triumph. There were even
some made in France. Post war Douglas were involved in supplying
engines for light aircraft based on the 500cc ohv racing engine that
produced some 20bhp at 5500rpm. The same power out put as the Triumph
Ricardo of that era. Germany did not have any comparable engines at
the time and even Mr Messerschmidt was at the Kingswood factory.
However he ended up looking at more than engines as he married one of
the daughters! By 1923 Douglas motorcycles had claimed over 200 speed
and reliability records among them, in the 500cc category, nearly
100mph at Brooklands over the flying kilometre. Records for 1923 were
held by Cyril Pullin and Rex Judd.
It has ben
reported that Cyril got over 105 mph at Brooklands that year. Cyril
Pullin was not only an expert motorcyclist, but engine tuner, pilot
and aviation engineer. Also in 1923 BMW produced their first
motorcycle in the R32 and the engine looked very similar to the sv
Douglas of the time used in a transverse layout and may have been a
direct copy. They do look similar but I can find no real evidence to
support this other than the family anecdotes and Tragatsch's
reference. Engine development progressed and it was not until the mid
30's that Douglas moved over to the transverse twin. The first was
the Endeavour and a little later the ohv models 80 plus and 90 plus
some of which my father rode as a tester in the late 40's for
Douglas. More to follow as I delve deeper into the history of
Douglas.
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