Wednesday 17 May 2017

Rebuilding a Velocette LE



Velocette LE


It has been quiet for me over the last month with not much being done for the Museum. I have been plagued with cars with problems including MOT’s. All needed work being done on them either by me or a garage so I’ve had little time to get out and about and when I did the Buell broke a muffler strap and I didn’t ride it for a couple of weeks until it was replaced. 

Riding it with the front strap broken would eventually fracture the down pipes as happened to me in 2011. Over Easter the Calthorpe and the Raleigh were fired up for the first time in ages. Great news for our enthusiasts. I’ve been reading and finally finished the book on Harry Baughan. Being in Gloucestershire and not far from from the place where Frank Whittles’ jet engine was first made it is not surprising that Harry Baughan’s company were involved in making parts for this engine. In much secrecy and everyone being kept in the dark, bits were made and no one new what for. Harry Baughan was enthusiastic about trials and much of the book is devoted to his efforts in making difficult courses that tested man and machine and very much part of the success of the Cotswold trial. He made light cars and motorcycles, all being hand built and his sidecar wheel drive a real special. There is some conjecture that Norton’s version was a rebadged Baughan set up as one was made for one of the Norton trials team on the hush-hush and a version of that was produced by Norton for the military in World War 2. This ended up on the market after the war with the sidecar wheel drive disabled as it was deemed unsafe for public use.
Being the resident LE expert I was asked if I would put the Museum LE back together again. After a long time I have got around to collecting the engine, gearbox and final drive from the Museum with a view on getting this ex-Greenford Police LE back together again. It is in a bit of a sorry state as the place where it was stored was not very dry and has caused a good deal of corrosion. I’ll update on the progress as it happens. 


In the box of bits I discovered a large envelope in which there was an article called “On the Speedway” published in The Oxford Annual for Boys 22nd Year by Oxford University Press 1929. This describes Speedway at its start in 1928 the stars of the day and the bikes and gear that went with it. Nothing about Greenford in it, other than just being mentioned, but still an interesting read. No thoughts about it being possibly a little “Dangerous” it was just “Thrilling”. Perhaps we should now replace every reference to motorcycling that mentions dangerous to be thrilling?





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