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| WHAT ARE THESE TRANSPORTS OF
DELIGHT? |
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| Cyclemotors
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The cyclemotor,
or motorised bicycle, dates back to the dawn of motor cycling in the last years
of the 19th century but the boom period for these machines was undoubtedly the
1950s. The cyclemotors of this period usually consisted of a small engine
(under 50cc) which could be attached to a normal bicycle. The positions used by
different manufacturers were many and various: above the front wheel, above,
alongside or inside the rear wheel, or between the pedals are typical examples.
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was often a roller rubbing on the bicycle tyre but other, more positive,
transmissions were used. The NACC caters for enthusiasts of cyclemotors from
all periods from the 1890s to the present day, but it is the 1950s that the
majority of our members is interested in. |
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| Autocycles |
The autocycle is
a lightweight motor cycle with pedals, very similar to the mopeds of more
recent years. The autocycle was developed between the wars and, by the
mid-1930s, had adopted a design that changed very little until the end of
production in the mid-1950s. Autocycles are usually powered by 98cc engines;
most examples used the Villiers Junior, Junior de-Luxe or 2F engines. The most
notable exceptions to this were the Cyc-Auto and the Excelsior Autobyk, which
used their own make of engine, and the HEC, which was powered by a Levis
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Because of the
universal design it can often be difficult to differentiate between different
manufacturers' machines.
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| Mopeds |
The moped is a
motor cycle with an under-50cc engine. The first mopeds were equipped with
pedals but legal definitions of the moped have changed over the years and
nowadays encompass almost any under 50cc motor cycle.
Mopeds
originated on the continent in the mid-1950s and soon ousted their
predecessors, the autocycles and cyclemotors, from the market place.
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Some Notable Makes of
Cyclemotor
CYCLEMASTER - probably the best known of the
cyclemotors, the Cyclemaster was a complete powered wheel that was substituted
for the normal rear wheel of a bicycle. The earliest models had a 25.7cc
engine; this was increased to 32cc for later versions. Nearly a quarter of a
million of these machines were built in the UK between 1950 and the early
1960s; several other countries also produced their own versions of the
Cyclemaster.
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MINI-MOTOR - another popular type, built under
licence in England by Trojan to an Italian design. The 49.9cc Mini-Motor was
mounted above the cycle's rear wheel and drove it by friction
roller.
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POWER
PAK - Mounted in the same position as the Mini-Motor and also using
a roller drive, there were two models of Power Pak: the Standard and the
Synchromatic. The Synchromatic had the sophistication of a twist-grip operated
clutch.
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WALL
AUTO-WHEEL - The most popular of the earlier cyclemotors; the Wall
was produced from 1912 until the mid-1920s. It consists of an engine and wheel
mounted on its own frame and fitted alongside the bicycle's rear wheel.
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The SMITH Motor Wheel
and BRIGGS & STRATTON Motor Wheel were developments of the Wall Auto-Wheel.
Other models of cyclemotor include: BSA Winged Wheel, Vincent Firefly, Ducati
Cucciolo, Berini, Cymota and many more. There are many more pictures of
cyclemotors in the NACC
Gallery.
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Autocycle Manufacturers
Most manufacturers of autocycles were
also motor cycle builders, some of the best known being: James, Norman, Rudge,
New Hudson, Raynal, Francis-Barnett and Excelsior. VéloSoleX Sometimes
classified as an autocycle and sometimes as a cyclemotor; the VéloSoleX,
with its engine above the front wheel, is the second most popular motor cycle
of all time; it has been in production for more than 60 years. Read the
ABC of Autocycles in the NACC
Archive. |
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Moped Manufacturers
Introduced from Europe during the mid-1950s;
machines such as the NSU Quickly and Mobylette were quick to catch on. British
makers such as Norman, Phillips and Raleigh were soon building their own mopeds
to compete. There were very many different makes of moped produced during the
1950s and '60s although may of them used the same engines such as Sachs, Jlo
and Rex. Surviving examples of some of the more obscure manufacturers' products
are quite rare nowadays. There is a comprehensive selection of pictures in the
NACC Gallery. |
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