Vintage Thing 8.1 - more A series Vincent-HRDs

It's probably nothing to do with this blog but Brian Verrall's A series Vinnie sold at Bonham's auction for £214,800. The estimate had been £125,000 to £150,000. I am ambivalent about this. I'm glad that such machinery is appreciated and this is a record for a British bike sold at auction. I'm sad that the original "snarling beast" is beyond the reach of most mortals. What a bike, though!

This is the model that established the Vincent-HRD and Vincent reputations and a fine example such as this is undoubtedly of historical importance. It's a work of art and is priced as such. I'm just not sure how much use any machine will get if it's worth the price of a house.

Around 50 are thought to still exist out of the 78 built, which is a pretty good survival rate but I think both these numbers are too low. They should have built more and how could anyone break one up? The Vincent Owner's Club has put together a register of the survivors and a few engines have been swapped between bikes. I rather like that sort of thing. It adds to the interest, especially if the engine had an illustrious history in another set of cycle parts.

One A series Vincent-HRD engine, said to be the first one ever, was plumbed into a Morgan 3 wheeler. After a serious of blow ups and engine swaps this Moggie is still A series powered and resides in Kent. Another A series Vinnie was used for sprinting and lurks around Brighton. I wonder how that long suffering Burman gearbox held out?

I've heard that there are plans to make replicas of the A-series Vincent-HRD engine and with today's metallurgical advances and bearing technology replica Burman gearboxes that could withstand the engine's power and torque would be possible.

Me - I'd like one with a Norman Hossack front end. These look like girder forks but are actually a wishbone design with an upright extended downwards. The result would be a vintage looking bike with good handling, although - having never ridden a girder-forked bike - I don't know what it's like to ride a vintage machine. People who have, say they go round corners well enough but they also think rigid tails handle well and, again without any personal experience, I beg to differ. A Vincent-HRD, of course, has a spring frame and a very elegant arrangement it is, too, because it's more of a sprung engine than a sprung frame. So my ideal Vincent-HRD A series would be quite heretical but serious fun with reproduction engine, beefed up box, twin front discs and what motorcycle suspension pioneer Tony Foale would call a "funny front end." It would be a bit like one of those old-fashioned but brand new retro Harleys and Triumphs where you get the looks of an old bike but it's still under guarantee.

I seem to have put together a business plan for resurrecting the Vincent-HRD A series.

The bike that I featured as VT8 has been identified by my new friends on the Vincent discussion group as "Old Harry". Apparently, it was owned for many years by a gentleman named Harry Cox and now his old bike lives on in the west country with his name. Wonderful. You don't get that sort of thing with a replica.