Excelsior Manxman

Not a great photo but hey, it's an Excelsior Manxman! One of the all time classic British singles.

Excelsior Manxman close-up.

Excelsior Super X Model 19

Excelsior Super X Model 19 combination on
a family outing.

 This would have been an extremely rare and imposing machine on the roads of Britain back in the day just as now. It's a Excelsior Super X Model 19 61cui ioe engine made from 1915 to 1919. Excelsior were suppliers to the American military alongside Harley Davidson during the Great War. The Excelsior Motorcycle Company sold machines under the Super X brand and from 1912 onwards were part of the Schwinn empire. Schwinn shut the brand down in 1931 at the height of the Great Depression.

Given that Super X were used by the American military it seems that there is a good chance that this example was sold military surplas after the war and hitched up to a British sidecar (they were used as solos by the military).

Excelsior Super X Model 19 on the road.

Excelsior Scout

Here's something unusual, a Villiers-engined Excelsior. The model is a Scout and is from around 1934. Not too sure where the photo was taken but the number plate of the bike definitely isn't British, it says 'Vic' on it, maybe this is Victoria, Australia?

The caption on the reverse of the picture is, "This is Jack taken on a mates Motor Bike" sic.

Young Jack is sitting astride an Excelsior Scout from around
1934. The bike is fitted with a 250cc Villiers motor.

Excelsior 1958 Abridged List

Excelsior's line up was always an interesting one from pre-war days right up until the end. Someone in the company obviously had a penchant for the unusual as they weren't scared to throw a few surprises in to the line up alongside the bread and butter. Pre-war, for such a small company, the range was impressive: from depression era cheapies through to the uber glamorous Manxman models.

1958 was in the twilight for the Excelsior company but they were still managing to produce their own motor in the form of the Talisman twin. The same motor they managed to sell to Berkeley for use in their microcars. There was a three cylinder 500cc two stroke Excelsior that was made for the four wheeler sporting Berkeleys, what a massive pity that it was never offered in their motorcycle range. There have been several special builders over the years who have put together their idea of what Excelsior should have done so it was certainly possible and seems like an opportunity lost. Imagine, a two stroke air cooled triple offered twenty years before the Kawasaki H1.  

The 328cc Talisman Twin Special. The
'Special' in the title being the addition of
a slightly ungainly 'bathtub' rear enclosure
to suit the fashion of the day.

The regular 328 and 250cc Talisman Twins. Quite rare bikes
now and well thought of. Those in the know rate them more
highly than Villiers twins.

The bread and butter models. For a good while the 98cc
Consort was the cheapest bike on the market. Earlier
Excelsior had a line in selling knock down price bikes
in kit form. Selling a bike in kit form exploited a tax loophole,
if you were prepared to spend half a day bolting together your
motorcycle you could be mobile on the cheap.

And last but not least the Skutabyke.
Really just a plunger framed Consort model
from a couple of years previously fitted with
an engine fairing and legshields.

Excelsior Talisman Twin

It's not so often you find a picture of an Excelsior Talisman Twin. Rare and decent quality lightweights in their day and very unusual to see today. This one is posing by the Forth Bridge in Scotland (completed in 1890 and recently granted UNESCO World Heritage status).

Excelsior Talisman Twin poses by the Forth Bridge.

The Excelsior Range 1937

Brochure for the Excelsior range 1937. The Manxman models are well known but all the rest are real rarities nowadays.

Excelsior 1937 range front cover.

Excelsior 1937 range page 1.

Excelsior 1937 range page 2.

Excelsior 1937 range page 3.

Excelsior 1937 range page 4.

Excelsior 1937 range page 5.

Excelsior 1937 range page 6.

Excelsior 1937 range page 7.

Excelsior 1937 range page 8.

Excelsior 1937 range page 9.

Excelsior 1937 range page 10.

Excelsior 1937 range page 11.

Excelsior 1937 range page 12.

Excelsior 1937 range page 13.

Excelsior 1937 range page 14.

Excelsior 1937 range page 15.

Excelsior 1937 range page 16.

Excelsior 1937 range page 17.

Excelsior 1937 range page 18.

Excelsior 1937 range rear cover.

Excelsior Universal

Postcard flyer from New York for the Excelsior Universal dating from c1947. The Universal was noteworthy for having a hand change gear lever through the centre of its petrol tank. The motor is a Villiers 9D 122cc.

1947 Excelsior Universal.

Excelsior Autobyk

Posing with an Excelsior Autobyk from the late forties/ early fifties. Autocycles achieved popularity as cheap postwar transport for a nation eager to get on the move again and are generally defined by a 98cc engine capacity, open frame, pedals and usually a clutch is fitted but no gears. With most of the glamour expensive machinery sent abroad for the postwar export drive autocycles were one of the few two wheelers more freely available. The Autobyk was and is considered one of the best of the bunch.

The Autobyk was introduced in 1937 and was originally fitted with the Villiers Junior powerplant. Production ceased in 1939 for the War and resumed in 1946. For 1947 the Super-Autobyk was introduced, this model was fitted with Excelsior's own 'Goblin' engine which was unique amongst autocycles in being fitted with a two speed gearbox. Later in 1947 Excelsior introduced the Autobyk de Luxe which was powered by an Excelsior 'Spryt' motor- the same engine as used by Brockhouse in the Corgi scooter. The Autobyk was discontinued in 1956.

Read more on Andrew Pattle's Moped Archive.

Period photo of an Excelsior Autobyk.

Prescott Bike Festival 2015 pt3

The final selection of pics from the Prescott Bike Festival last weekend. 

Cracking pair of Excelsior Manxmans (Manxmen?)

Close up of the racing Excelsior Manxman.

Mad Max Race Team turbine powered drag bike. The world's
fastest naked bike and the fastest turbine powered too. The
turbine is a Rolls Royce unit designed for a helicopter.

Open megaphone on a Manx Norton. Exactly
as it should be.

Sidecar race bike giving it some on the hill.

Lovely Douglas trials bike making an ascent. It probably felt
fast to the rider!

Some great alloy fabrication on this Royal Enfield Crusader
based race bike.

Norton CS1. Very very envious!

Rare Pride and Clarke speedo on the CS1.

Some fine engineering has gone in to this Tribsa.

Tribsa close up.

The Flying Millyard. A rather amazing home brewed bike
powered by two top ends from a Pratt and Witney radial
unit. Look it up on youtube.

Close up on the Flying Millyard.

Nice period rally modded Lambretta in the bike park field.

Velocette Venom motor has been treated to all the bells and
whistles!

Tasty line-up of Velocettes in the bike park.

Ducati Mike Hailwood Replica.

Ducati 900GTS ridden to the event.

Excelsior Talisman Twin

Unsual bike, unusual photo. It's a mid fifties Excelsior Talisman Twin, a twin cylinder 250cc two stroke.

Acting all casual with a Talisman Twin.