75-524: The featherbed frame was a motorcycle frame invented by the McCandless brothers and offered to the British Norton motorcycle company to improve the performance of their racing motorcycles in 1950. It was considered revolutionary at the time, and the best handling frame that a racer could have. Later adopted for Norton production motorcycles, it was also widely used by builders of custom hybrids such as
150-528: A Triumph Tiger 100 . He had made several improvements to the Triumph, notably an innovative new frame with a swinging arm fitted with vertical hydraulic shock absorbers from a Citroen car. BSA bought several of his converted motorcycles but Norton saw the real opportunity and contracted him to work exclusively for them from 1949. The Norton Motorcycle Company were concerned at the reliability of their plunger (or "Garden Gate") frame, as several had broken through
225-448: A unit construction race-prepared Triumph engine , unlike the earlier models having a separate engine and gearbox . The new configuration won the 1970 Barcelona 24-hour race , reprising Degens' 1965 win. After this success, French motorcycle dealer Japauto commissioned Degens to build a bespoke race-frame for the still-new Honda CB750 four-cylinder engine that had been specially enlarged for racing to 900 cc. This machine won
300-438: A 0-60 mph (97 km/h) time of under 10 seconds. Only a four-seat drop head was available with coachwork by W.C Atcherley of Birmingham. 19 were made and nine are known to have survived. This Brough designed, Atcherly coachwork of classic lines has steel guards, aluminium body over ash frame and is handsome, strong and durable. Unrestored examples are still roadworthy over 80 years later. Hudson Canada stopped supplying
375-433: A Hudson chassis. Three models were made, but only two reached production. Early cars did not carry Brough Superior badges as Brough thought the cars sufficiently distinctive in themselves. The first car was the 4 litre made from May 1935 to 1936 using a 114 bhp (85 kW), 4,168 cc side valve, straight-eight engine . Performance was remarkable for the time with a top speed of 90 mph (140 km/h) and
450-673: A Lowboy frame kits sold to the general public. After the Dunstall organisation closed in the early 1980s, other specialists offered the Lowboy frame. Having earlier installed the Dominator twin-cylinder engine of 500 cc and 600 cc , in 1959 Norton put the old single cylinder Model 50 (350 cc) and the ES2 (500 cc) into the Featherbed frame to rationalise production. Using grade A mild steel,
525-622: A Special "Brough Superior" S.S. 100, on which he did 106 m.p.h. in second gear on the road ! Further testing took place at Montlhery race track with four motorcycles running flat-out for two days. The new frame stood up well to tests and saw its UK launch at Blandford Camp in Dorset in April 1950. Geoff Duke had won the Senior Clubmans TT and the Senior Manx Grand Prix in 1949 on
600-460: A Triumph engine/Norton rolling chassis in 1961 when working for former racer and motorcycle race shop owner Geoff Monty , using a racing Manx Norton with a blown engine. The bike was sold before it was finished, and realising there was a potential business, in 1963 Degens bought into Dresda Autos , a small scooter shop in South London together with business partner Richard 'Dickie' Boon, keeping
675-415: A combination of castings and sheet-metal stampings". Single-piece carbon fiber bicycle frames are sometimes described as monocoques; however as most use components to form a frame structure (even if molded in a single piece), these are frames not monocoques, and the pedal-cycle industry continues to refer to them as framesets. If a "monocoque" frame uses additional support, such as tubes or longerons,
750-476: A featherbed" compared with riding the "garden gate"—and it has been called the featherbed frame ever since. The term feather bed was used in the 1933 to 1938 Brough Superior catalogues in their press section. As printed in the 1933 Brough Superior catalog: The "Brough Superior" Rear Spring Frame, to quote "Castor" of "Motor Cycling," renders "pitching or wobble non-existent, impossible. A feather bed could scarcely be safer"—and this in relating his experience on
825-600: A finite degree of built-in flex is preferable. If the handling of the motorcycle is not appropriate, it is important to check the deformation of the geometry of the motorcycle frame. This measurement can be important after an accident or before buying a used motorcycle. Brough Superior Brough Superior ( / ˈ b r ʌ f / BRUF ) motorcycles , sidecars , and motor cars were made by George Brough in his Brough Superior works on Haydn Road in Nottingham , England, from 1919 to 1940. The motorcycles were dubbed
SECTION 10
#1732884333633900-503: A heavily braced cross-over headstock. In two months a prototype motorcycle with the new frame was on the test track and it was tested on the Isle of Man in the winter of 1949. It performed well and Norton decided that the Norton works team would have motorcycles with the new frames. The Norton works was not well equipped so the sif-bronze welding was undertaken by the McCandless brothers who produced
975-515: A lift." When told it was a Brough Superior the motorcyclist was silent for the rest of the journey. Boddy presumed this was incredulity that a famed motorcycle maker could also manufacture cars, and supposed that the motorcyclist presumed he was concussed . The Brough surname, as with many English surnames that look like placenames, probably arose because one of George Brough's male-line ancestors came from one of several places in Britain so called . It
1050-496: A new model at the EICMA fair in Milan: the "Pendine Sand Racer". Reminiscing the times when Brough Superior competed on the sand beaches of Wales, the "Pendine Sand Racer" is a variation of the S.S.100 with a flat track style and higher exhausts and handlebar. In 2019, to commemorate Brough Superior's centenary, the company launched the "Anniversary" model. Limited to 100 editions. The model is
1125-435: A new or improved frame for a motorcycle which comprises two substantially parallel rectangular loops each formed from a single length of tubing, and the ends of the tube forming each loop cross and are welded to each other at the top front corner of the loop, the free ends of the tube which extend beyond the crossing point being welded to the side of an inclined head tube adjacent to the top and bottom thereof. The assembled frame
1200-496: A rubber-mounted engine and gearbox, although Norton continued to offer the Mercury with a Featherbed frame until production ceased by 1970. Replicas of the frame continue to be produced by specialist companies. In 1949 brothers Rex and Cromie McCandless offered Norton a new frame to support their successful 500cc race single. Rex McCandless was a self-taught Belfast motorcycle engineer and raced competitively with his brother on
1275-413: A single spine beneath the tank. Also called beam or twin spar , two beams wrap around the engine to join the steering head and swing arm in the shortest distance possible for better rigidity. Beams are usually made of pressed metal (steel/aluminium). The trellis frame employs the same concept but uses welded members to form a trellis instead of pressed metal. Antonio Cobas is credited with pioneering
1350-457: A spare tyre, while others offered two seats for occasional use. The fit and finish of these sidecars were of the highest standard, as were the motorcycles. These sidecars all offered good protection from the elements. Many of the earlier sidecars were built to Brough Superior specification, while later sidecar frames were manufactured in the Brough Superior factory. Later sidecars were unique in
1425-418: A stressed member engine. During early testing of the 1983 Kawasaki GPZ900R , twin downtubes were included, creating a full cradle, but the downtubes were found to carry little load, so they were removed, relying entirely on the combination of the steel backbone and engine for chassis rigidity. BMW 's R1100 series twins of 1994 relieved the frame of stress entirely, with the engine carrying the total load from
1500-424: A strong, lightweight structure that simplifies placement of engine and components, and gives good access for maintenance. Although construction of a trellis frame needs a more complicated process than, say, an alloy beam frame, it requires only a simple jig and a competent welder. No heavy capital outlay is required, so a trellis frame is ideal for a model that may be made in relatively small numbers. For this reason,
1575-594: A success for Brough Superior's enthusiasts. In November the same year, Brough Superior announced its partnership with Aston Martin to the World at the EICMA fair. Both brands gathered to present the AMB 001 (for Aston Martin Brough). Presented in the traditional Aston Martin Racing colours of Stirling Green and Lime Essence with Matte Black wheels, fork and brake assemblies, the AMB 001 features
SECTION 20
#17328843336331650-429: Is pressed or stamped from sheet metal to form a car-type semi- monocoque . One of the earliest examples was the 965cc motorcycle produced by Louis Janoir in 1920, which used pressed steel for the frame, rear swinging arm, and the front forks. The frame may be entirely pressed (Ariel Arrow), or may have just a pressed aft section connected to the steering head by a conventional steel tubular spine (Honda Super Cub). Both
1725-531: Is extremely strong for its weight and designed to provide the maximum resistance to any stresses applied to the frame by road shocks or by the driving torque of the power unit. Harold Daniell was a successful Isle of Man TT racer with three victories and several placings in the Tourist Trophy races and the Manx Grand Prix . After testing the new Norton frame in 1950 he declared that it was like "riding on
1800-470: Is originally a form of the word " borough ". "Superior" was a claim by George Brough of his bike's superiority over all other motorcycles, including the original Brough Motorcycles manufactured by his father, William E. Brough . The Brough Superior make and name was purchased by a Jersey-registered corporation, operated by Mark Upham. He quickly asked Thierry Henriette to operate the development of new Brough Superior Motorcycles. Thierry Henriette, CEO of
1875-416: Is suspended from a single spine. Spine could be a solid structure. The motorcycle engine is held in a single cradle with a single spine. Examples The motorcycle engine is held in a double cradle with a single spine and single downtube. The motorcycle engine is held in place within a pair of separate cradles. The Norton Featherbed frame was the classic example, but many "duplex" frames actually have
1950-674: The slimline frame. The slimline was used until the last of the vertical twin cylinder models in the late 1960s, the Norton Mercury , a limited-production run of single carburettor 650 cc machines based on the Dominator; the Norton Commando with its new frame design and angled-forward engine having been launched at the Earls Court show in 1967 took over as the 750 cc range-topper, later enlarged to 830 cc, but badged as '850'. Dave Degens created his first hybrid motorcycle of
2025-549: The Triton , becoming legendary and remaining influential to this day. The Featherbed inspired other frame builders who based their own products on similar principles, including the 1960s heavyweight Münch Mammut , a lightweight version for a 250 cc BSA C15 engine, and the 1970-conceived Dresda frame. The Featherbed was replaced by the Norton Isolastic frame in 1967 for the then newly-developed Norton Commando which used
2100-495: The XII made in 1938, used a Lincoln-Zephyr V12 engine of 4,387 cc and Brough's own design of chassis with Girling brakes and Ford axles. Only one was made with a saloon body built by Charlesworth . A large car with an overall length of 219 inches (5,600 mm) and width of 71 inches (1,800 mm), it still survives. Journalist Bill Boddy tested an early model Brough Superior Saloon in 1936 for Motor Sport magazine. Noting
2175-456: The " Rolls-Royce of Motorcycles" by H. D. Teague of The Motor Cycle newspaper. Approximately 3048 motorcycles (19 models) were made in the 21 years of production; around a third of that production still exists. T. E. Lawrence (" Lawrence of Arabia ") owned eight of these motorcycles and died from injuries sustained when he crashed number seven; the eighth was on order. Moving forward to 2008, vintage motorcycle enthusiast Mark Upham acquired
2250-463: The 1920s and 1930s. Since the average annual salary in Britain during the 1930s was £200, only the wealthy could afford them. In 1940, World War II brought an end to production as the factory was engaged on war work, completing crankshafts for Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. After hostilities had ceased there were no suitable engines available so the company was wound up. In 2004, around 1,000 Brough Superior motorcycles still existed. Early models include
2325-601: The 1963 and 1964 Manx Grands Prix . In 1970, racer and bike shop owner Dave Degens produced his first bespoke Dresda frame, after his business name Dresda Autos . Based on the geometry of the smaller-capacity (250 cc/350 cc) Aermacchis he had previously raced, the new frame had tube runs and layout based on the Featherbed, but with upscaled proportions to allow for the use of taller, heavier, more-powerful 650 cc parallel twin cylinder engines , similar to his 1965 Barcelona 24-hour endurance race-winning Dresda Triton . The new bike used Degens' later development of
Featherbed frame - Misplaced Pages Continue
2400-402: The 1972 Bol d'Or 24-hour endurance race . Degens subsequently offered frame kits for self-builders using Triumph and Honda engines, and also produced complete machines for road-use, named Dresda Triumph and Dresda Honda . In addition to the better-known Triumph-Norton and Vincent-Norton , a small number of other hybrid motorcycles, sometimes known as 'specials', have been created using
2475-486: The Aero-D One, featuring a composite monocoque chassis that weighed only 12 kg (26 lb). An aluminium monocoque frame was used for the first time on a mass-produced motorcycle from 2000 on Kawasaki's ZX-12R , their flagship production sportbike aimed at being the fastest production motorcycle . It was described by Cycle World in 2000 as a "monocoque backbone...a single large diameter beam" and "Fabricated from
2550-589: The Brough Superior Mark I Sidevalve, Mark I Overhead, Mark II Standard and Mark II Sports. Early to mid manufacture included the Overhead 500, 680 S.V. Junior, and 750 Side Valve, but these were not popular and were dropped from production. The following four models represent the bulk of manufacture. Most were custom built to order and many variations were made: Brough Superior produced many other experimental, show, and racing models. These include: George Brough
2625-842: The French design company Boxer Design is now the owner of the Brough Superior Factory. He financed and operated the development of a new SS100 in respect to the original ethos of the Brough Superior marque - innovation, excellent design, and superior construction and materials. The new Boxer-designed Brough Superior SS100 first appeared at the EICMA show in Milan in 2013; serial production began in 2016. The new Brough Superior SS100 features an 88degree, 990cc v-twin engine, with water cooling and DOHC four-valve cylinder heads, designed and built by Boxer Design. The engine produces 120 hp in standard tune, and
2700-525: The Super Cub and the Arrow also have pressed steel forks, instead of conventional telescopic forks . More common in the car world, a monocoque frame comprises a structure where loads are supported through its external skin. On motorcycles they are used almost exclusively on racing motorcycles. French industrialist and engineer Georges Roy attempted in the 1920s to improve on the bicycle-inspired motorcycle frames of
2775-579: The aluminium in motorcycle frames is almost exclusively welded in more angular forms, and often forming a monocoque frame. In 1983, Armstrong motorcycles produced a 250cc Grand Prix motorcycle using a revolutionary carbon fiber frame. Following the technology being used by the Formula One industry, Armstrong designers Mike Eatough and Barry Hart created the first motorcycle using a carbon fiber frame to compete in Grand Prix racing. The motorcycle engine
2850-411: The bolt-on footboards for mechanical access. A monocoque-framed motorcycle was developed by Spanish manufacturer Ossa for the 1967 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season . Although the single-cylinder Ossa had 20 horsepower (15 kW) less than its rivals, it was 45 pounds (20 kg) lighter and its monocoque frame was much stiffer than conventional motorcycle frames, giving it superior agility on
2925-404: The car had a reserve fuel tank, he declined to fill up before the journey. Upon running out of petrol, he could not find the switch to activate the reserve. After begging petrol from a passing lorry Boddy then encountered a motorcyclist who had crashed, and offered to help. When asked, he told Boddy that his bike was a Brough Superior and asked what was, "...the nice car in which you are giving me
3000-422: The chassis uses the engine as a stressed member, with a Fior -based front fork with Öhlins shock absorber, with Öhlins monoshock rear suspension. The chassis is made entirely of exotic materials, including titanium , carbon fiber , and aluminum . The front brakes are from Beringer , with four rotors, sourced from the aircraft industry. The minimal bodywork is constructed of hand-hammered aluminum, including
3075-445: The customer's needs, and rarely were any two of the same configuration. Each motorcycle was assembled twice. The first assembly was to fit all the components. Then the motorcycle was disassembled and all the parts painted or plated as needed. Finally, the finished parts were assembled a second time. Every motorcycle was test ridden to ensure that it performed to specification, and was personally certified by George Brough. The SS100 model
Featherbed frame - Misplaced Pages Continue
3150-482: The day, which lacked rigidity. This limited their handling and therefore performance. He applied for a patent in 1926, and at the 1929 Paris Automotive Show unveiled his new motorcycle, the Art-Deco styled 1930 Majestic. Its new type of monocoque body solved the problems he had addressed, and along with better rigidity it did double-duty, as frame and bodywork provided some protection from the elements. Strictly considered, it
3225-650: The earlier type Nortons, so was a clear choice for Norton to really put the new Featherbed-framed race bikes to the test. Duke won the race on the new design and several racing successes followed with Norton winning first three places in the 1950 Senior and Junior TT's. In the Friday Senior TT Duke set a new lap record of 93.33 mph and also broke the overall race record, finishing in two hours, 51 minutes and 45 seconds; he had previously finished second to Artie Bell (Norton) in Monday's Junior TT. ( Harold Daniell 's Norton
3300-415: The eight frames for the racing team by hand. Production featherbed frames were made under Ken Sprayson 's direction at Reynolds, who became known as 'The Frame man' Norton applied for a patent for the design on 13 October 1949 and it was granted as reference 664,667 but the completed specification was not published until 9 January 1952. The Featherbed frame was simply constructed: This invention relates to
3375-496: The eight-cylinder engine and chassis kits in 1936, and subsequent cars had a 107 bhp (80 kW), 3,455 cc straight-six , still with side valves and called the 3.5 litre . A Centric supercharged version was also listed with a claimed output of 140 bhp (100 kW). The chassis was 4 inches (100 mm) shorter than the 4 litre at 116 inches. Saloon bodies were available but most were open cars. Approximately 80 were made between 1936 and 1939. The final car,
3450-499: The existing name. Degens created what he termed as Dresda Triton from 1963, with the Motorcycle Mechanics' road test of June 1964 stating "The firm has sold well over fifty to date ...", naming two mechanics/bike builders in addition to Degens, who was a regular short-circuit road racer , having ridden for Monty and Paul Dunstall on his ex-works 500 cc Norton Domiracer with lowboy frame designed by Doug Hele in
3525-575: The fact that the frame of the sidecar held fuel. The sidecar frame looped over the top of the sidecar body and had a filler cap at the topmost position. Fuel was pressurized by a hand pump that transferred fuel from the sidecar to the petrol tank on the motorcycle. Two different bodies could be ordered for the petrol tube sidecar; cruiser or sports. The various sidecars were offered in the yearly Brough Superior sales catalogs: George Brough made approximately 85 cars named Brough Superior. Built between 1935 and 1939, they were powered by Hudson engines and had
3600-399: The featherbed frame, mostly with associated Norton-sourced, matching running gear: Motorcycle frame A motorcycle frame is a motorcycle 's core structure. It supports the engine, provides a location for the steering and rear suspension , and supports the rider and any passenger or luggage. Also attached to the frame are the fuel tank and battery. At the front of the frame is found
3675-477: The frame is more properly called a "semi-monocoque". An example is Peter Williams' semi-monocoque Norton racer. A trellis frame connects the steering head to the swingarm pivot as directly as possible using metal tube arranged in triangulated reinforcement. Using lattice girder principles, a trellis frame is typically constructed of round or oval section metal tubular segments that are welded or brazed together. A well-designed trellis frame should provide
3750-509: The frame tubes to be made thinner for the same strength, as well as making for a more responsive frame. All the joints were Sifbronze welded, – a relatively low-temperature flame-braze – except for the sub frame which was initially bolted-on but welded in later versions. In 1953 the Norton International was relaunched with a new version of the Featherbed frame made from grade A mild steel. In 1956, Norton development engineer Doug Hele
3825-406: The frame, as a flexible frame acts as a spring to absorb some loads. In the 21st century, advances like high power engines driving high traction tires, and better-performing suspension components, especially forks, led to a situation where designs with increased overall frame stiffness were made available to consumers. Analysts differ on whether infinite lateral stiffness is desirable, or whether
SECTION 50
#17328843336333900-401: The frame. It also becomes possible to mount the swingarm directly to the engine rather than the frame, avoiding the need for frame members extending downward to the swingarm pivot. By increasing the number of mounting points between the engine and frame, vibrations and stress can be better dissipated in the frame, typically creating a triangle between the swingarm in the rear, the cylinder head at
3975-523: The front Telelever fork to the rear Monolever . Frame stiffness is a problem for motorcycle designers, as it was for the bicycle frames that motorcycles are descendants of. Modifying the stiffness of a factory-produced frame can be undertaken to improve handling characteristics. This is often done by triangulating the factory frame. Triangulation is a technique used in many engineering applications to stiffen structures. However doing so can also have undesirable effects if it overloads other parts of
4050-483: The fuel tank, seat cowl, fenders, and side covers. The dry weight of the SS100 is just under 400 lbs, making it among the lightest 'litre bikes' ever produced for street use. Press reaction to the new SS100 has been generally positive. Road tests have praised the smooth engine, excellent handling, and contemporary performance, with some journalist praising the overall design aesthetic. In 2017, Brough Superior presented
4125-433: The load between the engine and frame reduces the overall weight of the motorcycle. Stressed member engines were pioneered at least as early as the 1916 Harley-Davidson 8-valve racer, and incorporated in the production Harley-Davidson Model W by 1919. This was called a keystone, or diamond, frame. The 1946 Vincent Series B Rapide was designed with an advanced chassis, termed a "tour de force for its day," that included
4200-568: The low production models. The estimated total production was 3,048 machines. Riders of Brough Superiors have won many races—sprints ( drag racing ), hillclimbs , and top speed. Victories include: In 2013 Brough Superior said it would return to Grand Prix motorcycle racing with a prototype machine for Moto2, the Carbon2, a motorcycle made by California builders Taylormade and rebranded as a Brough Superior. Brough Superior also manufactured sidecars. The sidecars had coach-built bodies, and some carried
4275-413: The modern, aluminum perimeter frame chassis now used on many modern racing and production motorcycles. In 1982, Cobas developed a stronger and lighter aluminum twin-beam chassis to replace the steel backbone frames. The technology was copied by major motorcycle manufacturers and by the 1990s, all the major racing teams in Grand Prix competition used the aluminum frame design pioneered by Cobas. The frame
4350-472: The optimum choice. In Europe and the USA, steel tubing was the default material until recent times. All the major manufacturers (AJS, Ariel, BSA, Matchless, Norton, Sunbeam, Triumph, Velocette, BMW, DKW, Ducati, Moto-Guzzi, Harley-Davidson and Indian) used steel tubing. Unlike the development seen in bicycle frames where tubular steel frames were succeeded by frames welded out of round or ovalized aluminium tubing,
4425-463: The racetrack. Ossa won four Grands Prix races with the monocoque bike before their rider died after a crash during the 250 cc event at the 1970 Isle of Man TT , causing the Ossa factory to withdraw from Grand Prix competition. Notable designers such as Eric Offenstadt and Dan Hanebrink created unique monocoque designs for racing in the early 1970s. The F750 event at the 1973 Isle of Man TT races
4500-422: The rest of the machine. This strategy means the engine contributes little to frame stiffness, and absorbing rather than dissipating vibration can lead to stress damage to the frame, exhaust pipes, and other parts. Instead, if the engine is rigidly mounted to the frame, vibrations pass to and are dissipated via the whole frame, and the rider. Rigid mounting allows the engine to contribute to the overall stiffness of
4575-603: The rights to the Brough Superior name. In 2013 he met motorcycle designer Thierry Henriette and asked him to design a new Brough Superior motorcycle. Three months later a prototype of a new SS100 was shown in Milan. George Brough was a racer, designer, and showman - his father William E. Brough had been making Brough Motorcycles in Nottingham since 1908, and continued to do so until 1926. Convinced he could improve on his father's designs, all Brough Superior motorcycles were high performance and superior quality. Most were custom-built to
SECTION 60
#17328843336334650-455: The size of this engine determined the space between the top and bottom rails of the full duplex cradle. In 1960 the top rails were installed at the rear of the tank. Riders complained that these wideline Featherbed frames were uncomfortably wide at 11.5 inches (29 cm) but it was not until 1960 that the top runs of the frame were narrowed towards the front of the seat, with corresponding overall styling changes including tank and seat to create
4725-467: The steering head tube that holds the pivoting front fork , while at the rear there is a pivot point for the swingarm suspension motion. Some motorcycles include the engine as a load-bearing stressed member; while some other bikes do not use a single frame, but instead have a front and a rear subframe attached to the engine. In the early days, motorcycles were little more than motorised bicycles , and consequently frames were tubular steel . While
4800-451: The stress of racing. Norton engineer Joe Craig solved the problems by making the frames heavier but handling suffered as a consequence. Norton commissioned the McCandless brothers to design a complete frame, incorporating a swinging arm. McCandless' finished design was expensive, as it required over forty feet of the best Reynolds steel tubing . It was a welded twin loop with a swinging arm fitted with their own design of shock absorbers, with
4875-415: The top and the lower crankcase area at the front. If a rigidly mounted engine not only contributes to, but is critical to, the stiffness of the frame, and is an integral part of closing the triangle or trellis structure that transfers force from the headstock to the swingarm, to the point that without the engine the frame would be deformed, the engine is called a stressed member , or a lifted engine . Sharing
4950-501: The trellis frame has found favour with European manufacturers, and Ducati in particular. Some motorcycles, such as the Yamaha TRX850 , have hybrid frames that employ alloy castings at the swingarm pivot area. Another variation is to suspend the engine from a trellis frame, but have the swingarm pivot cast into the rear of the engine. For rider comfort, a motorcycle's engine can be mounted on rubber bushings to isolate vibration from
5025-424: The use of steel tubing is still common, in modern times other materials, such as titanium , aluminium , magnesium , and carbon-fibre , along with composites of these materials, are now used. As different motorcycles have varying design parameters (such as cost, complexity, weight distribution , stiffness, power output and speed), there is no single ideal frame design, and designers must make an informed decision of
5100-417: The wheel on the frame, and with heavy bracing around the steering head tube. The frame was used with Manx Norton engines prepared by tuner Ray Petty, and also with a 500 cc Norton Dominator engine. Weight and strength were key factors in the design of the featherbed frame for the Norton racing team's Manx. 16-gauge Reynolds 531 , a high-tensile manganese-molybdenum steel alloy, was used as it allowed
5175-418: Was known for his dedication to his vehicles and customers. He, and later Albert Wallis, continued to service Brough Superiors after production ceased, making parts until 1969. To all intents and purposes production of bikes never resumed after WWII. To this list may be added thirteen motorcycles without a date on their build card. Many records are incomplete for the first few years of production and for some of
5250-437: Was more of a semi-monocoque, as it used a box-section, pressed-steel frame with twin side rails riveted together via crossmembers, along with floor pans and rear and front bulkheads. A Piatti light scooter was produced in the 1950s using a monocoque hollow shell of sheet-steel pressings welded together, into which the engine and transmission were installed from underneath. The machine could be tipped onto its side, resting on
5325-677: Was named Domiracer , and one was successfully raced to third-place by Tom Phillis in the 1961 Senior TT race. In 1962 the factory developed a Lowboy with a 350 cc Manx Norton single-cylinder engine and a 650 cc version using the Dominator 650SS engine but with a full-height Manx frame, both as tried by Derek Minter . In 1962 the race shop closed and was sold to Paul Dunstall , who had already developed his own Norton Dominator -engined race machine campaigned by Fred Neville (deceased 1961) and Dave Downer (deceased 1963). Dunstall successfully developed 500, 650 and 750 versions, later producing
5400-516: Was ridden at 100 mph (160 km/h) or more before delivery. The SS80 model was ridden at 80 mph (130 km/h) or more before delivery. If any motorcycle did not meet specification, it was returned to the works for rework until it performed properly. The fit and finish was comparable to a Rolls-Royce car, and they were the most expensive road-going motorcycles in the world. Brough Superior motorcycles have always been rare and expensive. Prices for these motorcycles ranged from £ 100 to £185 in
5475-590: Was tasked with creating a 500 cc overhead valve road-based racing machine to challenge the larger-displacement side valve 750 Harley Davidsons run in the same class at AMA -organised Daytona 200 races. Initially unsuccessful, the project was turned into creating a road-based race engine as a replacement for the ageing Manx Norton racer engine. Hele designed a lighter-weight, lower frame with slightly shorter wheelbase , based on Featherbed principles having slightly altered frame runs and shortened telescopic front forks which became known as Lowboy . The project
5550-464: Was third.) When it came to the bends on the twisting Island course the new frame gave the Nortons a distinct advantage. Featherbed frames were also successfully modified for use in off road racing or motorcycle scrambling . In the 1950s, Ron Hankin designed a featherbed-inspired Moto Cross frame for Les Archer junior , having curved downtubes to allow for greater front suspension movement without fouling
5625-505: Was won by Peter Williams on the monocoque-framed John Player Special that he helped to design based on Norton Commando . Honda also experimented with the NR500 , a monocoque Grand Prix racing motorcycle in 1979 . The bike had other innovative features, including an engine with oval shaped cylinders, and eventually succumbed to the problems associated with attempting to develop too many new technologies at once. In 1987 John Britten developed
#632367