Let's Talk Cyclecars

I agree - i will see what is around parts wise but suspect it best goes to someone who owns a runner.
shame as it is very light and just 30cm long - would have been ideal for a little special.

 

Brooklands 1927

 

I love this boat tail bignan

 

I like that Bignan too.Those are probably the best images of it I have seen.

 

A few more

 

New panel for a Morgan 3 wheeler

 

Hello There,

Who needs gasoline engines, electric-motors, or pedals – when we have gravity?
(legend said that cycle-cars were developed in Spain, before The Great War: competitors in gravity races put small engines on their cars to drive them up hill, instead walking and pulling them; later used to drive them from home to hill and back, and later to drive them around... more about Spanish cycle-cars next time)

2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed Soapbox Racers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wi7UUPrQ7_A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kIgU7vID3k
...and, one old - just for nostalgia!
http://word.photos/index.php?photo=1DLxuXPUDv4&keyword=maine%20street%20soapbox&title=1935%20All%20American%20Soap%20Box%20Derby%201935%20Chevrolet%20Newsreel&video=1
Ciao, Zoran

 

Here's some more gravity racing here in America....

http://www.ncderby.com/

 

Some of those look like the illegal soapbox cars from a few years ago.

 

For those unfamiliar with SFVISBF's (San Fernando Valley Illegal Soap Box Federation) exploits:

 

Ive just made the seat for the owners "other" C6 also restored by thornely kelham

 

I cannot believe the lawyers haven't put a stop to that. What fun!

 

Lawyers? ​

Probably didn't see any money in gravity racing!

However, nothing strange that they call thier races "ILLEGAL". Quite dardevil racing, but much better than those stupid RED-BULL "races"...
Probably the simplest and cheapest form of racing on four (or sometime three) wheels... I saw some more "normal" in which I would like to take appearence, in spite of my 64 years. Once, here in Bern I saw one such racer parked at grass in front of house, but never find anything about such races in Switzerland... Probaly, that there are some - have to check!

Ciao,
Zoran​

 

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifi...eler/1949-morgan-f4-in-good-condition/3102185

 

Very pretty car

 

Wasn't trying to hijack the thread. The illegal guys were stopped. For those that weren't here back then a guy was killed running into a parked car. Let's get back to cycle cars.

 

Kume,not worry about being on topic or not! Great find.Did you bring home the rest of the machine shop too?I'd like to see pictures of THAT!

Bob

 

An immense boost to my 1913 Alldays & Onions cycle car project this week with the purchase of a running motor and radiator.. It was being used to run an overhead belt set up in a private workshop since it was removed from the car in the 1950s. Sadly no idea what happened to teh rest of the car. Rare items retained include the throttle and timing levers formerly mounted on the steering column and chain oilier that mounted on the dash. Has an interesting Binks 3 jet carb fitted (not original).

 

I guess technically the Alldays midget was a micro car rather than a true cycle car.
Unfortunately the workshop went elsewhere as part of a deceased estate. Funny how these things come out of the woodwork every now and then. I recently acquired a spare gearbox for my 1920 Wolseley that was being used on an old engineers lathe and was in pristine condition inside. Beats trying to use weathered parts from old bush mills.

 

Couldn't find an image of a complete auto but here is a pic of a Japanese light car chassis by the name Sekine.
The driveline is angular and drives a gear at the left rear wheel.

 

Amilcar with some fresh body work by Roach Manufacturing Ltd.

 

Spider from G.L. ...

 

GN "THUNDER BUG" by G.L. ...

 

A couple of Frazer-Nash from G.L. ...

 

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Hello Kume,​

Great buy indeed! ​

That could be excellent base for building your own auto, no mater if it is in a style of pre-War cycle-cars, or maybe in a style of so called "baby-cars" as was Alldays & Onions - that was small, but almost real automobiles! The most famous was Peugeot Bèbè designed by Bugatti...

Probably you mentioned, but I forgot: do you have some other components for Alldays & Onions (chassis, suspensions, transmission...) or just those bought now? If you have the rest, you could build re-creation of your beloved model. If not, than whatever you want using this wonderful engine and grill with radiator plus a few small but nice details that you ...

Please, keep us inform, whatever you decide and start to build...

Ciao, Zoran​

 

Thanks for the encouragement Zoran. I have a midget chassis, springs, wheels and the remains of about four motors plus my recent purchase. I still need a gearbox and or diff to make it a viable restoration. So for now it is the makings of a wee special. The original Midget bodied aren't that attractive . I like the Peugeot and the Humberette bodies but for now I am thinking of a simple body like the A lldays pictured below but with lowered seat i.e. just a dash board and seat more like a speedster I guess. .
I have a spare Wolseley 15hp gearbox with side mounted shift that looks period and very similar to the original Alldays box - maybe an early Austin seven diff - so watch this space.

 

Photos of Alldays Midget , Humberette, Peugeot Bebe

 

Kume,​

For a couple of the first decades of motorisation, image of automobiles is defined by grill, maybe bonnet, and of course engine and chassis. Original bodies were often made by different carosserie-artistes, or later modified and changed. Specials appeared early, a few years before The Great War. Most of them are speedsters, or torpedo aluminium bodies. A lot of Edwardian era automobiles were modified to sporting models, after the War, because of too big demand for new cars... As it would be too complicated and too expensive to reconstruct original body, which isn't attractive as you said, some special would be nice - just to be in proper style of that era. You will built it for yourself - not for museums and auctions?

During my life in Belgrade, I tried a few times to build some light special for me – there were donnor cars, some knowledge and experience - what I couldn't do by myself, I would have help of my brother and my friends, back-yard master-enthusiasts. But I failed from 3 main reasons: no proper working space (garage), not enough of spare money and - no understandable and supporting wife! So, all projects finished on junk-yard or was given to friends to try their luck. Now in Serbia, couldn't be find anything useful (all of that finished on junk-yards – which is bad, or at Belgrade Automobile Museum – which is good). Here in Swiss, everything is too expensive and I am now 64... Beside, now I have two of missing conditions (new wife with garage), but still not the third...

Therefore - keep going and writing. Attached are photos of Bugatti 10, prototype for famous series that led to Brescia models, that could be inspiration. But, any version of smaller speedster could be fine, too.

Zoran​

 

Aldo pic...