Let's Talk Cyclecars

Killer, thanks.

 

Your welcome.

 

Go up 3 posts to the one Bob made. It has a youtube of this bike running.

 

I've watched a couple of videos of it and it doesn't want to idle very much. It looks like it has some kind of gear box below the engine.

 

That looks like a pre war Peugeot 100CC "motorcycle". The frame is basically a bicycle frame : notice the pedals and the 2 chains on each side of the frame, the one on the right side is connected to the pedals to help the engine while going uphill or when you run out of gas. They were equiped with some kind of cable operated gearbox with the lever on the handlebar just like a bicycle I suppose.
To me it looks like the arrangement on this bike is as follow : they removed the cylinder head, piston and rod, kept the crank that is now just a connecting mean via a chain and a custom sprocket between the radial engine and the gearbox.
But to me they used a different donor engine for the lever gearbox, because to the best of my knoledge, the 100cc didn't have a gear box.
That's how I would do it to keep the build as simple as possible.

 

There are drawings and castings out there for building a model radial engine that would be suitable to use like this.

 

Big block swap ?





Mike

 

A couple of hours ago ... I was doing some shopping and an Austin club was having a drive nearby.

 

The gentleman, George Luhr, that built these died about 10 years ago. That's a quarter laying on the table, penny in the case. He sold these for around $10,000. He did not believe in CNC equipment and cut ALL threads on a lathe. They were guaranteed to run on gasoline.

 

I love the little blue one.

 

I took one other pic of the blue one.

 

Wow, amazing work. That's like watch making.
Look at this site with this 1/5 scale running Ferrari.
https://www.businessinsider.com/the...ri-in-the-world-took-15-years-to-build-2012-5

 

A little bit of homage to the beginnings of our obsessions,

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a...enzs-wheeled-tricycle-is-130-years-old-today/

 

'Type 37 Bugatti, George Hotel, Ballarat' (Victoria, Oz) Photo by George Thomas (1928-2013); State Library of Victoria

 

Love the baggy suits talking about the impending war in Europe and the questionable virtues of the Series E convertible.

 

The RC model industry has you covered if you really want a small radial motor. Just one example here. THough these tend to be fairly small displacement (350-700cc) and may need nitro fuel to run. I imagine there are gas powered ones if you look around.
https://www.heilemann-sternmotoren....al-engines/saito-fa-325-r5-radial-engine-info

 

https://agelessengines.com/ This 8CI 9 cyl engine will run on pump gas. You have to build these yourself which would really be fun.

 

Same Bugatti (JT441, as above), at Rob Roy Hill Climb, 20 April 1947; photo by George Thomas; State Library of Victoria

 

Rob Roy Hill Climb, 20 April 1947; photo by George Thomas (1928-2013) ; State Library of Victoria

 

State Library of New South Wales. This has some similarities with the red and green Austin 7's posted above; Australian coachwork?

 

I've been watching English hillclimb events on Youtube, Shelsley Walsh, Prescott, Etc. I think these events are great, and I wish we had more of them here in the US. I know of a few, (New Hampshire, Nebraska, Colorado), but they all are so few and far between. The Brits figured out how to build a sports car while we were dinking around with Model T's. I guess I just gravitate toward the layout better, ie, low chassis, driver up against the rear axle. I would love to tear around corners in a GN., especially those ones named after bugs-Spider, Gnat, Flea. Seems so pure.

 

Yeah, the GN specials were really great. Got to love Bloody Mary.

 

Of course you do. I spent many years collecting photos, period ads and researching competition results and then contacting owners and restorers of the few survivors; which are NOT all in France.

 

Just ordered one. You're right. Following an esoteric passion long distance in not easy.

 

'Charles Montier and his French Racing Fords' is available from Amazon at:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B6L3Q5TW

 

Yes but that refers back to a small book about Montier that came about from my early reports for VeloceToday. We then decided to publish it in booklet form and as far as I know they are all sold out now. But......it was useful in that it flushed out some more contacts and info which led to the new much bigger book. Available now from Amazon at:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B6L3Q5TW

 

Great, let me know how you are getting on. I was lucky enough to have seen a few Montiers last year and as the few survivors are not for sale I have always wanted to build a copy myself. I have the basic he Model T parts in the shed but was hoping to find a Montier OHV cylinder head. Having met all the Montier gang in France and put out feelers I now realise this could be a long wait, so I may have to go with a Frontenac head; that is after all what Montier copied anyway.

 

Nice BNC but the thing that struck me was that I immediately recognised the location. It is on the west bank of the Rhone at Avignon. I have toured around there many times, but unfortunately never in a BNC.

 

'Austin 7 roadster automobile' 1928; State Library of Western Australia