Elswick bicycle with BSA Winged Wheel engine

Description

Elswick bicycle with BSA Winged Wheel engine

Following the ravages of World War II, Britain was eager to get back on wheels—preferably motorized wheels. Motorcycles were expensive, gas was still rationed and workers’ wages were pretty low. Bicycles were one answer, but not popular, especially if there was a hill on the way to work. In the late ’40s the Birmingham Small Arms factory turned out both bicycles and the Bantam 125 two-stroke single.

Following the war a number of small-scale entrepreneurs built little micromotors that could be clipped onto bicycles, allowing the rider to putter along at 10-12 mph. Although he, or she, would probably have to use a little LPA, “light pedal assistance,” when confronted with any sort of a hill.

In May of 1953 the company presented the BSA Winged Wheel to the public. It was a tiny engine with clutch and gears that fit into the middle of a bicycle wheel, and selling for a quarter the price of the Bantam; all you needed was your own bicycle. Apparently, rear bicycle wheels were all pretty much the same, and this Winged Wheel could be fit onto any number of bicycles.

Power came from a little 34.6cc two-stroke single, with BSA claiming a single horsepower at 6,000 rpm. Fuel was fed through a minuscule Amal 335 carburetor, with a Wipac flywheel magneto providing the spark for ignition. The hub was 9.5 inches in diameter and housed a very effective internal expanding brake. The wheel was 26 inches and spoked right into the hub.

BSA claimed a top speed of 25 mph was possible—though a slight downgrade would obviously help. A cruising speed of 20 mph was recommended, with the manual advising the owner not to over-stress the engine.

Elswick Hopper was a UK-based manufacturer of bicycles, formed by the merger in 1913 of the Elswick and Hopper cycle companies.

Frederick Hopper was born in 1859, and in 1880 started a bicycle repair business in a former blacksmith’s shop in Barton-upon-Humber. He then started manufacturing bicycles, and by 1906 F. Hopper & Co. Ltd was employing 400 people. By 1912 the company was exporting bicycles all over the Globe, with particularly strong export markets in Australia, India, Japan and South Africa making it a major manufacturing company.

In 1910, Hopper and a series of investors had bought the bankrupt Elswick Cycle Company, which took its name from a suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne where it was based. Between 1903 and 1915 it had manufactured motorcycles. Run as two rival companies, in 1913 Hopper bought out his fellow investors and closed the Elswick site, merging the two companies at the Barton-upon-Humber site in 1914 under the title Elswick Hopper Cycle and Motor Company.

The Barton-upon-Humber site began to boom, producing both bicycles and many of their own components, and in 1936, after the death of Fred, Elswick Hopper was listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Elswick listed ten motor attachment cycles on its price list.  These were Models E1, E2, E3, E4 & E5 with gent’s frame and E1L to E5L with lady’s frames.  E5 and E5L were supplied without a rear wheel and rear brake, so were intended for use with a Cyclemaster or BSA Winged Wheel.  The front fork was fitted with chromium-plated bracing bars and the seat tube was 2 inches shorter than on a normal bicycle – necessitating a dropped top tube on the gent’s model.  The catalogue shows the front wheel fitted with a drum brake.  All had number plates and license holders and were available in Black or Dove Grey.

Elswick Hopper plc continued in the business of manufacturing until it finally closed the doors in 2000.

The motorbike offered

The Elswick bicycle on offer here, complete with its BSA Winged Wheel engine took pride of place at the MotoTalbott Museum in Carmel, California for many years. On static display, it was never made to run and would need all the usual recommissioning to return it to regular commuting duties.