Vintage Pics of the Day

[T. Cotten]

pooch copilot.jpg

pooch in lap.jpg

Kiddeeseat.jpg

Kiddee seat 3.jpg
The helmet is abuse no doubt.

.....Cotten

[Steve Slocombe]

Dear All, here are the pictures of my newly acquired 1914 Douglas as requested. It's a 348 cc fore-and-aft flat twin with a two speed gearbox, and early enough to still have a Bosch magneto. With no clutch, it is started by running alongside or paddling from the saddle with the valve lifter up and then dropping it underway. Douglas was based in Bristol and started as an iron foundry in the 19th century. They built the Fee, then the Fairy with strap-on flat twin engines, then enlarged the engine and mounted it lower around 1909. These and Triumph were the popular UK bikes pre-WW1. My pal's 1912 has a frame number in the 6000s, my '14 is in the 16,000s, and by 1918 it was up to 40,000 with nearly all military production for dispatch riders in France. The model ran into the mid-1920s as a utility runabout. Perhaps it was inspiration for the 1919-23 Harley Sport. Lubrication is once-through, with a spring loaded hand oil pump on the tank and a sight glass oil dripper controlled by by a needle valve. This one was a bit smoky with 30 thou ring gaps now being attended to. The auxiliary acetylene lighting will not be recommissioned. The original Dunlop tyres have been pumped up since the pictures were taken.

1914douglasleftsmall.JPG1914douglasrightsmall.JPG

[PaulCDF]

Steve; Congratulatons what a BEAUTIFUL bike!!!!!!
QUESTION:
I always wondered about hand oilers, How does that process work?
How many pumps are given? At what intervals? What would the average range be on a tank of oil?

[ammorest]

And how do you know those animals didn't enjoy riding motorcycles as much as we do? Did any of them file a complaint with PETA?
Dave

[exeric]

What a jewel of a motorcycle, Steve. I particularly like the 'heart' shape of the intakes, and exhaust manifolds. In the early 20th century there was still an artistic element to engineering, unlike the later 'form follows function' mentality. Thanks for posting pictures of your Douglas.

[EricOlson]

Great looking bike Steve. Like Eric said, it has a very artistic quality to it. This bloke seems happy with his, hopefully your smile is just as big.

An unidentified soldier sitting on a 1914 Douglas motorcycle. WW1.jpg

[EricOlson]

Here's a different picture with a view of the other side. I see it has floorboards and the description says it's a 1915. I wonder if that's when they we're introduced or if they were added on by the owner. The kid astride looks like he can barely reach the ground!

Boy sitting astride a Douglas motorcycle, 1915 resize.jpg

[Rubone]

Nice Bacon Slicer!

[T. Cotten]

And how do you know those animals didn't enjoy riding motorcycles as much as we do? Did any of them file a complaint with PETA?
Dave

You could be right, Dave!

doghauler brit.jpg

K9 speaks.jpg

Maybe...

lion harris.jpg

Maybe not.

Lion passenger.jpg

....Cotten

[JoJo357]

*M.A.D.*


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[Steve Slocombe]

Dear All, on the Douglas I have a repro of the 1914 handbook, which says I have the model V with two speed gearbox, footrests and no clutch, which listed at £48. The model U with footboards instead of footrests was the same price, so maybe that is the style in the picture #2167 with the young lad on board. For 1914 the 'important frame tubes are three gauges heavier than in 1913' and the pedal models have been discontinued.

On hand oiling, my 1902 Kerry had a three way oil valve and you had to inject a pumpful every five miles. This meant leaning down while riding to turn the oil valve to the suction position, operate the hand oiler to suck up oil, then turn the valve to the discharge position and inject the full pump of oil at once into the crankcases. The Douglas has a hand oil pump on the tank with a strong return spring, so you pull the plunger right out and it is then pulled back slowly inwards under return spring pressure, the oil then goes through a needle valve, a sight glass on the tank top, and down the oil line directly to the crank pin bearings. The instructions again call for a pumpful every 5-8 miles, which I reckon as ten drops per minute at 25 mph. I'll report back with new piston rings and more riding experience.

[Tom Wilcock]

Here is a 1933 picture of a local fellow hill climbing with his Douglas.
Tom Dick Gower with Douglas 001.jpg

[Tom Wilcock]

Here is another picture of him on another hill. I don't know if he ever got over the top.
Tom Dick Gower with his Douglas 001.jpg

[T. Cotten]

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...Cotten

[EricOlson]

I have a different copy of that second picture Cotton that shows a bit more of the surroundings. The text I have with it says "Floyd Emde on an Indian at Ospital Canyon, 1948".

Floyd Emde on an Indian at Ospital Canyon, 1948 (2).jpg