1900 De Dion Bouton Board track racing motorcycle F/S and on Ebay

[georgealbright]

1900 De Dion Bouton (French) board track racing motorcycle. Superb complete original paint and condition. Possibly the worlds oldest racing motorcycle! Price: $75,000.00. Email for 20 photos and /or see on Ebay auction item # 4566651776 from Aug.3rd thru Aug. 17th. George Albright,Ocala,Florida Cell 352 843 1624 Email: gnalbright@gmail.com

[INLINE4NUT]

George,
Thanks for sharing! What piece!!!! I hope someone here in the States has the cash to buy it,I know if I did it would be in my toy box!

[HarleyCreation]

George, I hope you and admin don't mind if I copy your eBay text here. It is very interesting to read about this unique early French motorcycle.

It's not widely understood enough that the modern motorcycle engine is a French invention by Comte de Dion and the "wizard-like" former toymaker Georges Bouton. I think many people believe the motorcycle came to us from England. Actually the lightweight gasoline powered "Motor Cycle" was invented and patented here in America by "Airship" Pennington in 1893, but his device was not mechanically sound. It did, however, plant a seed in the imagination of thousands of bicycle riders (including George Hendee and 14 year old Bill Harley and Arty Davidson of the possibility of a bicycle that ran under it's own power!

But it took a Frenchmen and toymaker to miniaturize the already "perfected" but slow revving and heavy German Daimler engine into something small and light enough to be mounted in a bicycle or tricycle frame, and yet be reliable enough to actually run up to a 1000 rpm and more and not burn up or break.

I love that Wizard of Oz like magical early period and touch upon it in At the Creation as much as I could, including the story of Pennington in Milwaukee in 1895 and the influence of the de Dion-Bouton engine on the first PRACTICAL American motorcycles.

Your bike is out of my price range, but I would love to find a de Dion-Bouton engine in grandpa's junkpile out back or for a hundred bucks and tear it down and inspect it. Then to compare it to early American engines like the Evinrude, Thomas, Mitchell, Merkel, Harley-Davidson, and Indian and see how close they were to the French original.

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The Beginning!
Harley-Davidson At the Creation

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Up for sale is one of my collections best pieces... a 1900 DeDion Bouton (French) Racing Motorcycle. This may well be the oldest Board Track Racing Motorcycle in existence in the entire world! De Dion Bouton is well known for building several thousand cars, tricycles, quadricycles from 1895 to 1902. However they built very few motorcycles, (let alone racing motorcycles) and this may be the only De Dion motorcycle in existence worldwide period! It was discovered in the Netherlands and brought into the U.S. years ago. Original paint, patina and condition throughout. The motor is 2 3/4 HP, the largest the company made. The serial number 16175 indicates it is of late 1900 or 1901 vintage. This bike being a board track racer has no brakes and it must be push started. (A circa 1895-1905 bicycle front brake assembly could be easily added to the bike without modifying the frame or handlebars). The bike is slowed down by retarding the spark and closing the fuel. Enclosed are numerous photos including two pictures of circa 1900 French boardtrack racers very similar to mine. Notice how the rear seat on my bike and the two photo bikes are positioned over the rear tire, to enable (and force) the rider to lay down on the bike to reduce wind resistance! Also photographed are the minor parts needed to bring engine to running condition. The bike also come with a brand new Austin Parkinson Timer assembly, which cost over $500.00. The motor has great compression. As you can see these parts were purchased from Austin Parkinson in England. He has a full selection of new and used De Dion engine parts. The following also came with the bike : the original or an original correct DeDion Bouton Headstock Badge, a Super rare and valuable De Dion Leather Tool Kit (no tools) with the De Dion Bouton Seal embossed on it.The black long metal tube opens up and is for storing your tools,tire tube, or putting your coil and battery inside it,and then fastening it under the back of the seat.