An early block print ...

 

... of a Model 8, from 1919. Details are in our copy of the 1919 brochure - engine guaranteed to do a 65 mph lap at Brooklands and a maximum speed of 70mph for the kilometre. Brakes not suitable for modern traffic!

1922 Model BRS (Model 8) Norton

-Martin Shelley- Hereby pictures of an alleged 1922 Brooklands Road Special (BRS, or Model 8) Norton in the Norfolk Motorcycle Museum. They show what is an obviously genuine and original machine.

Andrew Neall from the museum writes about the history of the bike as follows "Our BRS was bought new in Norwich by a gentleman named George Swain. He was employed, during the last world war, to photograph bomb damage in Norwich. The bike was then bought by a bicycle shop owner and wheeler dealer named 'Dodger' Kerrison and remains in the ownership of the family. The bike is in original condition apart from a new seat cover."

With a 1923 registration from Kent it's perhaps one of the newest belt drive Nortons to survive and later than anything else I have seen. There are lots of other interesting details which can be seen in the attached images. Crucially it has a piecrust-edged tank, while all the others seem to have plain-edged tanks (although actually many - if not most - have replica tanks!)

I doubt it's really a BRS as by that stage the direct belt drive model was simply referred to as the Model 9 ...  (note: the BRS and BS (Brooklands Special, or Model 7) models were no more than bikes with engines that had been tested in a slave frame by O'Donovan at Brooklands. They had exceeded 70 and 75 mph respectively. There was no special tuning involved however; there was a lot of variation in the parts used to build the engines and performance could vary by as much as 10 mph as a result).

The rather poor picture of the Model 9 from the 1922 parts list (above) shows many of the same features as the Norfolk bike, except interestingly the front drum brake.

1915 Model 8 Norton

This picture shows Alexander Lindsay, a doctor in the Royal Army Medical Corps, with the Norton he rode in the August 1915 'All Khaki' Brooklands meeting. This race was for members of the armed forces only. He won the half-mile sprint for machines up to 550cc.

The Norton is a 1915 model as it has the 'Curly N' trademark on the tank, first used in 1915; note that the trademark on the magneto chain cover is still of the plain earlier type. It's a Model 8, also known as the Brooklands Road Special, similar to the Brooklands Special though fitted with a carrier and mudguards. Brookland Specials were not specially built but rather identified; engines would be sent to O'Donovan at Brooklands who would fit them to a frame and test them; Brooklands Specials were fitted with the fastest engines from these batches, guaranteed to do 65 to 75 mph depending on year and model.

Production engines would vary a lot in performance, mostly due to the difficulties of casting the 'blind' cylinder barrels without a detachable head. Sometimes the cylinder head would sink in the casting and you could end up with a very high compression ratio and the perfect shape of the head and ports. These engines would be kept apart and become the record breakers.

Dr. Lindsay extensively modified his machine. He fitted special forks; tiny springs can be seen where you would expect to find the top links. The carburetter is a Binks Mousetrap. He seems to have jammed metal plates between the fins of the cylinder head in an attempt to improve the cooling of the engine. The belt rim looks very shiny and new to me and there is something fitted between the frame rails, on the left, at the rear of the machine; dr. Lindsay's idea of a brake perhaps?

Alexander is holding a wrench in his right hand, ready to change the plug!