Australian Motorcycles - Notes

Component Manufacturers

• JAP (J.A.Prestwich of London) manufactured engines from 123cc to 1098cc which were incorporated into many makes of motorcycles. JAP built their own motorcycles from 1904 to 1908. From then to 1945 they built engines.
• MAG was the name by which proprietrary engines manufactured by the Swiss company Motosacoche were also known. Motosacoche built motorcycles and proprietary engines over the period from 1899 to 1957. Quite a range of engines were made but particularly singles and V-twins.
• Precision manufactured proprietry engines. England. 1912-1919. Also manufactured, mainly 500cc, motorcycles which were exclusively sold in Australia.
• Villiers manufactured proprietry engines. England. Mainly (solely?) 2-strokes.

Publications

•  A-Z of Australian-Made Motorcycles is the definitive work on the topic of Aussie bikes.
• OBM is Old Bike Mart, a monthly newspaper published in the UK. There Web site is  http://www.oldbikemart.co.uk
• Tragatsch is the old bike bible. It is excellent on European, American and Japanese machines but leaves a fair amount to be desired on Australian bikes. The details are:

    The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Motorcycles
    Edited by Erwin Tragatsch
    Revised by Brian Woolley
    Grange Books, 1993
    ISBN 1-85627-004-1

Places

The National Motor Museum is at
Birdwood,
South Australia,
SA 5234
AUSTRALIA
Phone: 61 8 8568 5006
Fax: 61 8 8568 5195

The Motor Cycle and Heritage Musem is at
Building 21,
No: 1 Lenswood Road
Lobethal
South Australia
SA 5241
AUSTRALIA
Phone: 61 8 8389 5734

Acknowledgements

• Various publications have provided some background information, particularly A-Z of Australian-Made Motorcycles
• Wayne and Rod Gifford provided first hand information on Swastika, Lewis and Tilbrook machines.