Lot details
Registration No: FWL 307
Frame No: MVH228
Engine No: GJA122
cc: 500
MOT Expiry Date: Jan 2007

One of Britain's oldest motorcycle manufacturers, Excelsior seemingly took little interest in competition until Leslie Crabtree's 1929 Lightweight TT victory. Having narrowly missed out on a World Speed Record in 1931 (when its fearsome supercharged 1,000cc Silver Comet topped out at 163mph), the Tyseley based concern later approached engine supplier Blackburne for assistance in creating a new racing bike. Though, the resultant 'Mechanical Marvel' allowed Sid Gleave to win the 1933 Lightweight TT, it proved too complex for volume production. Keen to have its own 'over-the-counter' racer with which to rival the likes of the Cammy Nortons etc, Excelsior commissioned Blackburne's Ike Hatch to come up with a simpler powerplant. Introduced at the 1934 London Motorcycle Show, the Manxman was powered by a bevel-driven overhead camshaft 250cc single. A nimble, rigid-frame design, it was soon joined by 350cc and 500cc derivatives. Available in road or race guises, the Manxman enjoyed a successful competition career taking second place in the 1936-1938 Lightweight TTs and thrice winning the Lightweight Manx Grand Prix over the same period.
Finished in black with red petrol tank side panels, this particular 500cc example is described by the vendor as being in excellent condition with regard to its engine, paint / brightwork, transmission, electrics and frame / suspension (while, the engine is rated as "virtually new"). In the current ownership since 1973 when it was acquired as an incomplete mass of boxed components, it would be another twenty-four years before the Excelsior was ready for assembly (the delay being due to the sourcing of missing parts from marque specialist Phil Heath and the owner's "seagoing employment"). Brought back to life by Sammy Miller in 1997 - 1998, the bike won the 1999 Lulworth Castle Show concours. Stored in a dehumidified garage for the last seven years or so, it is thought to be "one of thirteen such machines known". Benefiting from a spare Miller dynamo (complete with sprockets / drive chain), new uncharged battery, sealed container of battery acid and an unfitted Boyer Bransden electronic ignition kit (including an adapted Miller magneto), this handsome Manxman is also offered for sale with two copy handbooks, a marque history, Manxman register correspondence, photocopied sales catalogues, 1936 'Motorcycle' buyers guide, sundry articles, a large quantity of invoices, buff logbook and V5 registration document.