1936 Brough Superior SS80 Matchless with Watsonian sidecar

1936 ugh Superior SS80 Matchless with Watsonian sidecar

*Comes with original Log Book dating back to 1936
*Frame and Engine numbers matching the factory records

'In producing Brough Superior machines the maker's object is to provide motor cycling of as luxurious a character as possible, which means that comfort is not to be sacrificed for the sake of performance, but both these qualities must be present to the highest possible degree. Behind the production of the new SS80 there is an additional object, and that is to provide a machine completely equipped and possessing all the Brough Superior characteristics but selling at a comparatively low price.' – The Motor Cycle, 1 August 1935.

Legendary superbike of motorcycling's between-the-wars 'Golden Age,' Brough Superior - 'The Rolls-Royce of Motorcycles' - was synonymous with high performance, engineering excellence and quality of finish. That such a formidable reputation was forged by a motorcycle constructed almost entirely from bought-in components says much for the publicity skills of George Brough. But if ever a machine was more than the sum of its parts, it was the Brough Superior.

W E Brough's machines had been innovative and well-engineered, and his son's continued the family tradition but with an added ingredient - style. The very first Brough Superior MkI of 1919 featured a saddle tank - an innovation not adopted by the rest of the British industry until 1928 - and the latter's broad-nosed, wedge-profiled outline would be a hallmark of the Nottingham-built machines from then on. Always the perfectionist, Brough bought only the best available components for his bikes, reasoning that if the product was right, a lofty price tag would be no handicap. And in the 'Roaring Twenties' there were sufficient wealthy connoisseurs around to prove him right.

Introduced in 1922, the JAP-powered SS80 achieved instant fame when a racing version ridden by George became the first sidevalve-engined machine to lap Brooklands at over 100mph. With the new SS80's performance threatening to put the overhead-valve MkI in the shade, it was decided to completely re-design the latter. The result was the legendary SS100. First shown to the public in 1924, the SS100 employed an entirely new 980cc JAP v-twin engine. A frame of duplex cradle type was devised for the newcomer, which soon after its launch became available with the distinctive, Harley-Davidson-influenced, Castle front fork patented by George Brough and Harold 'Oily' Karslake. And just in case prospective customers had any doubts about the SS100's performance, each machine came with a written guarantee that it had been timed at over 100mph for a quarter of a mile - a staggering achievement at a time when very few road vehicles of any sort were capable of reaching three-figure speeds.

Brough entered the 1930s with an entirely JAP-powered range and then, after a brief absence, the SS80 reappeared in 1935 as the SS80 Special, this time with an engine built by AMC or Associated Motor Cycles. Although broadly similar to that of the Matchless Model X, the 982cc sidevalve v-twin incorporated Brough's preferred 'knife-and-fork' big-end bearing arrangement instead of the side-by-side connecting rods of the Matchless. By now recast in the mold of luxury tourer or sidecar tug, the SS80 continued to use the AMC engine until production ceased in 1939, by which time 460 of that type had been built, of which some 300-or-so survive.

This lovely example of an SS80 Matchless was delivered to a Jacksonville, Florida collection in 2003 sourced from Pollard's Motor Cycles of Dinnington, near Sheffield in the UK. The handsome single-seat polished aluminum sidecar, complete with screen, tonneau cover and Doncaster & District Motor Cycle Club decal, is a Watsonian mounted on the left side, appropriate for British and Australian roads where everyone drives on the left. Both New Zealand and South Africa, together with Ireland, Malta and Cyprus are countries that share this side of the road.

With the bike is a UK beige logbook which states first registration was on 29 September 1936 with no. CWA 570, a Sheffield, South Yorkshire number. Further UK stamps are on the logbook from Doncaster and Kingston-upon-Hull, both in Yorkshire, with six additional owners. There is also a Works Record card with period typed specification document in the history file that states the first owner was a Mr. A. Wright of Sheffield.

Clearly well restored some years ago, little is known of this outfit's history apart from what's given to us by the UK beige logbook. The Sheffield registration number, and local selling dealer, and the Doncaster club decal, reinforces that the bike was located in South Yorkshire, in the UK, possibly for its whole life prior to its arrival in the USA. Mild recommissioning and safety checks should be undertaken before the bike is started and put back on the road.