c.1915 Douglas 4hp Motorcycle Combination

• Ex-military model
• Present ownership since 1964
• Long-term restoration completed in 2002
• Unused since restoration (requires recommissioning)

The Bristol-based Douglas Foundry took up motorcycle production in 1907 with a machine powered by a horizontally-opposed, twin-cylinder engine, and the company would keep faith with this layout until it ceased motorcycle production in 1957. Fore-and-aft installation made for a slim machine with a low centre of gravity, and the design's virtues were soon demonstrated in competition, 2¾hp Douglas machines taking 1st, 2nd and 4th places in the 1912 Junior TT in the Isle of Man. Douglas were quick to realise the advantages of the countershaft gearbox, its three-speed entries gaining the Team Prize in the 1914 Six Days Trial, a conspicuous success that resulted in the firm obtaining a wartime contract for the supply of military machines. In military service the 2¾hp Douglas was used for solo despatch duties while the 4hp model - introduced for 1915 - was used as a motorcycle combination, 4,816 of the latter being supplied to British forces by 1918.

An ex-military model, this 4hp combination was purchased by the vendor in 1964. Restoration to civilian specification started in 1972 and continued on and off for the next 30 years! Finished in 2002 and unused since, this wonderful early Douglas with restored Douglas sidecar is presented in good order, although it will require some recommissioning before resuming regular use. The Miller lighting set is particularly worthy of note.

The date of first registration recorded in this machine's accompanying old-style logbook is 22nd February 1921, this being shortly after the introduction of the Roads Act of 1920, which required local councils to register all vehicles at the time of licensing and to allocate a separate number to each. (Many vehicles, although in existence for several years in some cases, were only registered for the first time after the Act's passing). This logbook lists two owners, the second being 'McLean Cycle Depot', Hayle, Cornwall. The logbook records occasional licensing in the 1920s and late 1940s. The machine is believed to have stayed in Cornwall until purchased by our Cornish vendor in 1964 when the other old-style logbook was issued. Offered with a file of correspondence and other material.