The Rex Judd Collection, c.1912 Pierce Four-Cylinder Model

• Judd family ownership of 90 years
• The first American four cylinder motorcycle

Pierce motorcycles were top end luxury machines manufactured between 1909 and 1913 by the Pierce Cycle Company of Buffalo, New York. George Pierce had been building bicycles since 1891 before branching out into motorcars with the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company. The Pierce bicycles and cars were also expensive top quality products. Around 1908 a reorganisation of the car production left one of the factories empty. George Pierce passed control of the bicycle business to his son Percy, and the bicycle production was relocated into the vacant factory which apparently had enough space left over for a motorcycle production line. Percy Pierce is said to have returned from a trip to Europe with a 1908 four cylinder FN, one of the most advanced motorcycles of the day. He is said to have passed it to the engineers of the car division who redesigned it with some significant improvements. This was to result in the first Pierce motorcycle. The most eye-catching difference from the FN was the use of 3½" diameter steel frame tubes for petrol and oil storage. The top and saddle tubes accommodated about 1.45 imperial gallons of petrol, while the front downtube held just over half an imperial gallon of oil. The most obvious change to the engine was its "T" head, which followed Pierce car practice in having the inlet valves on the left and the exhaust valves on the right: a significant advance on the FN's automatic inlet valves. In 1910 a two speed gearbox and multiplate clutch were added. A range of single cylinder models was also introduced. Despite being expensive at $325 it seems that the Pierce four cylinder was well received and sold well, but it was very expensive to manufacture, and each bike is said to have been sold at a loss. For 1912 there were further improvements to the four cylinder model including heavier front forks, spring clips to the petrol and oil tank caps, a revised oiling system including a sight glass on the crankcase for checking the oil level, and moving the gear lever to the right hand side. At the same time the price went up to a whopping $400. The 1912 Pierce catalogue proudly states 'This motorcycle is higher in price than any other on the market' but despite the price increase the company was making enormous losses, and production of Pierce motorcycles ceased forever in 1913.

This Pierce was acquired by Rex Judd over 90 years ago. It is supplied with an old buff logbook which shows Reginald Noel Judd as the only keeper, and the date of first registration as 15th April 1936. A charming Judd family photograph (copy supplied) believed to date from the same year, and taken outside the showroom, depicts Rex Judd standing to one side of the Pierce and 3½ year old Peter Judd on the saddle. It is believed that Rex rode it on at least one of the pre-war Pioneer Runs, and we know that it was ridden by fellow club member Peter Lloyd in the 1950 Run. Other documents supplied are a V5C (on which the engine capacity is incorrectly listed as 1000cc), a Pioneer certificate issued in 2004, some old MOT certificates, a few photos including the 2004 Pioneer Run, various invoices and receipts, and some Pierce Arrow Society paperwork relating mostly to Pierce cars.

The Pierce was on display at the Montagu Museum in Beaulieu in the mid 1960s, and over the years it was also to be seen in the Rex Judd Edgware dealership prior to the sale of the business in 1989. At a later date it was an exhibit at Whitewebbs Museum in Enfield before being removed for this sale. Some restoration work was carried out around 2004 and again between 2010 and 2015. An accompanying CD records photos of some of the 2004 work. Please note that we have been unable to locate the frame number '3086' detailed to the documents which may possibly be concealed by heavy paint. We know that the engine turns over, but the motorcycle's mechanical condition is unknown.

Following a long period in storage, recommissioning or possibly more extensive work will be required before further use. Prospective bidders must satisfy themselves regarding the motorcycle's provenance, condition, age, completeness, and originality prior to bidding. Sold strictly as seen.

Key not required.

The Rex Judd Collection
Baby boomer and Gen X motorcyclists from the northwest London area will associate Rex Judd's name with the busy Edgware based motorcycle dealership. Earlier generations, sadly no longer with us, would have remembered Rex Judd the world famous motorcycle racer best known for his exploits at Brooklands in the 1920s. Born on Christmas Day 1899, during WW1 the young Rex served in the RFC which was of course integrated into the RAF. Afterwards, being a motorcycle nut, he hung around the Brooklands track in the hope of a job offer – which duly came, resulting in him passengering a racing sidecar. This led to him joining one of the very best tuners of the day, "Wizard" O'Donovan, with whom he worked on and raced 500cc Nortons and 250cc two stroke Velocettes. In this period he won numerous races and set multiple speed records which included winning the Godfrey Cup for the first 500cc machine to exceed 90mph. He raced the 250cc two stroke Velocettes in the Island in 1921 and 1922 but retired on both occasions.

At the end of 1922 Rex joined Douglas, who were at the height of their powers in the 1920s, and contributed in no small way to their ongoing success. He continued his winning ways and set more speed records both at Brooklands and Arpajon, and raced in the Isle of Man in 1923 and 1925. He didn't have a lot of luck at the TT retiring in all his races except the 1925 Senior when he won the Nisbet Award for pluck. He had crashed on his first lap, breaking off a footrest, was stopped by the stewards at both Ballacraine and Ramsey, and rode the rest of the race with his boot resting on the exhaust, his foot getting badly burnt in the process, and finally finishing 19th and last in a little over four hours. In 1927 he became the 5th rider to achieve a 100+mph lap at Brooklands, and was awarded his Gold Star retrospectively in 1930 when the early achievers of this great feat were recognised. Following an extremely successful racing year Rex stopped racing at the end of 1927, but he continued working with Douglas, one of his titles being 'Supervisor of racing machines, races, and track work'.

No account of Rex Judd's Brooklands years would be complete without mentioning his close friendship with the legendary Freddie Dixon. Dixon left Douglas in 1926 and it was Rex who persuaded him to return in 1928. They obviously had some great and riotous times together. In Charles Mortimer's book 'Brooklands Behind the Scenes' there is an account of J. S. 'Woolly' Worter's Brooklands reminiscences. He was asked by Mortimer what sort of help and support was forthcoming from fellow riders. The answer was 'Comparatively little. Some riders would go to almost any lengths to hinder the up and coming. Dixon and Judd would help anyone at any time'. In relation to Rex Judd he said 'the spirit of good cheer at all times and a good TT as well as a track man'.

In 1927 Rex had become involved with Bob Newitt in a motorcycle dealership in High Wycombe, but this didn't last, and following his departure from Douglas in 1930, he opened his Edgware showroom the following year. As the 1930s progressed and the country finally came out of the Depression Rex Judd Motorcycles held agencies for many of the British manufacturers, and also had a successful business in bicycles and secondhand cars. Rex never lost his love of racing. In 1939 and the years immediately after the war he supported the Pike brothers with their Lightweight TT entries on 250cc Rudges. Later years saw many other riders being sponsored. He actively supported the Brooklands Reunions, was a regular visitor to the Isle of Man, and ran annual staff visits to the Senior TT. In 1963 he was President of the TT Riders Association. Rex became semi-retired after falling ill in 1965 and sadly died in 1970, but the business continued to thrive in the hands of his son Peter, before being sold in 1989. After his father's death Peter asked the Brooklands authorities whether Rex's ashes could be scattered on the track. They refused but he did it anyway.

Peter Judd had started working in the family business in 1948, and was active in trials, scrambles, and grasstracking, but in deference to his mother he didn't follow his father into road racing. By 1960 Peter was really running the business, and foreseeing how things would turn out in the future, it was he who oversaw the arrival of Hondas on the Judd shopfloor around 1963. In the years that followed Suzuki, Yamaha, and Kawasaki were also offered.

A true motorcycle enthusiast to the end of his life, Rex Judd became well known as a collector of early motorcycles. In a five instalment article published in 1944 'MotorCycling' magazine referred to him as 'one of this country's most brilliant racing men' and highlighted 'his phenomenal collection of vintage machines'. The collection was thinned out in the early 1950s, but Bonhams is honoured to have been chosen by the Judd family to offer the eleven remaining machines which make up The Rex Judd Collection at the Spring Stafford Sale on 26th April 2026.