The Rex Judd Collection, c.1928-1930 Douglas 500cc 'DT/SW5'

Gearbox no. YG1175

• Iconic Douglas from the factory's heyday
• Very long term Judd family ownership
• Built by Douglas authority, the late Len Cole

Powered by their trademark horizontally opposed twin cylinder engines, Douglas were a force to be reckoned with in the years before and after the First World War. They finished 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the 1912 Junior TT and, along with Triumph, went on to become one of the two largest suppliers of motorcycles to the armed forces in the 1914-18 conflict. In the years that followed, works riders of the calibre of Cyril Pullen, Tom Sheard, Rex Judd, and Freddie Dixon achieved many major competition successes. In 1928 when the speedway craze spread from Australia the Douglas DT5 (500cc) and DT6 (600cc) models rapidly became the pre-eminent machines. They held this advantage for a couple of years until they were challenged by the dirt-track Rudges whose shorter wheelbase made them more manoeuvrable on the shorter tracks used in this country. For other competition and fast road work the broadly similar SW5 and SW6 models, introduced slightly later, were equipped with brakes, full mudguards, a near side footrest etc.

It is not known when Rex Judd acquired this Douglas SW5, but like many others it seems to have been converted from a DT5: probably from the 'Douglas DT' which appears on a handwritten list of Rex's machines believed to date from the early 1950s. Peter Judd entrusted the rebuild of the SW5 to the late Len Cole, a highly respected Douglas expert. A note on the back of a photograph (supplied) of the finished machine indicates that Len Cole built it in exchange for 'experimental Douglas racing parts'. These would almost certainly have dated back to Rex Judd's years at Brooklands as a Douglas works rider and 'supervisor of racing machines'. An undated typewritten letter from Len Cole (supplied) lists the build details including: that the barrels have been bored out to take Rudge 250 pistons, 8.2:1 compression ratio, standard dirt track camshaft, valve timing data, 'use Castrol R40 or equivalent', carbs are 'the original MX 15s', and 'there are certain parts which are not original such as handlebar levers, footrests, and fuel supply lines but they are either new of functional and can always be quickly replaced if originals come to hand without impairing the running of the bike'. The date of Len Cole's work on the SW5 is unknown. The Douglas was on display in the Rex Judd dealership in Edgware for many years and was later exhibited at Whitewebbs Museum near Enfield.

We are extremely grateful to Douglas expert Doug Kephart for his help and insights into this iconic machine. Doug's very detailed observations regarding this DT/SW5 appear online – please see lot images. Following a long period in storage, recommissioning or possibly more extensive work will be required before the bike is fired up. 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.