Trials BMX Off Road Subscribe to our occasional newsletter and receive updates, new bike listings & more. Copyright © 2007-2014 Classic Motorcycle Consignments. The AJS 500cc Model 18 and AJS Model 18S are 500 cc British motorcycles almost identical to the Matchless G80 and both were produced in the same Associated Motor Cycles (AMC) London factory from 1945 to 1966. These bikes represent the end of the era of big British singles, as when AMC merged with Norton production concentrated on twins. The AJS Model 18 was developed from a design from the 1930s, despite which it was still being manufactured 30 years later. The AJS was updated when a springer frame rear suspension was made available for 1949, to become the Model 18S. The suspension was a vast improvement on the rigid rear end - which had given a bouncy ride. Each of the two 'Candlestick' shocks held only 50 cc of SAE 20 weight oil. They were prone to leaks and were replaced by the larger diameter 'Jampot' shocks on the 1951 version.

The engine was released just postwar with a compression ratio of 5.9:1, necessary because of the low quality fuel available in Britain immediately after the War. British singles were designed to make the best of the fuel available. Post war petrol rationing continued until 1950 and it was several years before performance fuels were generally available in the UK. gta 5 ps4 motorcycle crewThe Model 18's low compression did mean it was easy to start[1] and The model 18:s had better performance and fuel economy than the fast cars of the time.off road motorcycle experience dorset By 1951 the model 18 had an alloy cylinder head and the competition models had also an alloy cylinder (with steel liner in it), where the barrel fins went all the way to the base. motorcycle accessories iloilo

The magneto was moved in front of the cylinder on the Matchless G80 for 1952. The earlier model did not have a magdyno - the separate magneto was directly above the dynamo behind the cylinder.[1] The leaky pressed-steel primary chain-case that first appeared in early times had a small clutch inspection/adjustment plate added in 1952 and in 1954 the whole clutch dome was replaceable in it. motorcycle sales issaquahThe compression ratio was increased to 8.7:1 in 1956 and in 1958 an alloy cover primary chain-case became available.motorcycle stores in warner robins ga The unreliable 'jampot' shock absorbers were replaced with Girling shocks in 1956 and in 1957 AMC switched from Burman gearboxes to their own make. motorcycle tires c50

In 1960 the model 18 gained a duplex frame. The 500 cc "long stroke" AJS 18CS was produced from 1951 through 1955. In 1956 it was replaced by the shorter stroke, larger bore models that used the same numeric codes. The bore of these early models was 82.5 mm (3.25 in), while the 1956 through 1966 "short stroke" (final version) models had a bore of 86 mm (3.39 in). motorcycle shops in punta gorda flThe C was for Competition (Scrambles) and the S for Suspension (not a rigid rear frame). Engine numbers usually start with the year of production, followed by model designation, and completed with the production number of the motorcycle The AJS and Matchless singles were doomed when AMC merged with Norton as all production was transferred to twins cylinder bikes - so the short-stroke Model 18 is the end of an era. ^ a b c Total Bike Classics (accessed 2008-05-10) ^ Real Classic AJS 18 review (accessed 2008-05-10)

Bobber NortonBiker BobberSale MotorcycleMotorcycle LifestyleNice NortonMorning BikerNorton Es2Norton SinglesGood MorningForwardGood morning biker… Starting with a nice Norton from @heroesmotorcycles And it’s for sale #motorcycle #lifestyle #vintage #motolife #biker #bobber #norton #oldmotorcycle #life #free #freedomVintage Cars MotorcyclesMotorcycles Mini BikesMotorcycle BikeClassic MotorcyclesRacing Bikes7R RacingBritish MotorcyclesDesisered BikesMotorcycle ExhibitForwardHow good was this beautiful little racer built by Associated Motor Cycles? Very good indeed: It was in production and winning trophies from 1948 to 1963. Known as the “Boy Racer”, the 7R won three successive Junior Isle of Man TT races, from 1961 to… Matchless Motorcycles and AJS Motorcycles were, for most of their history, essentially rebadged versions of the same machines. Collectively owned by , the two brands were operated like Ford & Mercury, or Dodge & Plymouth, in an early version of “badge engineering”.

Together, they enjoyed a rich history that spanned from 1899 to the 1966 collapse of AMC & beyond. Established by Henry Herbert Collier as ‘Collier & Sons’, with sons Charlie & Henry, Matchless Motorcycles started out making bicycles, as did so many makers of Classic British Motorcycles. They built their first prototype motorcycle in 1899 & had it in production by 1901. In 1905 the produced a JAP V-twin powered bike with one of the earliest versions of rear swing arm suspension in motorcycle history. Then they started racing. In 1907, son Charlie won the Inaugural TT Singles Race at an average speed of 38.21 mhp (blistering speed, at the time). His brother Harry won in 1909 & Charlie won again in 1910. At the time, they were building mostly singles, with a few V-twins for sidecar duty. Up until this point, Matchless Motorcycles were built using other manufacturers’ engines, but starting in 1912, Matchless began building their own engines. WWI came & went without Matchless getting any military contracts to build motorcycles for the War Department.

But, in 1919 production resumed with Matchless building a new V-twin & in 1923 a new single. The father died in 1926, leaving a vibrant family-run business behind. In 1930, Charlie designed a narrow-angle (26-degrees) 400cc V-twin, the Matchless Silver Arrow. They expanded this into a 600cc V-4 in 1931. Also in 1931, Matchless Motorcycles bought AJS Motorcycles from the Stevens brothers, then in the late 1930s bought Sunbeam Motorcycles also, which it would later sell to BSA in 1943. The “only true AJS models”, ie: those that weren’t rebadged Matchless Motorcycles, were the racing AJS 7R, AJS Porcupine & the pre-war AJS Four. From this point on, all Matchless & AJS Motorcycles would be mechanically identical, with different ‘appearance packages’. In 1933, Matchless Motorcycles began supplying V-twin engines to the Morgan Car Company for their cute little 3-wheeled cars & became the exclusive supplier by 1935. From 1935 to 1940, Matchless V-twins were supplied to Brough Superior for all their motorcycles (albeit reengineered to Brough’s specifications).

In 1935, Matchless engineers invented the ‘hairpin valve springs’ that would become a trademark of the 2 brands. In 1938, Associated Motor Cycles (AMC) is formed, to hold a stable of brands that included not only Matchless Motorcycles & AJS Motorcycles, but soon, Sunbeam Motorcycles, James Motorcycles, Francis-Barnett Motorcycles & ultimately Norton Motorcycles. In 1941, Matchless & AJS introduced their new telescopic front fork, called “Teledraulic”, to rave reviews. WWII saw Matchless Motorcycles build 80,000 Matchless G3 & G3L machines. The post-war singles were based on the wartime Matchless G3L. 1949 saw the company’s first vertical twin, the 500cc Matchless G45. In 1956 it was enlarged to 600cc and in 1959 to 650cc. In racing, the supercharged AJS Porcupine, Matchless G50 & AJS 7R were winning races & helping to cement Matchless & AJS Motorcycles as fast, dependable machines. In 1952, Derek Farrant won the Manx GP on a 1952 Matchless G45 twin averaging 88.65mph.

AMC withdrew from racing at the end of the 1954 season, concentrating on sales. But, unlike most manufacturers, Matchless & AJS were selling pretty much the same race bikes to the public that the factory had fielded. And their sales of race bikes continued long after the factory stopped racing. The 1959 Matchless G50 500cc single, for instance, had 50 hp, would do 135 mph and was faster than a Norton Manx. When Bert Hopwood left AMC for Triumph in 1961, some of the racing magic faded. By 1960, the handwriting was on the wall: sales were down and the future looked bleak for AMC. Between their 5 once-proud brands, Matchless, AJS, James, Francis-Barnett & Norton, only Norton was actually making money. The decision was made to drop everything but the Matchless/AJS singles & focus everything on Norton Motorcycles. The singles never sold well, even Norton sales weren’t as strong as hoped, and by 1966, AMC was in bankruptcy. Manganese Bronze Holdings (who also owned Villiers Motorcycles) bought them out, forming a new company, Norton-Villiers, with ambitious plans to become big players in the British motorcycles industry.