Cycles

Early in 1880, the year in which the company adopted as its sign the "Piled Arms" , which was later to become its trade mark, it was Mr. E. Otto and his invented dicycle ("a machine with a wheel on either side of the rider") who convinced the board to go into bicycle manufacture. History mentions 1884 for the first BSA safety cycle reputed to have been made from scrap metal and gun parts. From the several different companies forming the "daughter" BSA Cycles Ltd. one can see that for 70 years, it formed a substantial part of giving a name to the groups' activities. At the end of 1956 after a meeting of the board of directors it was decided to sell BSA Cycles Ltd. to Raleigh Industries, Nottingham. About the same time other daughter companies like New Hudson Auto Cycles Ltd were registered as individual companies. Note: The structure of the BSA Group in 1946 shows that BSA Cycles Ltd. was formed by: Sunbeam Cycles Ltd., New Hudson Ltd., The New Rapid Cycle Co. Ltd., Ixion Cycles Ltd. and Eadie Manufacturing Co. Ltd. As the owner of a Winged Wheel and the fact that not much was known about them in the BSA Owners Club, I made some inquiries and I would recommend the National Auto Cycle Club as a good address for information and / or parts (www.buzzing.org).

A brief description of the Winged Wheel: 35cc two-stroke engine, with flywheel magneto-generator (Wipac later Miller. The "M" in the prefix "MBW" of the engine number implies Miller), AMAL-carb, reduction gearing to an Eadie coaster freewheel. Producing 1bhp with a fuel consumption of approx. 200mpg the original price was GBP 25.00- Made by BSA Cycles Ltd., it was officially launched in May 1953 having been produced by New Hudson Ltd. in their Waverley works in Coventry Rd (near Small Heath) George Savage was home sales manager and Bill Rawson was in charge of exports. After "Cycles Ltd" was sold to Raleigh in the first quarter of 1957 the production stopped.