Description
This motorcycle is Lot 106 to be auctioned by Bonhams at The Autumn Stafford Sale (The Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show) on 12 & 13 October, please see the Bonhams website for full details.
Auction Timings:
Lots 1 - 176 are to be sold from 11:00 on Saturday 12th October 2024.
Lots 201 - 429 are to be sold from 11:00 on Sunday 13th October 2024.
Public Viewing:
Available 12th & 13th October 2024 from 09:00 until 17:00, at The Stafford County Showground (The Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show).
Lot 106
Formerly the property of Arthur Lampkin
c. 1949 Norton 490cc 500T Trials
Registration no. JAD 363
Frame no. D3T 21003
Engine no. D3T 21003
Following a season of extensive modification and experimentation, begun during the winter of 1947/ 48 by the legendary McCandless brothers - designers of Norton's peerless 'Featherbed' racing frame - resulted in the first appearance late in 1948 of an entirely new trials model: the 500T. The shorter and lighter WD 16H frame was used for the newcomer, which featured an ingeniously modified lower fork yoke that reduced the wheelbase to a more manageable 53". In its original, 'all-iron' engined form the 500T tipped the scales at 320lbs, while the subsequent adoption of an alloy cylinder head and (later) a Wellworthy alloy barrel brought that down to 300lbs. The 500T was announced as a 1949 model at the 1948 Motor Cycle Show, by which time a young Geoff Duke had already won that year's Allan Jefferies Trial riding a 350cc-engined prototype. Numerous other works and privateer competition successes throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s confirmed that Norton had produced a machine as good as, if not better than, any other rigid-framed trials iron.
This machine was acquired this 500T trials iron from accomplished ex-BSA Works and ISDT rider Arthur Lampkin in October 1990, Lampkin having acquired the machine from a Suffolk based owner some time after 1973 as detailed to the green continuation logbook. Unused for a considerable length of time, the machine will require recommissioning to a greater or lesser extent before use. Offered with an A. Lampkin ownership letter, V5C, old V5C, an old V5 (top half) in A. Lampkin's name and the aforementioned 1964 green replacement logbook.
All lots are sold 'as is/ where is' and Bidders must satisfy themselves as to the provenance, condition, age, completeness and originality prior to bidding. Visit the Bonhams Motorcycles website for all pertinent auction information.
