Description
This motorcycle is Lot 136 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 136
1963 Royal Enfield 248cc Crusader Trials
Registration no. 116 UFK
Frame no. 20174
Engine no. 10078
Royal Enfield's Bullet had proved an outstanding trials motorcycle, but by the early 1960s the days of such 'heavyweights' were numbered. Lightweights were now seen as the way forward, and so the Redditch factory turned to the only suitable machine in its range: the 250 Crusader. A works Crusader prototype first competed in the late 1950s with mixed results, and it was not until 1960 that Irish ace Benny Crawford brought the marque its first major success, winning the Irish national championship, a feat he repeated the following year. The Crawford-developed production version debuted at the Motor Cycle Show in the autumn of 1961, the works riders for the 1962 season being Enfield stalwarts John Brittain and Peter Fletcher.
This original Crusader Trials was purchased new by one Eric John Vine from Eric Williams Ltd of Worcester. The original purchase invoice is on file recording that the bike was 'fitted with lights'. An older restoration, the Crusader appears untaxed since February 1989 and there is no DVLA MoT history. The current odometer reading is 12, 075 miles. Documents on file suggest that '116 UFK' passed from Eric Vine to a Mrs Carole Vale in April 2012, and then (via an auction) to the current family ownership in November 2012. Additional documentation includes a photocopied V5C and an original instruction manual.
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.
