Topic: Know your bikes? Try this quick quiz.

[Old Moe Toe]

Years after my father died I found this picture of him on his motorbike. Never even knew he rode one.
Could never work out exactly what type of bike it was. Some time after I was talking to his best friend who knew exactly what the bike was.
Not sure I would have guessed it.
Anyone care to guess the make/model?

[Terry in Australia]

Looks like a Panther sloper mate, they used the same engine configuration to built anything from a 350 to a 600, so it could be anything in between. I'll have to find a pic of my mum when she was little sitting in the sidecar of my grand dad's Panther. Cheers, Terry.

[Old Moe Toe]

No, not a panther sloper Terry.
Good guess though.

[Terry in Australia]

No worries, I think I was half right, BSA Sloper?

[Old Moe Toe]

No mate, not a BSA sloper either.

[MikeSimon]

JAP? At least the motor?

[Old Moe Toe]

Nope.

[Stev-o]

No idea but great pic.   Was he in Tasmania?

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Your father looks bad-ass in that photo.

[754]

I. Was thinking Panther..
 Is it Brit..can you tell us..

[eigenvector]

I was going to say that's a Harley - 20's or so, based on the writing on the tank.

[scottly]

The way the push-rod tubes are angled looks similar to the BSA sloper, which both look different than the side of the Panther engine, but the mystery bike has less slope than the BSA? I'm stumped...
 

[Terry in Australia]

Yep, it's not Triumph, Norton, Ariel, AJS/Matchless, Royal Enfield or Velocette, I'm really scratching my head now......

[scottly]

Montgomery?

[Old Moe Toe]

I thought it was some sort of BSA sloper when I was trying to work out what the blazers type of bike it is. But it isn't.
The bike was made in Great Britain, Pommyland.
If Dad's old pal wasn't alive at the time I doubt I would have guessed it. But when he told me the make of the bike I had an inkling I had heard of them before, however never seen one in the flesh/steel.
Here is a pic of dads pal Wally on his bike.

[scottly]

New Imperial?

[754]

New Imp..probably it..
Wally is on a Speed Twin..

[MikeSimon]

JAP? At least the motor?

New Imperial used Precision and JAP engines of 250 to 1000 cc in their motorcycles until 1925 

[scottly]

Yes, and from 1926 on they used their own engines.

[Old Moe Toe]

Scottlty wins!
New Imperial, model 76.

[Old Moe Toe]

Don't know about the JAP motor though. The motor on this bike has New Imperial stamped/cast on it.

[scottly]

Yippee! What did I win? A lifetime supply of Vegemite? (A 4 ounce jar should last a lifetime, right?)

[Terry in Australia]

Ha! Well to be fair, Mike had the engine correct, so he should get a half share of that delicious Vegemite I reckon? JAP built proprietary engines for lots of bike brands, and didn't mind that the engines weren't marked with the JAP brand. Cheers, Terry.

[scottly]

Ha! Well to be fair, Mike had the engine correct, so he should get a half share of that delicious Vegemite I reckon?

No, Mike did not get the correct engine, and I'm not going to share the Vegemite ; New Imperial stopped using JAP engines in 1925, well before Moe's pop's 1937ish bike.

[Terry in Australia]

Ha! Well to be fair, Mike had the engine correct, so he should get a half share of that delicious Vegemite I reckon?

No, Mike did not get the correct engine, and I'm not going to share the Vegemite ; New Imperial stopped using JAP engines in 1925, well before Moe's pop's 1937ish bike.

Geez Scott, 'Scuse me for living! If I knew you were so desperate for Vegemite I would have sent you a jar myself!