Lancashire Fusilier Posted 14 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 14 November , 2013 The sidecar combinations appear to be right hand drive? johnboy, Looking at several photographs of both British military and civilian motorcycle and side-car combinations, the side-car is shown to the left of the motorcyclist, whereas in photographs of both German and American motorcycle and side-car combinations, the side-car is shown to the right of the motorcyclist. Regards, LF 1912 Royal Enfield civilian motorcycle and side-car combination, with the side-car on the left of the motorcyclist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 14 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 14 November , 2013 American Police ' Indian ' motorcycle and side-car combination, with the side-car on the right of the motorcyclist. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 14 November , 2013 Share Posted 14 November , 2013 You would have to assume that the British outfits were built in UK and sent out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 14 November , 2013 Share Posted 14 November , 2013 Could well be. It's got the cable over the front for the light. Looks like the gun pivots from a bracket on the front of the sidecar. The angle of fire on the move would have been restricted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 14 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 14 November , 2013 Could well be. It's got the cable over the front for the light. Looks like the gun pivots from a bracket on the front of the sidecar. The angle of fire on the move would have been restricted. Johnboy, Here is that photo again to which you are referring :- A German WW1 ? Motorcycle and side-car combination, with the side-car mounted to the left of the motorcyclist, however, this is probably a captured British motorcycle and side-car combination, as again, we see the quick fix cable coming from the motorcycle to the spot-light fitted to the side-car. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 And for all of us old enough to remember the official ' salute ' from the AA patrolman in recognition of our vehicle displaying the ' AA ' membership badge, here is one of my favourites, the AA Patrolman's motorcycle and toolbox combination, again mounted to the left of the motorcycle. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil@basildon Posted 15 November , 2013 Share Posted 15 November , 2013 Could they be Austro-Hungarian? In the Austro-Hungarian empire the rule of the road was drive on the left as in the UK. This carried on until the 1930's in most of the former AH territories, basically until Hitlers troops walked in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockdoc Posted 15 November , 2013 Share Posted 15 November , 2013 I don't think the lights in 773 would be electrically powered so the cable is more likely to be a tube for the acetylene gas from the calcium-carbide generator. Acetylene lights can be very bright. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 I don't think the lights in 773 would be electrically powered so the cable is more likely to be a tube for the acetylene gas from the calcium-carbide generator. Acetylene lights can be very bright. Keith Keith, That generator for the side-car spotlight, to which the cable is connected, can be clearly seen in posts #769 and 770. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 American WW1 National Guard motorcycle side-car combination, these National Guardsmen were on duty at a dock yard. Attached to the motorcycle handlebars, is the American type acetylene generator used to power the motorcycles headlamps and spot lamps. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 Motorcycle Dispatch Rider, who interestingly, is armed with an American Colt revolver. Attached is a photograph of a .455 calibre Colt Revolver from my Collection, specifically made for the British military during WW1. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 Not sure how or why this Army vehicle ended up where it is, and it is hard to imagine that he drove the lorry into that large hole. Perhaps, it was the result of a shell blast ? The driver looks bemused, but unharmed. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockdoc Posted 15 November , 2013 Share Posted 15 November , 2013 That generator for the side-car spotlight, to which the cable is connected, can be clearly seen in posts #769 and 770. I hadn't spotted them but they are both acetylene generators. The carbide goes in a large compartment in the base and the cap contains a water reservoir and a regulator so that water drips slowly onto the chippings. There are vents, covered by a raised, brass plate, on the top surface of the lamps to allow the products of combustion to escape. I don't know where the oxygen comes in. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 I hadn't spotted them but they are both acetylene generators. The carbide goes in a large compartment in the base and the cap contains a water reservoir and a regulator so that water drips slowly onto the chippings. There are vents, covered by a raised, brass plate, on the top surface of the lamps to allow the products of combustion to escape. I don't know where the oxygen comes in. Keith Keith, Here is a diagram of an acetylene generator, the type used to power the WW1 period motorcycle lamps, with the British motorcycle generators being attached to the motorcycle frame ( posts #769 and 770 ). The American acetylene generators were attached to the handlebars, as shown in post #785. Also shown is a 1912 Triumph motorcycle acetylene generator. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 American handlebar mounted acetylene generator for motorcycle lamps, as shown in post # 785. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 15 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 15 November , 2013 Vintage motor vehicle's lamps powered by an acetylene generator. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockdoc Posted 16 November , 2013 Share Posted 16 November , 2013 It looks as if the American generator is a simpler device than the Lucas type. It appears to be all of a piece rather than in two sections so, presumably, you put carbide and water in together and have a tap to release the gas when required. I don't know whether the reaction stalls if the pressure in the canister reaches a certain level but such a system seems very wasteful, even if it takes up less room. I've heard it said that the water reserve wasn't enough to use up the recommended amount of carbide in one go. If you were working around a town this wasn't likely to be a problem but, out in the sticks, it could be. Male riders could top up the reservoir quite easily. Female riders had a lot more difficulty - if you catch my drift. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil@basildon Posted 16 November , 2013 Share Posted 16 November , 2013 Not sure how or why this Army vehicle ended up where it is, and it is hard to imagine that he drove the lorry into that large hole. Perhaps, it was the result of a shell blast ? The driver looks bemused, but unharmed. LF Perhaps the road collapsed under the lorry? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 16 November , 2013 Share Posted 16 November , 2013 Perhaps the road collapsed under the lorry? The tracks of the lorry in the background are well to the left and more or less in a straight line. Perhaps he just went too far to the right to let the troops past? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 16 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 16 November , 2013 As was the case with Lanchester Motors and the Lanchester brothers, Dennis Motors was also founded by innovative and ambitious brothers. John and Raymond Dennis were two of the four sons of a Devon farmer, John was born in 1871 and Raymond ( Herbert, Raymond ) was born in 1878. As a young man, and not wishing to go into farming, John moved to Surrey to take up an engineering apprenticeship. John Dennis repaired bicycles in his spare time to earn extra money, and by 1895 he had saved enough money to open his own cycle shop ' Universal Athletic Stores ' in the High Street, Guildford, from where he sold bicycles and other sports goods, in 1898, his younger brother Raymond, joined John's business. The Dennis brothers began producing their own brand of bicycles the ' Speed King ' and the ' Speed Queen ', their successful business enabled them to expand into motorcycles, and by 1900 they were producing motor tricycles and motor quadricycles powered by the French De Dion engine. With their expansion into motorised cycles, they outgrew their original premises in the High Street, and with their eye firmly on motor vehicle production, the Dennis brothers moved to a new larger premises at the old Barracks in Friary Street, and then in 1901, their new motor manufacturing company ' Dennis Bros. Ltd. ' moved into a newly built factory and showroom at the corner of Onslow Street and Bridge Street, Guildford, this building later became known as the ' Rodboro Building ' following its purchase from the Dennis brothers by the Rodboro Boot & Shoe Company in 1917. To meet the ever growing demand for ' Dennis ' vehicles, their Onslow/Bridge Street factory was enlarged in 1903 and again in 1905, and still being too small for their needs, in August 1905 the Dennis brothers moved their motor productions workshops to a new factory site at Woodbridge Hill, and in 1911 the entire ' Dennis ' vehicle manufacturing plant was moved to Woodbridge Hill, which eventually became the 31 acre Dennis site, and only the ' Dennis ' offices remained at the Onslow/Bridge Street premises until those premises were eventually sold to ' Rodboro ' in 1917. The Dennis Company remained at Woodbridge Hill until 1990. Dennis Bros. Ltd., produced their first motor car in 1902, their first bus in 1903, to be followed by vans and lorries in 1904, and fire engines in 1908, ambulances followed in 1909. During WW1, Dennis Brothers ( 1913 ) Ltd., employed several thousand workers, which enabled the factory to operate 24 hours per day assisting with the war effort, and in particular, production of the Dennis 3 ton ' Subsidy ' lorry for the War Department, with some seven thousand lorries being produced. In 1920, Raymond Dennis was awarded the K.B.E. ( Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire ) for his WW1 war efforts. Again in WW2, Dennis assisted the war effort, producing Churchill tanks, army vehicles and the LLoyd Bren Gun Carrier at the Woodbridge Hill plant. Coincidentally, both the Dennis brothers died in 1939. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 16 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 16 November , 2013 John Dennis opened his first cycle shop in the High Street Guildford in 1895, and then moved to Friary Street. Guildford High Street and Friary Street Guildford circa 1900. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 16 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 16 November , 2013 The Dennis brothers moved their vehicle business to the ' Rodboro ' premises in 1901. The photos show the building under construction, the completed ' Dennis ' showrooms, and the building today. LF The Rodboro Building, Guildford today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 16 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 16 November , 2013 Dennis 1903 Advertisements. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 16 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 16 November , 2013 Dennis Tourer, Charabanc and Fire Engine. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancashire Fusilier Posted 16 November , 2013 Author Share Posted 16 November , 2013 The Dennis Woodbridge Hill factory. LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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