Baden Powell 1904 (Vic.)
Image courtesy Terry Parker of the VVMCSA.
Bailey
William Bailey of Bailey & Co., was active from 1905 to 1909, when he moved to Unley, closer to central Adelaide.
Pictured is a machine built in Glenelg before registration was required. The engine appears to be a Kelecom, imported to Adelaide by James Hill & Co.
Universal CYCLE WORKS.
H. C. BAILEY, PROPRIETOR.
Bicycle Engineer, Enameller, and
Electroplater.
Cycles and Motors Built to Order
Repairs of every description neatly executed. Accessories in great variety
Address -
238 King William Street, South, ADELAIDE.
Quiz (Adelaide, SA : 1900 - 1909) Fri 16 Nov 1906
N.B. Unley is about 12km East of Glenelg.
Sources:
Balmain
T. Perryman of Richmond, Victoria produced a machine using a Precision engine, circa 1915.
Extensive searches in Trove and Google for further information proved fruitless.
Source: Saward via Simon Fleming
BAL-JAP
Balfour Motors, 155 Mercer Street Geelong, Vic. 1912-1918
The Balfour Bros. marketed motorcycles using JAP singles and twins which were possibly assembled by E.W. Brown.
A 1917 advertisement gives address of 45 & 47 Malop St, with no mention of BAL-JAP - but it does mention JAP motorcycles for sale, along with Triumph.
1919 advertisements give their name as Balfour's Motor Garage, located cnr Malop and Gheringhap Streets. Sole agents for B.A.L, Triumph, De-Luxe, Indian...
Sources: Trove NLA; Simon Fleming
Barb Vic.
Barbarian V8
Built in Queenland by Warren Katz, an African immigrant.
Website: barbarianv8.com ✝
Powered by a 5.7 litre Chevrolet V8 engine, it weighs 430kg and has no gearbox. A reviewer stated that if speed were reduced below 30km when cornering the machine was likely to fall over. It was not mentioned whether the toolkit included a small crane.
Sources: netrider.net.au, et al
Barclay
Saward records two Barclay marques, one in Adelaide and the other in Geelong, Victoria. No record of either has been found in Australian newspapers of the day.
Source: Trove NLA
Barwell
Manufactured by Cleveland Cycle Co, 1904.
A handicap race was held at the cycle track around the Woolloongabba Cricket Ground on Saturday 25 October 1904 Among the participants was Charles S Boyle on a Barwell 2¾hp. Boyle was manager of the Queensland operation of the Cleveland Cycle Co who by 1904 were advertising Barwell cycles and motorcycles.
Source: Terry Parker
Bartley & Perry
Established in Cootamundra in late 1909.
Source: The Catholic Press, Thu 6 Apr 1911. (Trove NLA)
B & W by Bennett and Wood, 1937-38
Beach
Manufactured by Goshen S. Richardson of Beach Cycle & Motor Works, Penguin, Tasmania
Some five Beach motorcycles were constructed between 1913 and 1916 using TDC engines, with one powered by Peugeot.
Source: Robert Saward
Beauchamp Vic.
Be-Gin
A 3¼ hp Be-Gin motorcycle was registered in South Australia.
7488, M. J. Fitzgerald, Petersburg, 3¼ Be-gin. Observer Sat 18 Dec 1915
Source: Trove NLA
Behrens
Built in 1905 by H.A. Behrens of Adelaide, the motor cycle was powered by a Hercules engine from Germany. Listed in the catalogue for the 1905 South Australian Exhibition which said it had an outside flywheel, with the engine attached to the top tube of a bicycle frame.
Source: Robert Saward
The Bell (W.A.)
According to OTTW, The Bell was built in Ravensthorpe, W.A, from 1905 to 1914. Their motorcycles were powered by 250cc JAP SV singles with belt drive transmission.
Sources: OTTW, Simon Fleming.
The Bell (S.A.)
Arthur Bell was a cycle builder at Woodside, and built 'The Bell' motorcycle. The ca. 1911 500cc JAP engine was likely supplied by Taylors, along with the Druid forks, Brooks seat and other components. The plate 3079 was issued to Edwin Neumann at Blumberg around 1914. The machine has survived.
Another Bell motorcycle is fitted with a 1913 Sarolea 500cc engine and Saxon sprung forks. It appears to be the same rider as above, Gus Menzel. Photo: Johannes O Gladigau of Harrogate.
Source: VCCSA
Besanko
Manufactured by C.V.M. Besanko, who purchased the cycle and motor business of H.O. Jolly, Main Street, Yorketown, in September 1909. A Besanko motorcycle was registered South Australia in 1909.
Source: Robert Saward
B.G.W.
A 4½ hp B.G.W. motorcycle was registered in South Australia circa 1915.
Source: Robert Saward
Bird
Manufactured by L Bird of 317 City Road, South Melbourne, c.1910 to 1913. (Previously of 66 Market Street, Melbourne).
L- M- Bird, 317 City-road - mentioned in The Record newspaper, Sat 26 Aug 1911
Sources: Robert Saward; Trove NLA
Bilyard & King (Tas.) c.1924
Blake
A Blake 3½ h.p. model was registered in South Australia in 1920.
Source: Leon Mitchel
Blue Bell by Wagener (S.A.)
Blue Bell H. Canet (Shepparton, Vic.)
B.M.G.
Built by Athol Margetts of the Burnie Motor Garage, Burnie, Tasmania, for R.E. Margetts who was probably his son.
Source: Robert Saward
Bolger
Manufactured Bolger's Motor Works, 275 Toorak Road (cnr Chapel St), South Yarra, Victoria. Sidney Bolger constructed a limited number motorcycles from c.1904 to 1907.
Advertised as an agent for Swift cars, Dec 1905.
Sources: Robert Saward; Trove NLA
Bolt-On Sidecars
3 Beaumont St, Islington NSW, 1985.
Bolwell-PGO
A firm based in Melrose Park, Adelaide, imported Taiwanese PGO scooters which they rebadged. The first appeared in 1999, the last in 2015. There were numerous models.
The company is now known as Symaustralia and has sold some 40,000 scooters. scoota.com.au
Unrelated to Bolwell Cars of Mordialoc, Victoria (bolwell.com).
Source: Red Book Australia, et al
Bon Trike
Manufactured by Bon Trikes Special Vehicles Pty Ltd, 76 Sunnyholt Road, Blacktown, NSW, 1996 to 2005.
Powered by engines of up to 2000cc from Volkswagen and Harley-Davidson, the trike was assembled using imported componnents from a variety of sources.
Sources: trikesaustralia.com, et al
Bonning Roadster
A concept three-wheeler built by Brad Bonning of Noosa, Qld in 2001-2005 designed to run on an Eco Nova multi-fuel engine, but was fitted with a Honda CBR1000 engine running on petrol or LPG and achieves 200 km/h quite rapidly. Considerable attention was paid to styling.
Boomerang
Manufactured by J. Mullins of 78 Pirie Street, Adelaide, c.1903 - c.1925.
Powered by Simms engines of 2 to 3½ h.p. using magneto ignition which Mullins pioneered in Australia. After 1907 the Boomerang was advertised with 3½ and 4½ hp engines in 1914, supplier not stated.
Source: Robert Saward
Braaap
Bradley Smith, a former motocross rider, established his first motorcycle shop in Launceston, Tasmania in 2005. He expanded the network to 4 shops by 2008, including one in Frankston Victoria. The last of these was closed in 2018. The Braap machines are manufactured in China.
Website: braaapmotorcycles.com
Brandwood (Adelaide & Launceston)
Bronzewing
Manufactured by George Arnold of 139 St. John Street, Launceston, Tasmania, c.1902-c.1907
Established in 1891 the business built gas and oil engines before producing their first motorcycle c.1902 using many components built in-house including crankcases, cylinder and frame lugs along with carburettor, tank, wheel hubs and controls.
Arnold moved to Lilydale around 1907 and opened a cycle and motor store where it is believed Bronzewing motorcycles were built using engines from external suppliers. Later the firm assembled motorcycles using the name Uneeda.
George's brother Jim built a machine in about 1910 using a Veloce 2½ hp unit-construction engine which is thought to have been named a Bronzewing.
Source: Robert Saward
Bronzewing (Fitzroy)
Manufactured by
Built by William Warlimont at the Bronzewing Motor & Cycle Works, 406 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, Victoria, using JAP engines in the years 1910 to 1915 (approx).
Source: Robert Saward
Brooklands
Raced with frequent success in 1913-1914 by Eric Tyler, the Brooklands-Green was built in the workshops of Edmunds and Skilton, 419 Lonsdale St, Melbourne. (Also 433 Bourke St.)
The engine was a 499cc watercooled Green-Precision.
Sources: Trove; Leon Mitchel in Serpolette
N.B. There was a Brookands motorcycle built in 1912 in the UK by Edmunds and Wadden.
Burden
A machine built by F.R. Burden of South Australia in 1902.
Source: Robert Saward
Burnley
Built by the Burnley Cycle & Motor Works of 126 Swan Street, Burnley, Victoria. One 5 h.p. V-twin is recorded as produced in 1913.
Source: Robert Saward
Byron Special
Built by Andy Byron in Temora, N.S.W., around 1914. Six are believed to have been produced, of which one exists in the collection of the National Motorcycle Museum of Australia. It has a 3½ h.p. Precision engine fitted to a Chater Lea frame, with Druid front forks.
Source: Robert Saward
Rarer Australian Marques
