Bown Motorcycles

Today in Motorcycle History

Bown Motorcycles for the 1920-1921 Season

Olympia Show 1920

Bown. (Stand 114.)

  • 2½ h.p.; 70x70 mm. (269 c.c.); single-cylinder two-stroke; drip feed lubrication; Amac carburetter; flywheel magneto; two-speed Sturmey-Archer gear, with clutch and kick starter; chain and belt drive; 26 x 2¼ in. tyres. Price £68.

Bowns, Ltd., 301, Sumner Lane, Birmingham.

The Bown, which has enjoyed a distinct vogue in the past, has been supplemented for this season by two larger models, equipped with 2½ h.p. and 4 h.p. Blackburne engines respectively. They are good-looking and workmanlike machines, well fitted together, and remarkable for the quality of their finish. All these models are sensibly equipped with very large petrol tanks, the "saddle" tank of the 4 h.p. holding no less than two and a half gallons. The mudguards are also noticeable for their width. Tanks in both cases are enamelled biscuit, the colouring picked out in chocolate and gold.

A careful examination discloses several very clever little fittings on these machines. For example, the foot brake is one of the very few belt rim brakes in the Show which possesses an absolutely direct pull. There is a loop in the middle tube of the Bown frame, which enables the Villiers engine to use any size of sparking plug. The petrol filter at the rear of the tank on the 4 h.p. model is equipped with an ingenious automatic valve, enabling the rider to detach and clean his filter when the tank is full without losing a drop of petrol. Altogether, the new Bown four-models bid fair to surpass the reputation which the little two-stroke has already earned.

Olympia Show. The Motor Cycle, December 2nd, 1920. Page 713


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