Rudge Wedge and Co

Rudge-Wedge were motorcycles produced from 1902 to 1904 in Mander Street, Wolverhampton.

Harry Rudge was the eldest son of Daniel Rudge, who founded Rudge Cycles (later Rudge-Whitworth). In 1891, he joined Mr. C. Wedge to form Rudge Wedge and Co They set up a cycle works at Pelham Street, and in 1902 moved to new works in Mander Street. They also built a few motorcycles, but decided to concentrate solely on building pedal bicycles. Many of their products were supplied to the trade with their own or customer's transfers and large numbers of their machines were exported to the colonies.

• 1902 They began by producing motorcycles with 1.25hp and 2.5hp engines that were inclined along the downtube, but within the main frame. They also had belt drive and rigid forks.

• 1904 A spring frame model was produced, whereby the handlebars, footrests and saddle were a single unit sprung relative to the main frame in order to protect the rider. The Minerva engine was hung from the downtube to leave room for the suspension components. The front forks were unbraced and rigid, and linked back to the handlebar stem for steering.

Sources: Graces Guide

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