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Vincent Rapide
The Vincent Rapide is a line of standard motorcycles designed and built by the Vincent HRD motorcycle company at their works in Great North Road, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. The model debuted in 1936 and was built until 1939. Production resumed in 1946 and ended in 1955. Four major versions were built, labelled Series A through D (The Series D designation was never officially used by the factory).
Whilst working in his office at Stevenage in 1936, designer Phil Irving noticed two drawings of the Vincent HRD engine laying on top of each other in a "V" formation. Irving realised that the 23½° rearward set of the engine's idler would allow a 1-litre 47° V-twin engine to be built using the same cylinders, heads and valve gear as the Vincent single. The new crankcase could even be built on the existing jigs. When company owner Phil Vincent saw the drawing he was immediately enthusiastic, and a few weeks later the first Vincent thousand had been made, with Meteor upper engine parts mounted on new a crankcase. This first Vincent V-twin engine was installed in a frame originally built for a record attempt by Eric Fernihough, who no longer required it.
The Series A Rapide was the first production Vincent to receive the V-twin engine. The bike's frame was a version of the brazed-lug-and-steel-tube diamond frame used by the Comet, but lengthened to accommodate the longer V-twin engine. The rear suspension was based on the cantilever system patented by Phil Vincent while at Cambridge. Comprising a rear frame member (RFM) of two upright triangular arms pivoting at the bottom of the frame and attached to two spring boxes and damper at the top, this system had been used on all Vincents from the first Vincent Special prototype built in 1927. Front suspension was the same friction-damped Brampton girder fork used on the Vincent singles. The larger engine intruded into the space previously occupied by the oil tank, so the Series A Rapide received a petrol tank with two fillers – one for petrol and one for oil as the tank was made to serve double duty. Brakes were dual 7-inch (180 mm) single-leading shoe (SLS), front and rear. The bike came equipped with a side stand. The final wheelbase was 58 in (1,473 mm) and dry weight was 430 lb (195.0 kg).
The engine was an air-cooled 47° V-twin with overhead valves operated by rocker arms and short pushrods driven by two camshafts mounted high in the engine's timing case. With a bore of 84 mm and stroke of 90 mm, total displacement was 998 cc (60.9 cu in). These measurements would not change throughout the engine's production life. The air/fuel mixture was delivered by two Amal 1 1/16" carburettors. Lubrication was by a dry sump system that used an external gear-type oil pump running at one-quarter engine speed to supply oil to the big ends and outer camshaft bushes. Four external 5" long pipes delivered oil to the rocker bushes and rear of each cylinder. With a 6.8:1 compression ratio, the Series A engine produced 45 hp (34 kW) @ 5500 rpm, and was capable of 110 mph (177.0 km/h).
As was the case with the Vincent singles, the transmission in the Series A was a separate 4-speed unit supplied by Burman with a triplex chain primary drive, but with heavy-duty internals and a different wet multiplate clutch. Even with these changes the transmission was unable to cope with the output of the big V-twin. Riders were advised to not open the throttle fully until the clutch was fully engaged.
The Rapide was first shown at the 1936 Motorcycle show at Olympia. It quickly earned two sobriquets. Bill Clarke nicknamed it `The Snarling Beast’ and a reporter struck by the mass of external pipework dubbed it `the plumber’s nightmare’. The bike was listed for sale at £142.
Production of the Series A Rapide ended in 1939.
Design of a radically revised Series B Rapide took place during World War II, and the bike went into production in 1946. Unit construction allowed Vincent to combine the engine and gearbox into a single casing. Philip Vincent summarised his frame design philosophy in his memoirs, writing "What isn't present takes up no space, cannot bend, and weighs nothing — so eliminate the frame tubes!" The angle between the cylinders was changed from the 47° of the Series A engine to 50° to allow the engine to be installed as a stressed member. This enabled Vincent to reduce the frame to an upper frame member (UFM) that was a steel box-section backbone that doubled as an oil tank, and to which the front headlug and rear suspension were attached. The engine's oil supply lines were now internal, and the engine used an inline felt oil filter instead of the metal gauze of the Series A. The transmission was a Vincent design.
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Vincent Rapide
The Vincent Rapide is a line of standard motorcycles designed and built by the Vincent HRD motorcycle company at their works in Great North Road, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. The model debuted in 1936 and was built until 1939. Production resumed in 1946 and ended in 1955. Four major versions were built, labelled Series A through D (The Series D designation was never officially used by the factory).
Whilst working in his office at Stevenage in 1936, designer Phil Irving noticed two drawings of the Vincent HRD engine laying on top of each other in a "V" formation. Irving realised that the 23½° rearward set of the engine's idler would allow a 1-litre 47° V-twin engine to be built using the same cylinders, heads and valve gear as the Vincent single. The new crankcase could even be built on the existing jigs. When company owner Phil Vincent saw the drawing he was immediately enthusiastic, and a few weeks later the first Vincent thousand had been made, with Meteor upper engine parts mounted on new a crankcase. This first Vincent V-twin engine was installed in a frame originally built for a record attempt by Eric Fernihough, who no longer required it.
The Series A Rapide was the first production Vincent to receive the V-twin engine. The bike's frame was a version of the brazed-lug-and-steel-tube diamond frame used by the Comet, but lengthened to accommodate the longer V-twin engine. The rear suspension was based on the cantilever system patented by Phil Vincent while at Cambridge. Comprising a rear frame member (RFM) of two upright triangular arms pivoting at the bottom of the frame and attached to two spring boxes and damper at the top, this system had been used on all Vincents from the first Vincent Special prototype built in 1927. Front suspension was the same friction-damped Brampton girder fork used on the Vincent singles. The larger engine intruded into the space previously occupied by the oil tank, so the Series A Rapide received a petrol tank with two fillers – one for petrol and one for oil as the tank was made to serve double duty. Brakes were dual 7-inch (180 mm) single-leading shoe (SLS), front and rear. The bike came equipped with a side stand. The final wheelbase was 58 in (1,473 mm) and dry weight was 430 lb (195.0 kg).
The engine was an air-cooled 47° V-twin with overhead valves operated by rocker arms and short pushrods driven by two camshafts mounted high in the engine's timing case. With a bore of 84 mm and stroke of 90 mm, total displacement was 998 cc (60.9 cu in). These measurements would not change throughout the engine's production life. The air/fuel mixture was delivered by two Amal 1 1/16" carburettors. Lubrication was by a dry sump system that used an external gear-type oil pump running at one-quarter engine speed to supply oil to the big ends and outer camshaft bushes. Four external 5" long pipes delivered oil to the rocker bushes and rear of each cylinder. With a 6.8:1 compression ratio, the Series A engine produced 45 hp (34 kW) @ 5500 rpm, and was capable of 110 mph (177.0 km/h).
As was the case with the Vincent singles, the transmission in the Series A was a separate 4-speed unit supplied by Burman with a triplex chain primary drive, but with heavy-duty internals and a different wet multiplate clutch. Even with these changes the transmission was unable to cope with the output of the big V-twin. Riders were advised to not open the throttle fully until the clutch was fully engaged.
The Rapide was first shown at the 1936 Motorcycle show at Olympia. It quickly earned two sobriquets. Bill Clarke nicknamed it `The Snarling Beast’ and a reporter struck by the mass of external pipework dubbed it `the plumber’s nightmare’. The bike was listed for sale at £142.
Production of the Series A Rapide ended in 1939.
Design of a radically revised Series B Rapide took place during World War II, and the bike went into production in 1946. Unit construction allowed Vincent to combine the engine and gearbox into a single casing. Philip Vincent summarised his frame design philosophy in his memoirs, writing "What isn't present takes up no space, cannot bend, and weighs nothing — so eliminate the frame tubes!" The angle between the cylinders was changed from the 47° of the Series A engine to 50° to allow the engine to be installed as a stressed member. This enabled Vincent to reduce the frame to an upper frame member (UFM) that was a steel box-section backbone that doubled as an oil tank, and to which the front headlug and rear suspension were attached. The engine's oil supply lines were now internal, and the engine used an inline felt oil filter instead of the metal gauze of the Series A. The transmission was a Vincent design.