Vincent Motorcycles

Vincent emblem

Vincent Motorcycles Background & History

Vincent Motorcycles has an aura and a cache to it that vastly outweighs its production numbers. From the end of World War II until Vincent closed its doors in 1955, it produced fewer than 11,000 units total. And yet, its image and reputation among the British motorcycle faithful is larger than life. At classic motorcycle shows Vincents draw crowds. At auction, they often bring six-figure sums of money. In a way, Vincents have taken on a status much like old Ferraris or Rolls-Royces which were also produced in very low numbers, yet command respect, admiration and high auction prices. Vincentʼs premier bike, the Black Shadow, was certainly a beautiful piece of machinery with its gloss black engine, but they were also extremely fast in their day, having earned the title ‘The Worldʼs Fastest Motorcycle’.

1938 Vincent Rapide

Like all Vincents, the 1938 Vincent Rapide oozed with quality. They were the Rolls-Royce of motorcycles in their day. 

Vincent Motorcycles in the Early Days

The Vincent story begins in World War I, when young British RAF pilot Howard Raymond Davis was shot down and captured by the Germans in 1917. While a POW, he conceived a motorcycle design that he planned to produce after the war. The resulting company, HRD (Davisʼs initials) built motorcycles using JAP engines until 1928, when it went broke. Along comes Phil Vincent, flush with cash from the Argentine cattle business. He bought HRD out of receivership for a mere 450 pounds. He renamed the company Vincent-HRD. It started out building motorcycles with engines purchased elsewhere. In 1934, it began producing its own engines. Vincents were always well designed, well built and unique. At a time when most bikes used rigid frames, Vincent motorcycles used a setup similar in many ways to Harleyʼs Softail, called the ‘cantilever’ frame. The entire rear section of the bike pivoted on a swing arm with the shocks mounted horizontally under the seat. It looked like a conventional rigid frame at first glance but offered some much-needed suspension travel. Another unique feature were the two valve guides on each valve, one high and one low with a forked rocker arm in between. It was meant to prolong valve guide life, and it worked.

1954 Vincent Rapide

This 1954 Vincent Rapide 998cc V-twin gives a good view of its cantilever rear suspension. The triangulated rear section pivots on a low axis just behind the gearbox, with the spring-loaded twin shocks semi-horizontal under the seat. It didnʼt provide much travel and flexed a lot, but in a day when most bikes had rigid frames, it was considered ʻadvancedʼ. 

Vincent Motorcycles not in World War 2

World War II saw Vincent Motorcycles making munitions and marine engines but not motorcycles. At the warʼs end, Phil Vincent set about opening up the US market. But Harley-Davidson, H-D for short, objected to Vincent using the HRD name in America, claiming it would create confusion in the marketplace, so the ‘HRD’ part was dropped, and from then on, they were simply called ‘Vincents’. But its biggest sellers at the time were 500cc singles, the Meteor and the Comet, good for around 26 horsepower and 90mph top speed. Even before the war, Vincent Motorcycles knew it needed much more power if it wanted to compete in the burgeoning US motorcycle market. How could the low-volume, cash-strapped Vincent come up with a new motorcycle with twice the power? Thatʼs an interesting story.

Vincent Engine Comparison

ABOVE: Presto! From a single to a twin. Vincent kept it simple by just doubling the existing Comet single (left), turning it into a V-twin, like this Rapide engine (right).  

Funny Story...

Prior to the war, Phil Irving, Vincent Motorcycles' chief engineer, was sitting at the drawing board with two tracings of the Vincent 499cc single-cylinder engine. As things got moved around, the top tracing roughly lined up with the bottom one at an angle that made it look like a V-twin. With a little cajoling, he lined it all up and the Vincent V-twin was born. The new 998cc 1936 Series A Rapide made 45 horsepower and was good for 110mph, stellar at the time. It was produced in low numbers until civilian production was curtailed by World War II in 1939. After the war, it was completely redesigned and the resulting 1946 Series B Rapide was a monster. They put two front brakes on it to counter the added speed. The Series C came out in 1948, with Girling’s new Girdraulic forks instead of the old Brampton girders. But the big news was the addition of a new high-performance version dubbed the Black Shadow, now making 55hp and topping out at 125mph, hence the title ‘The World’s Fastest Production Motorcycle’. Black Shadows are famous for their gloss black engines. Rapide engines were finished in polished aluminum.

1950 Vincent Comet

The 499cc Comet was Vincentʼs biggest seller by far. Literally half of a Rapide V-twin, the Comet used the same sophisticated chassis, suspension and brakes as its bigger brothers. This is a 1950 Vincent Comet Series C.


1952 Vincent Black Shadow

The top-dog Vincent was the 998cc Black Shadow V-twin, making 55hp and capable of 125 mph, earning the title "World's Fastest Production Motorcycle" at the time. Note the similarities with the Comet, above. This is a 1952 Series C Black Shadow.


Bathing Suit Bike

This is why they call it the ‘Bathing Suit Bike’. (Trademark of Harris Vincent Galley, Inc., Bonneville Salt Flats, 1948.)

The Bathing Suit Bike

They weren’t kidding about that ‘World’s Fastest Motorcycle’ thing. On 13 September 1948, Rolland ‘Rollie’ Free piloted his modified Vincent Black Lightning into the history books at the Bonneville Salt Flats. At the time, the 150mph barrier seemed unreachable for motorcycles. Rollie tried several times, but never quite touched the ‘Big 150’. He determined that it was the wind resistance of his clothing that was slowing him down, so he stripped down to a bathing suit, a bathing cap and a pair of borrowed sneakers, then removed the seat and laid prone on the back fender. His 2-way average jumped to 150.313mph. The picture of him breaking the record is one of the most iconic photos in all of motorcycledom. The record-breaking Black Lightning forever became known as the ‘Bathing Suit Bike’. It is still around today, fully restored and making the show circuit.

Bathing Suit Bike Today

This is what the Bathing Suit Bike looks like today, fully restored.

Crazy Ideas that Failed Anyway

Despite their success on the Salt, Vincent struggled financially. Phil Vincent tried many different, and sometimes crazy, things to turn it around. Motorcycles with fully-enclosed bodies were an expensive experiment that failed to catch on. Then Vincent tried a trike with a 998cc Rapide V-twin capable of 117 mph. It too bombed in the market. Next it became the importer of NSU mopeds, selling over 20,000 NSU Quickly mopeds in 1954 alone, so good in fact that NSU pulled its contract and began importing them itself. In 1955 Phil Vincent finally pulled the plug, ending a brilliant career in motorcycle production. He vowed, however, that Vincent parts would always be available, and in fact they still are today. A testament to the solidity of Vincent the motorcycle and Vincent the man.

1955 Vincent Black Prince

This amorphous blob is a 1955 Vincent Black Knight. In England, where riders routinely dealt with bad weather, it was meant to offer some comfort, and be easier to wipe down at the end of the day. Alas, a concept before its time.

Vincent V-Twin Engine Cutaway

The mighty 1000cc Vincent V-twin engine powered the Rapide Black Shadow, Black Prince and Black Lightning. This one is from a Vincent Black Shadow. We caught this incredible exhibit, sponsored by the Vincent Owners Club, at The Quail Motorcycle Show in Carmel CA in 2011. Very cool.

Vincent Engine Cutaway 1
Vincent engine cutaway 2
Vincent engine cutaway 3
Vincent engine cutaway 4
Vincent engine cutaway 5
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Vincent engine cutaway 8
Vincent engine cutaway 9

A New Lease on Life

Swiss racer/engineer Fritz Egli designed and built custom frame kits for the legendary Vincent 998cc V-twin engine, known for their perfect welding beads and luscious nickel-plating. He built around 100 frames from 1967 to 1972, with the intent of modernising the iconic Vincent Black Shadow, which fell out of production in 1955. Each frame was hand-built to a high standard, most were custom-built to customers' specifications, so that nearly every genuine Egli that you see is different. Egli-Vincents are very much like the original Shelby Cobra of the 1960s. Only around 1,000 authentic Cobras were built, but today an estimated 60,000 replicas ply the streets. They were so popular yet so rare, that an entire industry sprang up to copy the Cobra's good looks. The same thing has happened with the Egli-Vincent. Today, and for many years now, frame-builders have been copying Egli frames, and it's hard to tell them apart from the originals.

1970 Egli-Vincent

Fritz Egli built modern frames around Vincent V-twins in the 1960s and 1970s. This is a 1970 Egli-Vincent cafe racer. Original Egli-Vincents are worth big money today.

Vincent Motorcycles by Model

Vincent Comet

Vincent Rapide

Vincent Black Shadow

Vincent Motorcycle Books


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