CLASSIC WORLD
Velocette restorers Ivan Rhodes and Bob Higgs have made a perfect replica of the 1930s ISDT Gold Medal-winning outfit
After years of painstaking work, Velocette specialists Ivan Rhodes and Bob Higgs will present their replica of a historic 1930s Hall Green machine at April’s Stafford Show.
They have recreated the 600cc sidecar outfit driven by Bristol dealer Stuart Waycott as part of Great Britain’s victorious ISDT Trophy team every year from 1936 to 1938. Designed by legendary Australian engineer Phil Irving, the purpose-built outfit’s sohc 595cc (85 x 105mm) engine shared features with Velocette’s factory road racers. The original outfit was broken up long ago; a solo racer in a private UK collection has the engine.
The faithful replica was created without factory drawings, thanks to Ivan’s stock of original and replicated race shop parts, plus Bob’s engineering skills – he is known in Velocette circles for his 100,000-mile ohv Vulcan V-twin special. John Winfield helped with spannering, and rare parts came from Velocette OC officials in Australia.
The engine, with Velo’s massively-finned racing cylinder head, has long-stroke flywheels made by Bob, with a Ford piston giving 8:1 compression. Ivan selected suitable cams and there’s an extra pump fitted to scavenge oil from the timing chest, as on works racers. Ivan had the correct four-speed gearbox in his parts cache.
The aluminium-bodied sidecar’s chassis was copied from a drawing in Irving’s autobiography. Suspension for its wheel is by a transverse swingarm and leaf spring. A spare wheel carried on the bike is interchangeable with the sidecar wheel and, thanks to a fork modification, the front wheel.