side-valve engine and gearbox mean that it finds itself being restricted around the Brooklands site. However, as one of two motorcycles registered for the road it has more than enough power to keep pace with modern traffic and the brakes are relatively good compared to some other vehicles in the collection.
T
In October 2018, a plan was put together for the 1927 Sunbeam to be entered into the Banbury Run along with a 1928 Sunbeam that I am currently assembling in the McEvoy shed as a visitor attraction. Sadly, the 1928 bike was not finished in time, but in early June the ever reliable Light Solo was prepared for what would be its third outing to the Vintage Motorcycle Club’s premier event for pre-1930s machines. Some difficulty with petrol supply prior to the event was traced to a blocked fuel line and, after the Amac carburettor was cleaned, the bike kicked over first time.
The week before the Run, the weather had been atrocious. The heavy, record-
he 1927 3½ HP Sunbeam Light Tourist is best described as a modest little run-around with a bit of poke. Its 500cc
breaking rain had eased slightly as I drove up to the event, which starts at the British Motor Museum at Gaydon. The waterlogged camp site, located on a newly landscaped ridge overlooking the start-line greeted us with an icy breeze, so hardly a prelude to Midsummers Day less than a week away and not ideal riding conditions for the following day’s ride. On Sunday, Motorcycle Team Member
and rider Tony Baxter and myself got the Sunbeam prepared. However, there is nothing like a drop of rain to spoil a well-rehearsed plan, and so after an initial very smoky start we were forced to drain the Sunbeam’s sump and change the plug before it was taken to the start area. Once there, the weather began to clear and the first bikes were setting off in bright sunshine. Overall, the weather was similar to the previous few years, with a mixture of clouds and sunshine which illuminated the chocolate box villages around the route. Some competitors may have completely missed the few showers that crossed the course, but it was evident as the first bikes returned that many of those tranquil lanes had suffered with the recent heavy rain.
Tony Baxter in the start area with the Museum’s Sunbeam SEPTEMBER – OCTOBER 2019 | BROOKLANDS BULLETIN 31
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