Beschreibung:

Ever since the Series A’s arrival in 1937, the Vincent v-twin has been synonymous with design innovation, engineering excellence and superlative high performance. From Rollie Free’s capture of the ‘world’s fastest production motorcycle’ record in 1948 on a tuned Series B Black Shadow to the final fully enclosed Black Knight and Black Prince, Philip Vincent’s stress on appearance and performance is legendary. His machines bristled with innovative features: adjustable brake pedal, footrests, seat height and gear-change lever. The finish was to a very high standard commensurate with the cost of the machine, which was virtually double that of any of its contemporaries. But above all else it was the v-twin’s stupendous performance that captivated motorcyclists, whether they could afford one or not. With a top speed approaching 120mph, and bettering it in the Black Shadow’s case, the Vincent v-twin was the fastest road vehicle of its day. This Series-C Rapide’s accompanying copy works record card shows that it was completed in December 1949 and despatched to London agents Conway Motors, of Shepherd’s Bush. Imported into Norway from the UK in 1996, it comes with the associated documentation, while there are recent invoices on file for crankshaft reconditioning (Alpha Bearings, 2003) and overhaul of the Lucas KVF magneto (D H Day, 2005). Intriguingly, some of the Norwegian paperwork mentions ‘Black Shadow’ modifications to engine and brakes, although this has not been confirmed. Featuring repainted tank and cycle parts, and that highly desirable 150mph ’Shadow speedometer, the machine is offered with the aforementioned paperwork and invoices; spare tank and headstock transfers; original rider’s handbook; maintenance manual; expired MoT (1996-97); Norwegian registration papers; and Swansea V5 registration document.