Vincent HRD Motorcycles

This is a motorcycle that never claimed to be
anything BUT the fastest bike ever made. The
Vincent idea from the very beginning was to make
a motorcycle that was faster than anything previously
manufactured.
The original company was located in Hertfordshire,
England and was called HRD after its
founder, Howard R. Davies, who was a World War I
pilot. He started his company in 1924 and built bikes
with the JAP engine, named after inventor James
A. Prestwich. Phil Vincent bought the HRD company
in 1928 and moved the facilities to Stevenage, England.
Beginning at the new plant the bikes were called
'Vincent HRD' and still used the JAP engines. At the
Isle of Man races in 1930 all three of the Vincent HRD
bikes broke down and the owner was not a happy
camper. A new engine and rear suspension was designed
for all newer bikes and this is where the Vincent really
started to make its mark on the world stage. The
cantilever rear suspension kept the drive wheel on the
ground better and the new engine design was a
500cc, 6.8:1 compression beast that put out 45 HP.
Remember this was 1931 when most motorcycles were
rated around 20-30 horsepower. From 1940 through
1944 the Vincent plant was devoted to the war effort
and produced munitions for the British Army. Even before
the war ended Phil Vincent was looking overseas to
the U.S.A. to market his motorcycles. In 1945 the first
American dealership to sell Vincent Motorcycles was
located in Philadelphia. All of the bikes coming to the
U.S. had the same logo on the tank as the European
models. It had Vincent in small type at the top of larger
letters HRD. Harley-Davidson protested the infringement
of their HD logo and henceforth all bikes were labeled
Vincent. Phil Vincent was never one to make a fuss over
the appearance of his bikes, as long as they went fast.
A Vincent was always black and chrome. In 1952 at the
request of others Vincent tried a new model that was
painted white and marketed under the name 'White
Shadow'. It sold 15 bikes worldwide and was never
heard from again. 1955 saw Russell Wright set a new
World Land Speed Record of 184.83 mph on a Vincent
Series D Comet. The early and mid 50's saw a drop in
the marketing of all British bikes and Vincent was no
different. Phil Vincent tried touring and three-wheel
models with no success. In December of 1955 at a meeting
of Vincent owners, Phil Vincent announced the plant
would be closing and he would not be making any
future motorcycles. Others have come along and tried
to reignite the Vincent magic, but without success.
Recently at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Arizona an
immaculate 1954 Vincent Black Lightening sold for
one-hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars.