1927 Douglas EW350 Sports

Owned by Louise

A fast noisy flat tanker. Just the way we like them.

We were originally reluctant to show this bike on the website because of it's historical significance and originality. Unfortunately the bike is not as original as we thought but it does retain much of the charm of a Douglas whilst being a usable vintage classic vehicle.

We had first noticed this fine motorcycle at a Vehicle Club Rally some years ago. The last time it was on show it was a non-runner which was a great pity. The owner asked one of her fellow members of the Vehicle Club to ask the OAM shed to look at it and to get it back into some sort of running order. We were absolutely thrilled to be given the opportunity to work on a machine of the quality of the Douglas.

Pete joined the London Douglas Motorcycle Club, being the largest and only club dedicated to the Douglas certainly within the UK and probably world wide. We felt it was important to have some recourse to expert opinion and experience of the Douglas marque to enable us to do the best job possible Before we did any significant work, some photographs were taken and sent to the LDMCC technical expert for his thoughts.

We did notice that the wheel rims were chrome and therefore unlikely to be original equipment, but given the state of the roads in the 1920's and 30's it was no surprise to find  that they had been replaced. However the complete wheels including the hubs and braking systems had been replaced along with the mudguards. The technical expert, Frank Dolman explained that the tyres for the bike had not been available since the 1930's and it was common for more modern rims to be fitted. He also proffered his opinion that the Douglas brakes were not the best and that we would be as well sticking to what was now there if the bike was to be used rather than kept as a museum piece.

Other parts that were pointed out to be non original were the carburettor and the taps for the oil system and petrol. The oil system on the bike is a total loss system with a feed to an oil pump from a tank built into the petrol tank, with the option of a pressure feed from a plunger. Everything else was original and period including the carbide lamps, leather saddle and bar-end levers. There was a twist-grip throttle that was originally fitted to the sports model which we thought to be a later addition, being a chrome plated after market item. Someone had altered the control cables and had some in the wrong place but that was something easily fixed.

Of most concern to us was the valve gear. The cam followers operating onto the valve stems of the side-valve motor did not meet up exactly being off-centre by about 10mm. This was noticed by the technical expert but he couldn't offer a reason as to why this could be. The best explanation we could think of was that the cylinder heads with the valves were off another model. A top-end strip showed that the heads fitted the barrels exactly and revealed that the cylinders had been re-bored to +20 thou and it was running on aluminium pistons which were specified for the Sports model.

The reason that the bike was alleged to be off the road was due to a gearbox fault. The technical expert highlighted to us that the gearboxes were a weak link and ran in grease rather than an oil bath. An initial strip of the outer cover revealed a worn kickstart bush but every gear appeared to be fine – but only a road test would tell us if all was well otherwise. The flywheel clutch was unusual for a motorcycle and a brief strip showed it to be in reasonable shape. Sparks were coming from the magneto and a clean up of the carb prompted us to try to get some early action from the bike, albeit on the bench. Despite some clatter from the valve gear, it ran without much bother which was encouraging. What we needed to achieve was a reliably running and starting bike that would be a star at the rallies.

The biggest question with this type of restoration or renovation is how far to go. The shed philosophy is certainly not to remove originality and to preserve as far as possible what is original or valuable; there is no point to painting over original factory paint or replacing original nuts with stainless steel ones. The deciding factor is to see what we have and make an informed decision from there.
At some point this bike was worked on to make it usable on the road. Modern tyres would dictate that the wheels were replaced. If the Duggie brakes were not particularly good, then BSA or Norton brakes would be better. Likewise the carburation – the replacement looks period, but with a needle valve the Amal would offer better control than the original.  The cycle parts were painted as well, and some of this looks a bit chipped. The tank has had a poor job done on it paint-wise, although it has some patina. The bike has been dry stored so there is little rust on the exposed metal and it would be a good idea to cover that with paint. Some parts would have been nickel plated and has deteriorated beyond repair except for the headlamp.

We are more or less agreed that we should get it running reliably and as well as possible. The obvious mechanical wear should be corrected with  other serviceable parts replaced where appropriate. The question arises with the nickel and the paint. If we nickel one part – should we nickel everything that was originally plated? With no original paint, should we repaint the frame and tank, or preserve the patina that has built up since it was last done? We shall see. Time will probably dictate the outcome!

Pete contacted Reg Holmes the membership secretary of the LDMCC, as he was going down to  Bristol for a wedding. Reg suggested meeting up at the Kingswood Heritage Museum which is open on a tuesday afternoon to the public. Reg contacted Barry, an EW owner and William Douglas, grandson of the founder of the motorcycle business. Barry has an EW 350 and was able to tell us exactly what we needed to know. Barry seemed to anticipate all of the questions without being asked – so he knew what were likely to be the issues. Unfortunately he was unable to throw any light on the excessively eccentric valve operation. Kingswood was a fine museum with a room dedicated to Douglas. A line up of motorcycles through the production period from the early models to the last Dragonflies of 1957. Aside from that were the fairy engined push-bike that started it all from 1907 to the last two-wheeled vehicle to exit the factory being the Vespa scooter made under licence, this one with a box sidecar for workmen to transport their tools and materials. A TT trophy, one of four won by Douglas on the Isle of Man featured in one of the displays. If you are ever down that way on a tuesday – don't miss it! Many and grateful thanks are due to William, Barry and Reg for taking the time to see Pete.