Baughan’s brilliance shone in his motorbikes and sidecars
» THE natty little red two seater carrying number 14 on its flank pictured here at Prescott Hill Climb was made by the Baughan company in Stroud.
The firm was founded by engineer Henry Baughan in Harrow before coming to Gloucestershire. The first Stroud factory was in Piccadilly Mill, Lower Street, then later production was moved to the Lansdowne area of the town where light cars and motorcycles were made.
Harry Baughan was a keen motorcyclist (Baughan to be wild, perhaps) and the machines made in Stroud achieved success in trials and competition. In fact Baughan’s motor bike and sidecars were so successful on the track that a number of racing venues banned them on grounds that anyone astride another make of machine didn’t stand a chance.
On just about all other motor bike combinations the only wheel driven by the engine was the motor cycle’s rear. But what made Baughan so outstanding in performance was that the rear wheel of the motorcycle and the wheel of the sidecar were powered. The result was better grip and control, especially over dirt tracks and in muddy trials conditions.
The light car market was crowded, so Baughan parked that side of the business and specialised in motor cycle manufacture. These were made to order, bespoke to the buyer and consequently were expensive. You can judge the build quality for yourself by inspecting the 1929 Baughan combination that can be seen in Stroud’s fine Museum in the Park.
Its powered by a 500cc Blackburn engine with a Sturmey Archer foot change gearbox. It took part in many trials events and enjoyed considerable success.
Harry Baughan’s two wheel drive arrangement, though ground breaking in competitive terms, called for close cooperation between the person on the saddle and the passenger in the sidecar.
To engage power to the sidecar wheel the passenger manipulated a lever. This provided a significant boost to the vehicle’s progress so long as it was travelling in a straight line, but made it almost impossible to turn corners. Consequently the person in the sidecar needed to have their wits about them knowing when to turn the power on and off.
Besides up market machines for the true motorcycle enthusiast, Baughan built lightweight machines at its Stroud factory specifically for use in motorcycle football games by the town’s side.
Harry Baughan’s two wheel drive innovation came to the attention of the military and Baughan’s patented motorcycle and sidecar system was evaluated by the British Government as being of value to the armed forces.
In due course the Government placed an order with the Stroud firm for 2,000 machines. Remarkably, Baughan turned down this lucrative opportunity, deciding instead to stop making cars and motorbikes altogether.
The order was passed on to Norton and that company manufactured over 4,000 of the two wheel drive outfits for the military.
As the Second World War approached Harry Baughan returned to his roots of aviation engineering and became a sub contractor to the Gloster Aircraft Company (GAC). Baughan Engineering, as the company was by then known, worked in conjunction with Frank Whittle in the manufacture of the inventor’s jet engine.
GAC built the airframe for Whittle’s revolutionary engine, which developed into the Gloster Meteor fighter, the only jet powered plane to see service during the 1939 to 1945 conflict.
Though no longer involved in motorbike manufacture, Harry Baughan organized trials and races, an interest that occupied him until shortly before his death in 1968.
The firm he founded continued in business as a producer of plastics processing equipment until the early years of the present century.