Colour charting
In the February 2021 issue, I see that you’ve been let loose on Peter Rosenthal’s Velocette MAC. What a gem, I’m envious. This machine was part of John Keeley’s collection.
He was a big traction engine collector in a place called
Knowl Hill, which is on the Bath Road between Maiden head and Reading. When Peter was thinking about buying the
MAC he asked if I could check that it was originally turned out in green. It was. Here’s the full story about Veloce’s flirt with colours.
For the 1955 season, the factory offered the LE in a range of second colours – ruby red, blue and green. To identify these various options, Veloce allocated numbers to each colour – 3, 4, and 5 respectively.
Numbers 1 and 2 – were used to identify the original grey colours – 1 for the metallic grey used on the Mk. I model, and 2 for the plain grey scheme. I have a 1955 LE in green – see accompanying picture.
From July 1955 the singles were offered in green – for the MAC, and Dove Grey for the MSS. Dove Grey was also available for the LE andwas allocated identification code No. 6.
At the November 1956 London show, an LE was displayed in polychromatic green – a darker, metallic version than the green previously available on the LE. The following February, the factory told their dealers that
LEs were now available in this further colour, but it wasn’t used on the singles.
The Valiant – when launched at the end of 1956 – was offered in black and also green. This was a different shade to that used on the LE from1955, and Veloce allocated this new colour number 7 and called it Willow Green. At the same time they allocated number 8 to Polychromatic Green.
From May 1957, the LE ruby red option was withdrawn, as was Dove Grey on all the offered models – Venom, MSS and
LE. The two singles were now offered in green (No.5) in line with the MAC and Viper. In June 1958, the No. 5 green was withdrawn from all models – to be replaced by the Valiant’s Willow Green – No.7.
Peter’s MAC – being a 1959 model – is finished in Willow Green. The earlier model you mention in your article and which Roy Poynting rode was painted in No.5 green, like my LE. Dennis Frost, Surrey.