RE’S NEW BULLET .......................................
Royal Enfield’s new-for-1963 unit construction single bore little resemblance to the traditional Bullet which preceded it. James French found one of these really rare 350s, and then he found a couple more…
Royal Enfield’s new-for-1963 unit construction single bore little resemblance to the traditional Bullet which preceded it. James French found one of these really rare 350s, and then he found a couple more
The 350 unit construction ‘New Bullet’ was conceived in 1961 and was in production at Royal Enfield’s Redditch factory from 1963 to 1965. Early literature from the factory announced it as the ‘big brother’ of the established Crusader range which had been introduced as a new design by Reg Thomas in 1956. Unfortunately the timing of the New Bullet’s introduction to the UK market was not good. Recent bad press for motorcycling and the introduction of the 250cc learner law left the 350 market in limbo. Yet because BSA had their B40 and Norton their Navigator twin, so Enfield thought they needed a model in that capacity category.
The name New Bullet was coined to allow Enfield to continue with the name ‘Bullet’ in the range after the production of the preunit 350 models ceased. The old Bullet had served Enfield well over the years in terms of sales – including a large order for the Indian
army. By contrast the New Bullet was not a sales success, and records show that only 232 were built in batches of 50 between 1963 and 1965. This makes the unit construction 350 a rare bike on the road today.
Enfield claimed 22bhp @ 6500rpm from the 7.5:1 compression for the New Bullet (down from 9.75:1 on the Super 5, and 8.5:1 on the Sports Crusader), and a top speed of 85mph, which was spurious. Certainly, Sports Crusader owners looking to move up were disappointed with the New Bullet’s performance as the Crusader went better with its different engine characteristics. The New Bullet was more suited to a touring role.
So what are the differences between the New Bullet and the 250 Crusader apart from the capacity? Essentially very little. It’s a revised engine design (a stretched Crusader, up from 248cc to 346cc) fitted into a Sports Crusader running gear with the same 17-inch wheels offering rider comfort. Outwardly the bikes looked the same, but the expert eye could count 10 fins on the taller barrel with the head’s rocker cover tucked well up under the petrol tank. The Crusader barrel has only eight fins and the rocker box is easily seen. Internally, the New Bullet has a bore and stroke of 70mm by 90mm, compared to the Crusader’s stroke of 64.5mm, hence the New Bullet’s longer barrel.
The Albion gearbox was strengthened to accommodate the extra torque the 350 engine produced, with wider pinions on both mainshaft and layshaft. The clutch also had an extra friction plate, making four altogether, but it’s the crank which has the biggest difference. The New Bullet crankshaft is a built-up, floating bush design in the best Enfield tradition and there is a plain bush outrigger supporting the crankshaft outside of the main bearing on the drive side. But from the outside the engine of the New Bullet looks like a unit Crusader, so if you do come across one then check the engine number, which on the New Bullet begins BS3 – and count those 10 fins on the barrel. The 350 New Bullet has more grunt and torque than the Crusader and, with its different gearing, gives the rider the feeling of a tourer as opposed to the ‘busy’ free-revving oversquare engine of the 17bhp Crusader Sports.
I bought my 1963 UK spec model in 2007 from a dealer who advertised it as a Crusader Sports. The price was even reduced from £2250 to £1750, so I had to act fast to get it. I recognised the larger barrel in the picture and paid a deposit over the phone; something I had never done before. The bike was running, had a V5C and MoT, with 43,600 miles on its chronometric speedometer. Delivery was arranged and I had a test ride before paying the balance.
The Bullet looked tired and ran like an out of tune bike does, so I was eager and wasted no time on a refurbishment. This wasn’t a full blown restoration, it didn’t require that, only some TLC was missing… plus a lot of cleaning!
On the engine, I removed the generator and drive side covers to clean and inspect the parts therein, re-set the tappets, points and ignition timing. The engine oil was changed and given a new filter, the gearbox oil was changed too and set to the correct level. The carb was fully stripped, jets checked to be sure they matched the spec in the manual and they were well cleaned. The petrol tank was original – the ‘Blaze’ colour would have been red-over-brown but it looked pink due to fading. The original tank decal as fitted by the factory remained, albeit well faded, but the two gold lines were still there.
When the refurb was complete and the bike was ready for a road test, it went just like a Bullet, hitting 60mph downhill on a small throttle opening with a crisp exhaust note. A big grin was on my face. The engine required no running in and was so different to the two 250 Continentals I’ve owned. Since 2007 I have covered 11,000 miles on the New Bullet and she is a favourite to ride. The 350 cruises easily at 55mph and 4000rpm.
You’ll see from the photos that – even though this model is extremely rare – we managed to gather three of them together. Our next New Bullet is one of a batch of 18 made for the USA market in 1965. It’s finished in Chinese Red with some parts common to the Enfield Turbo Twin (forks and headlamp assembly), Continental GT front mudguard, three-gallon petrol tank and 18-inch wheels. Enfield had a habit of changing a petrol tank and fitting some other parts from the shelf and calling it a new model…
This New Bullet is a repatriated example owned by John from Bristol, who has owned it for around 10 years. It’s done just over 4000 miles. Like mine, this New Bullet is also unrestored and still has its original colour scheme, but it does show some sea salt
corrosion on the few bright parts from its former New England home.
Our final New Bullet and the newest to the road is a 1965 UK model owned by another John who lives in Warwickshire. This particular machine has recently undergone a complete restoration and engine rebuild by John with help from Enfield guru and friend Ray Tew. It was only MoT’d in July this summer – the first time since the early 1990s. John researched his New Bullet using the internet and social media and was able to trace some previous owners. He built up a picture of the bike’s history and, more importantly, how it looked. Two things stand out, these being the colour scheme of the tank in Cambridge Blue and white, correct for 1965, and the rear mudguard assembly which is chromed below the seat. John’s New Bullet is being carefully run in and I am looking forward to a ride on it to compare with my own.
John and I became friends through the REOC and met up last year so John could photograph my bike for reference (they really are as rare as hens’ teeth!), and have a ride on it. He was suitably impressed and was urged onwards with his own restoration. During John’s search for information and guidance he found other New Bullet people and a group of ten of us now communicate via email. The summer weekends are always busy but we arranged a date in July for a New Bullet meet-up at the National Motorcycle Museum. We wanted to get the most New Bullets assembled together in one place since the demise of the Redditch factory. The three bikes you see here duly arrived, and we hope for more in the future.
After my own 54 mile ride to the Museum I arrived second, and spotted John’s blue bike parked up next to the sign which says ‘where legends live on’. How appropriate! We chatted in the NMM café and were joined by Wayne from Hitchcocks and another New Bullet owner, Reg (his New Bullet was at Hitchcocks being repaired). We had great fun showing off our bikes to each other, asking questions and posing for photographs. The weather stayed fine for the return trip and our little gettogether was enjoyed by all. The New Bullet is an odd model, hardly acknowledged even by marque experts, but it has engendered friendship, collaboration and support. Is that not part of what biking is all about?