REAL ROCKETS?

It was with great interest that I read about the Rocket Gold Star in RC235/236. For many years I have owned something similar, seen here. It didn’t leave the factory as an RGS. It’s a CB32 Gold Star rolling chassis with a Super Rocket engine installed, both being of 1958 vintage. Is this not precisely what Mr Dow originally created?

I have read various theories of how BSA viewed this marriage. Did the company simply consider this an opportunity – given the demise of the singlecylinder DBD Gold Star and the pre-unit A10 – to clear the shelves of soon to be obsolete spares? That’s exactly what other manufacturers, AMC for example, did. And there were only 1584 factory RGS machines produced in various forms.

If you examine the factory RGS rolling chassis closely, it is simply a pre-1956 A7/10 design with additional features such as the rear-set mounting points and extra cast engine lugs. A Gold Star it’s not! It would also appear to have the later short inner primary chaincase, designed for a fully enclosed chainguard which cannot be fitted the RGS due to its earlier swinging arm layout.

The question is: was the original Eddie Dow creation the true Rocket Gold Star?

Rob Smith, member 579 St Louis, 1989. I heard that a couple of old BSAS were available. Went to an old section of town, dilapidated shed behind house, no door, dark and dismal inside. All I could see were rear wheels, one bike was painted rattle can bright green, but I noticed it had alloy rims. Decided to get that one, at least the wheels were worth something. Any bike was priced at $300 dollars.

After trucking the bike home I noticed the forged front motor mount, further investigation revealed that it was a Gold Star Twin, export version of the RGS. Long and time consuming restoration, but satisfying result. Sometimes you just get lucky, or as they say in the South, even a blind pig gets an acorn now and again!

Brian Slark, member