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The Scandinavian Vincent Club (SVC) was founded 1970. The purpose of the club is to promote the interest for HRD / Vincent, as well as forming contact between Vincent owners in Scandinavia. This is mainly done through the excellent magazine that is published twice per year (As of March 2010, there has been 76), as well as the annual meeting that takes place somewhere in Scandinavia. Apart from this, local meetings are regularly held by club members. The club has about 180 members from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Germany. Usually, there are about 60 visitors on our annual meetings. We often have guests that are not from Scandinavia. There are about 350 known Vincent machines in Scandinavia.
When the club was formed, it was difficult to get hold of spare parts. Believe it or not, but this was before the Internet, and most of us were bad at English. Therefore, the forming of the club enabled the maintaining of the engines. There have been many articles with tips of how to maintain and adjust the bikes in our magazines. The members of the club have also helped each other by trading parts and experiences. Member Sören Skoog have since 1969 been trading new and old Vincent part, and he is a big part of why we have so many machines up and running today.
SVC is independent from the Vincent Owners Club, (VOC), but strives to maintain the best relationship to VOC. There is a Scandinavian Sector in VOC where Neville Higgins is Section Organizer. VOC was formed 1948 and publish its own magazine, MPH. The magazine, which usually contain about 70 pages, is published 12 times per year. Since the start, 734 magazines have come out. Many Scandinavian Vincent owners are members in both the clubs.
VOC is the major owner in Vincent Spares Company, which produce and keep in stock most Vincent parts to reasonable prices. Because of this, we Vincent owners can ride and use our jewels. Just about all parts can be bought newly made according to the original specification. When ordering, the parcel is carried out the same day, so under the condition that the postal network operates, we can have the ordered parts within 5-10 days. Closer to home, Skoogs MC-parts (telephone ++46 36 175757) in Jönköping, Sweden, sell both new and used Vincent parts. Sören Skoog can deliver parts even faster than VOC in the Scandinavian area, and he has great knowledge about the machines and have also met most Scandinavian Vincent owners. A large part of the value of the Vincents, both when it comes to usage as well as economically, is in the possibility to use the machines. Also, the books, magazines and the nice club activities both in Scandinavia and in the rest of the world play an important role in keeping the interest alive. When all the bikes end up at museums or among collectors that aren't active in the community, the interest will diminish.
A properly maintained or renovated Vincent is very reliable and will hold for a great many miles. We have members in the club that have driven very, very long with their machines, among them Stuart Jenkinson who have had his machine running no less than 1 150 000 km on the Black Prince that he bought it new in 1955. Read more about Stuart Jenkinson. A well adjusted twin can without problem hold a march speed of 140 - 160 km/h without getting weak or overloaded. Most machines are equipped with the well working Girdraulic front fork by the Vincent company. It dampens the uneven parts of the road in an excellent way and has a built in anti drive. The rear springs can be considered wholly modern. Due to the extremely stable crankshaft and heavy balances, the engine is surprisingly free from vibrations and runs calm. The breaks were the most effective motorcycle breaks during the fourties and fifties, but are not up to today's standards. Many solutions exist to solve this problem, some use newly made shields, others use disc breaks. The VOC have made a new 8-inch break drum with a new shield that seem very promising. Most bikes is/were equipped with a Lucas magnet. If this is maintained properly, it will serve for many miles without causing complications. The Lucas magnet is much better than its reputation. What usually causes trouble is the generator. A worn 55W Miller often doesn't have the energy to power dipped headlights, rear light and charging. Those who can afford it can replace the generator and charging relay with a newly made ac-generator for about 5 000 kr (about 425 £). This generator fit both twins and single cylinder bikes without modification. For those who, for various reasons, can't start a large twin by kicking, there are nowadays an electric starter motor that can be used.
The 500 model Comet or Meteor, has close to identical chassie as the 1000 model. The rear cylinder is replaced with a frame tie and the model has a Burman gearbox. The march speed for a Comet is usually 105 - 115 km/h. Apart from that, most cycle parts are the same as the twins. The Comet is an excellent bike for those who would like to enter the Vincent world.
To discover that barn find that all veteran nuts dream about is pretty much out of question when it comes to Vincents. Yet one can, of course, keep the dream alive. The Vincent machines have always been much sought after and relatively more expensive than other motorcycles. To find a reansonably priced machine in England or the USA is impossible today.
To really prove that all spare parts are available for Vincent 1000cc, some members of the VOC made a complete Vincent Black Shadow with newly made spare parts in the year 2007. This machine was later auctioned out to VOC members. How many other motorcycle brands can offer this kind of spare part range, 56 years after the making of the bikes stoped? Link to information on the Spares Company. For those who dream about a classic machine, there is Godet Vincent. Link to Patrick Godet. Patrick Godet make so called Egli Vincents with a finish and touch that is in a league of its own. He has also developed the engine futher. I have had the joy of testing one of those machines myself. It had 89 hp on the rear wheel, had a weight of 172 kg (without fuel, but with oil) and a remarkably stiff frame with the markets best shocks and chassie components. This ride is no less than a projectile in the hands of a compentent driver. Other spare parts sellers are VIN-PARTS INTERNATIONAL, operated by Russel Kemp in Wales. Link to Vintech. In Germany, Ernst Hegeler make very nice parts. Link to Ernsts website. Ernst with his wife Karin are frequent and appreciated guests at our Scandinavian meetings. For those who are in a real hurry, there are so called Irving Vincents. Link to Irving Vincent.
From 1924 - 1949, the machines were called HRD after Howard Raymond Davis. In 1949, the machines were renamed into Vincent after the American general agent had suggested to do so in order not to cause confusion with another motorcycle brand that is being made in Milwaukee, USA.
We are looking for people around Scandinavia who has owned Vincent machines or those who are interested in Vincents. We particularly look for stories, pictures or anecdotes related to the motorcycles. If you have anything to share, we would be delighted to get in contact. The best way to contact us is through E-mail. We will happily help with sorting out and shapening up the material.
If you once owned a Vincent, it would be of interest to us so that we can update the registry of machines and its past owners.
If you know of any Vincent parts or whole machines, there are always members who are interested in purchasing. We can help you get in touch. We are also interested in things such as original tools, literature, equipment typical of the time etc.
Mail Ann-Britt for membership.
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The page was last modified March 22 2010 22:25:02.