The Rover Imperial Vintage Motorcycle Manufacture
This ten-minute film shows the method of building an engine from scratch, as well as the casting method, machining, final assembly, and also completed the motorcycle’s 1st test ride. It’s very interesting how a motorbike (and car) engines were fastidiously built back in those early days of motoring, In the 80’s or ’90s each step of the method needed highly-skilled machinists, highly skilled workers, engineers, and assembly linesmen.
The company began to produce & develop the Rover Imperial vintage motorcycle in November 1902. Rover Imperial motorcycle was a 500cc 3.5 horsepower diamond-framed motorcycle with the engine in the center and ‘springer’ front forks, an improvement ahead of its time. This first Rover motorcycle had innovative features such as a spray carburetor, a bottom-bracket engine, and mechanically operated valves. Also contains a strong frame with the double front down tubes and a good quality finish, over a thousand Rover motorcycles were sold in 1904.
Rover originally started creating bicycles in 1896, then started making motorcycles in 1902, before switching to regular automobile production in 1924. Rover produced more than 10,000 motorcycles.