Beschreibung:

John Marston's Sunbeam motorcycle venture dated from 1912. Marston was a late-comer to the industry due to the great man's unwillingness to launch a two-wheeler started by 'run and jump'. As the maker of the finest pedal cycle ever made, he was determined that his motorcycles would have the same reputation. Starting with a gentlemanly 2¾hp, and followed by a v-twin in 1913, both machines, like all Sunbeams up to the 1930s, were tested and proven in competition. Proprietary engines were used on all Sunbeam v-Twin models until 1923 when the small production was deemed uneconomical. The engines encompassed JAP, AKD and MAG, all reputedly checked against Sunbeam's standards of manufacture before being installed. The v-twins served with distinction in World War 1, but faded away post-war as the market for expensive sidecar combinations declined. This JAP-engined Sunbeam v-twin is stated to have been first registered in Germany in 1924, although the listed frame number appears to be that of a 1916 'Russian Army Model' originally equipped with the MAG '2C 1X' unit. The equipment appears to be Great War, although the fitted JAP engine is possibly from the 1930s, making for a Sunbeam machine in the spirit of the original. Considering a MAG engine from the World War 1 period is not impossible to find, this machine, along with verification of the frame's identity, could easily become the second known survivor of the Great War 'Russian Army' Sunbeams. German Registration papers are included with this machine.