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Photo Courtesy Ray Biddle...and Offroad Archives...

The James team at the start of the wet 1954 Scottish Six Days Trial.

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So after writing the page about the later MAR James, perhaps we should now go back to the first success that the James brand of motorcycles had with a trials version just after the second world war. And the winning of a the 1951 Travers Trophy trial by the constructor of this works backed machine Bill Lomas, who not only built and rode the winning James,  but also constructed the other two works trials James J9 machines for the other works riders Bill Thorne and Terry Reid at that time.…Bill also won the Northern Experts trial later that year too...It was noted that the advertising for the James trial bike in 1951 after Bill won the Travers was named the Colonel for that year and the Commando later in 1953...

Photo Courtesy credited later.

This is the Bill Lomas works James J9 at the start of the 1951 Travers trial. (Note: 21"front and 19" rear wheels.)

 (Bill Later was to be just has famous or more so with his road racing escapades on Moto-Guzzi. machines)…

Winning the Travers trial was the first major win for a small two stroke machine in a major National trial and set James up to be the most sort after lightweight trials machine available, and others that were on the band wagon like Sun and Norman brands. That were very similar machines, along with now brother brand after being part of the AMC group Francis Barnett …

Bryan Povey was another of the James works riders after moving from BSA in 1954… The 1954 James works team comprised of three,  and has can be seen from these Ray Biddle photos the team for the SSDT were Bryan Povey, Peter Stirland, who had impressed with the good showing he had while riding his own Francis Barnet the previous year, and 1953 Pinard trophy winner Bill Martin, who was offered the works James at the 1953 motorcycle show by Hugh Viney after the presentation of the prize. The good showing by all three in the SSDT and the galant effort by Bill Martin to finish the trial, after a serious road accident swerving to miss a car, but patching his knee up to conclude the trial got them runner up spot in the team award…

Photo Courtesy Ray Biddle and Offroad Archives...

At the finish of the 1954 Scottish Six Days Trial and the James team getting runner up team place in the trial.

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In 1955 James rider John Houghton won three National trials the Cotswold Cup, the Clayton and the Mitchell Vase...the team made up of John, Jack Simson and Bryan Povey also won the Mitchell Team award...It was noted that Bill Lomas did not figure  in any of the results, but Bill was now fully commited with his road race career and could only ride the James trials bike when there was spare time.  

Moving on to 1957 Bryan Povey won the 

West-of-England trial aboard the little 201cc James and to be followed the year after with another 201cc James winning the trial with local lad Bill Martin.

 So as I say a-lot of young aspiring trials riders of the early fifties now had an alternative of competitive trials machines, that were not so heavy as the majority of the the big capacity four stroke machines.

Photo Courtesy EW Freeman... 

 So we meet a group from my local area and riding for the NOBAC club that all it seems plumped for the lighter two stroke trials machines these were Arthur Vincent, Frank Knight, Ted Freeman, and Barry Chadbourn… Arthur owned a James as did Frank, Ted had a Norman that when he bought the James from Arthur Vincent went to my neighbour Glynn Thomas, the machine I envied and the one that got me into the trials scene…Barry's bike was a Francis Barnett...almost identical to the James...

Photo Courtesy EW Freeman...

Here Ted riding the James J9 in the 1955 Southern National Trial...

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Well after all these years that have gone bye since then, like me Ted wished he had not sold the little James and still had it, well if I remember I cut mine up to use the frame tubing, but still wish I had not now…

The opportunity arose just recently for Ted to fulfil his dream of owning a little James J9 again, and he fulfilled his dream without hesitation…

Photo Courtesy EW Freeman...

We will take a closer look at this little machine later.

Photo Courtesy EW Freeman...

This superb shot of Ted riding the little James shows the 19" rear wheel well, but has I seem to remember the rear hub used on the early Commando J9 models had like this little bike the sprocket on one side and the brake drum on the opposite, and I also remember the sprocket was a pain at coming loose on the bolts even if wired... and the Greeves I had later did just the same thing. 

Photo Courtesy Deryk Wylde Offroad Archives...

Here is a good photo from Deryk's collection of Harry Stanistreet on his little James J9, and you can see that this bike although converted to 18"back rim and tyre, has the "sprocket one side brake drum the other" back hub...

Photos Courtesy EW Freeman...

Clutch cover off ... ? Seeing the clutch cover off reminds me of the trouble I used to have with my James slipping clutch, sometimes you just could not kick start it for clutch slip even using the decompressor...so out came the cork friction plates again and they were dosed with the old Fullers earth again over night to soke out the oil, this always seemed to do the trick, but it was such a common problem with the clutch slip that it got to be a weekly routine...

So what is Fullers Earth,  well it is a volcanic clay that was formed after a volcanic eruption thousands of years ago. it is mainly found in India and America it is some times called Indian clay...the most common of this is Calcium Bentonite... so why Fullers Earth? well a Fuller was a person that worked on sheeps wool, beating, treading {trampling), stretching wool covered with the powdered clay to extract all of the lanalin from the wool ready for weaving or making into felt...Remember the Duffle coats well these were made with this... Interestig hey... and More. later.

Love the rubber Dunlop Saddles...

Four speed Albion gearbox fitted that was on the extra list at the time of sale when new ...

Fitted with the original toolbox too...

Photo Courtesy Bonhams Auctioneers...

Here is the brother bike to James, the Francis Barnett Falcon trials of 1952-4 the model that Barry Chadbourne had, you can see not very much differance to the James J9 apart from the rear brake hub, I think this is what is fitted into Ted's little James...Arthur Shutt rode one of these Falcons to victory in the famous Scott trial, and  George Fisher made his name on the little Francis Barnett bikes.

So More later ...Home James...