Cycle News

VOL. 55 ISSUE 17 MAY 1, 2018 P111 Racing Gentleman Geoff Over the next five years, Jack Ehret and the Black Lightning were regular fixtures at Australian road race meetings, with the Vincent appearing in both solo and sidecar guise, often in the same day, with Stan Blundell in the chair. Ehret and the Lightning wound up Australian Title points leaders in 1954 ahead of a host of famous names. Undoubtedly its proudest moment as a solo bike came at the much vaunted international meeting at Mount Druitt in February 1955, where 500cc World Champion Geoff Duke, visiting from England, was the star attraction with his works four-cylinder Gilera. Duke had demolished the opposition in his Patrick Godet has been at pans not to destroy the truth of time. "Once Nicolas decid- ed to preserve the bike in its current state, and not restore it—which was 1000 percent the right decision—I wanted to make sure that any new parts I fitted were as least obvious as possible," he says. "But to make it safe to be ridden took quite a lot of work, because the engine parts were very worn, and the crankshaft had been repaired in a funny way. We stripped the bike totally, and rebuilt it using the original spec parts we have manufac- tured using the original Black Lightning fac- tory drawings that we've obtained. But they're all inside where you can't see them, so while the throttle and brake cables may look old, all the internal wires are brand new, to give a smooth action. We've also converted it to running on petrol rather than metha- nol—we have much better fuel available today than they did back then." The crankcases are the original ones, with the main bearings re-sleeved. New pistons, liners, valves, dual valve springs, Mark II Vincent cams, cam follow- ers and oil pump are fitted to the bike. The original parts have all been saved. The original 20-inch rear wheel has been replaced by a 19-incher, as 20-inch racing tires are no longer available. Now shod with a rear Avon GP tire matched to a front 21-inch ribbed Avon Racing tire, the Ehret Vincent tracked well through Carole's infield section, with good grip delivered exiting both of its hairpin bends, which on most race bikes ask for bottom gear. Not the Lightnings, though, thanks to their reserves of torque and the way they break into a gallop very quickly in second gear once you've straightened up. When that happens, you find yourself thundering past the Yamaha YZF-R6 that have out-maneuvered you in the infield section, only to let them fly past you once again when you anchor up early for the next hairpin. The brakes on the Vincent are eas- ily the worst thing about riding it, and you need lots of respect for your braking markers, be- cause there's little held in reserve. Instead, what never works very well to begin with gets progres- sively worse as the pair of tiny 7-inch single leading- shoe drum brakes fitted at each end fade massively. These carry brand-new Godet replica aluminum brake plates rather than the original Lightning magnesium items, which are too fragile to be safe. Probably no single aspect of motorcycle engineer- ing has improved so much in the past 68 years as brakes, and for a 150-mph motorcycle the Vincent's stoppers are definitely on the weak side. The ex-Jack Ehret Vincent Black Lightning is more than just an ultra- desirable collector's item, providing a window on the refined but still raw-edged performance that Philip Vincent's motorcycles de- livered more than 60 years ago. Let's hope its new owner rides and enjoys it, like his predecessor, rather than wrapping it up as the mechanical objet d'art it undoubtedly is. NOTE: Special thanks to Old Bike Australasia editor Jim Scaysbrook for supplying the historical data in this article and the period photos. Next-to-zero brakes on the Vincent are a deterrent, but the motor is the star of the show.

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