Pre World War II OEC 1000 OHV JAP to be Auctioned Soon

An Osborn Engineering Company OHV JAP motorcycle is as classic as it gets, and you could win this pre World War II edition

Member for

54 years 8 months

Robert Jones

02 Oct 2024

Osborn Engineering Company (OEC) is a British brand that was founded all the way back in 1915 and has some impressive exploits to its name.

As well as this extremely retro 1938 OEC 1000 OHV (Overhead Valve) JAP (J.A. Prestwich) bike, which is a 998cc with a V-twin engine, JAP was a Hampshire-based brand, and best known for breaking the land speed record in the 1930s with a supercharged 1000cc powered motorcycle.

OEC then went on to produce a road version of its record-breaking machine, using a normally aspirated JAP V-Twin engine. The bike that officially broke that record in 1930 was ridden by Joe Wright, but previous records were also set in the 1920s.

After the record in 1930, which was set in Ireland, the motorcycle was dismantled with parts from the bike serving as the basis for other world record motorcycles.

In terms of this bike being auctioned by Iconic Auctioneers in Birmingham on Sunday 10 November, only four examples were made for the Road Research Laboratory and used to test friction surfaces on British roads. This particular model was newly registered in 1938 as EUC 23 and it still remains the reg number for this bike.

This OEC 1000 OHV JAP was initially constructed with a sidecar that included a ‘skidding wheel’ to evaluate road surfaces. The bike was retired from the Ministry of Transport in the 1960s. The original engine in this motorcycle has been removed and was fitted into a Brough Superior SS100.

The bike was bought in 1966 by Mr David Blanchard who kept it for another 45 years until his passing in 2011. Since then it has undergone a preservation rebuild including the fitting of a correct JTO 1,000cc V-Twin JAP engine. It’s also been rebuilt to resemble an earlier style 1931 OEC 'Flying Squad' model.