The unloved PART ONE
Dandy and Beagle…
Ken Powell is a welder from the Isle of Wight and the Other Island seems a suitably eccentric time-warp for his extensive collection of old and unusual motorcycles.
It doesn’t hurt that Ken, as well as a skilled, inventive mechanic, is a witty guy who doesn’t take himself or the bikes too seriously.
From them we selected four flyweights that exemplified BSA’s repeated failure to succeed in this profitable sector. Our four riders were your correspondent, Ken himself, Dave Richmond (once the rally columnist on Motor Cycling Weekly) and his pal Derk Bruinsma, an expert engineer. What none of us expected was how much fun it would be!
1959 BSA Dandy
What was it?
The 70cc Dandy ‘scooterette’ was originally laid out by Bert Hopwood, before he left BSA in 1955. It was a unit construction, 45x44mm two-stroke single, riding on 15in wheels. It included the scooter virtues of weather protection, some concealed mechanicals –
